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Motor size for an 18 ft lapsrake runabout

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georgel

Member
I have recently acquired an 18

I have recently acquired an 18 ft Chetek Glued plywood lapstrake runabout. Built in the early 60's. In looking at what I can find of the history of the Chetek boat co. It seems they built for Montgomery ward. Does anyone know what size motor would have been appropriate? If Wards sold the boat and motor as a package knowing the HP Could be a guide. ??
Georgel
 
"WOW - Never seen an 18 footer

"WOW - Never seen an 18 footer before. Back in the 60's my uncle had a 14' or 15' lapstrake with a Johnson 35, which seemed to push it around pretty well, if that is any help. What is the beam? Weight?"
 
"very nice looking unit,boat a

"very nice looking unit,boat and engine,havent seen anything like it in a long time."
 
"I have read somewhere in an o

"I have read somewhere in an older boat mag article about sizing engines considering boat weight and the surface area on plane and waterline dimensions. Meanwhile, I really appreciate seeing older boats like these. Brings back memories and you can help liking the Classical boat styles. My pride one year was restoring a 1967 Starcraft. Happy Boating
This 17' fiberglas was rated for max 6 person @ 150; and 100HP.

!
295254.jpg
"
 
"George, can't help you wi

"George, can't help you with your particular model, but can give you some info on a Peterborough (Laminated Mahogany/Plywood) 16' footer.

It came with a 40 horse Gale (which is still in my basement - the boat didn't survive unfortunately).

The next model up which was a 17 or 18 footer (can't remember so well, that was back in the 60's afterall), came with a 60 horse Gale (a HUGE motor back in those days)....

Now if your boat was sold by Wards and they did package it with one of their "store brand engines", it would have possibly come with either a 35 or 60 horse motor, which were the two largest horsepower engines sold under their Sea King brand (and both happen to have been built by Gale)..."
 
Thanks guys. The CG calculator

Thanks guys. The CG calculator is Pretty interesting. I am planning to use a 4 cycle 4 cyl.Homelite /Bearcat / [Crosley] Which is rated at 55 HP at 5500 rpm. Also a heavy engine. 238#. currently I am upgrading the ignition and plan to rebuild the carbs. I am hoping the boat will plane with that engine. However If it doesn't I can live with it. I also have a 67 20hp Johnson. which needs work. That one will certainly not plane the boat. But will drive it at hull speed. If the Homelite doesn't work out.
Georgel
 
"I remember those days and bud

"I remember those days and buddy had one of the 17' lapstrake models (Cruisers, I believe). He had a 60hp Mercury outboard, which was probably the largest outboard available the year his boat was purchased. The 90hp Mercury came out in 1965 and I bought one then.

I doubt the transom was built to handle more than about 60 to 70 hp, unless cut wide enough for twins. Those vessels were quite heavy compared to aluminum common at the time, and fiberglass which was just starting to get popular."
 
"The PO put a 115 HP mercury o

"The PO put a 115 HP mercury on it. took it out on Lake Washington. [Seattle] and couldn't get it on plane. He had already spent a lot of money on it. He was so disappointed he parked it under cover for 40 years and never used it again. His son sold it to me. It is in near perfect condition. But I didn't want the engine which was being sold separately. I suspect that the engine was just too heavy. So I plan to put fuel, water, batteries etc. in the bow to help with trim. She may require trim tabs. It all remains to be seen. I looked at a Thompson at the Port Townsend wooden boat festival in September. It had a cuddy so is a bit heavier. It had been converted to an IO and had trim tabs. The guy had been restoring it for years and was really proud of her. And she is very pretty."
 
"Can't help much on exact

"Can't help much on exact hp, but as someone has
suggested, i wouldn't go beyond whatever was the max hp produced in same time period.i was in the boat business in the early 60's and i do know that when you overpowered some of the plywood boats built then, you would actually put a hook in the bottom and they didn' perform well at all
i,e, would not plane out.we learned this the hard way when merc came out w/ the 6 cyl mark 78"
 
Thanks for the post. I believe

Thanks for the post. I believe that is what happened to the PO. HE put a 115hp merc on it and it wouldn't plane. His son mentioned a hook in the bottom just forward of the transom. He thought that if it were faired out the boat might perform bettor. So your information is relevant. I have yet to use the boat but I will take a closer look at the bottom. I could not see much of a hook when he talked about the problem. If it is there I will feel it when repainting the boat.
 
"I don't believe you will

"I don't believe you will be able to see the hook,
because it increases as more power is applied.
then appears straight when not under power. but keep in mind the quality of plywood boats those days. we found this, after many frustrating hrs of trying to figure what our problem was, remember there was no power trim in those days.
we had rigged a 14' boat w/ a mark 78 [60hp]
merc, after about a week of frustration,we had the
opportunity to rig the same boat w/ a mark 58
and it performed flawlessly. only after that did the boat manuf admit what was wrong."
 
I have no problem with the DF

I have no problem with the DF plywood of the era. Some of the current chinese stuff is apparently junk. But I do appreciate that The construction may not stand up to overpowering. And thank you for sharing you knowledge. I may have to reinforce the hull but I won.t know till I get a working engine on her.
 
I had an early 60's Thomps

I had an early 60's Thompson Brothers 17.5 ft that was not too heavy.....maybe about 500 to 600 lbs without motor of course. I never weighed it but I took it off the trailer and moved it around with help from one man. It had always been stored inside so it was nice and dry. The 75 hp Evinrude V4 performed brilliantly. I sold it to a fellow that restored it down in southern MN. It truely is a beautiful boat. It turns heads whether it is on the water or on the trailer.}
 
"Hi, I'll look and see wha

"Hi, I'll look and see what I have on it. My ex wife really messed up the photo library. I sold it back in 1996. It is screwed together.....all brass of course. Each mahoganey lap has screws about every 4 to 5 inch as I remember. Just beautiful! The hull shape is similar to yours, beautiful boats."
 
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