Cigarette Squadron XII Complete Resurrection

[26 Spyder]

I have finally found the boat I have been searching for!

I have been looking for something fast, trailerable, able to handle LOTO and be worth putting my time and effort in.

The hull is an '83 27' Squadron XII built by Don Aronow, this hull was the last 27' out of the molds right after Don bought the Cigarette company back. From my research there were only 18 that were built, I do not know how many still exist today, I have located 6 others so far.
I do know that performance boat builders still use this hull design today!

I found the boat and picked it up in Michigan, before that the boat ran in Canada.
It is definitely a project! The hull was supposed to have been restored years ago but the company that was paid to do the work was shut down by the FBI, apparently they were doing more than boats.
They got as far as stripping it and cutting the deck off with a sawzall... Morons... (I can only guess they wanted to splash molds from the hull).

I will be building the Squadron as a Race/Pleasure and will run in the OSS Pro-Am series in 2010 along with a few poker runs etc..

 

[Trim'd Up]

Cool find! Congrats on the winter project.

 

[26 Spyder]

When I got the boat home it was like a dumpster. What a mess...

I am running ideas through my head every day on how I want it to look.
The parts collection has begun as well. I am trying to find as many actual "Cig" parts as I can.

 

[26 Spyder]

The 27 originally had a 454 and TRS drive, all of the rigging was a race style setup.
I will be switching drives and I do not know what power it will have yet, I am sure I will be testing several different power combinations over time with this boat.

The transom did not appear to be rotten but it did have a soft spot, so while it is apart I will replace it. The plan is to also re-gel & blueprint the bottom instead of paint, I will be looking for every last MPH I can get.

The plans are to have a classic look with some modern touches.

 

[26 Spyder]

A little more progress...

I have finished stripping the hull getting all of the old hardware and wiring off...

 

[26 Spyder]

Sometime in its life this boat lived in the salt.. I have seen worse though..

 

[26 Spyder]

Now for the fun part.... Getting the deck off of the hull!

Now remember, the deck was already cut before I got a hold of the boat. I would not have done this if it was still intact...

 

[26 Spyder]

A few more pics.

 

[26 Spyder]

I set the deck on a trailer until I am ready to reattach it...

 

[Davidmnc]

Cool project. Keep us updated!

 

[26 Spyder]

I rolled the hull back into my showroom.

Here are a few hull pics....

Now it is time to tear into the transom!

 

[26 Spyder]

At first the transom looked pretty good. I almost thought it didn't need replaced....

 

[26 Spyder]

Then I made the next cut... I found rot!
The water apparently seeped in around the drive cutout. Cig did a pretty good job sealing all of the holes and cutouts but not enough..
Still pretty good for a 27 year old hull that sat out in the elements for a few years...


A little further cutting I found some dry rot behind the port stringer...

 

[26 Spyder]

The port stringer had a few inches of dry rot also. The rest is solid..

 

[26 Spyder]

No miracle woods or materials here.. Just plain plywood...
It will go back a little better than factory...

 

[phragle]

At least having the deck off makes the transom that much easier.....

 

[26 Spyder]

These are the tools I used for the removal.

I saved as much of the transom as I could for a template.

This is how it sits today, I will pick up wood this weekend and start the process of going back together...

 

[26 Spyder]

At least having the deck off makes the transom that much easier.....

Yes it makes things much easier...

Now for the fun stuff! :sifone:

The Cig now has a drive system that can handle about any power I decide to put to it! No more worrying about broken Bravo drives!!

The new setup is a Konrad Ace Package. Very nice unit! It is not new but it only had 25 hours on it, then it went to the Konrad Factory for a refresh and and upgrade, now it is ready to go again better than new!

The pics are the actual unit that is now in my shop. It was originally installed on a pretty nasty Profile.

Here is the a quick description of the package. Feel free to ask any questions.

The Konrad ACE is designed to provide performance boaters with a complete propulsion system for offshore vessels, with maximum cockpit space in mind. The Konrad ACE houses the BAM 1350 heavy duty transmission inside its extension box, and is delivered complete with dual ram external hydraulic steering cylinders. The ACE features state-of-the-art engineering and highest quality components that are capable of exceeding the demands of the high-performance market.

 

[phragle]

for the template.. when you have everything out and cleaned up, use some double sided tape and some plastic or shrink wrap, stick it up there and trim quick and easy.

 

[26 Spyder]

We have been playing with paint schemes..
I still want to keep the lines classic, but a little modern colors may not hurt either.

These were done quickly the other night and will be refined more.
I am sure I will also have some clean sheet ideas as well..

Hard to tell in the pics but the bottom will be gloss black,
The sides are hot rod black and the deck is silver.
Graphic colors will are still open.

Feel free to give input on the designs! (No comments on the hot rod black though!)

There also seems to be some controversy as to whether this is a Cigarette or a Squadron. The info I have shows this particular hull to have come from the Cig factory. I also have ad copies showing the manufacturer as Cig and the model as Squadron XII. The next set of graphics you see will have more Squadron flair to them...