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    Odd question: Can I tip my boat over when turning?

    I have a 14-year-old son and he and his friends like to be pulled around in inflatable tubes. Sometimes we get our Maxum 1900 up pretty far on one side when trying to make the tube shoot out to the side. At times it feels like we're at a 45 degree angle or more. Sometimes I find myself wondering...
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    Pressure Release Valve for Towables? Anyone have any luck?

    We have a couple of Airhead towables that are horse-shoe shaped, and have rather intricately-shaped bladders. On the lake, they need to be pumped up high to maintain enough pressure in the cold water. When you pull them out into the hot air, they immediately start to increase in pressure to the...
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    Hub Size Confusion--14x19 vs 14.25x19

    '97 Maxum with Alpha 1 outdrive and 4.3 engine. I bought a Turning Point Express prop based on the markings on the Michigan Wheel prop that I destroyed. The Michigan Wheel prop was marked 14x23, and I went down in size to a 14x21 for better hole shot. The prop I got is 4" in diameter at the...
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    Dropped Pitch by 4 When I Went Stainless. New Prop Stops Pushing at 3K RPM.

    I read all I could on stainless props and used a calculator to determine what would work for my boat--a '97 Maxxum 1900 SR bowrider with a 4.3 V6. The original aluminum prop was a Michigan Wheel three-blade 14x23, but for our use (pulling skiers and wakeboarders) the Mercury calculator said for...
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    Winterizing Question: 4.3 Mercruiser. Looking for steering cooler plug.

    '97 Maxxum. I've found four drain plugs so far--one on each side of the block and one one each exhaust manifold. I've traced the hose that goes back from the four-input manifold on top of the front of the engine back to the steering rack and found that it goes past the rack, makes an "S" turn...
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    Is a 14 x 23p roughly equivalent to a 15.25 x 21p?

    I've got a new boat with a 4.3 mercruiser and a 14 x 23 Vortex aluminum prop. I also have a stainless quicksilver prop in 15.25 x 21p (48 13702) left over from my previous boat. The prop that's on there works great, but I'm wondering if it would be worth my while to hang onto the stainless one...
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    Backing plates for mounting wakeboard tower--is plastic better than plywood?

    I'm mounting a Joystick Pro wakeboard tower to my '97 Maxum 1900 bowrider. I've read a few good articles that mention using oversized pieces of 1/2" plywood behind the hull to spread out the stress to a larger area and prevent fractures. I can't get 1/2" marine plywood here, and I really don't...
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    Wiring help for '97 Bayliner Maxum depth sounder.

    I put a new stereo in my '97 Maxum 1900 SE. I had to learn how to bend my forearms into a "Z" shape to get at the screws that hold in the stereo surround. Not fun. Somehow in the process, I must have dislodged a wire. If I hit the depth sounder button, the display on the dash lights up red...
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    Previous boat had Smart Tabs. Should I install them on new boat, or learn to trim?

    My previous boat was a 1974 140HP I/O Glasply with no trim gauge, so I installed smart tabs. Now I have a '97 Maxum 1900SR with a 4.3 liter Mercruiser and fully functioning trim and gauge. Since I've never used trim before I'm wondering whether it would be a good idea to stick with what I know...
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    Deciding between two Reinell 184BRXLs. On with Volvo, one with Mercury

    I'm ready to buy, and I'm looking at two Reinell 184BRXLs, same model, different year. One is a '95 with a Mercruiser 4.3 set-up and it's around $4500 with a wakeboard tower (which I had planned to get anyway.) The other is a '97 with a Volvo Penta 4.3 and Cobra SX outdrive and no tower. I can...
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    Translation needed for ad that says "Boat Overheated Last Time Out." 302 Mercruiser

    Translation needed for ad that says "Boat Overheated Last Time Out." 302 Mercruiser I'm looking at a 1990 Campion open bow with a 302 Mercruiser. Seller says it needs a water pump and that it overheated last year. I appreciate his honesty, but I'm wondering if you'd translate that as: 1)...
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    Checking out an '87 Ski Centurion open bow today. What should I be looking for?

    I've decided to move up from my '74 3.0 Glassply to a bigger boat so that my son can learn to wakeboard. There's an '87 Ski Centurion locally for $5500. Motor rebuild has 400 hours on it and when the motor was rebuilt, the floor was removed, stringers replaced, and upholstery re-done. I'm...
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    Home Alarm Systems. Anyone use APX? Any advice appreciated.

    We've had a lot of break-ins in our neighborhood lately and people are getting a bit paranoid. Today, one of those fine clean-cut APX boys from Utah came to my door offering me a special deal--they pay for the equipment and installation, and I pay $199 activation and $50.00 per month. Tried to...
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    Advice on replacing wood floor and stringers in foam-filled hull.

    I swore I'd never do this again after the Glassply from hell, but a good friend has torn into the floor of his Fiberform tri-hull and found just what you'd expect in a 35-year-old boat--rotten floor and rotten stringers. He wants me to help since I've done it before, and I'm at least willing to...
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    How I learned what it's like for folks who use public ramps.

    I live in a neighborhood with its own gravel ramp, so I've never experienced what you guys are describing while loading my boat. However, yesterday I got a feel for what you go through. At at the bowling alley. I get to my lane and there's a family bowling on the lane to the left of ours, but...
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    Does idle speed affect shift interrupt?

    Finally got my '72 140hp to run well--Pertronix with power coming straight back from the ignition switch--so I was playing around with settings while out on the lake. I was able to drop the idle down to 750. Tooled around on the lake for awhile and when it came time to dock, I realized that I...
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    3.0 Oil Pan Install--Which hole gets the long bolt?

    I swore I was going to write it down, but I forgot, and now I'm one oil pan/timing cover bolt short. As I recall, there was one bolt that was longer than the others and something attached to it with a nut, but I can't for the life of me remember where it connects. Anyone have any feedback on...
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    3.0 main bearing caps--Does the "F" stand for "Front" or "Flywheel"?

    3.0 main bearing caps--Does the "F" stand for "Front" or "Flywheel"? I know...kind of a dumb question but they do both start with "F". Do the arrows point toward the front end of the engine, or the rear?
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    Corrosion Damage to Crank Main Seal Surface on 140/3.0. Solution??

    I've just pulled the split rear seal from the crank. There was a black stripe around the bearing surface that wouldn't clean off. Turns out it's minor corrosion damage to the surface. Not too deep. Is that something that could be carefully taken off by stropping it with fine emery cloth, or do...
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    How to install split rear main seal in '72 140 3.0 Mercruiser?

    I've had a leak from this seal for awhile, so I pulled the engine and dropped the oil pan. I've pulled out the rear main bearing cap and that gives me access to the bottom half of the split seal, but I can't figure out how to get the top half out. Do I have to remove all the main caps and drop...
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