1968 Chris Craft Corinthian

[daveditch]

I am looking for help identifying the 1968? Chris Craft I recently purchased. The boat is carvel planked and has spent its life in Canada although I am told it was made in Florida. I cannot find any reference to a 30 foot Corinthian. It looks like a Constellation to me.

Can anyone shed any light on this mystery.

Thanks
Dave

[Al Benton]

Dave, welcome to Boat Buzz.

The Sea Skiff Division built some cruisers named Corinthians in the mid 60's with mahogany planked sides but still had the typical lapstrake bottoms. Specifically, the 1966-1967, 28' Corinthian Sports and the 32' Corinthian. I don't believe the Main Division had any they called Corinthians. The Cavalier Division built the 30' Crusader in 1966-1969 with planked hull, bottom and sides.

Can you attach a photo? The hull number would help too.

Al

[Al Benton]

David, here are the interiors of the 30' Constellation and the 30' Crusader. Will this help ID your cruiser?


This is the Constellation Interior


Here's the Crusader Interior

Al

PS An explanation may help. Dave's cruiser is in winter storage and is not accessible for photos or finding the hull number. He remembers the interior layout and may recognize it from one of these photos.

[daveditch]

Al

I apologize for not sending pics. I do have several from the fall during the time I constructed my boat shed. It has been a tough winter with personal issues slowing my progress but I am pleased to report that I will finish string the entire hull by the end of this weekend. Mercifully the bottom will be finished tomorrow - what a nasty job. I am pleased to report that the entire bottom is perfectly sound. Next step will be restoration of the cockpit which is really just some stripping and refinishing. Almost everything below decks is pristine and authentic. From the interior pictures posted my boat is identical to the Crusader.

After a thorough cleanup of my boat shed I will take some pics. Thanks for the help and encouragement. The only unknown at this point is the condition of the engines. The previous owner swore that they ran like kiitens. We shall see. Stay tuned. The ice goes out here mid April and I want to be ready

Dave

[Al Benton]

Dave,

It's good to know that you're surviving the winter and that your Crusader bottom has survived so well. We're anxious to see photos of her. Stripping the bottom is one of the nastiest jobs on these.

Here's a '67, 30' Crusader, a Cavalier with a planked bottom like yours that is kept in pristine condition by her present owners.



Keep us posted with your progress.

[Wood Commander]

Some models of Sea Skiff Corinthian were lapstrake, and some were kind of a hybrid with Carvel planked hull sides and wider than normal (for a Sea Skiff) lapstrakes below the waterline.

Crusaders had Carvel planked hull sides, but with sheet plywood bottoms like Cavaliers.

Sea Skiffs have soft chines, also called "round Bilge" construction. Even Carvel planked Corinthians.

Crusaders have hard chines. At the point where the hull sides meet the bottom, it is angular, and makes an edge line from the transom all of the way forward, rising up above the waterline before it gets to the bow.

The Carvel planked Corinthians I have seen do not have battens under the plank seams like a traditionally built mahogany planked Chris Craft would.

Also, I know that smaller Sea Skiffs and most other lapstrake boats have bent frames, where traditional Carvel planked, batten seam Chris Craft hulls have sawn frames.

I don't know if the larger Sea Skiffs were all bent frame or whether they had at least some sawn frames too.

[Al Benton]

Bret,

I believe the Cavalier Crusaders (1965-1968) were built with double planked bottoms (solid mahogany outer over plywood inner).

I read in one of the books that the 43' Sea Skiff Corinthian received a double planked bottom and that the shorter models had lapstrake semi-round bottoms.

By spring of 1968 there were 2 fiberglass cruisers being built for every one wood cruiser. The Sea Skiff Division was building mahogany (smooth) sided cruisers while the Cavalier Division was selling lapstrake sided and carvel planked cruisers. I suppose they knew the end was near and were getting desperate. Before 1970 both Divisions were closed.

Al