found 1989 Cafe Racer
 

Hi everyone, I recently found an abandoned 1989 cafe racer that has been lying in a warehouse for 15 years. I would love to get some additional info on the cig in order to make a decision as to buy it or not. what are the tell tale signs of hull conditions, besides stringers and fuel tanks? what materials were used in this type of fabrication (any wood involved?). If the boat is in ok shape, I plan on restoring the hull and putting in 2 502 engines rated at 550ish each with 0 hours I have been building for my Formula 311. will this power be enough to make the cafe racer hit 70mph?

Any advice as to what to look for in the boat when purchasing and most common problems or flaws with this type of hull would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks:coolcowboy:

Got any pics? I'm not a surveyor but I do know they did use wood in them. However, so did pretty much everyone back in the day. If you don't think you will pick it up, how's about posting it up here for someone to check out. If the boat's been in a warehouse for 15 years, it should be in better than average condition, but I would get a survey done.

Cigarettes in those years were heavy, wave crushing machines. Because of this, they required alot of power to get high speeds. I would think 550hp a side would get you between 70 and 73 with proper prop selection.

IMHO, you can't go wrong with a Cig!

Here's the pic of the boat in the warehouse. any idea how i can get any info on this particuar hull? It is located in Panama, the country. thnx

I bet that boat has a history! You can get the hull ID number off the transom for starters. That will give you some info to start searching. With the hawk on the side, it probably came with hot engines from the factory, especially if it has speedmaster drives.

According to a 1988 brochure I have, if it had 330's, 370's, or 420's it came with TRS drives. If it had hawk motors, it came with speedmasters. However, Cigs have always been true custom boats, so someone could order one with any engine/drive combo.

Thanks for the info hollowpoint. i will get the s/n off the transome and update

Is that boat posted the the Cafe thread?

Go the s/n off the transome, and some pictures of the drives. Can anyone tell me if they are bravos or others? I know they arent trs.

is there anyway to pull up the boats history with the s/n?

Looks like whipped bravos with nose cones :(

I "think" they are bravos.

The tanks are aluminum, there is definitely wood in the Transom and Stringers. If you are worried about moisture you can get a meter to test it. The only "problem" area in cafes were a few instances where the hole drilled for the K-Planes went into the stringer and could possibly cause water to get in and cause some moisture problems. I think it was some of the earlier ones.

550hp should put you in the low 70's with a set of 4 blade 26's.

In considering an offer Do NOT underestimate what it will cost to refresh drives, add hydraulic steering, reupholster the cabin and cockpit, update the helms/guages, etc... to make in to the boat you are envisioning.

need a swim platform.... any recomendations??

i bought this boat tday, in one of the ghetto areas of panama city, panama, for $5K, and have fresh 502's waiting to go in, so i really dont think it will cost that much to have it running nice in the meantime. this boat was reposesed and has been lying on land for 16 yrs, got the legal paperwork and all.. took my paint and bodywork guy and inspected all the bildges and storage areas, transome, etc for moisture or rotten glass or wood, none to be found. the only thing is a missing bottom part of the passenger bolster, swim platform, radio, etc. 1 in a million find

cant you get us some more pics of the boat I would like to see what the engines look like

if you want to double your money i will give you twice what you paid for it lol..

Wow, what a find! Congratulations! Randy

By the pics it looks to be one of the HAWK cafe's ,,,1988/89 had i think 600's with bravos !!!!!

Damn good find and lots of history !!!!!

:ernaehrung004:

Congrats! You will love it! Looks like a great find!

Very Nice, lets see some more pics.

Great job! ANY hidden compartments?

Was it general noriegas personal fishing vessel in the old days?

Okay how did you find it? And how do you pla on getting it home?

found it thanks to my mechanich who knew about it. not a big market in panama for cigarettes, and i dont plan on moving it far, my marina is 3 miles away and i plan on restoring it there.

Nice find can not wait to see more pics, I bet that boat has some history.

and you may not want to ask too many questions!
;)

:waffen093:

Congrats and keep us updated !

Yeah it probably does have history, like the other cafe racer in my marina called Panama Hawk. Is there any way I can find out some more about the boat with the S/N off the transom?

Here are some pics of the 502 engines being rebuilt. New wiseco pistons, manley valves, etc should crank out around 550 to 600. they used t be 504 hp.

Once agiain. GREAT FIND!! I know you will enjoy her when you get her running.

Wow that was a deal!

Post more pics......Definately look like Bravo drives, which is good. No trannys to rebuild! What a steel.

few more pics of the Cafe Racer in "as-is" condition. Hopefully will start cleaning her up on monday. Original engines had 320 hours on them.

What a great deal, you will love it after you get it like you want.

bravos with cones for shore... good deal.

Got the boat out of the ghetto and into the marina. washed and covered. tomorrow the fun begins...

Sure looks sweet.

Yeah, I like the way that boat looks too. If mine looked like that originally, I might not have painted it.

502's just finishing build and paint. also, the engines that came with the cig, hunk of junk

I think I messed up.. finished building the engines, turns out the compression is 12:1, very high, no dyno in panama so compresion is all i gots to go by. the engine started up nice and quickly in a sec, on aviation gas. pump gas here is 95 but still a bit heavy for 12:1.. any suggestions (besides opening the engine again)?

yep but keep in mind if those are the original drives they are first generation Bravos and do not have the provisions for the internal drive reservoir bottle, they only made them for a few years. If they need a bunch of work it may be better to get a set of later ones.

Great find though! :cool:

i wish i could find a deal like that!

Very nice !
 

Nice finf ! keep us posted

You can mix the gas to get a good running fuel-Vern