Kona boat info

[NautiII]

Does anyone know how I can find out some history on Kona boats? Since I own one, I would like to know a little about them. ie: where they are made, how long they been around, styles, how they hold up, etc..
How many Kona owners are members here? just curious!

[V-DRIVE VIDEO]

Heres an old ad
http://www.v-drivevideo.com/jerrysgallery/albums/userpics/10001/Jets%20Again.jpg http://www.v-drivevideo.com/jerrysgallery/albums/userpics/10001/Jets%20Again%20001.jpg

[myoung]

That's a tough one. Been looking around for what ever I could find since picking up mine last year. Not much out there. Doing searches on Google and such kinda sucks because you get all kinds of crap about the actual Kona in Hawaii, but there is some stuff on the net if you dig around. Also do a search here on ***boat, there have been a lot of people come along and ask this same question. Some have gotten some good replies from guys in the know while others get nothing. Just gotta read them all to find anything. I guess us Kona guys are like the red headed step children of the boat crowd. :rollside:

[holorinhal]

Hey Nauttii;
Same here ,I havent been able to find any info on them other than the brochures on Roostwear.com.
Mine is exactly like Yours except has a Jacuzzi wj pump.
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/520/2774kona_044.jpg

[holorinhal]

http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/520/2774kona_019.jpg

[holorinhal]

I would really like to see more pics of Your's when You have a chance.

[NautiII]

I would really like to see more pics of Your's when You have a chance.
Hal, check this thread, it has one. I also have a Jacuzzi
http://***boat.com/forums/showthread.php?t=114565
http://***boat.com/forums/showthread.php?t=113889

[NautiII]

Heres an old ad
http://www.v-drivevideo.com/jerrysgallery/albums/userpics/10001/Jets%20Again.jpg http://www.v-drivevideo.com/jerrysgallery/albums/userpics/10001/Jets%20Again%20001.jpg
Thanks. that is cool

[old rigger]

NautiII,
Kona boats was owned by a guy named Jerry Baker. I'm almost sure he had a partner, but I'll be damned if I can remember his name. I'm thinking he might have been a money guy because when someone mentions Kona boats, Jerry's name is the one that is always mentioned, not the other guy. Doesn't really matter anyway.
I got to know Baker a little when I was at Advantage. Our gel coater at the time was Jim Pringle who got his start squirting molds at Kona along with Jim Sullivan, who I worked with even later at Warlock. Baker would drop by and shoot the bull with Pringle on a regular basis. Anyway these two guys Jim and Jim, were long considered the best of the best (and still are in some circles) when it came to gel coaters. They were the first to experiment with blends, and fades in the mold back in the day when 2 colors was standard on a boat. Anything being done today by todays new generation of squirters, some of whom are doing outstanding work, can be directly traced to these two and the work they did at Kona. It stood the industry on it's ear at the time.
Your boat, if it's like holorinhal's boat, are splashes of the old TahitiTiger.
After Kona ceased building boats, I don't remember the reason but if I had to guess it might have been the same reason as many shops at the end of the 70's, energy crunch, recession, to name a few, Baker started his Baker custom boats and built his super fast tunnels there.
I can remember one visit that he made to Advantage and he looked like a sick dog. He said the doctors had opened him up to do lung surgery but his lungs were rock hard and there was nothing that could be done to help him. Years of shooting gel coat with out a mask in his early days of boat building took it's toll on him. I think that was the last time I saw him and he died a short time later. This must have been around '88 or '89.

[Konabud]

Here ya go!
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/500/3112Konad73b.jpg
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/500/3112Konad73bb.jpg

[old rigger]

konabud, great article. thanks for posting it. that 2nd picture from one of the boat shows is great, nothing fancy back then. we'd lay down some carpet, place the boats on some big stryofoam blocks set up a desk to take orders and that was it.
I know this isn't Kona related, but you might get a kick out of it. When I was 16 and had just gotten my drivers license, I was already working at tahiti and had been driving a motorcycle to work with a drivers permit I'd had since I was 15 1/2, and Dick Schuster saw me clock in one day after school and called me over to his office. He handed me the keys to one of the shop trucks and told me to take the thing to the L.A. boat show. I was kinda caught off gaurd and said something like 'sure thing' and headed off to find my dad. Hell, I didn't even know where L.A. was and had only driven on the freeway a few times, having had my license for less that a week. I told my dad what Schuster wanted me to do, hoping that he might intercede and tell Dick not to send me, but he just said 'see you after dinner' and went back to rigging a boat. Well, I got to the shop truck and it was loaded with a boat on top of it sitting on a rack, kinda like a lumber rack but made to hold a boat, and behind it was a trailer with two boats on it, one on the bottom and the other sitting up high on another rack. The shop was built along side the freeway and it was easy enough to find that on ramp but it was one of the most scarey, frightening and nerve racking things I had done up to that point in my short life. Everytime I went under an overpass or bridge, I thought the top boats were going to hit the them. Big ol Ford 3/4 ton truck, granny 4 spd trans, going all of 45 mph up the freeways to Los Angeles, with me driving and trying not to look like a deer in the headlights. I can still remember the way that rig swayed back and forth with all the weight on top. White knuckle ride for sure. I don't remember what time I got home, but it was late and my mom was pissed at not only schuster but my dad too. lol. This was back in '72 so there wasn't nearly the traffic we have today, but still quite an adventure for a kid.

[bakerjet]

that is a cool story oldrigger! i have 1981 jerry baker 18' not sure which one its built from in the kona line up but it has the parque floor with full stringers and it's hell for stout i love it :rollside:

[NautiII]

Thanks for all the info ya'll. Kinda proud to be a Kona owner!!

[FASTRAT]

thnx guys for that info :)...i have never read those articles...back in the late 70's when i was looking for a boat, i stumbled across a '73 Kona for a really decent price...it had been sitting for awhile in a contractors yard & was in pretty bad shape (interior not covered)...the selling point was...it had a new 427 L-88 BBC pro built by a T/F eng builder (all receipts)...it had full length dbl stringers...it had Bassett OT headers...it had a split bowl Berk pump...45 gal's total fuel tanks (2 side & 1 front)...it came with tandem trailer & alot of misc parts (sgl TR & NOS system)...the unique thing about this boat was...it had a '76 bottom on it (better than the '73)...i "still" have the boat (since '79) with the same eng in it...the "whole" interior has been completely custom re-done...the jet has been blue printed...it has a jet-o-vator...it has the "original" gel coat...the trailer has been painted Imron root beer metalic...it has always been either garaged or completely covered outside...since i have owned it...there's prob no more than 100 hrs on it! (nobody rides for free!!)...it runs fine & handles great...i luv it...bottom line..."I own it!"...i'll prob never sell it...too much time & effort into it...thats my story & i'm sticking to it...the pics that i have seen of other people's Kona's are "great"...Those Who Know...Go KONA
fastrat

[myoung]

That article is great, it was posted in another thread as well. I love it because it has one of the few period pictures of my hull, the 21' cruiser. I bought mine off of Ebay last year for dirt cheap, but then it does need a lot of work. The engine is rebuilt, but asthetically the whole boat is a mess.
Here's how she looks currently,
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y202/myoungjr/Kona%20Boat/YZ426tankbrkt007.jpg
I've been accumulating parts for a mechanical resto and then next will be an interior once everything works properly and looks good. It's got the Olds for now, but it will be getting the old 454 I just pulled out of my Suburban once it's rebuilt. The only other thing that is a must do now is the floor needs replacing. I may take the opportunity while the floor is up to install full stringers as well, but doing a search on the subject has turned up a lot of folks saying don't waste the time. Knowing that a full stringer boat seems to garner much more respect as well as hull integrity, I think it may be worth the effort.
I really fell in love with this boat for a couple reasons, one, it looks exactly like my buddy's Charger hull and I really like the lines of his boat. The other is the color scheme reminds me of one of my old cars that I sometimes miss, a '71 Chevelle with the SS hood and blue with white stripes. I have to say it is a bit more interesting to me to have a lesser heard about brand than being one of the miriad owners of a Tahiti or the like. Kind of a special little click if you will. :cool: