98 Sea Swirl Striper

[catfishjoe]

Hi everyone,

Anyone have any experience or knowledge regarding Sea Swirl? I'm going to view a 98 Striper DC2100 tomorrow and want to know if there is anything in particular I should look for.

Any information is appreciated. I don't have a hell of a lot of experience with boats and could use any help I could get right about now.

As always, thanks!

 

[Chris1956]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

I have that exact model, with a '98 Johnson Carb 150HPV6. I find it has lots of room, an excellent engine, and it is pretty seaworthy. All in all it is a pretty good boat for what I use it for (fishing, tubing, cruising). At cruise speed, if you go straight, on calm water you can trim to max and run on the expanded keel. It acts like a pad.

Drawbacks: I can only get about 37MPH, despite the fact that she has great power out of the hole. If you can get a 200HP (max power), I would seriously consider it.

Seaswirl improved the hull design some years after that boat was made. I have never tried the improved hull, but could see where it would be an advantage. On rare occasions(happened twice in 6 years), with three adults in the bow, when the waves are at just the right angle, the bow will catch a wave and move hard to port. It is surprizing, but as long as everyone is seated and the driver hangs on, it is not dangerous.

There is a Stripers Owners Club website it is www soc com

 

[jdlough]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

I have the ’97 2100DC with a Johnson 175HP outboard. My capacity plate says 175HP is the max; maybe they changed it for 1998? I max at about 42mph (via GPS)

My boat had a few minor issues,

1. The approximately 3’x4’ deck plate over the gas tank has an 8” round access hatch, right over the fuel gauge sender. That 8” hatch was never sealed very well to that deck plate, allowing water to enter the core of the deck plate and rotting the plywood inside the plate. The deck was a bit soft/springy right around that 8” hatch. Usually a soft deck may indicate more rot problems below deck. Not so in this case. The rot was confined to the deck plate only, and is a relatively easy fix. (Remove deck plate, cut out rotted plywood from the underside, replace plywood, encase new plywood in fiberglass/resin.)

2. The plastic gas tank tends to be a bit concave at the top, allowing any water that condenses or leaks onto it to settle right on top of the fuel gauge sender. The sender wires may be corroded, or if the sender is not sealed well to the tank, water can enter the tank here. There are posts on dealing with this at the Striper Owner’s Club forum. http://www.seastriper.com It's not a big deal.

3. There are 2 thru hulls low on the transom for water intake for the livewell and washdown pumps. Both these thru hulls have sea cocks inside at the transom, which is good. (It’s best to leave the sea cocks shut off when not using the livewell or washdown hose) The bad is on my boat the thru hulls were secured to the boat from the outside by plastic nuts with wire strainers imbedded in them. I don’t like plastic securing my below-water thru hulls, so I replaced them with bronze.

4. The deck scuppers at the transom are right at the waterline. While anchored, if a couple of people are standing at the stern, some water can seep in onto the deck. It’s no big deal, the deck is self-draining, but you can alleviate this by better scupper flaps. Either the duck-bill flaps or the ping-pong ball style.

I installed Nauticus Smart Tabs (blemished set here on iBoats for $100). I highly recommend them. They eliminated bow-rise at take off, let me stay on plane at lower speeds, improved the ride, and other good things.

Overall, it’s a great boat. Very solid – feels safe. Feels roomy. Versitile – good for skiing or fishing, though it could use a few more rod holders.

The "improved" hull on the 2101DC has a sharper V at the bow and slightly flared sides, which gives a slightly better, dryer ride in the chop.

The old style hull on the 2100DC has a bit shallower draft than the 2101DC, which is more important to me in my shallow area.

Here’s mine…

 

[Chris1956]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

JD, It appears that ther were some minor changes in '98. The panel over the fuel tank is all fiberglass. So rot is not an issue.

I do still have issue #2 and 4 however.
The raw water intake for the livewell is a brass thru hull with a seacock. No issues there. I do not have a washdown system.

 

[jdlough]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

The deck panel over the tank on mine is plywood encased top, bottom, and sides by fiberglass. Whoever installed that 8" hatch just cut a round hole, and never sealed the plywood cut edge.

So it really wasn't a problem with the boat build. It was a problem with the hatch install. At least it was very obvious why there was rot there, and was not an indication of rot elsewhere.

Everything else is rock solid. I really can't think of anything I don't like about the boat (once I added a glove compartment and a few more rod holders).

 

[Chris1956]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

Does your boat make the unexpected hard right, as I described in my first post?

BTW - when the steel fuel pickup fitting rots out, you can make a replacement out of a brass garboard drain and a flush bushing....

 

[jdlough]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

Does your boat make the unexpected hard right, as I described in my first post?

IF I have the motor the motor too far trimmed in, and I'm going a bit too fast, and it's real choppy, I can catch a wave wrong and get pulled one way or the other. I think this can happen with any boat with the motor trimmed too far in/bow down. I guess with 3 adults riding in the bow, it's easy to have the bow too far down.

It could be the hull design too. It doesn't seem to slice through the big waves. It's more like it bashes over them.

It hasn't happened since I put on the Smart Tabs. I don't know if it's the tabs, or I just learned to trim the motor out to raise the bow in the chop.

BTW - when the steel fuel pickup fitting rots out, you can make a replacement out of a brass garboard drain and a flush bushing....

Maybe a previous owner fixed mine. Mine has an aluminum fitting on the fuel pick up tube with a brass nipple screwed into it. I removed the anti-siphon valve.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

Any deep V hull trimmed low can catch and veer like that. you have to trim up some to avoid it but it still can happen, especially when it's sloppy. Ifyou cut too deep to try to smooth out the chop it gets counterproductive.

As for slicing through waves, I think it's too simplistic when people say "a v hull cuts through waves and a square/flat hull will beat you to death." Especially when they say that comparing 14' aluminum hulls. While a V can smooth out light chop (relative to its size and weight) any V is affected and any square can handle it. (JD I'm not saying you were saying this)

To the OP: looks like a good boat for you from Raleigh since you can enjoy it on the coast, sounds and large rivers, as well as the lakes.

 

[catfishjoe]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

Hi guys. Thanks for all the valuable information. I was able to view the boat yesterday, and place a deposit.

Overall the condition looked excellent. Hes only had the boat for a year, and bought it from the original owner. He kept all maintenance records and had all documentation.

While I know little about boats, I do know a bit about people and the seller did not come off as he was trying to hide anything. He pointed out issues with the boat (minor ones) which I would not have found. I'm confident as could be about purchasing it (should be picking it up Friday).

With that said, I took a ton of pictures. The most significant issues I found were cosmetic (gelcoat scratches, etc). Nothing major at all. The engine looked very new for its age. The motor started up easily, shifted from forward to reverse no problem. I looked at as much as I could think to look at and took a ton of pictures.

I uploaded a full album. Feel free to take a look and let me know if you see anything that could indicate a significant problem.

http://imgur.com/a/jsn9L/all#0

 

[jdlough]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

Looks great! Congrats!


Here’ some quick thoughts…

Your gauge setup is snazzier than mine.

It appears that the livewell intake is set in the bottom of the hull, instead of through the transom? It’s hard to tell from the pics, but does it have a sea **** (big shut off valve)? If it doesn’t, it really should. Without one, if the hose or connection fails, or if the below waterline livewell pump housing cracks (they get brittle with age) there would be no way to stop a major water leak. The sea **** should be just inside the hull, right at the thru hull. Any hoses or pumps are then connected to it.

Btw, if you ever install a wash down system, there’s no need to install a separate thru hull for it. You can use the single thru hull for both the livewell pump and the washdown pump.

I don’t see a fuel/water separator. I would install one. The 10 micron filters are fine. The 2 micron filters are for the more modern finicky motors.

After you fix the fiberglass booboos, you may want to install a Keel Guard if you ever plan on beaching the boat.

Stick with the synthetic blend or full synthetic oil. It smokes a lot less than the cheap stuff.


I see a mount for a Humminbird GPS/fishfinder. If you need a new chart for it, Navionics has a 2 for 1 sale on their new $99 Marine & Lakes chip, good thru May 28th. I think it's the same maps as their Navionics Gold chips, but for a single state only, not the whole USA. You get a blank chip and download the maps for your state. Coastal/bay data too, if your state is on the coast. Get the free chip via rebate. Sell it on ebay, or use it on your spare boat!

http://www.navionics.com/marine_lake...s.asp?Marine=1


Here’s the scoop on any buzzer/light alarms you may get:

If your “low oil” light & buzzer comes on, don’t panic. You still have about a quart of oil in the tank (but check it to be sure).

If your “no oil” light & buzzer comes on, stop the motor.

The “check engine” alarm/light means there is a fuel restriction. Clogged fuel line, clogged filter, faulty anti-siphon valve, something like that. You could be OK at low speeds, but the alarm sounds at wide-open-throttle (WOT) when it needs more fuel. Don’t run the motor while this alarm is sounding.

This happened to me and it turned out to be a faulty anti-siphon valve (very common). It’s that barbed nipple attached to the fuel pick up tube on top of the tank. It stops fuel from being siphoned out of your tank if there’s a leak anywhere in the lines or motor below the level of the tank. Since this is an outboard and all lines, motor, and connections are above the level of the tank, it is not required. I ripped the spring and check-ball out of mine with a drywall screw.

Here's a carpy pic demonstrating an anti-siphon valve (click it to embiggen):

 

[catfishjoe]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

Looks great! Congrats!


Here? some quick thoughts?

Your gauge setup is snazzier than mine.

It appears that the livewell intake is set in the bottom of the hull, instead of through the transom? It?s hard to tell from the pics, but does it have a sea **** (big shut off valve)? If it doesn?t, it really should. Without one, if the hose or connection fails, or if the below waterline livewell pump housing cracks (they get brittle with age) there would be no way to stop a major water leak. The sea **** should be just inside the hull, right at the thru hull. Any hoses or pumps are then connected to it.

Btw, if you ever install a wash down system, there?s no need to install a separate thru hull for it. You can use the single thru hull for both the livewell pump and the washdown pump.

I don?t see a fuel/water separator. I would install one. The 10 micron filters are fine. The 2 micron filters are for the more modern finicky motors.

After you fix the fiberglass booboos, you may want to install a Keel Guard if you ever plan on beaching the boat.

Stick with the synthetic blend or full synthetic oil. It smokes a lot less than the cheap stuff.


I see a mount for a Humminbird GPS/fishfinder. If you need a new chart for it, Navionics has a 2 for 1 sale on their new $99 Marine & Lakes chip, good thru May 28th. I think it's the same maps as their Navionics Gold chips, but for a single state only, not the whole USA. You get a blank chip and download the maps for your state. Coastal/bay data too, if your state is on the coast. Get the free chip via rebate. Sell it on ebay, or use it on your spare boat!

http://www.navionics.com/marine_lake...s.asp?Marine=1


Here?s the scoop on any buzzer/light alarms you may get:

If your ?low oil? light & buzzer comes on, don?t panic. You still have about a quart of oil in the tank (but check it to be sure).

If your ?no oil? light & buzzer comes on, stop the motor.

The ?check engine? alarm/light means there is a fuel restriction. Clogged fuel line, clogged filter, faulty anti-siphon valve, something like that. You could be OK at low speeds, but the alarm sounds at wide-open-throttle (WOT) when it needs more fuel. Don?t run the motor while this alarm is sounding.

This happened to me and it turned out to be a faulty anti-siphon valve (very common). It?s that barbed nipple attached to the fuel pick up tube on top of the tank. It stops fuel from being siphoned out of your tank if there?s a leak anywhere in the lines or motor below the level of the tank. Since this is an outboard and all lines, motor, and connections are above the level of the tank, it is not required. I ripped the spring and check-ball out of mine with a drywall screw.

Thank you (and other) for taking the time to review and post such helpful information. To be honest, I'm a bit overwhelmed with the entire process at this stage. I traveled 1.5 hours to see it, and 1.5 hour back. Had a small window to review a 21 foot boat and to make a somewhat split second decision to leave a deposit and promise to return (with very little experience mind you).

It took me months before to decide to buy in the first place, but the past month has been exceptionally chaotic in my attempt to absorb as much information as possible; to first consider all types of boats, shortlist to a few, find an exact model for sale, learn as much as I can before inspecting, and then of course meeting with the seller and negotiating the terms.

That being said, I feel like I'm over the hump so to speak. The hard part is behind me, I just need to go pick it up tomorrow and begin enjoying it right?

One thing I can say with absolute certainty is that this forum and its members have been indispensable, particularly to someone in my situation, so again. Thanks. I hope that one day I can pay it forward.

 

[jdlough]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

catfishjoe (the OP) sent me a nice PM in thanks for my SeaSwirl experience. I thought I should respond here so future iBoaters could benefit from my wisdom.

I have the Johnson Oceanrunner 175HP with the original aluminum 15x17 prop. It seems about right as I hit 42 mph on a glassy day via GPS at 5500 RPM at Wide Open Throttle (WOT)

I think the Evinrude OceanPro is the same motor as the Johnson OceanRunner. They were built by the same folks. At any rate, all the motor pros I talked to said both motors like to use lots of gas (as compared to today's high tech motors), but that both motors were WAY easy to work on, and parts are very available. The OceanPro/OceanRunners are tanks! (Unlike the finicky Ficht motors, or Force motors, which are to be avoided for the lack of parts thing alone)

My gas tank is 58 gallons. If you buy one of the better, exact size Wema fuel gauge senders, you have to measure your actual tank depth. Of course I forget what size my tank is, but note that when you remove the sender and measure from the top to the bottom of the tank, that the bottom of the tank is a "V" shape, so measuring from one side of the hole differs from the other side by about 1".

Those reed valve gauges from Wema and others are way better than the cheap rod-with-float-on-the-end-like-a-toilet-bowl gauges.

I'm about to replace my steering with the new Teleflex NFB Xtreme (as soon as it becomes available, maybe in June). My old cable does not have the size stamped on it, but I think the size is 15 foot. If anyone knows for sure, please respond here. My old steering is a bit worn, is not "No Feedback", and has about 6" of play in the steering wheel.

Your console dash has a switch for "wipers". You have no wipers, but you do have that switch. It is handy to use that wiper switch for some new dodad.

For new rod holders, especially up in the bow area, I recommend you check out the MateSeries Combination rod and cup holders.
http://mateseries.com
I got the 0 degree ones, so that I won't break off any rods on my boat lift guide on posts as I enter my lift. I also got the models with the drain, and attached a hose so that they would drain past the cockpit down to the bilge. Btw, the double-walled 20+ ounce cups with lid and straw they sell at Walmart fit perfectly in the cupholder. I mean real snug, so you can use the cup as a rod holder cork.

I got the glove compartment at West Marine for about $130. I don't think iBoats carries them.

There will be an old wasp nest under your seats, right in the seat tube. Leave it there. Wasps don't reuse nests, and it discourages new wasps from building new nests there.

If your boat slips out of gear in reverse, or makes "chunking" noises, don't panic. It's probably a cable adjustment, like on a 10 speed bike. PM me and I'll pass on adjustment advice I got from Tashasdaddy (a late iBoater who is still missed)

You will find that 99% of the time you will want to be standing as you drive this boat. Me too. If you ever install one of those 12"-20" adjustable seat pedestals, let me know how you like it.

For a bimini top, the 6' ones are fine, the 8' tops would get in the way for fishing. Measure from the deck to the top of the gunwale. That measurement, plus the height of the top, equals the total bimini height. Get one just a couple of inches taller than yourself. If you get one too tall, the shade tends to be in the wrong spot as the sun moves away from noon. Here's a handy thing for biminis:
http://www.iboats.com/4-Pack-Boaters-Clothespin-Taylor-Made/dm/view_id.428528
It's basically a clothspin, to attach a towel to your bimini poles, for when the sun comes in sideways.

To start this boat from a cold motor start:

1. Point the primer bulb arrows straight up, and squeeze it until it is firm.

2. Push the key in then turn the key. (some will say this activates the choke. It really does not. It activates a primer which squirts some gas into the motor)

3. As soon as the motor attempts to start, I mean as soon as it makes that "coughing" sound, stop using the push in key primer. From then on just turn the key. For the rest of the day, don't push in the key/primer.

You probably know that flushing out your motor is a Very Good Thing after every use, especially if you use it in saltwater. Instead of that pain in the but "muffs" thing, you can screw this hose quick connect gadget into the spot where your pee stream comes from.

http://www.iboats.com/Quick-Flush-K...8873078--session_id.011792540--view_id.168866

It does seem to get jammed up and need replacement after a couple of seasons, but it is way handy. If you buy the matching bits from Home Depot or Lowes, you can just quick-click your hose from nozzle to motor flush.


Here's probably the biggest thing: At the end of the day, turn off ALL those console switches. If I had $1 for every time I left the depthfinder or navlight switch on and killed the battery, I could probably buy over 2 cups of Starbucks coffee.

Final thought: I extremely recommend the Nauticus Smart Tabs. Like most boats, before the tabs while getting on plane I got bow rise blocking my view for about 5 seconds. After the tabs, no bow rise at all. The boat just smoothly rises up on plane.

Before the tabs, while towing the kids tubing, I couldn't go slow enough. The boat would drop off plane below about 25MPH. With the tabs, I can't even tell when I'm dropping off plane, it's so smooth. I know I'm still on plane down into the upper teens.

Tight turns at WOT speeds used to be scary with the boat healing over like a Nascar. Now with the tabs tight turns feel much more stable, safer and more predictable.

I got the Smart Tabs SX. I should have got the Nauticus ProTroller. They're the same things, but the attachment has a flip down lever that lets you set the tabs straight down, to act as breaks for your boat. My boat at idle speed is still a bit too fast for troll fishing, so these would be great. Fortunately, I can buy the mounts separately and retrofit my tabs. I'll be doing that soon.

 

[catfishjoe]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

Awesome response jdlough, I really appreciate the insight.

Now that I'm starting to get a feel for this boat, I'm discovering I have more questions than answers! I'll try my best to explain myself, but please forgive me (and correct me if needed) if I botch a naming convention:

1. One of my scuppers fell off while waxing. Strangely it looks like there was nothing holding it since I only see about 1/32 of an inch of screw on the broken piece. Does this mean I broke something other than the scupper?

2. Speaking of waxing, when I bought the boat it had no wax. I haven't found a place locally that sells marine wax, but just so I have something on there to protect it I used car wax "mcquires cleaner wax". Would it be fine to keep that on and apply something like Fleetwax over top when I find/order it or should I strip it first.

3. I cleaned the boat top to bottom with soft scrub. She's bright white now and I'd like to try and keep her that way. I have been putting a coat of wax on interior fiberglass as well in hopes to reduce the amount of staining I'm getting on all the white parts. Is there a better solution?

4. I also cleaned up the seats real good. I have some vinyl seat cleaner/protector for cars (has a UV protector in it) - good for seats or do you recommend something else?

5. This weekend while swimming off of the boat we had a great time, but its a bit of a hassle climbing in and out off of that swim ladder. Not sure if there is a better way to get in/out of the boat.

6. No idea where the bilge pumps are on this thing. I hear them run when I switch them. Not sure if they are working automatically. After a 6 hour excursion she didn't drain a lot of water I suppose

7. I'd like to eventually re-do my dash panel. I'm good with wood working and was thinking of creating a wooden inlay for all of my guages (maybe even replacing the gauges). What is a good wood to use? Teak or can I use just about any wood as long as it's properly sealed? Alternatively, are there replacement dash inlays I can look/buy?

8. The motor had 0 issues starting, however I did have it cut out a few times at idle (immediately after starting after sitting in the water for 30 minutes or so). The fix was to start then rev the engine (out of gear) for a second, then quick drop drop it into gear and accelerate. Any idea what this could be?

9. The decals on the engine cowl are in bad shape and peeling, I'm thinking of removing and replacing. Have any suggestions on where I can buy cheap decals (perhaps even custom ones?). Also, should I look for a particular grade of vinyl when considering boat decals/etc?

10. I removed that round panel on the deck, towards the back of the boat. I'm fairly certain this is access to the fuel pump. Inside it was damp and pretty filthy. By all appearances I don't think I should be getting water inside there since the perimeter of the large rectangular panel is sealed with some type of caulk, and the round access panel appears to have a seal on it as well. Should I be overly concerned here?

I'll keep it at 10 questions for now, thanks again. Hopefully I can finish up cleaning the boat today so I can post some pictures, I cant believe how clean she comes up (looks brand new!).

 

[jdlough]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

1. If you mean those black rubber flaps on the outside of the transom, it’s probably time to replace them anyway. They get old, stiff, and curl out instead of laying flat. You can get a bit more use out of them by flipping them over.

TH Marine makes good replacements. When I get around to replacing mine, I’m going to try the duckbill scupper.
http://www.thmarine.com/products/Aeration-and-Plumbing/Drain-Fittings/Scupper-Drains

2-4. I don’t know anything about cleaning and waxing. At most, once a year I blast everything on the boat with a 3000psi pressure washer. That’s about it.

5. I don’t recall any problems with my ladder. My grab bar might be in a different place than your boat. Not sure.

6. The bilge pump is probably right behind the battery, down low next to the drain plug hole. To test if it works automatically, with some pumps you can reach down there and flip up the float switch and see if it comes on. Or, just get a hose and rinse out your storage lockers. They should drain down to the bilge, and the pump should come on. You probably have a 3 position switch for the pump on the dash. On-Off-Automatic.

7. If you can find it, IPE (aka Brazilian Walnut or Ironwood) is cool. It looks like teak, but weathers better and is hard as a rock.

8. I don’t know much about the motor, but cleaning/replacing the spark plugs, and decarbing the motor couldn’t hurt. I'd do that before futzing with the carb or anything. Search this forum for “decarbing”

9. My motor decals are pretty beat up, too. I don’t know a source for new ones.

10. That’s not the fuel pump. The fuel pump is on your outboard. What you’re seeing is the top of the fuel tank sender, with 2 wires going from it to your gas gauge on your dash.
You’ll also see the top of the fuel pick up tube, with the fuel line clamped to it. Also a fat hose, for filling the tank, and a thinner hose for the tank venting.

The water is probably from condensation. Water gets everywhere in a boat. Test your hatch seals by blasting with the hose, then open it up and check for leaks.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

Hi guys. Thanks for all the valuable information. I was able to view the boat yesterday, and place a deposit.

Overall the condition looked excellent. Hes only had the boat for a year, and bought it from the original owner. He kept all maintenance records and had all documentation.

While I know little about boats, I do know a bit about people and the seller did not come off as he was trying to hide anything. He pointed out issues with the boat (minor ones) which I would not have found. I'm confident as could be about purchasing it (should be picking it up Friday).

With that said, I took a ton of pictures. The most significant issues I found were cosmetic (gelcoat scratches, etc). Nothing major at all. The engine looked very new for its age. The motor started up easily, shifted from forward to reverse no problem. I looked at as much as I could think to look at and took a ton of pictures.

I uploaded a full album. Feel free to take a look and let me know if you see anything that could indicate a significant problem.

http://imgur.com/a/jsn9L/all#0

your buying experience is a lot like mine when I got a 21' which was a major purchase for me. My seller was the second owner and worked with the first owner so he knew the history; he pointed out problems and even fixed a trim tab even though I already pretty much said I'd take it; he was the kind of guy who did a lot of DIY projects and took care of his stuff, although he didn't know everything (ran the motor on the hose attachment, for example). Because i had recently been in a friend's boat the same size and power, I didn't even do a sea trial. He gave me the compression # and offered to have a witness notarize the results; i took him at his word. 3 years and 280 hours later, I have no regrets about how I worked the deal.

 

[Legaleyes]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

I'm in NJ and just picked up a 97 Seaswirl DC2100.

I'm really loving the boat, and while the plate says 175 max, the previous owner put a 200hp etec on it. AlthoughIm not going that much faster than some of you guys, so ill have to think on that.

Eventhough it says 2100, the DC of that era are actually 20ft, as you should see on your registration and through me for a loop until i researched it a bit.

TY so much for the info on the scruppers, the stern does fill up with water and Im gonna make a change.

Im also interested in adding a washdown and am happy i can use the same thru hull, do i just put a y at the seacock?

What Im really looking for are the metal bars to hold up the stern jump seats...any help on that would be REALLY appreciated, and I will post it on the seaswirl owners site too.

Great boat so far, although from what I read and experienced the little things were looked over...Like the hatches and such are all sorta broken, and I did read thats where they cut back alittle on the cost ratio kind of thing.

I prefer to stand when driving, and the bimini it came with is not that great, looking to get one that sits higher.

what else?

Ah, steering, hydro steering will be my first big uograde I think....I know I read good things about the tabs here, but the locas have not been as flaterng about the smart tabs.

funny the gas tank needed replacement (which is a longer story) because the sender looked carroded adn when atteampting to fix that with a new sender the tank failed at one of the nut points. I replaced the tank, and good to go, but it seems the water through the hatch does corrode the sender units out, i should have left it alone and would have been fine.

Ill, try to add a picture.

 

[jdlough]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

Im also interested in adding a washdown and am happy i can use the same thru hull, do i just put a y at the seacock?

You could put a Y or T fitting just after the seacock, or just get a new livewell pump that has a built-in extra outlet fitting just before the pump part. Like this one:

http://www.iboats.com/Rule-Tourname...8873078--session_id.617154409--view_id.485253

 

[Legaleyes]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

Woot WOOT!....thats what I'm gonna do.


Any help on the stern jump seats guys? Ill take a pic and post what the underside looks like.

 

[jdlough]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

5. This weekend while swimming off of the boat we had a great time, but its a bit of a hassle climbing in and out off of that swim ladder. Not sure if there is a better way to get in/out of the boat.

Joe, I just noticed, from your pics it appears your ladder has 2 steps. I have a telescoping 3 step ladder attached to that little platform. I have heard no complaints. I bet that's the difference. I also note that your grab bar is in a different position. I don't think that matters, though.

 

[jdlough]

Re: 98 Sea Swirl Striper

Any help on the stern jump seats guys?

My jump seats don't have any bars. The sides and back of the flat seat bottoms just sit on 3 thick plastic/nylon/starboard cleats.
The seats are supposed to be held there by velcro on the cleats and seat bottoms. The velcro is pretty worn out, so if I use those jump seats, I hold them in place by strapping a 94 quart cooler to the stern, just in front of the splashwell. The outside edges of the cooler are snug against the seats and hold them in place. Some day, I may replace the velcro.

I almost never use those seats. I leave them in the shed, and use the extra area for fishing room.

Here's a pic, maybe you can make out what I'm talking about (click it a few times to make it big as possible):



My doors and hatches all seem to be the standard top quality boat hatches, about on par for the quality of any replacement I'd buy today. They are 15 years old, though. And I did crack a bow seat hatch cover, when I was using that area as a fishing platform. That was a couple of years ago, before I lost 35lbs on the low-carb diet. The hatch supports my weight just fine now.

I said I got 42mph via my new GPS. That could be off by a couple MPH, plus or minus. I'm at the mouth of a tidal river, and if there was any current, it would have added or subtracted a bit from the GPS measurement. I don't recall what the tide was doing.

Next time I'm out I'll check it going one way, then do a 180 and recheck the other way. (Or just go perpendicular to the river flow) I'm under a tornado watch right now, so it'll have to wait.