89 Panther here we go
 

call me crazy or whatever but I feel like I just picked up a beaten puppy from the pound or some test lab where they used garden tools to operate. This boat is very rough and needs alot. The original owner converted it to a single and used popsicle sticks and wood screws along with bubble gum to put it together.
but I picked it up for the right price and I fell in love with the lines. I am a big scarab fan my favorites are the kv's and the panthers.
I started to work on the boat the last two weeks to disassemble the transome and all of the rigging. I am almost done removing the transome it was rotted everywhere it was messed with. I found out that when the boat had twins someone had raised the X unfortunately that put more holes in the transome. Belive it or not the stringers are dry and in good shape but the bulkhead at the tank is alittle wet and has to come out.
I realy do want to bring this old classic scarab back to life and would appreciate any suggestions you all have. I most likely will need some help with finding parts and some measurements. like drive hights and the center stringer and motor mounts withs and hieghts.
------------
Keith

Sell it now.

You will bury yourself in cost trying to get her back in the water and in the end you will take a minimum of a $10k loss on it. Way to many running boats out there that you can buy cheap.

I hear what your saying but I don't want to pay way more for motors that have to be rebuilt, paint I dont like, rotted transom that most cheap boats have, interior that needs replaced or someone elses idea of whats cool.
I do all the work myself I don't intend to sell or buy an over priced new boat. It's not my first boat that I have rebuilt and I would rather loose 10 grand on this one then 60 thousand on a new one.
To me it's not just about riding in it it's the challenge of building it and I guarantee that at the dock I will be more proud of the $25000.00 boat that I built then the $150,000.00 boat that the next guy wrote a check for.
It's just the way I look at it

Nothing wrong with that. Good luck with it and your right. Great lines. :cool:

Good luck to you sir! Keep us posted on your progress, as a 38KV owner I will be watching ya!

thanks there is a guy up here in Cleveland that has a miami vice kv what a awesome boat. I wish I could find some raised hatches like the ones that came on the kv and the older panthers. I might have to make them

Can you get some pics of the Vice 38KV ?

prob. not until spring I don't know who or if the guy still has it. It has been a couple of years since I have seen it. We don't go down town much anymore they closed all the bars with docks down there. Next year I will look for it he was always there at Shooters. cool boat and got alot of attention.

WOW! you were not kidding when you said you had a project. Did you ever get any info from the owner on the performance with the single? What power was in it? Was that boat out Jacksonville?
Good luck and pics of the whole restore please,
Jason

Yeah it's the boat out of Jacksonville. He said with a 750 hp it went 71mph and with a 450 hp 496ci it went 58 mph. I realy can't belive the boat even floated plus I never seen a 750hp with stock exhaust. Thats what he said he always ran so you tell me.
I knew what i was getting when I bought the boat and I am still happy with what it is. There has been no surprises yet I knew I had to do the transom and some stringer work but it came with alot of parts and I like the boat.
I am picking up the marine plywood and epoxy resin today and should start installing next week.

I was talking to a friend that has some pics of that boat. The name was the Lady Vice. As soon as he gives them to me I will post them. But it has been a few years since he has seen it. It was kept at the comadores club in cleveland but even that place was torn down 2 years ago.I think.

Good luck on your project! Trust me I can relate:coolcowboy:

Thanks I just read most of your post. You did a great job I think it looks awesome.
Hey where did you get the switch panels or did you make them?

Eddie marine for the switch panels- Scott

Well I should have named this the project from hell but scottie 150 already claimed it.
I was wrong when I said the stringers were dry I tore out the bulk head in the rear I found the stringers that run next to the tank were rotted. I know I posted that the stringers were good but that was where I could get to them. So now I have removed the tank and started to remove most of the floor so I can check out the rest of the boat.
I don't see any way to remove the inner liner with out removing the deck so In the cockpit area I am replacing the floor and bonding it to the liner. now in the cabin the bulk head under the helm is wet but not rotted and I plan to replace it also. I plan on removing the the floor and the what I call tub in the cabin all the way up to the bulk head in the mid cabin so I can replace the stringers that run either side of the walkway in the cabin.
Now I spent some time with a small angle drill and the outside stringers in the cabin and the foreward bulkhead are dry and all but one foot by the helm bulkhead the inner stringers are as dry as can be.
I have question for you experts? I measured the cockpit area stringers and they measure more then eight feet long and only 1/2 thick plywood how do I replace them without having a joint in the plywood? and if there is a joint there is it ok to only replace whats bad on the inside stringers in the cabin that only have 1 or 2 foot that are bad? or should I just replace the whole stringer?
now for the good news the tank does not leak even under pressure. And with all the conversation about blue printing the bottom I checked mine with a streight edge and it is as streight as can be. Along time ago someone took some time and did some work on this boat and it probably was pretty fast. With the drives raised 3" and the bottom reworked and holes cut for blowers in the hatches seems it might have ran pretty good.

do you have any updates

Bump, we want an update

Go for it!! Take your time, do it right and it will be a boat that you will want to keep for a long time.
I'm actually starting to look for a "project" myself. A Panther would work for me.

That's what I am hoping for
I had to take some time off the boat a job change and had to move the boat to another place to work on it.
I'm staring to work on it again and can't wait to start glassing it back together. I have most of the wood and glass to get started.
I went with epoxy resin from us composites and all marine plywood 2- 3/4 sheets for the transome and 2- 1/2 sheets laminated for all the stringers and bulk heads.
here is some pics. when I stopped working on it.

I will post more pics. soon.
the goal this summer is to do all the glass work, blue print the hull and gel the whole boat.
( like the song says high hopes) ha ha.
I don't know if I am crazy or just stupid but When I get the time I am haveing fun doing this project other then the itch.

I kow im moving slow but I have had some time to do some work the last few days.
I finished grinding the transome out an mixed some epoxy and cabisil filled in all the uneven spots and any voids. then I ground them flat.
i used a trick that I learned on here to make a template out of paint sticks and a glue gun it worked great.

I then cut out the plywood and laminated it togather with one layer of 1708 and drywall screws . Then I trimed the edges and rounded the inside corners against the original glass.
Waited until today to remove the screws and fill the holes with epoxy and cabosil.
Then layed in a layer of 1708 and clamped it all together with 2x4 clamps and and bolts and filled the edges with cabosil and epoxy.

Thanks for the update, I was just going to pull this thread back TTT. :)

back at it again today I pulled the bracing off then I soaked some dowel rods in epoxy and installed them in the bolt holes.
Then ground them and every thing else that needed it.
covered the inside with a layer of 1708 and two layers of 750 and tabbed it all in.

now I am turning my attention to the mid bulkhead.
pretty ugly don't you think?

79 scarab 300
 

Good Luck. Have you decided what to power it with, I wrote you about the 383 s. Mine are ready, just have to get it in the water. Hope to have some info soon.

good luck with that please let me know how it runs
Im leaning towards 540 dart blocks with 308 dart iron heads
single carbs. big cubes kinda mild build.

how much weight do you think you will have back there ?

I dont really know but the boat came with big blocks and bravos from the factory

Nice job. Enjoying this as much as Scott's thread.
Were you ever able to find those pics of the Vice KV?

thanks but Im haveing a hard time getting my friend to get them for me but i'll keep trying

Randy (jetjock) and I have been try'n to put tabs on as many as we can.

I found another MV 38KV out in Texas-still trying to contact the guy...

Been running mine all over the place, I still love her lines...jsut a CLASSIC!


Anyone find me a Polo that has the 38KV on it?

I have one.......and no :D

How about COPYING it for me?





....Christmas is right around the corner

Think I made a scan of it. Let me dig.
Now...where did I put my Red suit??

Nice work on a real classic. If you need any help with a nice job on a custom interior for it, you should give us a call. We are located not far away in Bucyrus Ohio, and we could have some real fun with this project. Here is a couple before & after pic's on a 22 Scarab that the customer said "just surprise me"......

The Panther logo would look even better!

We did all the Baja interiors when they were located in Bucyrus, and now we do the new Checkmate's, and Airship Rib's in Vermilion Oh.

XT

wow nice work we should hook up. I plan on making custom raised hatches but I want take the bolsters and make them simular to the ones like powerplay's with the outside arm rests that have built in throttles and cup holders or something like that. I also have to make a custom back seat with very heavy padding and a rap around look. I found a panther tatoo that I like and want to use on the sides of the boat b ut maybe we could come up with some way to use it on the interior.

Do you have the Panther logo?? If not I created it in a usable .dwg file if you need it. :eek:
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e3...e/Panther1.jpg

Scarab Panther
 

I have noticed that you redoing a panther I have a pair of 420hp, transmissions and trs drives that I will be selling soon if you are interested let me know [email protected]