# Kennedy 13' Project



## pbustle (Sep 4, 2009)

I have been reading and lurking around the forum for a while now.  I aquired this Kennedy 13' a few months back for $100 and it was in the palmetto bushes.  I bought it because my family used to have one and they are extremly stable and will handle a good bit of weight.  I plan on building  tender for our sportfish that is as light as possible because it has to be picked up with a deck mounted crane.

Interesting enough, being in the boating business most of my life, I have only seen two of these.  Does anyone know anything about who built them?  The VIN is started wiht the Florida Homade Boat first three letters, but it is listed as a "Kennedy".  

I am going to put a flush front and Rear deck with built in baitwell and Gas tank.  I also need to raise the transom to 20" to accomodate a 40hp engine.  

Any input would be welcome.  I have built a few boats, but never one where weight or lack their of was so important.


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## DSampiero (Oct 18, 2009)

Cool find, but why 40hp? seems like 4X too much..


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## pbustle (Sep 4, 2009)

Needs to go fast or somewhat fast with 3 big guys in it.  I may settle on a 30hp or 35hp, but definetly not any less. It is rated for a 40hp max and My family's old one had a 35hp.


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## DSampiero (Oct 18, 2009)

Three big guys, a 30 hp outboard, and no gear..oh wait, it's a tender. OK lot's of gear. How much freeboard do you expect to have once she's loaded? Seems like a high horse power bathtub. How big is the mother ship?


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## jrod0785 (Aug 26, 2009)

Hey man, I am a newby to the forum as well. I actually have a friend who has a Kennedy Craft sitting at his house as well. And I have seen quite a few of them still running around my area (Panama City). I believe they were made here in Panama City.


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## B.Lee (Apr 29, 2008)

Pretty sure that's the same hull that Critchfield and a few others built over the years. Not a bad little skiff, good luck with your project!


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## pbustle (Sep 4, 2009)

PCfisherman, I would love to have some photos if you got any.

I know its not going to have a lot of freeboard, but that is occasional use, but the boat NEEDS to be able to do that if neccisary. 

B. Lee, Who is Critchfield and do you know of any photos of his boats? I would love to see some for some ideas. I am really trying to develop the plan of attack at this point. I dont want to do it twice.


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## Brett (Jul 16, 2008)

Grab all the gear you normally take on a trip then dump it in the empty hull.
Stand back and eyeball the pile, remove anything that really isn't needed.
Organize what's left so that it fits the interior space of the boat and leaves room to move.
Make sure that the load is evenly spread so that the hull floats level in the water.
Now start thinking about what needs to be decked over and what needs to be bulkheaded.
Where are you going to sit/stand and where is the cooler going? Fuel tank?
Where is your wire chase going to run so it stays out of the bilge.
Rod racks? Console? Seats or benches? Set it in place and see what works.
Don't worry about old layouts, they were designed for ease of installation by the builder.
When you're done, remember you want to end up so that the hull floats level in the water.


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## saltandson (Apr 21, 2008)

I'm a longtime lurker too and I own a Kennedy 13' as well, mine started out in about the same condition as yours and I once tried to sell it here as wrotten boat with title after factoring in my abilities and realized how much work it needed :-[. Later after some thought I found a local guy on Craigs list "Dantheboatman", more like Dan the Boat Scam :-?! I paid way too much for second rate work, my fault/foolishness  :-[! He had a website but it is no longer in existance, he had a decent progression on pictures as he gutted it and rebuilt it. I had supplied him with a memory stick of images/ ideas from high-end skiffs that I thought I couldn't afford(pre-affordable skiff revolution, ie. Native SUV, Inshore Powerboats, etc.) I didn't get my memory stick back as he promised with all the step by step so I could post here as we all love to follow along. In the end I feel lucky to have even gotten my boat back after reading complaints/horror stories on Craigslist from other customers ! Anyway from the first time I saw the hull I thought it had potential! And it does and did, hopefully you are skilled or patient enough to do it yourself so you get more satisfaction out of the process than I did. Or have a reputable shop do it. I will post what before and after pics I have soon. I put a 25 Merc 2smoke tiller on it with Nauticus Smart Tabs as well. It was SCARY w/o the tabs, even with the motor adjusted everyway! Rides much better with the tabs but it is my belief that a 25hp is too much for the boat! I have since decided to save and shop for a bigger boat to put my Merc on(Inshore 16 maybe). At WOT it is too fast and scary for my comfort level. The boat is light weight and unfortunately gets "bow steered" by oncoming wakes and makes traveling in moderate to high traffic channels sketchy. At moderate speed I had a larger boat cut me off and 2 of the 3 on board including my self were rocketed overboard! Luckily I had the engine kill tether attached to myself and the motor shutdown. It could have been real bad! Sorry for the longwinded response/derailment of your thread but I really believe the boat's best set up is a 15-20hp with some sort of trim tabs or cav plate. If I lived and fished somewhere with less boat traffic it might be ok at WOT but only on the best of glassy days. I will post some before and after pics to show what I had done. I still love the boat as I feel it is a classic(mines a 1968) and I love the thought of recycling/rebuilding even if it's not my own handy work. I found that for me and my 10year old son and wife it is not a big enough boat . Just my .02! Can't wait to see what you do with yours! Again sorry for the Rant on your thread! Good luck!


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## pbustle (Sep 4, 2009)

SaltandSon, Glad to hear you have a Kennedy. The one my cusin owned had a 25 on it and seemed ok to me, but I woudl agree that it is definetly a fair weather boat. This is an ok thing as it will be used as a tender. We have a 17' Aquasport that we tow behind our sportfish when we need a bigger boat. I would like to see how your boat turned out. Any pics would be appreciated. By the way, how much do you think your boat weighs now that it is completed? I am trying to estimate my completed weight. Right now, two guys can pick up the boat and put it in the back of my truck with ease.

I am hopeing to get started in the next couple weeks, but it will be a slow going project since I have some other projects going at the same time. 

What is everyone's opinion about the transom. As of now, it is a 15" and it has been replace by a previous owner and is very solid. I am trying to decide if I need to raise it to a 20" transom. I would like to leave it alone, but I have mixed feelings.


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## pbustle (Sep 4, 2009)

So I took the Kennedy out over the weekend to see how it would run with the 15hp Yamaha that i have. I was really supprised the boat runs quick with two 200lb men in the boat as it sits now. The problem I find is that it seems that I need more weight in the back of the boat while running. the boat wants to run bow down no matter where I put the tilt pin on the engine. But if I have the other guy sit close to the back, it runs great. The problem I have then is at rest. With two guys in the back, it is a little low in the stern.

I am attempting to work out the balance for when I install all the items in the boat, including fuel tank, battery and baitwell. What I am thinking is that I need to install the fuel tank under the rear deck as far forwardas I can, and put the baitwell underthe front deck since it will be used only some of the time. Then if I am running the boat alone, I will have the extra weight needed in the stern to make the boat ride a little bow up. and if I am fishing or riding with more that one person I can spread the weight around to compensate. What do you all think? I want to get this correct the first time.


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## flash1977 (Feb 18, 2010)

I bought a 13 Kennedy last year for $500 in Mobile with 25 evinrude and trailer. The 25hp wasn't enough for when I was running with another adult so I found a mid 90's 40 merc to put on the boat. 

I am not through with the project yet, but thought I would show some of the pics of it. The only thing that worries me is I am not sure how much backwash I am going to have when I slow down (I certainly don't want to sink the boat.) I put a 1980 Evinrude 35hp that belongs to my dad on it last year and the 35 didn't have that bad of a backwash, but again, I am not sure about this 40 since it seems to be a lot larger than the 35.

Anyway, I decided to go with stick steering and built a bracket to go on the right hand side of the boat. 


























Forgive the quality of the pictures, they were taken at nighttime under the carport. I will take some more pics when I am finished with this project and share them as well.


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## rcmay (Dec 12, 2006)

Hey Flash, do you live in Mobile?


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## flash1977 (Feb 18, 2010)

I am in the greater Mobile area...Wagarville, to be exact.


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