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View Full Version : Swift Craft Seagull - Tributes and Tips



boatbloke
24-01-2012, 08:35 PM
I've owned and worked on a solid old Swiftcraft Seagull (Mark-III) for a few years now and wanted to start a thread that pulls together past and present owners of this terrific hull to share stories and tips.

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Our rig spends most of her time on Sydney harbor (launched from Roseville), and Pittwater; but we sometimes tow her down to the Gippsland Lakes and up the NSW South Coast. She's provided the the family with tonnes of fun and is sturdy and always reliable.

We originally got the boat on a tight budget......she a spongy floor, but sound stringers and transom.....the original Evinrude 70 VRO was strapped on the back and she carried the manufacturer's canopy and frame.

I replaced the floor myself, sold the old outboard to upgradeto a new 90 E-TEC, and built on a bimni.......don't regret the effort or $$$.

If anything, we've been rough on the old bird! A scrape here, knock there etc, but she's tough! During our last trip to Gipplsland, we got caught out by a front while on lake King. During the storm, I managed to slam the rear starboard corner into a pier at Paynesville inflicting some superficial damage to the rear. Halfway through the repair job now.....which leads me to my first tip for owners of this old beauty.

After pulling apart the rear assembly, I noticed that the transom has air voids on either side (between the edge of the ply and the side of the boat). These in themselves are sealed and thus not a problem BUT are a potential water sink if the wall is breached. This is most likely to happen when the black protector, or end caps are fixed in place, especially if screws have been used. Luckily, mine were ok. What these voids might be useful for though is as a dosing point for anti-fungals to protect against rot from ingress....interested in any thoughts on this??

Some photos of the old Swifty in use last weekend are attached (Jervis bay and on the road).

Cheers!
Ben.

Chimo
24-01-2012, 09:14 PM
I had a Swiftcraft Falcon with a 100HP Evinrude.

Not the same hull but close and a lot of fun for skiing and fishing. Well actually not so good for fishing because with the big wide fore deck it just seemed to shovel a wave up onto the windscreen. That was about when I figured I could be asking too much from the hull and moved on!

Cheers
Chimo

winston
24-01-2012, 09:27 PM
We had one forty years ago when I was 13 years old. It had a 65 hp mercury outboard motor. My brother and I slept on it whilst it was moored at swan bay jetty on the summer holidays. We would listen to the Hoadleys battle of the bands on the radio. Funny what you remember. Cheers Winston.