Help ID an Old Whaler

[specracer]

I was wondering if I might get some help from the forum. I have a 13-footer that was purchased new by my grandfather. I have always been under the impression that is it a 1960. I called Whaler to try to confirm this. They told me to look for a six-digit stamp in the hull, either on the transom, or in the bulkhead. The only numbers I can find on this hull is a three-digit ID in the forward bulkhead centered on the bottom, on a visible circle in the gel coat, 7--. Whaler told me this is useless to ID the boat. It has been registered, but not recently by any means.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

ID Small.jpg (205.78 KiB) Viewed 7829 times

[JRP]

I'm no expert, but based on available lists and registries of classic 13' Boston Whalers, I would place your boat as a 1959 rather than a 1960.

I expect the aficionados will ask to see more photos that show the entire boat as well as details such as the number of hand grips cut into the transom.

[jimh]

I don't recall any reference to a hull stencil number appearing over the sprue hole--the circular opening in the forward part of the boat through which the foam in introduced to the hull interior during manufacturing. The location of the stencil number on a 13-footer is usually on the transom. Questions about the hull identification number are frequently asked, so a comprehensive answer has been prepared. See

http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/FAQ/#Q2

UPDATE: After quite a bit of searching, I came across an image of a very old 13-footer that has the hull stencil number located on a circular area. I can't tell exactly where this circular area was located. See

http://continuouswave.com/whaler/cetace ... html#51-05

The only circular area in the hull is usually the sprue hole, and the sprue hole is almost always at the bow.

There is a listing of hull numbers in the REFERENCE article for the 13-footer. In the very earliest hulls, the stencil number is indicated as beginning at the three-digit number 100. This means it is reasonable that a very old 13-footer might have a number in the range 700 to 799. (By the way, you provoke my curiosity by obscuring the last two digits.) The information you got from Boston Whaler that the stencil number would be six-digits is probably true for 99-percent of the hulls made, but for the first nine-hundred hulls made the stencil number could be just a three-digit number.

The stencil numbers are typically molded into the gel coat layer of the boat. If the three-digit number on your boat is actually molded into the gel coat layer, it might be something that originated with manufacturer. If the number was just painted onto the surface, it probably was added later. On the other hand, no one cannot be completely sure of the exact manufacturing methods used 50-years ago.

[specracer]

I wasn't sure what you were referring to until I saw the link below provided by jimh. The boat there has the "hand grips". Our boat doesn't have any (no idea what that would indicate).

details such as the number of hand grips cut into the transom.

jimh

thank you for the links. This link is the same stencil style hull number as ours. Yes this is located in the bow, in the compartment under the seat. Only reason to obscure the number, is privacy. When ever I post a vehicle in a car forum, I blank out the license plate. Just the way we are, apologies, if it causes any problems.

[jimh]

The mention of the hand holds molded into the aft face of the transom is a very good observation. Thanks to JRP for point to that identifying feature. I don't know when the hand holds were added or deleted in production. That will be something of interest to be tracked.

I am guessing the hull numbering began at 100 because there were probably several or perhaps many prototype hulls made, and the prototypes were numbered beginning at 1, 2, 3, and so on. Jumping to 100 for the production hulls sounds like a reasonable assumption.

A production hull identification in the 700's is a very, very early boat. As for such a boat having any particularly special value, I can't say for certain. I suspect the value of the boat is probably greater to your family as something from your grandfather than it would be to another person. I don't think there are many--if any--collectors of really old Boston Whaler boats.

The most valuable old 13-footer that I can recall was an early boat that was restored to new-condition, had the original Tee-Nee trailer, and an original outboard engine from the same era. Someone put that package together and then sold it to a dealer. The dealer used it as a showroom floor display piece to add to the more-than-50-year legacy of the Whaler brand. The restorer did get quite a good price--as I recall it was between $10,000 and $20,000--but I don't know if this sale could be repeated too often.

[specracer]

This information is actually inspiring me to want to restore it, not a wise financial decision, I fully understand, but the preservation of this, with the family heritage, is what its really about (at least to me). Hopefully other can continue the information!

Thank you to all so far!

[Gep]

The boat on page 51 is mine and I think I remember it being a 1961.
If your hull number is in the 700's it's more than likely a 1959 and one of the oldest still around.

[Jeff]

GEP,

Actually the oldest known hull is hull #FP55 which was owned by Milehighwhaler and sold to Mike Stennett here in Detroit. FP stands for Fisher Pierce meaning it was one of the hulls before prior to Boston Whaler officially launching in 1958...and it was the 55th prototype 13 made and was likely built in 1956/1957. Any of the FP hulls are super rare.

FP Hull #55 discussion here

[jimh]

Jeff—Thanks for linking to the earlier discussion about the prototype 13-foot Fisher-Pierce hull. I also edited that posting to fix the awful word wrapping that was being forced by an extremely long URL. That ought to make it much easier to read.

Here is a direct link to an image showing the stencil number FP 55:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v519/ ... r13002.jpg

Do we know what has been done to hull FP 55 by Mike Stennett? I presume he plans a restoration.

[specracer]

Well I got her out and got the dust off of her. She isn't in bad shape. Currently exploring having the hull restored, and Ill take care of the woodwork. I have the all the woodwork, they were taken off to clean (visible off on the left)

Also if anyone has any more info on these early boats, please share.

Thanks!