I bought a boat!

ml8163

Seaman
Joined
Jan 21, 2008
Messages
71
Hey everyone! I am new to the forum and this is my first post. I am in the process of buying a 1987 16ft Thunder Craft Regency bowrider. It has a mercruiser 3.0L i/o. The boat is in great shape to be almost 21 years old. The boat dealer took it on a trade in. They rebuilt the carborator, replaced the impeller, replaced the belt, new battery, new steering cable, new plugs and wires. Today I went on a demo ride and it ran great! The gelcoat is a little calky, so the hull needs a good cleaning, polishing, and waxing.

When I get it home, is there anything I should make sure of or do?

This looks like a great forum and thanks for everyone's help!
 

m&m252

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Sep 3, 2007
Messages
158
Re: I bought a boat!

secure/lock it ,disconnect the battery or hook a battery tender to it,cover it up keep dust,dirt,bird poop etc out of it....
 

scoutabout

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Oct 14, 2006
Messages
1,568
Re: I bought a boat!

Welcome! You'll find lots of friendly knowledgable people here ready to answer all your questions. Some of the advice might even be right! :D

You've got a great boat there -- our neighbours had the same one if I'm remembering correctly -- nice and solid and good in a chop.

Anyway, one thing I would definitely add to your refit list for a boat that age is replacing the rubber outdrive bellows (or at least try to find out when they were last done). The rubber cracks as it ages and with upteen raising and lowering of your prop. A crack that goes all the way through the rubber can sink your new toy. Also, have the gimbal ring and bearing checked for play and retorqued if necessary. If you are storing out of water for a long period of time, lower the outdrive as far as you can without hitting the skeg on the ground. This keeps the rubber seals from taking a set in the up position which can also lead to cracking.

Other items off the top of my head would be to install a water-separating fuel filter if it doesn't have one and compliment those new plugs and wires with a new set of points, condenser, cap, and timing check. Also, check all fuel lines, including your filler tube and replace anything that's corroded or cracked.

That 3.0 is a good solid economical motor, but its inline design and relatively large displacement for the type means they can be somewhat shaky. Make sure all your motor mounts are tight and the stringers the motor sits on are not rotten.
 
Last edited:

rolmops

Vice Admiral
Joined
Feb 24, 2002
Messages
5,299
Re: I bought a boat!

Welcome and congratulations on your new boat.
Since you are new at this,do take a safe boating course.It will serve you well specially in waters where lots of people are... eh shall we say... less educated in matters of on the water safety and politeness rules.
Next,are you planning on using this in Fresh water or the Brine?
Specially in salt water,there are many maintenance rules for I/O motors that you should know about,or it will be a very expensive hobby indeed.
Anyway,feel free to ask.
 

Nandy

Commander
Joined
Apr 10, 2004
Messages
2,145
Re: I bought a boat!

I cant comment on your new toy as I can't see it behind this firewall. However, sounds like a i/o. Since the marina is not going to give you any warranty I would take a knowledgeable person to look at your boat. There are so many things that can be wrong that it is hard to cover them all here. Look for soft spots in the deck (floor), tap the transom to make sure it dont sound like it has rot (thud instead of tad means rot). Make sure the cylinders have the adequate pressure. Inspect the oil in the gear case for metal and or water. Never trust the seller unless it has a warranty and it is spelled in paper.
Make sure the marina winterize it for you if you live in a place that water freezes. The other advices are good.
If you fill in your location and tell us what is the intended use for the boat we could be able to help you better.

Good luck.
 

ml8163

Seaman
Joined
Jan 21, 2008
Messages
71
Re: I bought a boat!

Thanks for all the great advice. I will definately check bellows, gimbal ring and bearing for play.

How easy is it to change the bellows?
How easy is it to install a water seperating fuel filter?

I'm mechanically inclined, I just haven't worked on a boat motor before.

I plan on using the boat in fresh water, but it would be nice to take it to the beach sometime and run it in the sound. We go to the Outer Banks each summer... Anything special I need to do for salt water?

Thanks again for everyone's help.
 

ml8163

Seaman
Joined
Jan 21, 2008
Messages
71
Re: I bought a boat!

The dealer said they would re-winterize it after the demo ride. Does anyone know how hard is it to change out the bellows?
 

Gary H NC

Fleet Admiral
Joined
Dec 1, 2005
Messages
8,972
Re: I bought a boat!

The drive needs to be pulled to change out the bellows.You would need a service manual and about a days labor.Check with the dealer and see what they would charge.
 

scoutabout

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Oct 14, 2006
Messages
1,568
Re: I bought a boat!

Certainly get the manual for your engine and outdrive but unless you know exactly what you are doing I'd be inclined to let the dealer do the bellows as it's critical they are installed properly. Also, keep the record of who installed them just in case.

Water-separating fuel filter is easy. It comes as a kit with a base that accepts a spin-on filter that looks very much like an oil filter. Mount the base in the engine compartment as close to your fuel pump as possible, where it's not in the way but so that the filter will hang vertically. Also, mount it as low as possible while still being easy to reach. Don't want the fuel pump working extra hard to suck fuel up too much of a hill. If I recall, the fuel pump on that motor is starboard side near the front.

Remove your existing fuel line where it runs from your tank outlet to your mechanical fuel pump. Be sure to be ready to catch any spilling fuel in something.

The mounting base for the filter has arrows indicating direction of flow. Cut proper fuel line to length to run from the output on your tank to the inlet on the filter mounting base. Cut more fuel line to run from the outlet on the filter base to your fuel pump and you are set.

Also, spend the coupla extra cents to get proper fuel line clamps and double them up. Don't use that cheesy hardware store hose clamp junk. And be sure not to overtighten the filter. Just spin it on and turn a bit more til snug.

Start it up and inspect for leaks.

At the end of each season, just change out the filter with a fresh one.
 

ml8163

Seaman
Joined
Jan 21, 2008
Messages
71
Re: I bought a boat!

Thanks scoutabout, I called the dealer and asked them to check on the condition of the bellows, gimbal ring and bearing. They said that they usually replace this in a lower unit over haul that with part + labor is $660. Ouch... So, I'll see what they say.
 

ml8163

Seaman
Joined
Jan 21, 2008
Messages
71
Re: I bought a boat!

Here are some pics of the boat. For $2k, I think I did pretty good.

boat_1.jpg


boat_2.jpg


boat_3.jpg


boat_4.jpg


boat_7.jpg


boat_8.jpg
 

ml8163

Seaman
Joined
Jan 21, 2008
Messages
71
Re: I bought a boat!

The hull is pretty dull and leaves a white chalky residue on your hand.

Has any one used Dakota Shine, or have an opion about it? It looks like a good ovarall product for removing oxidation and bringing back the original shine. Not sure if there are any drawbacks, from their web site, it looks like it will restore the plastics on the window casings, dash, and gauge cluster also.
 

ml8163

Seaman
Joined
Jan 21, 2008
Messages
71
Re: I bought a boat!

Does anyone know of a good way to take off the old registration stickers and the pin stripe in this picture?

boat_3_sticker.jpg


Thanks again for everyone's help!
 

BF

Lieutenant
Joined
Apr 8, 2003
Messages
1,489
Re: I bought a boat!

looks like a good deal to me. Congrat's.

You'll want to lose that piece of rope that is acting as the safety device in case the winch strap breaks... You should have a chain to the bow eye for that purpose.

I don't know if it's the same down there... but up here, the registration numbers stay on the boat... (they're for the life of the boat, not just for the current owner). Unless you mean you just want to change them out for nicer looking ones, in which case I see why you'd want the old ones off.
 

Gary H NC

Fleet Admiral
Joined
Dec 1, 2005
Messages
8,972
Re: I bought a boat!

A heat gun really helps remove the stripes and decals.
The 600 bucks is not that bad to replace the bellows and bearing.
Depending on how much effort you want to put into getting the shine back you may want to check into a product called Poli-Glow,it will put a shine on even extremely faded fiberglass.The other option is a lot of buffing and waxing with some 3M products..
NICE BOAT! 2k was a great deal..Congrats!!
 

douglloyd

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Jun 13, 2005
Messages
147
Re: I bought a boat!

Man you are gonna have a blast this summer! Just take it slow and learn as much as you can, don't bring the whole family out with you until you "shake her down" and just remember it says "Pleasure" on the registration. Go slow and ENJOY!
 

oops!

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Oct 18, 2007
Messages
12,932
Re: I bought a boat!

yup ya stoll it !

good deal and welcome....

as far as shining up the gell coat goes......watch out...

a lot of miracle products work for a little while but then the chalk comes back.

hit search...and see what others have had good results from.

i suggest the old fashoned way....wax off, rubbing compound, wax on...

follow directions...and good luck......

ditto on the safe boating course....it really helps.

cheers
oops
 

Nandy

Commander
Joined
Apr 10, 2004
Messages
2,145
Re: I bought a boat!

Did anyone mention WINTERIZE??

I think I did...
Make sure the marina winterize it for you if you live in a place that water freezes.


usually replace this in a lower unit over haul that with part + labor is $660. Ouch...

Bellows have to be changed in a preempted manner. I cant remember, is it every 2 or 3 years? That is reason #2 I dont like inboard. The maintenance in an outboard is so simple and inexpensive...
 
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