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1958 Blue Star |
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Anyone who is into
older boats, whether wood or fiberglass, has heard at least one
story about that great find parked in the woods out beyond the back
forty. Usually the tale is told beside said great find and it looks
brand new and shiny. You know a whole lot of elbow grease went into
getting it to look that way, but what about the part about getting
it out of the woods? The story of this 1958 Blue Star
is one of those stories and a very fun adventure that felt similar
to searching for gold. |
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Our first look at the Blue Star
came after dark. We all crowded into the pickup truck belonging to
our dear friends, Kitty and Clyde, from Florida. They were here visiting in Michigan and knew where two fiberglass boats were that
we could have just for the taking or else they would be bulldozed
and buried. Knowing that a perfectly good boat, or should I just say
a boat, especially a classic fiberglass with fins, would meet its
demise in a big hole was too much for any of us to bear. So we drove
several miles, went down a two track for a ways, and finally
arrived at the boats. There were 6 foot saplings growing in the wet
composted leaves in the Blue Star's bottom and also in their boat, a
finned 1957 Glass Jet. Initial inspection over, it was definitely time for
a few beers to prepare for the next day's adventure. |
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Kitty
and Clyde got there very early the next day and, after shoveling the
same assortment of saplings and muck out of their 1957 Glass Jet, were
absolutely wonderful and cleaned out most of the Blue Star, too. Not
much left but a lot of muck. |
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This pile of stuff was the original seat cushions.
Rotted, drippy, smelly and slimy though they were they came along,
too, and will be invaluable for patterning new seats once they dry
out. |
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After clearing out the small trees
and brush around the boats, it was time to winch them up onto our
trailers. Here, Kitty gives a mighty heave-ho as the Blue Star is
dragged up onto the trailer. |
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Finally, the Blue Star is loaded
and ready to go. She's mighty dirty and definitely looks all of 50
years old. |
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Clyde and Kitty pose with their new
finned fiberglass friend - a Glass Jet from 1957. |
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The first thing we did when we got
the Blue Star home was to give it a bath. Toilet bowl cleaner is a
great way to easily get that built up crud off and we used plenty.
Sitting here wet gave us a good idea of what it will look like after
restoration. |
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At one time this boat must have had
a great life as a ski boat. An added metal frame bolted to the
transom would have held several skiers at once. |
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Getting the mud out wasn't easy but
we did it. The pieces lying in the boat are those old seat cushions
that finally dried out. |
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Not much left of the dash except
the steering wheel which has seen better times. All the gauges were
gone but at least the hardware was all there. All of it needs
replating. |
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Page 1
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4
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