TOPIC: 1966 Sea Hunter - need some advice!!

Well, I just inherited my grandfathers 1966 18' Sea Hunter Cuddy Cabin built in Gardena CA. Out side of that, I really dont know much, other than I think she is a beauty. I am not the only one. I have had the boat on the water several times and it seems that where ever I take her, people seem to appreciate how well kept she is, and she has some really cool lines about her as well.

I am very tempted to dig a little deeper than I had originally wanted to. about 7 or 8 years ago she received a new floor, and the interior of the boat does not need a lot of work. However the cuddy needs some attention, as does the exterior of the hull. she has some smaller nicks and dings here and there, and the gel coat has faded badly. She is also suffering from what looks like fish scales along the side(I believe this has been caused by the trailer side bunks being left against the side of the boat wet, and rubbing, and a fairly minor crack in the gel coat at the starboard corner on the transom.

The Merc 950SS Runs like a champ, and I am going to leave it well enough alone other than replacing some wiring, and rebuilding the carbs and fuel pump, as well as some other minor maint. I do however want to find new decals for the motor cowling and the control so I can replace them after having the paint redone.

Anyone with any knowledge of these boats, or thoughts on this project? Also can any one point me in the direction of posts with info on repairing the transom, or wiring info?

another pic

another pic

Smitty,

WELCOME ABOARD.
NEAT boat, too.

yours, satx

Good looking boat with cool history behind it Smitty, and a welcome aboard here too. There are several good articles on gel coat restoration in the Research/Restoration section here;
www.fiberglassics.com/restoration/
For Merc decals, I believe Peter at www.nymarine.ca/ is considered top shelf, sometimes ebay or other local dealers have NOS stuff available, I'm sure someone will chime in here if so. (We do have several members with vast knowledge and considerable resources available for the "black stacks"!)
Looking forward to seeing and hearing more about your project as it comes along, don't be afraid to ask questions as you go along. It sometimes takes a day or two to get all the responses in, but there's a great bunch of folks here always willing and ready to lend a hand.

Mark, Thanks for the welcome, and the advise. Another thing I should have mentioned is that I am having a hard time finding a rotor for my motor....hey that rhymed.... It is a 66 950SS. I know that it will be hard to find, but does anyone know of any NOS out there for cap and rotor's????

Smitty welcome aboard and nice boat!!!!!!!!!!!! HAve you tried marineengine.com? If you know the part number punch it in. If not put in the serial number form the motor and see what comes up, they have parts catalogs for the motors. I've used them a lot for my Evinrudes. NAPA carries some also, they'll probably be Sierra parts but they're fine. At least I haven't had any problems wwth them anyway. POst separate thread in the Merc forum in this site. Lot's of Merc expertise.

Bob