1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate

Hello! I am very green to this type of discussion, but will give it a whirl. I recently bought a 1989 Renken Classic 2000 cuddy with an OMC 4.3 motor and cobra outdrive. The seller had it running on carb cleaner when I bought it and was told the fuel system needed to be "purged" after it had been sitting over the winter. I since have brought it to a marina which said they knew how to work on OMC, and also stated the Cobra outdrives had a reputation of being "pretty near bullet proof" after they remedied the shift cable problem in the mid 80's. I had to wait the typical 10 days for them to even look at it, and even then, have had to call them on its progress. To make a long story short, I ended up talking to someone other than the mechanic last Friday. He read off the notes the mechanic wrote which stated, "fuel filter has rust, has not been changed in a long time - could get motor running on carb cleaner, but no fuel to carb - has an electric fuel pump on carb w/mercruiser logo on fire arrestor - not original motor, no spot on block to install mechanical pump." The gentleman told me they might not want to pursue this boat due to the discrepancies in the motor, but the mechanic would make the final say. It is now Monday, and I will be waiting for him to call, or I will call in the afternoon. I am fairly certain at this point the motor ran with the configuration it currently has, but in the same sense, am concerned about the changes. Are there any valid reasons to switch from mechanical to electric fuel delivery? Is it common to use mercruiser parts on an OMC? Am I in deep poo here? Any answers will be greatly appreciated.

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate

The 4.3 is a great motor, it's a Chevy block. Most engine parts will be the same as Mercruiser. My guess for the electric pump would be that the block was changed to a newer one. The casting will have the indents for the mechanical pump but the holes would need to be drilled out and possibly the cam changed to switch back to a mechanical pump. I've seen many people pull a truck motor from a yard and use the block to replace a cracked boat engine, not much to worry about with that, just make sure the starter, dist, and carb are marine parts. The cobra is a great drive and at that year it should have the new red shift cable. The carb will need to be pulled and cleaned/rebuilt.

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate

Don S and Bond-o will be the men to tell you all about OMC and Cobra drives... I'm sure they will chime in shortly... You will need to provide them with info like serial numbers so they know what you have in your boat.... Welcome Aboard !!

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate

Welcome aboard mountainsedge.

The other couple of things to consider at this point too ... any idea if the drive is working? If it's working well, and the boat is in good shape it might be worth trying to sort all of the issues out.

If the drive isn't working and/or the boat is in rough shape, it may be a good point to cut bait and run. OMC has been outta' business for a while and it's more difficult to get them worked on and find parts. I have an OLD OMC drive system, and I've not had too bad a time keeping it running (hasn't cost me much and I've gotten to enjoy tinkering with it). But, it's made a mechanic of me.

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate

rickryder said:

Don S and Bond-o will be the men to tell you all about OMC and Cobra drives... I'm sure they will chime in shortly... You will need to provide them with info like serial numbers so they know what you have in your boat.... Welcome Aboard !!

Click to expand...

Ayuh,... Yer confused if ya Think I know squat 'bout OMCs....

Looks like Pajon's got it nailed...

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate

Thank you all for your feedback up to this point. I do have a red shift cable on it so I am considering myself lucky, I think. I don't want to make myself look like too much of a fool, but the seller did say he was using the boat up till fall, and it was ready to take fishing the day I bought it (insert jokes here). I will be calling the marina shortly and talk to the mechanic. My next question would be, what is more beneficial, an electric fuel system, or a mechanical?

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate

mountainsedge said:

Thank you all for your feedback up to this point. I do have a red shift cable on it so I am considering myself lucky, I think. I don't want to make myself look like too much of a fool, but the seller did say he was using the boat up till fall, and it was ready to take fishing the day I bought it (insert jokes here). I will be calling the marina shortly and talk to the mechanic. My next question would be, what is more beneficial, an electric fuel system, or a mechanical?

Click to expand...

Ayuh,.... Either is Fine, so long as the electrical is wired through a safety switch, 'n it provides 5 psi....

The newer motors don't have the drillings to mount a mechanical pump...

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate

Bond-o said:

Ayuh,... Yer confused if ya Think I know squat 'bout OMCs....

Looks like Pajon's got it nailed...

Click to expand...

Let me rephrase.... About marine engines and drives

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate

Well, the boat is now back in my yard, and nothing less, a pretty cool man-cave parked an acre away from the house. With that said, and still hopeful to see her float, I am going to drain the gas out of the stainless steel tank (about 15 gallons). Would siphoning be the best solution to this? Do I need to remove the 29 gallon tank from the boat to make sure there is no sediment? Or could I flush it with water as long as I have a strong siphon vacuum, and assure most of the water is removed at the end?

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate

Back again, and very thankful for the help. Up to this point I have removed the gas from the tank (about 18 gallons, now what do I do with it?), located a hole in which a mechanical pump looks like it should fit, but put my finger in there to find no deeper hole for the actuator to ride on a cam?, and removed the carb. The carb appears to be an automotive Holley 2 barrel with an adapter plate attached to it. I am really interested in making it legit, so I need to find an appropriate replacement marine carb for it. Once I do have a carb with an overflow nozzle, I am uncertain where the line should go since there is no apparent port in the fuel tank to tie it into. Having a half-butted electric fuel delivery system at this point, I am on the hinge whether to keep it electric, or to try to go mechanical. Either way I will have to spend some money on it. I am also aware I might need a fuel pressure safety kill switch, along with having to wire it to the starter solenoid (purple-yellow colored lead) and an oil pressure regulator switch of some sort ( thanks to the info from other threads, now where exactly does that go?). I will take some pics tomorrow and figure out how to post them, as I am aware of my vagueness in descriptions.


**The bright side is all electronics work on her, and I found myself lounging in the cuddy, listening to music, while sipping on some cold ones. I could almost hear the waves lapping against her belly, despite being on a trailer 110 miles from the ocean.:facepalm:

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate



Hello guys! I'm getting the feeling you might be moving on past my dilemma, and I completely understand, but just to follow through with my previous posts, I decided to download the images I said I would.

Image 1.) The automotive carb removed from the 4.3 Chevy on the boat. It appears the belts gave way, as there is a large amount of rubber particles within the fire arrestor and carb.

Image 2.) The adapter plate the carb was installed upon.

Image 3.) Top of automotive Holly 2 bbl carb.

Image 4.) 4.3 Chevy in boat. Any help identifying the age range would help, since I have been told it has a newer block, although it is very rusty.

Image 5.) Electric fuel pump replacing original mechanical. It is a bastardized set up which continually runs once the ignition is on. I know it must be re wired to only run when the ignition is engaged, tying it to the solenoid wire on the starter and also tying it into a oil pressure actuator, but am not sure where the oil pressure switch is to be installed.

What I am trying to figure out is what carb I must buy in order for it to run, where do I place the oil pressure switch, and possibly if anyone could tell me if the starter on it is marine or automotive.

Thanks in a advance!
Corey

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate



Here's a better shot of the starter.

Thanks again.

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate

Mountain I don't think you will know the status of the starter unless you remove it to observe the seals, be sure you use the bilge fan while testing things like this. The fuel conversion does not look so bad as I see the water seperator and a clear fuel filter before the electric pump (so nice to have this to see tank trash before the motor simply stops), if you can locate the sending gizmo near the oil filter that feeds the oil guage (you could test by removing the wire and crank motor over to see no resonse to oil guage at dash) then see if there is a way to add a tee fitting so you can use a oil light switch to control the pump, this makes the pump stop sending fuel when the motor stalls or if you simply run out of fuel. Hope this helps get you going on this again.

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate

My 4.3 came with a Rochester 2 BBL. There are threads on here about installing an oil pressure switch for the fuel pump....just search for that.



Do you mind me asking what you paid for your project? Post some pics of the rest of her.

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate


After three months of figuring out how to do things the "right way," I am pleased to announce the "LiL' Alexandra" proudly and confidently runs beautifully. There truly is no comparable feeling to that of vessel which is directly under your command. I thank all of you, along with this site's inexhaustible search engine, for my success. I have come to the conclusion that anyone taking on a project like this is solely responsible for its ultimate success. There were many times when I felt I was in over my head, but I kept moving forward. The total cost of this project (not including items I already owned such as the kicker) was right around $5,000. Not bad considering the prices of boats coming off the assembly line today!

Re: 1989 Renken Classic 2000 - issues at the gate

Wow! You fought a tough fight! Congratulations on getting it splashed.