Boat Restorations/Projects/Upgrades

With his hopped-up 427-cubic-inch naturally aspirated engine ready to install and hull and deck reassembly for his 1986 Chaparral Villain sportboat well underway, owner Chris Uzzolina (Read the first story) of Charlotte, N.C., has purchased a new trailer for the 23-footer from Loadmaster Trailer Company of Port Huron, Ohio. The trailer will be painted tomorrow.

“We’re having it painted blue to match the boat and it should be ready on Friday,” said Uzzolina. “I will be making the trip out there to next weekend to pick up the trailer and get a tour of the factory.”

Ready for paint at Loadmaster Trailer Company, the trailer for Chris Uzzolina's vintage 23-foot sporboat will be color-matched to the boat.

Uzzolina said he estimates that Lake Effects Marine in Mooresville, N.C., which is handling the hull and deck restoration, will begin engine installation and rigging in the next two weeks.

Read more: 100-mph Chaparral Project Update: Trailer Upgrade

Work on restoring a 1986 Chaparral Villain, which began approximately six weeks ago and has been covered on speedonthewater.com (See Related Stories below) reached two major milestones late last week. The 23-footer’s engine rebuild/upgrade and deck restoration are now complete.

Looking good—the restored deck for the 23-footer is complete.

"I picked up the engine from White’s (White Performance & Machine) on Thursday,” said Chris Uzzolina, the owner of the boat, who lives in Charlotte, N.C. “The final numbers were 640 hp at 6,700 rpm and 571 foot-pounds of torque at 5,600 rpm.  We have kept the timing conservative to prolong the engine's life, as well as because marina fuel is not always the best. The deck is complete with new gelcoat and the hull is under reconstruction now.

“I am happy with the engine build, but I will only know for sure when it's in the boat and running,” he added.

Read more: 100-mph Chaparral Project Update: Engine and Deck Complete

After looking at more than 20 renderings by artist Chris Dilling of Grafik EFX, the new owner of the classic 47’ Apache Broken Arrow V-bottom selected a final version with elements from each drawing. That’s the word from Marc Jacob, the Delray Beach, Fla.-based go-fast boat and yacht broker who is managing the restoration of the 47-footer (Read the story) for his Middle East-based client.

Chris Dilling of Grafik EFX created the new look for Broken Arrow.

“My client doesn’t want the ‘latest and greatest’ in paint technique like pearl and flake, he wants something really traditional,” said Jacob. “He wants it to be attractive, but he doesn’t want it to be flashy. Don Rossi (the painter for the project) will have his hands full, but he’s more than up to the job.”

According to Jacob,  Jason Ventura of Brand X Hi-Performance Marine  has gutted almost all of the boat’s interior. That includes the cockpit and the dash, as well as the primary cabin—the forward-most section of the cabin has not yet been stripped.

Read more: Project Update: Broken Arrow Apache Graphics Chosen, Interior Gutted

Proving there are hidden complications and delays in even small powerboat renovation projects, well-known offshoronly.com member Sean Stinson reported that when he removed the hull from the deck of the 18-foot jetboat he is restoring to sell (Read the story), he found “a soft floor.” That means when Stinson gets home from his relatively new job of brokerage and sales manager at Campisano Marine in Brick, N.J., later today, he’ll be replacing the sole of the 18-footer.

“I’m cutting out the floor and replacing it today,” said Stinson. “I’m also putting in new bulkheads and replacing all the foam. I should have it done by the end of the week.”

When he separated the 18-footer's hull and deck, Stinson found damanage to the boat's sole.

Stinson originally separated the boat’s hull and deck so the hull could be painted black, which will happen after the new bulkheads and foam are installed—the deck will remain red. Refreshment of the boat’s 460-cubic-inch, single-carburetor Ford engine, also has taken more time than Stinson expected because of additional cylinder head work that was needed.

Read more: Project Update: Stinson’s Jet Boat Renovation

While the 427-cubic-inch naturally aspirated engine that will be power Chris Uzzolina’s soon-to-be-restored 1986 Chaparral Villain III sportboat is getting prepped by White Performance & Machine for its second round of dynamometer testing, Lake Effects Marine of Moorsesville, N.C., has begun tearing into hull and deck of the 23-footer. That’s the word from Uzzolina, who has said that running 100 mph is one of this goals when the project is finished. (Read the story.)

Major renovation work is underway on the Chris Uzzollina's 23-foot Chaparral Villain.

“At this point we are in the major tear down stage,” said Uzzolina, who lives in Charlotte, N.C., but is originally from New Jersey. “Floors are being cut out, as well as the removal of the rotten stringers. Next will be the transom and then sanding of the hull to be refinished.  The top cap is removed and is being prepped for stripping and sanding.”

While Uzzolina said he had hoped to have the project complete by June, he realizes it may take a few weeks longer than that. But he’d rather see the job completed competently and thoroughly than rush. The work to be done is far beyond cosmetic.

Read more: 100-mph Chaparral Project Update: Major Hull and Deck Surgery Underway

After a few postponements, the turbine-powered 47-foot INXS Apache that’s been getting a complete makeover at AMF Offshore Rigging for more than a year hit the water today for its final test run before the owner arrives to take possession of the boat tomorrow. With Scott Begovich of the West Palm Beach, Fla., rigging, restoration and racing shop at the controls, the twin 1,500-hp turbine V-bottom reached 100 mph—and had still had more in it, according to Begovich.

“It was like a subway train on rails at 100 mph,” said Begovich in a telephone interview this morning. “We went over wakes from a 30-foot cruiser at that speed and we didn’t even feel them.”

Begovich had previously estimated that the 47-footer would be able to reach 120 mph. While he said he’s still confident that the conventional V-hull can hit that speed, he opted not to push it past the 100-mph mark this morning.

Read more: Turbine Apache Update: 100-mph Target Hit

The first dynamometer tests on a 427-cubic-inch engine that will power a soon-to be-restored 1988 Chaparral Villain III sportboat saw the powerplant produce more than 600 hp. That’s the word from Chris Uzzolina, the owner of the boat, who lives in Charlotte, N.C., and previously stated that one of his goals in the restoration project is for the 23-footer to reach 100 mph. (Read the story.)

Dyno testing started yesterday at White Performance & Machine, the automotive and marine engine shop in Kingsport, Tenn., that is handling the build-up of the Dart-block-based engine with components that included aluminum exhaust manifolds from Eddie Marine.

Uzzolina said he expected the naturally aspirated engine to produce between 600 and 700 hp.

Read more: 100-mph Chaparral Project Update: Engine Dyno Runs Promising

While weather forced Scott Begovich and the crew from AMF Offshore Rigging to cut short last Thursday’s first on-water test—and scrub Friday’s test session—of the turbine-powered 47’ Apache the West Palm Beach, Fla., shop has been working on for more than a year, mechanical gremlins struck today. Thanks to water-contaminated fuel, the run/stop switches for the twin 1,500-hp turbine engines were sticking and forced the crew to cancel testing.

“The first batch of fuel had water in it, and that might have caused some corrosion that had the run/stops freezing up,” Begovich explained. “You don’t shut off turbine engines with ignition. You shut them off by cutting off their fuel, and that’s part of what the run/stops do. They work in two stages, start-up and throttle fuel. In the worst case, if the run-stops stuck open we wouldn’t be able to shut off the motors, even if we disconnected the batteries.”

Read more: Turbine Apache Update: Mechanical Issue Forces Second Test Postponement

With one member of the AMF Offshore Rigging shop team on board, Scott Begovich, the throttleman for the Miss GEICO racing team, put a 47-foot Apache V-bottom the outfit recently restored and repowered with twin 1,500-hp turbine engines through its first test session this morning. Renowned rigger Gary Stay and his crew at the West Palm Beach, Fla., shop have been working on the classic boat for more than a year.

Begovich tested the boat on the calm waters of Lake Worth Lagoon in Riviera Beach. As today’s run was the boat’s first time on the water since AMF completed the rigging and restoration work, he said he took a conservative approach and only ran the 47-footer to 90 mph.

“There were no issues whatsoever,” said Begovich who handled the throttling and driving duties, during a telephone interview this afternoon. “I didn’t run it all the way out, just accelerated to 90 mph. The acceleration was smooth, sort of like a subway train that just keeps on pulling. We brought it back in and checked every nut and bolt. We planned to run it again this afternoon, but the weather came in.”

Read more: Turbine Apache Update: First Run a Success

Testing of a fully restored 47-foot Apache V-bottom, the former INXS offshore race boat, could begin as early as tomorrow morning if all goes to plan. That’s the word from Gary Stray of AMF Offshore Rigging in West Palm Beach, Fla. Stray handled all the rigging for the twin Lycoming T-53 gas-turbine engines—each making approximately 1,500 hp—with Arneson ASD-8 drives, as well as the restoration and refitting for the entire boat.

Arneson ASD-8 drives will handle the power from the 1,500-hp turbine engines. All photos courtesy Gary Stray/AMF Offshore Rigging. (For a full view of the drives, click the the image.)

“I imagine it will run 115 to 120 mph,” said Stray, who will test the boat with Scott Begovich, the throttleman for the Miss GEICO offshore racing catamaran. “We’re hoping to go out tomorrow, but if not the day after tomorrow.”

In the AMF Offshore Rigging shop for about a year, the 47-footer is owned by a private party who prefers to keep his name out of the media. But even for a client who Stray describes as owning “a lot of boats,” the turbine-powered vintage V-bottom with a pair of five-blade forged propellers from Hering Propellers is an extraordinary project.

Read more: Turbine-Powered 47’ Apache Ready For Testing

Well-known in go-fast powerboat circles, marine industry veteran Sean Stinson is renovating and reassembling a 1978 Taylor SJ jetboat. Based in New Jersey, Stinson said he purchased the completely disassembled 18-footer with its 460-cubic-inch engine and Berkeley jet pump for about $3,000. The engine, which currently is being rebuilt at J & E Automotive Performance in Blackwood, N.J., is a naturally aspirated, single-carburetor model that Stinson estimated makes roughly 400 hp.

“I am hoping to get it done in the next 30 to 60 days,” said Stinson. “I have all new gauges for it, and the bucket seats and bench seat are in my garage. These old jetboats usually came with some kind of indoor/outdoor carpet. I don’t want to go with that, so I’m thinking about the kind of rubber flooring I used in one of the Apache boats I worked on.”

Stinson said he plans to sell the boat in the $10,000 range once it is finished. With the profits he hopes to make from the sale, he plans to tackle a larger go-fast boat renovation project.

“This was something I could do to keep my appetite going for the high-performance boat world,” said Stinson. “I plan on selling it and buying something bigger to restore, then selling that and getting something bigger to restore until I get back into an offshore boat.”

Editor’s Note: Speedonthewater.com will provide an update on this project with additional photos when it is complete.

Chris Uzzolina, a 27-year-old from Morris County, N.J., is no stranger to speed on the water. His father owned a 24-foot Switzer Craft that topped 80 mph on Lake Hopatcong, the Uzzolina family’s favorite local waterway when Chris was a kid. So it’s fair to say that Uzzolina, who now lives in Charlotte, N.C., and works as a BMW technician, was born to own a sportboat. And he does in the form of a 1988 Chaparral Villain III.

For those of you willing to do the math, that means Uzzolina’s current ride was built when he was two years old.

A top speed of 100 mph is just one of the owner's goal for this soon-to-be-renovated 23-foot Chaparral sportboat.

Several years ago, he bought the 23-foot sportboat for a whopping $3,500. With its stock 260-hp small-block engine modified with Trick Flow heads,  a new cam, an aluminum intake and Eddie Marine aluminum exhaust manifolds with stainless steel pipes, the boat reportedly ran 67 mph. But that wasn’t enough for Uzzolina, so he upgraded his power package with a Weiand 144 blower and the boat topped 72 mph. That was the good news.

“The engine didn’t hold up for more than one season before she gave up, “ Uzzolina recalls. “With no budget, I had to settle for a used engine from a friend’s old car. To this day, I still have no clue what parts were in it but it got me back on the water.”

At least it did until, predictably, the car engine failed. For the next two seasons, the boat sat in Uzzolina’s mother’s driveway in New Jersey. But when he moved to Charlotte last year and found himself within a short drive of any number of lakes, the go-fast boat bug bit him again and he brought the boat down south.

Read more: Project: Creating a 100-mph Chaparral

Early last week, Florida-based high-performance powerboat broker Marc Jacob purchased a 47-foot Apache V-bottom called Broken Arrow for a client in Kuwait. Built in 1991 and currently powered by triple 1,200-hp twin-turbocharged Chief engines, the boat sold in “the $250,000 range,” according to Jacob and will be “completely redone” before it is shipped to the Middle East.

The 557-cubic-inch engines, which have approximately 40 hours on them since their last refreshment by Chief, the physical hull and the Broken Arrow theme will remain intact. But beyond that, everything from the cabin and cockpit interiors to the engine compartment and exterior color scheme will get a total makeover.

Read more: Project: Broken Arrow Apache Getting a Makeover

Tom Roof knew he wanted to update the interior of his 2004 Cigarette Racing 36 Gladiator to give himself and his passengers a little more space inside the cockpit. He figured the best way to do so was to take the sit-down-style V-bottom powered by a pair of 800-plus-hp engines from Richie Zul Marine Power in New York and convert it from a five-seater to a four-seater.

Waves and Wheels recently completed an interior makeover on this 2004 Cigarette 36 Gladiator, converting it from five seats to four.So Roof, who purchased the Lip-Ship Performance edition boat at the end of 2010, turned to the talented team at Waves and Wheels in Osage Beach, Mo., to tackle the project.

“The paint and exterior of my boat is almost flawless, but the interior had obvious signs of wear,” said Roof, explaining why he wanted to update the cockpit of the 36-footer, which was on display at the 2004 Miami International Boat Show. “I came out of a 2008 Cigarette 39 Top Gun with (Mercury Racing) 700s and the Gladiator’s cockpit is so different. It is much tighter—it’s more like a cat. And there are no steps to exit the cockpit like the Top Gun had. The only way out is to step on the seats. So I came up with the idea of converting it to a four-seater and one thing led to another.”

Roof turned the 36 Gladiator over to Waves and Wheels for the interior design and modification in February, and he was extremely pleased with the boat when he got it back from the shop a couple of weeks ago.

“When my wife saw it, she said it looked like a brand new boat—she was blown away,” Roof said. “The quality of work they did was great. Justin (Wagner, owner of Waves and Wheels) had a lot of good ideas. At the same time, he was open to my feedback. It was a lot of fun to work with those guys. I can’t wait to run the boat this season.”

Read more: Cigarette 36 Gladiator Gets Makeover from Waves and Wheels

When performance boater John Rosatti purchased his latest Cigarette Racing Team model—a 2012 39 Top Fish with triple Mercury 300 Verado engines—he wanted to get the boat painted to match his stunning 50 Marauder, which is powered by twin Mercury Racing 1350 engines.

John Rosatti has been enjoying his Cigarette Racing 39 Top Fish, which was wrapped by Clearly Exotic Car Coverings.Rosatti, a successful businessman who grew up in Brooklyn, N.Y., and now lives in South Florida, didn’t really want to wait six weeks for the boat to be painted so he went in a different direction. Rosatti turned to his friend, Gino Gargiulo, the former owner of the unforgettable Mercedes-themed 44 MTI.

The owner of Oil Can Man—South Florida’s premier 24/7 mobile fleet maintenance service business—Gargiulo started Clearly Exotic Car Coverings in Fort Lauderdale after Oil Can Man took on the task of vehicle graphics for some fleet customers. While setting out to find an installer capable of the task at hand, he met Eric Wood. After working together for a year, Gargiulo and Wood, who has more than 12 years experience in vehicle graphics, decided to take it to the next level by creating custom car wraps that provide both style and protection.

“Clearly Exotic Car Coverings specializes in high-end cars,” Gargiulo said. “Normally I don’t get into business around things I like because as soon as it’s a business you lose that love and it becomes frickin work. But this is different. Wrapping million-dollar Ferraris and other exotic cars is fun. It’s pretty cool to take a car and give it a whole new look or see one go from blah to outrageous.”

Read more: Project: Clearly Exotic Gives Cigarette Top Fish New Look

Cypress, Calif., performance boater Charley Guest has owned his share of catamarans from Dave’s Custom Boats—four to be exact—but when it came time for his next boat, he wanted something that would be a little more fun to drive on the Colorado River near his place in Mohave Valley, Ariz.

Powered by twin Mercury Racing outboards, this 2003 Mach 26 catamaran from Dave's Custom Boats was updated with a "Speed Racer" theme by Charley Guest. Photo by Todd TaylorIt’s not that Guest didn’t enjoy the fast and agile F-32 catamaran with twin 625-hp MV10 engines from Ilmor High-Performance Marine, it’s just that the boat was a little large for the stretch of river he frequents most often.

So, roughly two years ago, Guest sold his F-32 and picked up a well-used 2003 Mach 26 cat with twin Mercury Racing OptiMax 300XS outboard engines. The all-white boat with DCB Racing decals on it needed some work, including a reshoot of the gelcoat, so Guest, who had always wanted to build a “Speed Racer” theme boat, did just that. And he’s been enjoying the 26-footer all summer with his wife, Jennifer, and three sons, Tyler, Bryce and Brody, including running the boat at DCB’s ninth annual regatta last month.

Read more: Turning a 10-Year-Old DCB Into ‘Mini Speed Racer’

Ron Mahurin never thought he’d own an Apache Powerboat, let alone be restoring one of the most iconic offshore powerboats in the sport’s history—the 41’ Apache. Last year, the Union, Mo., resident, who owns a home on Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks, bought the 1990 model and has since spent the winter upgrading the 41-foot V-bottom, dubbed Bushwacker.

Waves and Wheels restored the cockpit of Ron Mahurin's 1990 41' Apache, giving it a much more modern look.The most noticeable of the enhancements is the cockpit restoration. Mahurin turned to Waves and Wheels in Lake of the Ozarks, and owner Justin Wagner and his crew did not disappoint. Swapping the outdated teal interior for a dark blue and white upholstery combination, Waves and Wheels reconstructed the entire cockpit, including building new side and dash panels, powder coating the seat stands, installing new gauges and adding LED lighting throughout.

“I heard about Waves and Wheels because of stereos so I went to talk with Justin about one,” said Mahurin. “I’d be looking around for someone to hand the upholstery, but I didn't know Justin did that. So we started chitchatting about his capabilities and he told me about some of his ideas. I decided to give him a shot, and he did a great job.

“It’s amazing what he did with that cockpit,” he continued. “I kind of put it in his hands. I wanted it to be cool, but timeless, and he nailed it. I’d highly recommend Waves and Wheels.”

Read more: Project: Apache 41 ‘Bushwacker’ Restoration

Always an eye-catcher during the day, Speed Racer—the iconic 44-foot-long catamaran from Marine Technology, Inc.—recently received an after-dark upgrade. Thanks to LED strips and dots from Optx Marine, the cat’s cockpit and engine compartment combine to form a spectacular light show after the sun goes down. The new LEDs were color-matched to the LED underwater lights in the cat’s drive area, which were previously installed at MTI in Wentzville, Mo.

“The red glow in the engine compartment as well as the cockpit is incredible,” said Bob Christie, the owner of Speed Racer, who ran the boat two days ago in the Florida Powerboat Club’s Tampa Bay Poker Run. “And I was very impressed with the quality of the products. We ran 100 miles in four- to six-footers, and the lights held up perfectly.”

Read more: Project: Lighting Speed Racer

Now owned by Chuck Sprague, the original 28-foot Mannerfelt “bat boat” was introduced in the United States in 1994. (All photos courtesy/copyright Tim Sharkey.)

In the showy world of high-performance powerboats, getting noticed—regardless of how amazing your ride might be—isn’t easy. After all, the go-fast boat world places a premium on looks, attitude, and swagger. More often than not, the boats involved are a reflection of their owners. Let’s be honest, you don’t buy—to use an example—a four-seat, 40-foot catamaran that tops 150 mph and is painted with every color under the sun in order to fade into the crowd.

That could be part of the reason Volvo Penta elected to showcase its high-performance DPX drive on a Mannerfelt stepped V-bottom, dubbed the “bat boat” by the media for its aerodynamic wings. Named for its Swedish designer Ocke Mannerfelt, the unique 28-footer was the prototype for the twin-propeller, counter-rotating DPX unit that was introduced in 1994—and it was hard to miss.

But the visually striking boat was more than that. The narrow-nosed, winged creation truly ran like a bat out of hell. It was fast enough to earn a five-year ban from American Power Boat Association offshore racing (the politics of that sport are another long and, frankly, tired story for another time) and innovative enough to make the cover of every major high-performance boating magazine.

Three years later, the original Mannerfelt 28-footer that provided such a fine showcase for the DPX drive was shelved. And while a 24-foot version of the boat was being manufactured for a rental racing program by Reindl, the original was essentially gathering dust in a Volvo Penta warehouse.

Read More: Bat Boat Returns

This 10 Meter Executioner was Fountain's first "beak" boat.

High-performance powerboats from 1981—at least those in anything close to resembling good condition—are in short supply. True, fiberglass and resin form durable a finished product, but not so durable that they can withstand the elements and neglect for almost 31 years.

That’s just one aspect of what makes Fountain Hull No. 1, dubbed the 10 Meter Executioner by Reggie Fountain, the founder and former owner of Fountain Powerboats in Washington, N.C., so remarkable. Owned by Scott Shogren of Shogren Performance Marine, the most successful Fountain dealer in history, the 33-footer remains in pristine condition.

“We built that boat for Henry Lorin of New York,” recalls Fountain. “It had a pair of Mercury 475-hp turbocharged engines we had done a lot of research and design with at Lake X.

“Henry was the man who took my company public in 1987,” he adds.

Read more: Birth of the Beak: Fountain Hull No. 1 Lives at Shogren Performance Marine