New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

[snakeskinrug]

This looks like a pretty cool community. I'm hoping I can find answers to my questions. Hopefully I'll be able to help someone else out down the road. I tend to be fairly handy, but I?ve never owned a boat before so I?m looking for some guidance.

I'll start by giving and overview of the boat, then I'll post my questions. Hopefully this doesn?t get too long.

Boat is a 1990 Riviera with a 90HP Johnson motor and Hoosier scissor lift trailer and a hard top. Motor runs well so far. From what I gather, the previous owner only put it on the trailer twice a year - he kept it tied up to the dock at the lake all summer. I don?t think he covered it at all - it has some rot issues (see below).





The floor has a rotten spot in it that has been supported from below. I?ve also taken some cheap outdoor carpet and put it on a piece of ? inch plywood I had laying around. I put this over the soft spot and it should get me through the season. I plan to replace the entire deck (and carpet) this winter.



To be continued....

 

[snakeskinrug]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

The soft spot in the deck was venting massive amounts of water under the carpet at high speed - it was like standing on a water bed. I added some more wooden bracing and then used sheets of aluminum gutter trim to deflect the water. This is all just a cheap temporary fix to get me through the summer. I didn?t want to waste time and money under-skinning with sheet aluminum when I?m planning in tearing the whole boat apart next winter.



The soft spot in the deck was venting massive amounts of water under the carpet at high speed - it was like standing on a water bed. I added some more wooden bracing and then used sheets of aluminum gutter trim to deflect the water. This is all just a cheap temporary fix to get me through the summer. I didn?t want to waste time and money under-skinning with sheet aluminum when I?m planning in tearing the whole boat apart next winter.



The vinyl on the seats is slightly stained but otherwise in good condition. The base of the seats is rotting out though. It?s fairly soft, but I?m hoping it will be ok for the season. Once I get the deck replaced and the boat back together, I?ll start rebuilding the seats.



The trailer wiring was shot so I rewired the entire thing. It also had no jack (crazy considering how heavy it is) so I welded on a plate of ? inch steel and then bolted a jack to it. So much easier to hook up now! I?ll sand it down and repaint one of these days.




The PO only put the top down once a year to haul it home so he had it all bolted together. I need to be able to put it up and down easily so I replaced 8 of the threaded bolts with these spring clip bolts. I can put it up and be able to cruise in about one minute now.



So that?s my boat. Feel free to tell me what you think. I?ll have questions to follow.

Thanks.

 

[snakeskinrug]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions




Good lord - I got the pictures in the last post in the wrong order and for some reason it won't let me edit the post. Hopefully it's not too confusing.

Here's my Question #1

The scissor lift trailer seems worthless beyond a simple flatbed. The back end lifts up and down quite a bit, but on a boat ramp it's nowhere near the boat. The front will only crank up a about an inch, so you have to have it pretty much perfect right off the bat. I'm sure with practice I'll get used to how far I have to back the trailer in, but so far I've just tried to err on the shallow side and then pull the boat up to its stops. Then I hook up a couple of ratchet straps and slowly drive out (PO had no straps on. I pulled the boat home with it just sitting on the trailer). I could get used to this, but I have no idea how to keep the boat straight when driving out of the water. The back end is free floating and settles down wherever it happens to be. So far I haven?t had it where I thought it was unsafe, but I feel like a moron driving down the road with it on so crooked. Any hints?

 

[snakeskinrug]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions




Question #2


The motor has an oil reservoir and automatically mixes oil into the gas. The PO said he worried about the oil pump going out and running the motor so he always mixed some additional oil into the gas. At first thought this seemed crazy - what?s the point of having the automatic mixer then? However it does bring up a point: how would you know if the oil pump went bad (short of the motor seizing). I try to keep an eye on the level in the reservoir, but it holds about a gallon and it seems like the level falls pretty slowly.

 

[snakeskinrug]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions



Question #3 What do these things do?
On the controls below: Top thing is the key and ignition. No problem there. I assumed the middle thing was a choke of some sort, but I've never used it to start the boat and it dosn't seem to cause any difference when the motor is running. The bottom thing has a cover that says 5 amps - but it's not a fuse of any kind as far as I can tell.




On the side of the controls: The round thing with four holes in it? This was taped over with electrical tape.

 

[lncoop]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

Welcome aboard snakes. You've come to the right place for answers and fun. I'll address what I can and someone else will fill in the gaps, but I'd suggest you ask a mod to move this to the Pontoon section.

First, the deck. That's actually part of the structure, so think long and hard about whether using it like that all summer is a good idea (hint: it isn't.) Your call of course. Second, the trailer. Scissor trailers are intended to be used the way the previous owner did. They're not really designed for regular towing. Some of the guys do tow with them and are happy with the results, but you might consider selling it and getting a bunk trailer for frequent towing. Again, your call. Third, the motor. I don't know much about Johnnyrudes, but the overwhelming and very vocal consensus is to disconnect the VRO system altogether and mix. Using the oil injection and mixing simultaneously is not a long term solution as it is wasteful and causes your motor to create a lot more smoke than it should. Yet again, your call. My bet is you'll find a lot of info on this subject over in the Johnnyrude section. That's all I have for you. Good luck.

 

[H20Rat]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

The scissor lift trailer seems worthless beyond a simple flatbed. The back end lifts up and down quite a bit, but on a boat ramp it's nowhere near the boat. The front will only crank up a about an inch, so you have to have it pretty much perfect right off the bat.

Something isn't right there... Scissor lift trailers should lift 100% equally front and rear, that is their purpose! They can pick up and set down a pontoon on dry land. Most often there is a long cable system that drives the whole thing, sounds like yours is messed up. I'd get that checked out asap, as a broken cable also means your pontoon drops to the ground while you are trailering it.

 

[snakeskinrug]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions



No, the cable is fine. It pulls on a bar connected to the axel assembly to pull the whole axle backward. This raises the trailer, but the front end is more static because it's connected at the truck hitch so it has a very small elevation change. It's basically like a large lever. I think it's a different style than the newer trialers that you may be thinking about.

Thanks, though.

 

[snakeskinrug]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

Thanks for the reply. The soft spot in the deck is about the size of a basketball. I really don't think it will be a problem for the next couple of months. PO added some 2x6's across the pontoon brackets for support. It's pretty solid.

As far as the VRO system, is the reasoning behind disconnecting based on the concern that if the oil pump goes out you're SOL, or is there another reason? I agree that mixing and using the system is stupid. So far I havn't mixed at all and eveything seems to run fine. The oil in the resivoir is being used, but it takes a good 6-7 gallons of gas run through to really notice a difference in the oil level.

Thanks.

 

[lncoop]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

As far as the VRO system, is the reasoning behind disconnecting based on the concern that if the oil pump goes out you're SOL, or is there another reason? I agree that mixing and using the system is stupid. So far I havn't mixed at all and eveything seems to run fine. The oil in the resivoir is being used, but it takes a good 6-7 gallons of gas run through to really notice a difference in the oil level.

Thanks.

Yeah, that's why. Frankly I'm surprised it wasn't disabled years ago. From what I've heard and read they shouldn't be trusted more than five years, but you how peeps talk LOL. In any case, as you correctly surmise, if it does fail you are indeed SOL, so if it were mine I'd probably go ahead and disable it. You seem pretty handy, so you should be able to do it yourself I imagine.

 

[BobGinCO]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

On the side of the controls: The round thing with four holes in it? This was taped over with electrical tape.

That's for the spare flux capacitor!!!

 

[lncoop]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

That's for the spare flux capacitor!!!

C'mon Bob, I thought you were better than that. Everyone knows Riviera Cruisers didn't come with flux capacitors! Only DeLorean barges were equipped with those.

 

[BobGinCO]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

C'mon Bob, I thought you were better than that. Everyone knows Riviera Cruisers didn't come with flux capacitors! Only DeLorean barges were equipped with those.

Rats! I saw some stainless, and my mind just fogged over for a second. :facepalm:

 

[The_Kid]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

Question #3 What do these things do?
On the controls below: Top thing is the key and ignition. No problem there. I assumed the middle thing was a choke of some sort, but I've never used it to start the boat and it dosn't seem to cause any difference when the motor is running. The bottom thing has a cover that says 5 amps - but it's not a fuse of any kind as far as I can tell.

View attachment 150555


On the side of the controls: The round thing with four holes in it? This was taped over with electrical tape.
View attachment 150558

The middle thing is a friction adjustment to keep the throttle from moving on its own. The bottom thing is an accessory connector and the thing on the side is the warning horn for over heat or low oil.

 

[snakeskinrug]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

The middle thing is a friction adjustment to keep the throttle from moving on its own. The bottom thing is an accessory connector and the thing on the side is the warning horn for over heat or low oil.

Thanks Kid, I appreciate it.

 

[EricJRW]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

...and the thing on the side is the warning horn for over heat or low oil.

Which brings us back to the VRO... I wonder if that high-pitched squealing got so bad the PO tapped it over to quiet it down? Makes no sense... Did you pull the tape? If not, maybe it was just a hole for a while. Also, from what I have read, the VRO does not have to be specifically "disabled" (short of the alarm that is). The fuel pump side will work just fine, as it's pulse driven. Just premix and empty the oil tank. From what I've been reading, this is preferred (my motor's VRO was removed).

That's really odd on the trailer. I'd be nervous as heck to haul that around. One pothole and... Ouch! It just makes no sense that that's how it should work. Maybe it's how it does work, but makes no sense... It's not really a scissor if front and back don't lift the same. Maybe it's called something else?

Welcome to iboats.

Eric

 

[snakeskinrug]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

Which brings us back to the VRO... I wonder if that high-pitched squealing got so bad the PO tapped it over to quiet it down? Makes no sense... Did you pull the tape? If not, maybe it was just a hole for a while. Also, from what I have read, the VRO does not have to be specifically "disabled" (short of the alarm that is). The fuel pump side will work just fine, as it's pulse driven. Just premix and empty the oil tank. From what I've been reading, this is preferred (my motor's VRO was removed).

That's really odd on the trailer. I'd be nervous as heck to haul that around. One pothole and... Ouch! It just makes no sense that that's how it should work. Maybe it's how it does work, but makes no sense... It's not really a scissor if front and back don't lift the same. Maybe it's called something else?

Welcome to iboats.

Eric

I just pulled the tape - haven't run it since. Any idea how to check to see if it's working properly? (I guess I'll find out if I empty the oil reservoir.) Thanks for the info on disabling the VRO - I was wondering if that would be all it took. It seems a bit paranoid to just forget about it, but that seems to be the consensus. It’s almost like switching out my radial tires for steel wagon wheels to eliminate the risk of a blowout, but based on the comments so far I guess I’m coming around to it.

I don’t have a picture of the trailer without the boat on right now, but I found this one that is almost exactly the same (except mine looks like it’s been through a war). Mine just doesn’t have the carpeted bunks on the back. Hopefully this picture will let you see how it works. The winch and cable only change the angle of the V’s on the back axle. The back end moves up and down a lot. The front not so much.




Thanks for you help.

 

[newbie4life]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

In regards to the trailer -- you stated the back doesn't touch the trailer... I'm making the assumption that it doesn't touch the trailer WHILE ITS IN THE WATER, right? Then as you pull it out of the landing, it lands on the bunk as it should, right... but it might be off to the side one way or the other, correct? This is the case with ours... or it was. I took some pieces of 4" PVC on each side of the bunk to help guide it as I pull it out of the water. Works slick... unless I didn't entirely understand your problem.

Jason

 

[MH Hawker]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

Welcome to iboats snake and one thing I can say for sure this bunch will help you through about any problem or question you have.grins and thats a good looking boat I am sure as you work out the bugs you will enjoy owning it I know I do mine.

 

[snakeskinrug]

Re: New Pontoon Boat Owner - Many Questions

In regards to the trailer -- you stated the back doesn't touch the trailer... I'm making the assumption that it doesn't touch the trailer WHILE ITS IN THE WATER, right? Then as you pull it out of the landing, it lands on the bunk as it should, right... but it might be off to the side one way or the other, correct? This is the case with ours... or it was. I took some pieces of 4" PVC on each side of the bunk to help guide it as I pull it out of the water. Works slick... unless I didn't entirely understand your problem.

Jason

Jason, You are correct - the back dosn't touch when loading out of the water. Any pictures of your add-on?

Thanks.