Chris Craft Commander Forum, Inc.                         ABOVE, from left to right (previous photos of the day, the week in review !): PHOTO - 1. Eric Jensen's 427 side-oiler coming out, ready for a rebuild. ! PHOTO - 2. Warren Pateman took a ratty old 38 and turned it into a bran new Commander ! PHOTO - 3. A pictorial tour of the vast amount of work done on the Wade's 1965 38' Commander, FEELGOOD ( Now FOR SALE ) ! PHOTO - 4. Finishing tips for teak and varnish ! PHOTO - 5. A total restoration thread you will want for your 3-ring binder ! PHOTO - 6. New photos just in from professional photographer, Ted Toth, taken at Huron, Ohio, 2008 ! Some of the special images from previous PHOTOS OF THE DAY....(in case you missed them!) A selection of past photos of the day can be found by clicking this link!

PHOTO OF THE DAY ! (Above Left)
It's not a Chris Craft.......................It's a lifestyle!...........................!!
(ABOVE:)
Here is one of the nicer solid lifter marine V8 motors of all time, the aft flywheel 327F, providing 210 hp at the shaft. For the collector or boating enthusiast who likes classic boats, you can never be sure about what you have until you run it for a while, and even then, you really don’t know all you should. It was highly doubtful whether or not this particular motor would run, or run well. It didn’t look too promising. However, looks can be deceiving, and this one ended up running well in the end. Here is part of the story.

Many of the 283 and 327 motors came with Prestolite distributors. Go into an auto parts store today and ask for springs, rotors, or caps for this brand, and you might get a puzzled look across the parts counter. Parts are still available, but you have to know where to look for them. In some cases, word of mouth tips help. In this case, the motor did run well, eventually, and it is a perfect example showing that you can not tell the condition of a motor by looking at the paint or rust. The carb was toast, totally corroded inside and out, and although it probably could be rebuilt, the parts would include new butterfly shafts, etc., and a very serious cleaning. The decision was made to replace it and dodge the bullet. Exhaust manifolds were cracked and had to be replaced. Automotive freeze plugs (this is an automotive block that was swapped into the boat at one part of it’s history) were rusted out and they were replaced with brass marine plugs. Fuel pump and filters were changed out, valves were properly adjusted, and the distributor received some focus time to be sure it was performing properly. In the end, this motor proved to be good, and it has given great service during the season without any oil consumption or other concerns. The following link gives some great tips about the rare and obsolete Prestolite distributor, some tuning tips, and photos of the motor in the boat and on the water. !!
You can't tell motor condition by looking at the paint and dirt !


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2008 Lake Erie CHRIS CRAFT COMMANDER RENDEZVOUS ! (now history!) Huron Yacht Club & BoatBasin, Huron, Ohio, August 22 - 24 !! The good news........we're doing it again in 2009, August 21 - 23 !! Check this link for all the details for this upcoming event !! Event contact information, direct to event coordinators !! Hotel accomodations, interactive map of the area !! COMMANDER HALL OF FAME Third Edition ! Hall of Fame #1 Image Index Hall of Fame #2 Image Index Hall of Fame #3 Image Index Coming Soon ! CONGRATULATIONS ! You have just found a huge collection of scanned information, thousands of photographs, and information about the Chris Craft Commander series of boats. This information is submitted by individuals, recognized by an internationally circulated boating publication, and viewed by people all over the world every day. This perpetual newsletter and reference file is posted for FUN and as a public service! The main featue of this NON COMMERCIAL site is the MASTER INDEX file !. This file has an organized archive of worthy posts, an absolutely awesome collection of photos, scans, links and data that have come in from all corners of the world. Happy hunting! If you need help, or have questions, information or photos about the Commander series you think others would be interested in seeing, please feel welcome to post here on the Forum. This site was originally started to serve a need to include photographs and scans within threads in mid-2005, and as a result, it has become "photo intensive" with a treasure trove of information. This site received 17,000 page reads during it's 4th month on line, and it could now surpass that in a few days. The forum is being accessed by people all over the world. If you're interested in Commanders or Chris Craft boats in general, be sure to visit the Chris Craft Commander Club ~~ and ~~ The Chris Craft Antique Boat Club sites too, because they each have a wealth of information, good people, and lots of social interaction. The Chris Craft Roamer Club is also a great source of information about our steel and aluminum close cousins who share a lot in common with the Commander series, both being built under the same roof. From time to time the informative technical posts and photos are consolidated in the Master Index, and some of the chatting files are deleted, so people can find and use this information more easily. There are some really special threads here: of particular note, be sure to see Oliver & Sonja Oelgart's great thread about how they found a 41' Chris Craft in a German warehouse with only 12 hours on the hour meter! ~ Also be sure to see their web site for some absolutely STUNNING photography and photos of them touring the South of Spain after they restored this great boat. ~.~ Don't miss the tribute to Warren Pateman, a very special Commander owner from Australia, and the article he wrote about his total restoration and refitting of BAMBI, a 38' Commander. A very big THANK YOU to Motor Boating Magazine, especially senior editor, John Clemans, and executive editor, Jeanne Craig; with whom your forum moderator worked on the feature 38' Chris Craft Commander article, appearing in the June, 2006 issue, of Motor Boating Magazine! ~*~ Here is another link showing John in action, the day some of the photos were taken for the article! John Clemans in action, Cumberland River, April 1, 2006! The Chris Craft Commander Forum, Inc., proudly supports the stated missions, and high standards of the two not-for-profit organizations noted below; and recognizes their collaborative management style, allowing cross linking of posts and a free exchange of information between forums and web sites, which we believe is good for the classic boating community at large. Anyone interested in antique and/or classic boating should check them out!       The Chris Craft Commander Forum, Inc., recognizes the fine boating publications noted below, who support the excitement, preservation, responsibility, and fun of Antique and Classic boating. Anyone interested in antique and/or classic runabouts or yachts should check them out!             PHOTOS ABOVE AND BELOW: Photos above are expandable if you click on them. Photos below are non-expandable thumbnail images taken from posts off the forum, to illustrate what type of projects and images are available within the threads and MASTER INDEX Files. . All photos can be seen in full size on their original threads. SEE THE SITE MASTER INDEX FILES!, IT'S EASY TO FIND Archived INFORMATION ! (Here is just a small sampling of what is in our MASTER INDEX FILE)! 1. Commander Models (Just about everything from 19' to 60')...........Updated February 21, 2008 2. Notable Restorations (Some fantastic resurrections, upgrades, restorations, and total rebuilds !)..........Updated February 22, 2008 3. Exterior Maintenance (A few tips for that gelcoat.)..........Updated February 22, 2008 4. Interior Refurbishing (How to really upgrade that old boat !) 5. Teak Refinishing (Only one thing looks better than varnish on teak!) 6. 427 Ford Marine Power (The largest selection of photos, scans, and tech tips for the marine 427 anywhere on the internet.)...........Updated February 22, 2008 7. Small Block Chevrolet Power (Photos, specifications, scans, tech tips, and a "how to" rebuild thread!)..........Updated February 22, 2008 8. Lincoln Marine Power (Increasingly rare these days, the big Lincolns are fine motors!) 9. Chris Craft Commanders for sale (by owner). 10. And much more………………………... Visit the MASTER INDEX for MOTOR DIAGNOSTICS.........SPECIFICATIONS..........COMMANDER MODEL IDENTIFICATION.......ORIGINAL SALES BROCHURES.......LOTS OF PHOTOS............and some great stories about Commander Owners and their Families !............... Visit the MASTER INDEX for DIAGNOSTICS.........SPECIFICATIONS..........COMMANDER MODEL IDENTIFICATION.......ORIGINAL SALES BROCHURES.........LOTS OF PHOTOS............and some great stories about Commander Owners and their Families!............... ! We also have a VIDEO FILE LIBRARY !, Our boating videos are now consolidated in one index ! Thumbnail images above appear in full size format within the threads contined in the forum or the MASTER INDEX Files. Please visit the Protocol for Posting and then have fun! This non-commercial site exists to share information with people like you! Happy hunting! Due to the strong international readership we are posting International Time of Day as a reference tool. You can also find United States National Animated Radar Loop right here for your convenient boating weather reference.   Search (try using quotes)    Chat!    Post now Login to your account Login name Password Create a new login Contact the Chris Craft Commander Forum chriscraftcommander@hotmail.com ©2005, ©2006, ©2007, ©2008, Chris-Craft Commander Forum, Inc., ®, chriscraftcommander.com. Information and intellectual property on this not-for-profit non-commercial site may be copied for individual personal use, but any other reproduction or use requires written approval. Any entity who mines this site for names, material, or their other commercial/financial benefit in any way is subject to copyright and intellectual property law; the integrity of this site will be aggressively protected. The material here is for indivudual personal use and is not to be sold. Chris Craft is a registered trademark of Chris-Craft. 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