Still being new to boats, I would very much value your opinion on the following:
I just finished rebuilding a 14' boat - all wiring, batteries, gauges, fuel lines and tanks all completed and hooked up - I bought the engine - a 1978 Evinrude 70hp on ebay complete with controls and tilt/trim. Engine had an overhauled powerhead and the mechanic said it started on first attampt. Engine was loosely bolted onto the transom and engine cables and controls routed into the splashwell and just needed to be connected.
Anyway, I thought was not sure of rigging up the engine to the boat and also it needed servicing. I just picked it up and was presented with a bill for 9 hrs of labor - itemized as follows:
" Remove engine from transom - grease & install steering cable - bolt engine to the transom & connect steering arm, connect battery cables & telltale pipework - re-wire trim & tilt motor - remake connections as required. Test run engine on slush muffs - change g/box oil"
They did not even check/change the impeller or drop the lower unit - all they did was to change the oil.
How many man-hours does it typically take to service this kind of engine? It had a rebuilt powerhead, so they did not even have to change the sparkplugs! Just about the only material listed for this work was a bolt for the steering connector - which they charged me $10 for. The total comes to about the equivelent of $750.00 I did not question this at the timwe, as the Marina owner was not there, and being new to boats, I was not sure if this was normal.
But upon bringing the boat home and actually starting to look at what they had really done, I feel like a complete fool to accept this. I built this boat from the shell up and I work on airplanes for living, so I have a fair idea of similar work. The trim & tilt could have taken them a couple of hours (although the trim/tilt gauge does not work) they had connected the send wire and the hot wire to the same terminal on the gauge - I have fixed this, but it still does not work.
What do you think? Is this a real Highway robbery in your opinion or should I just let it go? I'm not a kind of guy who is always complaining about life, but I just feel that I have been had this time, and no one likes that...
If you think this is unreasonable, please let me know and I can use that as ammunition on this guy (owner) when he returns from his holiday next week.
Many thanks, SJ
I just finished rebuilding a 14' boat - all wiring, batteries, gauges, fuel lines and tanks all completed and hooked up - I bought the engine - a 1978 Evinrude 70hp on ebay complete with controls and tilt/trim. Engine had an overhauled powerhead and the mechanic said it started on first attampt. Engine was loosely bolted onto the transom and engine cables and controls routed into the splashwell and just needed to be connected.
Anyway, I thought was not sure of rigging up the engine to the boat and also it needed servicing. I just picked it up and was presented with a bill for 9 hrs of labor - itemized as follows:
" Remove engine from transom - grease & install steering cable - bolt engine to the transom & connect steering arm, connect battery cables & telltale pipework - re-wire trim & tilt motor - remake connections as required. Test run engine on slush muffs - change g/box oil"
They did not even check/change the impeller or drop the lower unit - all they did was to change the oil.
How many man-hours does it typically take to service this kind of engine? It had a rebuilt powerhead, so they did not even have to change the sparkplugs! Just about the only material listed for this work was a bolt for the steering connector - which they charged me $10 for. The total comes to about the equivelent of $750.00 I did not question this at the timwe, as the Marina owner was not there, and being new to boats, I was not sure if this was normal.
But upon bringing the boat home and actually starting to look at what they had really done, I feel like a complete fool to accept this. I built this boat from the shell up and I work on airplanes for living, so I have a fair idea of similar work. The trim & tilt could have taken them a couple of hours (although the trim/tilt gauge does not work) they had connected the send wire and the hot wire to the same terminal on the gauge - I have fixed this, but it still does not work.
What do you think? Is this a real Highway robbery in your opinion or should I just let it go? I'm not a kind of guy who is always complaining about life, but I just feel that I have been had this time, and no one likes that...
If you think this is unreasonable, please let me know and I can use that as ammunition on this guy (owner) when he returns from his holiday next week.
Many thanks, SJ