Potential Skater 28 flat deck build.
 

Hey guys, after seeing how my build turned out I was thinking about what other boats would be interesting and has anybody ever come close to pulling the trigger.
Being an outboard guy I fell to that category quick. I thought It would be a one of a kind to build a Skater 28 foot flat deck and also widen the hull 8, 10, or 12 inches. Beam could be as wide as 9'4". They could put a widened cockpit in it with a dash set up similar to mine. My dash set up might even fit as is. Nice tall thick windscreen. Just imagining it in my head brings an awesome picture to mind. I know it would get a bit pricey and the 28s and 30 outboards are kind of entry level and most people get to a level of money and think why not just step up to the next size or I/Os. I love the 28s and they are fast as hell. Im Talkin about if it was your committed desire to build one badass 28. would be so awesome. Dale's 28 ran 120 with some Dialing in for sure. So if this fairy tale boat ran 115mph it would Totally Groovy Man. Just wishing. Steve.

Noli posted this pic not to long ago. Someone is already widening a 28 Skater. This is a flat deck race hull. Should be quick. Skater Jim has been clocked as high as 127 mph with 300x motors I believe, with a standard 28 hull. Sounds like a fun project

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Hey flight, Looks more like a classic hull. Same as a 30Classic deck with rub rail. Looks very cool for sure.

Flat deck, twin canopy, race. This is the type being widened above.

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Classic deck. 1992-Now

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Flat deck, twin canopy,race, added flotation starboard.

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I was planning to do a conversion of the old 28 race skater of lightspeed into a wrap arround windshield flatdeck , the deck was allready flat on that one but after put all work and cost on a row I turned in a other way as its a very big job specialy whit the kevlar involved .
but it should be a ultimade boat not to big ,easy to tow and fast like hell .

I cant wait to see your boat in Miami Nasty ! What a beauty ,will you be there as well ?

Hey Bor, I will be passing thru on my way to Key West with my girlfriend. She hasn't seen the boat yet. May hang around for an hour or so but then back on the road south to The SouthernMost Hotel on the Beach. Love it there.

Hey Flight, Love that boat but don't believe its a flat deck. Im talking about the cut down hull with a rap around windshield. There are no rub rails on that model and the deck has no lines or raised areas at all.

I don't believe Skater ever built a 28 without a rub rail. What you have seen is owner deleted, and filled. The two versions I have posted are the only factory models I am aware of. I'm near positive Skater never put a wrap windshield on a 28. That too is owner modded.

Here's a different angle of the flat deck, canopy, race. Like the one being widened.

Yea I have never seen one without the rub rail. If it has a rub rail it is most likely not considered a flat deck. All the decks on these boats are kind of flat. On top of wondering whether anybody has built one and I don't think they have I was wondering what peoples thoughts were on the subject or if they came close to going in that direction. The flat decks have the sides built up and then cut down farther toward the front. The deck is custom made after that. The classic deck in your pics have the deck molded I believe and generally don't have windshields unless someone did an aftermarket set up. The deck is attached to the hull at the rub rail I believe. Could be wrong on where its attached. The 30 Classic Skater deck and the 28 Skater above have a similar deck other than size of course. I can see what you mean about it being flat. Does not have that raised are in the middle but I was thinking more along the lines of the new flat decks They are producing now. I love the pics of the widened 28. looks cool. Any idea how much it was widened.

I only know of two with rub rail delete and fill, and "nice pair" is building one now. There may be more. It's a great look.

White "DBRjoe" Blue "Erik"

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Thanx Great look, I don't have it on mine now and I'm worried about dinging up Paint job. All my others before this one have had them and that was tough keeping it in good shape. Yikes.

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there's a nice 28 that someone could make into a flat deck w/ windshield I think in OSO classifieds



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Nasty, I looked into it before I bought my 28... Really spendy, with no gain in anything from what I could conclude! But COOL!!!!

I just keep picturing it in my head. Even knowing it would get very pricey it just seems like it would be such a cool build. Like I said in the beginning it would have to be someone who really wanted this particular set up so they wouldn't go into upgrade mode.

The one in the picture being widened is lightspeeds old boat. Chris from Smart Marine is doing the conversion. I believe that the picture of the boat with triple motors might be it also as it had 3 motors on it in the past also.

I don't think after the widening of the hull on a 28' Skater it will be much if any faster. We will see and I wish them the best of luck. I thought and still want a twin canopy flat deck 28 that I can cut the lids off of if the price for hull is cheap enough. I was going to buy the Lighthouse 28 but couldn't see having two twin engine cats. A friend has a DW 32 canopy mold which could be retro fit with a removable lid. The twin canopy 28s' are flat decks Steve. Look at the raised center portion on the classic decks vs. the new flat decks.

Paul Whittier and Joe Black had a true flat deck 28'. It was called Citre Shine and went on to win many Championships including the true world championships in New Zealand. Over the years it changed hands a few times and ended up back in NZ.. Sadly it was recently cut up and destroyed, I was told.

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That was one hell of a good boat

That was my old race boat it was a widened 28 don't remember the spec's but was very fast. Just had to be careful of that center tab!

Do you know which name it raced under in NZ? We have a few skaters here, but haven't personally heard of any being cut up and disposed of?

Did they ever finish this one ?

Did they ever finish this one ?

Are you the Todd D that makes seals for the Sportmaster driveshaft ?

Old thread. But we are building one now.
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Major core work, deck was already removed when we got it. Super cut down receiver. Custom rear hatch a bazillion hole deletes.

Subscribed:-)

We modified the deck on our 28 enough to add the Lee Aerospace wraparound windshield and a front hatch. the front hatch allows us to not only store a few things, but allows us to add weight if needed and to access the back side of the dash. Working on the dash laying on your back after removing the seats sucks!
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That's a huge windshield!

I find it almost meditative to lie on my back cleaning up some wiring behind the dash with the seats still in place. Until I burn myself on the heat gun...

Indeed! It is a game changer as it makes the ride more enjoyable for the driver and all passengers. It is also a helluva lot safer as we can actually communicate with each other at 100mph. I would not own one without it!

How much speed does it cost?

I don't think that it costs any speed at all. I am not real experienced and have had it up to 112. I rarely go above 100 now.

Before the windscreen the boat was not allot of fun at speed. The wind ripped your face off and you needed to wear goggles to have any chance of seeing where you are going. The saftt factor of not being able to see in front of you was not a risk that I wanted to take. When the kids were little and we flew our private plane, I'd pay them a dollar everytime they would see another airplane before me. Several times they would let me know over the intercom or tapping me on the shoulder. LOTO is a , so it really doesnt matter.busy waterway and split second matter. I can easily hear all passengers which is especially helpful, especially when boats are running in a tight group, such in a poker run. Jim Lee had the same done on his 28 and he says that it did not scrub any speed at all.

That all said, I am betting that 99.9% of boaters could not tell the difference between 95 and 105, or 105 to 115 without the aid of a speedo. Worrying about a few mph just does not seem to make sense. We do most of our cruising at about 85-90. If it is about being "cool" (which I do not care about), I can assure you that our 28, with the wraparound will get more looks than all but maybe a handful of 28's out there.

I would not even think about a 28 without a real windshield.

Thanks - helpful!

My 28 has small deflectors in front of driver and throttle man. While it is a lot less windy than smaller cats, it still feels like the helmet will be lifted off your head, and it is very hard to communicate.

I wonder if I can get a local boat plexiglass window shop to manufacture a windshield...

In my opinion, if you do it, do it right. A piece of plexiglass in front of you may help with wind, but if you ever stuff it, you may end up with broken plexiglass coming back on you. Sure, it is cheap, but ..........

For sure!

Do you have any close-ups or dimensions of yours?

Hey Flightplan! I think my cousin might have just bought this boat. Do you have any more pics of it or know any of its history?
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Hey Flightplan! I think my cousin may have bought the boat you posted, but we aren't sure. Do you have any more pics of it or know its history?
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