Oldest Formula on OSO
 

I've often wondered about this.

I don't think mine is ..but it's bound to be in the top 10 at 34 years old.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R526BfFVXbE So bring those pics out guys...even those that are gone but not forgotten memories from your family boating archives.

looks really clean!!!!

<---------79 here too. Gotta be a few older than ours.

'Nother '79 (233 interceptor bbc trs.)

wasnt their a guy here with a older turbine race boat?

My Dad bought his 1978 20CL new and still runs it today. Mine is a little newer and hope lasts just as long!

http://www.offshoreonly.com/forums/f...la-family.html

I love it!!...especially the F-20CL!!

I would love to see some detailed pics of that one...it could be a write up all by it's self!!

The fact that it's an original 330 TRS is amazing. I did some work years ago for John and Bob Ellis...former owners of Hi Lift Marine in North Miami Beach at the end of famous NE 188th Street. They were a Formula dealer for many years and with the Miami Plant being a ten minute drive down US-1 they used to get some custom rigs built occasionally. I had one of the few 272 LS boats with 320 EFI's and Alpha SS drives. The 255 Liberators like mine came with twin 330 TRS's as an option but Hi Lift delivered several that had twin 420 horse Cyclones with #1 Speed Master TRS's. Formula wouldn't install that power at the factory due to insurance liability issues and the boat wasn't BIA certified with that power. The boats were shipped w/o engines and drives to Hi Lift and the power was drop shipped from Mercury Racing. Hi Lift rigged a few and some went around the corner to Cigarette or Magnum on NE 188th for rigging. These 255's with twin 420's were allegedly good for 85+ and would cruise at 65 with 2000# of "cargo". Back in the '70's and '80's NE 188th and Hi Lift were the "skunk" works for Formula and if you had the $$$$ you could arrange to get just about any thing you wanted.

I even heard of a few F-233 Center Console boats being fitted with twin 350 horse DOHC 292 GMC inline 6's/TRS with both engines and transmissions below the console and jack shafts running to the TRS drives....talk about the "Ultimate" 233 "sleeper"!!! Those "Hot Rod" 292's were an option on the Bertram Barron and occasionally a pair will surface here in SE Florida. I saw a pair at Daddy'O's marine in Pompano last year that had come from Tommy Hoffstetter at Chief. Tommy gets all kind of cool stuff from time to time...you never know what you will see in his shop!!

The reason I mention this is that your Dads's F-20CL with a 330/TRS may have been one of these special orders....extremely RARE indeed!! His boat is not unlike some of the exotic 427 and 454 Camaros and Novas that came thru Chevrolet's Central Office Production Order (COPO) back in the '60's and '70's.

Try to get some pics of that set up and post them....that kind of history needs to be shared.

I still have an 82 302 running and going

My 302 is a 79. I think Biggus on the board has an older 20?

Very cool stories about those Hi Lift Formula's! Definitely high performance back in those days.

My Dad ordered the 20CL through a Formula dealer at LOTO in 1978. I believe it was Pier 31(?). I don't know all the details, but I recall he talked directly with the Porter's at Formula about building it with a raised X dimension for running a cleaver prop.

I was 12 years old when we picked the boat up at LOTO. I remember the salesman took us all out for a ride. When he first came off plane he slowed down too quick and the wake came pouring over the transom. I understand this is the reason Formula would not make another 20 footer with the big block/TRS combo.

I don't have many digital pics of this boat and will have to track down some at my Dad's and have them scanned. Here is a post on this boat from 2005: http://www.offshoreonly.com/forums/f...e-formula.html

I understand about the added weight of the 330 TRS. My 255 has a 25 Gallon water Tank in the nose that is used for ballast and balance. I don't think it's as much of an issue on 255's because twin Big blocks were an option originally. I know that the Miami plant had a similar issue with some of the early 242 SS and SF boats with single Big Blocks using Alpha drives. They didn't make many because the Alpha's didn't fair well with the Big Blocks and the added weight put the self bailing scuppers that early 242 SF ans SS models had below the waterline. I have seen a few of these modified to use big blocks with Bravo I drives by adding ballast in the nose to balance the weight a bit better as well as raising the self bailing scuppers a bit higher in the transom.

One thing you may want to consider in the future with your Dad's boat would be a Bravo I conversion. The weight savings would be significant because you would no longer need the TRS transmission in the bilge. I believe the old Merc Trans weighed about 180#s so getting that out of the equation would make a heck of a difference.

I have talked to other Formula owners that have done some interesting power upgrades since I got into mine. The newer Vortec Small Blocks and especially the LS motors have changed the game along with Bravo Drives in re-powering the older classic Formulas.

I recently saw a 78 F-26 in Miami that had been thru a restoration and re-power using twin 550 horse LSA marine small blocks and Bravo XR Drives. If you are familiar with the F-26 you know it is a 9500# beast of a cruiser with a 10' beam...one of the best riding offshore boats ever made for it's size...but at nearly 5 tons it's no speed boat...until you put 1100 horsepower behind it!!! LOL his F-26 has a generator and A/C and will cruise 50-55 all day with a top end of 80 MPH!!!

[IMG]http://i705.photobucket.com/albums/w...psf317776f.jpg[/IMG]


Talk about a "SLEEPER"...tell your Dad about that one. The owner is from Germany and put the boat together there and brought it here. He says he has a blast on rough days in the ocean running next to 35' Fountains and Scarabs running 65-70 MPH with thru prop exhaust and no noise!!! he has been followed back to his dock in Coral Gables several times by amazed "Go Fast" guys that can't believe it!! The secret leaks out when they get a closer look and see twin Bravo XR's and huge K Planes hanging off the transom!!

1977 Thunderbird F-26
 

Here's my tough "Old Bird"
Twin 454, from the factory.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]515346[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]515347[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]515348[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]515349[/ATTACH]

WOW!! Thanks for sharing this one!!!

Whenever I start one of these threads I am always amazed at some of the responses I get and yours is one of the special ones. I knew that twin 454/tRS's were an option on the F-26 but I have never seen one until now. You must know that you have a rare boat with that power option...most came with twin 260 horse SBC's with Pre Alpha MR-I drives.

I had a boating friend in Miami that had a 77 F-26 with twin 260's at the same time I had my little F-18 with the 302/188 MR-I drive. I spent a lot of time on his F-26 and must say that is the boat that made me fall in love with Formulas. The first one I ever saw was a yellow one at the Dinner Key Summer Boat show in 1976 and I was smitten!!

So how does your boat perform with the BBC power? Do you have any pics of the bilge? Please post if you do...and thanks for sharing!!

i had a ´79 255L too. With twin 260 and pre Alpha. Some Edelbrock application, but not very fast :angry-smiley-044: only about 50mls.... A very stable boat in the rough!!

Do you have any old photos of your 255? I am specifically interested in the Cockpit at the rear.

the boat was refreshed in ´06. There is not so much original interieur. How can i upload pictures from my computer? I should use an URL?!?

Its easier if you open a free account at photobucket.com and attacxh the url from there.

Ok, that was my old ´79 255L
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e1...pse2edf6f1.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e1...ps792eda31.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e1...ps86e1df5c.jpg

cockpit.....


http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e1...psbd3eb6b9.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e1...ps62a11fbb.jpg

Different but tasteful. Thanks for sharing.

That would be.......................... "axapowell"

Here is a 1958 Formula Thunderbird

Grant Porter should buy that one, restore it and put it in the Formula Headquarters showroom.