Chinaride's 87 Starlet

[Chris]

Here are a few pics of chinaride's '87 Starlet.

 

[Chris]

Here are a few pics of chinaride's '87 Starlet.

 

[Chris]

 

[88Mate]

Nice boat. I was beginning to think I had the only Starlet left. You don't hear much about them. Mine is an 88, red with white. One of these days I'll send Chris some pictures. What engine is in yours?

 

[chinaride]

I BOUGHT THE BOAT W/ A CRACKED BLOCK FROM NC. IT HAD THE 260 AND I PUT A GM CRATE MOTOR 330 HO W/ A FEW EXTRAS DONE TO IT. CAST IRON HEADS AND ELDELBROCK PERFORMER INTAKE, ALUMINUM THOUGH , I RUN IT SALT WATER TOO. ONLY A 600CFM HOLLEY CARB i THINK IT MIGHT BE TO SMALL? I'LL TRY AND GET SOME PICS OF THE INTERIOR, MIKE AT CHECKMATE CUT ME ALL NEW INTERIOR BUT I KEPT IT ALL WHITE INSTEAD OF THE LIGHT BLUE AND GRAY. YOU ARE ACTUALLY THE ONLY PERSON ON THE SITE THAT I HAVE HEARD OF THAT HAS A STARLET.

 

[Eriktheviking]

Nice boat,I had a Starfire for a while.Definetly a fun boat to drive.Think you could definetly go larger on the carb. Maybe around a 750cfm. It would probably make a big difference.

 

[Hagar17]

very nice. Like to hear about the resto jobs. My Exciter gets the treatment this winter.

 

[88Mate]

I've only ever seen two other Starlets, both with V6's. I've had mine for 11yrs. It came with the 260 also. I changed the cam and intake, and redid the Q-jet. I also put a Hydromotive nose cone on it, which didn't make it any faster, but it really helped the handling. I run a 22" Turbo 4 blade, what wheel are you using? How has the Alpha held up to 400hp?

 

[chinaride]

the prop I'm using now is 19p quiksilver, it's what came w/ the boat, I don't know much about props but what other people are telling me I should be using a larger one? My motor spins close to 5000 rpms. A marine mech. put the cam in mine don't know what kind it is but got a bill for one, it idles real nice though, he also had my boat for over 2 years. Don't ask! the alpha blew up on me last year, the upper unit bearings toasted, But the they said it was from a bad seal that let water in not from to much HP. Doug Russel marine rebuilt my drive at the begining of the year, so far no problems but I'm thinking about a drive shower. I've never heard of hydromotive nose cone before are they are nice? Also my boat didn't come w/ trim tabs did yours?

 

[88Mate]

My Turbo is 14.25 diameter w/22" pitch. I can spin it right to 4600 on a hot day with a fairly good sized load. It'll turn a little faster in cool weather and/or with a lighter load. I've tried other props with more diameter and less pitch, but they make the boat want to chine walk. Definately get a drive shower on that thing, it makes a big difference in the temp of the upper gear especially if you run hard. Most have one hole that sprays onto the top cap, I modified mine so it also sprays the sides of the upper housing. No trim tabs on mine either. It is pretty sensitive to where the load is positioned in the boat. Hydromotive is primarily a prop manufacturer, their four blades seem to work well on the larger Checkmates. They also make nose cones for Alpha and Bravo drives.

 

[chinaride]

so do you think I should spin a 4 or 3 blade prop? Without trim tabs was your take off putiing you bow way up in the air? Mine does for about 25 yards. you think that is because of the prop. sorry for all the questions about props but thanxs for all your info

 

[88Mate]

My boat originally came with a 21" Mirage, (not the Mirage Plus). With that prop the boat was pretty hard to handle. It would blow out on the turns, chine walk, and on every wave it would throw the bow into the air. Too much bow lift. I tried a three bladed Turbo 23" and it handled better, but it wasn't enough pitch, and you had no control at all in reverse. The four blade Turbo was recommended to me by the dealer who originally sold the boat and it really made it settle down, and I gained speed over my Mirage. It does still lift the bow on takeoff for a couple seconds, I think it's more a function of the short hull with most of the weight toward the rear. The only prop I have that doesn't lift the bow is a 19" high five. Of course I can only go about 2/3 throttle before I'm at 4800rpm, but what a holeshot for skiing.

 

[chinaride]

thanks for the info I think i'm going to try the 4 blade turbo. All those symptoms you had I seem to have now.