Need a boating (34)FIX(34)-gctid827741

[captharv]

Between the hurricanes and my spine/neck problem, I have not had my boat in the water since installing a new air conditioner about the 1st of august. I wanted to verify that all the stuff aboard was OK before going to St. Augustine. I rigged some hoses so I can run the air (and flush it out) in the yard and it works great on that. I get a 20* F drop from the air intake to the return so it verifies my install. However, there is Mr. Murphy. Then there's Capt Harvey's law: He says Mr. Murphy is an optimist.

The St. John's river is still in Flood stage. Marinas and launch ramps are under water. The big problem is the St. Johns only drops 1 inch per mile of run, and water leaves very slowly.

Maybe I will trail it to Daytona and rent a slip for a day to try out the air, besides desperately needing a "boating fix". ( I am starting to show withdrawl symptoms: Irratability; don'y give a crap about fixing things in the house; sitting in the boat on the trailer and watching TV, etc.




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[jongleur]

You have my sympathy. I get the withdrawal symptoms too.

[Jeffw]

I hear you. Our 2858 has been down all summer, bad advice from a formerly trusted - turned a$$hole mechanic. (I won't mention names, don't want to embarrass FALLON MARINE.) Hoping to launch Tuesday in the SoCal Pacific for a delayed summer cruise. Not jonesing too bad, we still had the pontoon on the lake all summer...:side:

[CptCrunchie]

Yeah, gotta love it. I finally got my boat back on the water since Sept 3 when I developed carb issues, when I discovered fuel spewing out the side of the carb onto the manifold. Took 3.5 hours to come home on the kicker.

Then I had a month and a half of questionable decisions and dealing with a bad remanufactured carb. While National did take it back, my out of pocket loss for that one was $150 and I'm no better off than I was. Then my best option (the one I could have done to begin with) was to have my crusty old original carb rebuilt.

Now, I trust my OMC guy, but not being mechanically inclined, have no clue what he did or didn't do to rebuild it. But in hind-sight, for the $325 he charged, I could have traded the $275 defective Edelbrock carb for National to completely rebuild this one. They told they'd blast the carb, 're-coat it', replace all the moving parts, AND pay the shipping. But by that point, 3 weeks had passed, plus it would take a week to ship the carb there, 4 days to rebuild it, and another week to get it back, frustration had set in and I didn't want to wait. I also no longer trusted their abilities.

I finally got it all put back the carb put back on, including piecing together a new fuel line. I take it out to drop crab pots on Friday and it runs like crap. Long story short, 88fourwinns posted a pdf of an ongoing issue with my carb, and it appears I only need a special thick gasket and the my boat will finally be good to go fishing on. A @[email protected]#&$)(*@&*$%)& $5 gasket!!?!

captharv, I can relate to you saying you need a fix. For the past month and a half, I've been missing out on some amazing Coho fishing in the strait, which just happens to be my second fav salmon to bring in and to eat. Our club members are pulling in some very impressive fish ....yet, I can barely go crabbing. Thankfully, I'll have my boat back together and working properly by later today.

The lesson is (and I seem to be reliving this one monthly over the past 40 years of my life ...one Wifey will openly attest to) "When a motor needs work, remember that you are not good at it, and leave it to a mechanic who knows." My time off the water could have only been a week, but here I am a month and a half later and I still don't trust taking my boat into open water.

Indeed, captharv, I feel for ya.

[captharv]

Captcrunchie: I know what you mean about some of the so-called "mechanics".. 2 years ago, on a cruise to Huntoon island, my boat stopped dead, 1/2 way there. I used an old spark plug and cranked it, showing no spark. Tries: new coil and spare spark module. Still no spark. Had to be the in-distributor sensor, of which I did not have. Got towed in by BOATUS tow. Got another sensor and it ran fine. (Now have a spare). What was worse for me is my deflated ego. I have towed 256 boats over 26 years in the Coast Guard Auxiliary (before the sea tow lawsuit), so being towed hurt.

[dmcb]

But Harv, it would hurt even worst if you were still floating out there.

I had to get towed once when the outdrive on my Sea Ray took a dump.

Got towed by the father of one of the two boys I pulled out of the water in Georgian Bay at night after their boat sunk. Just luck I was running after dark and I saw them. They had no lights and only an empty gas can to hold on to. Never forget that and I would never feel bad about being towed. It can happen to anyone in spite of the best precautions.

Doug

[CptCrunchie]

"dmcb" post=828603 wrote:
It can happen to anyone in spite of the best precautions.

+1 on that one, Doug. Going back to what God probably said to Noah about his resistance to building an arc, "Noah! .....How long can you tread water?"

Flashs back to The Bee Gees, tightens underwear, then sings, ....."Stayin' alive! Stayin' alive! Uh, uh, uh, uh! Stayin' aliiiiii-iiiiii-iiii-iiiive!"

[jongleur]

Wow! You sounded just like them...

[Pcpete]

Yeah, my fix was changing out my raw water impellers. That port engine is a bi#*h.

[CptCrunchie]

"Pcpete" post=828650 wrote:
Yeah, my fix was changing out my raw water impellers. That port engine is a bi#*h.

Oh my! That's your boating fix? Pete, me-thinks you need more fun in your life! Maybe a rhoid operation? :silly: