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Being hauled soon-a few questions

Discussion in 'Chris Craft Roamer Yacht' started by lacabina, Jan 22, 2009.

  1. lacabina

    lacabina Member

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    First let me say that somehow I got deleted from the forum and I am happy to be back!
    I will be hauling Alegria-1968/37'Riviera AL in the next several weeks.
    The main reason is that the rubber linkage gaskets at the transmission/shaft linkage are probably 40 years old.
    In the haul I will also paint the bottom, zincs, inspect etc. Last haul 2003.
    I have never had the props/shafts balanced. No vibrations but probably a good idea. Yes? I was also thinking about getting the Paragon re-build kits since the shafts will be out. The other day I noticed that in neutral the starboard shaft spins slowly while the port does not. Again no running or shifting problems to date. A concern?
    Finally the 427's run very strong at 960 hours but I would love to make it so that I could end my use of lead additive and use 93 unleaded. Any ideas?
    The fuel tanks are original and appear to be solid. Any idea how they might be cleaned?
    The boat has always been fresh water.
    I would like to know where I might find the rubber linkage of the same quality and strength to last another 40 years.
    There will be some minor cosmetic things done while she is out.
    If I am missing anything or if someone has experience and or resources for this project please let me know.
    Thanks
  2. YachtForums

    YachtForums Administrator

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    Hi Lacabina and welcome back,

    Curious... how were you were deleted? Your membership has been intact since 2004.

    If you had problems logging in, let me know and I'll try to help. It could be related to the security settings on your browser.

    Best,

    Carl
  3. NYCAP123

    NYCAP123 Senior Member

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    .
    A little overdue for that haul, eh.;) As for pulling and balancing the shafts & props; IMHO if it ain't broke don't fix it. The spin is another story. In neutral it shouldn't spin. Sounds like you're still engaged. The linkage may fix that. The tanks may very well look terrific until they start to leak or clog your motor. The problems will be inside. Your yard should be able to recommend someone local to clean & inspect them. PLEASE don't try that yourself. I'd also be changing belts, hoses and inspecting the intakes for mussels, etc. & make sure the seacocks are working. Of course inspect and repack the shaft logs.
  4. Seafarer

    Seafarer Senior Member

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    Find a good engine machine shop, have a valve job done, and have them press in hardened valve seats. That's the biggest and first concern when switching from leaded to unleaded.
  5. NYCAP123

    NYCAP123 Senior Member

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    Just reread your post:
    Is that since rebuild or what year are those motors?
  6. Oneiros

    Oneiros Member

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    why not a diesel enginer?

    HI!
    I should put some diesel enginers insted more power an diesel is safetier.
  7. K1W1

    K1W1 Senior Member

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    A simple statement will answer why this isn't the best answer for this guy or his boat . "The Power to weight ratio"
  8. Fishtigua

    Fishtigua Senior Member

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    960hrs in 40 years, you would have to run for 100 years to pay for cheaper running Diesels.
  9. K1W1

    K1W1 Senior Member

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    Hi,

    FISH- Before you shut down on overspeed- The original poster was asked if that was the original factory frsh to today hours or if they were rebuilds.

    He hasn't answered yet so no one except him knows how long it took to run up those hours.

    If they have actually gone for 40 yrs untouched and still run strong I would be inclined to leave them alone. If the heads were done up as suggested the improvement to compression may be the death knell of older piston rings.

    During my apprenticeship I found that this not an uncommon phenomenon when doing a cylinder overhaul on older gas engines.
  10. NYCAP123

    NYCAP123 Senior Member

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    Fish & K1W1 are correct that the power to weight ratio won't work out well, and the cost couldn't be justified since diesels would cost more than the boat and would out live it by decades. Two other points to consider: I doubt if the stringer and mounting situation is equipped to handle the different motors without major modifications. Additionally, nobody would ever expect diesels in this boat so he wouldn't recoup $.10 of the investment at resale. The main thing I was thinking when I asked about the age of those motors was do they really need leaded gas? I doubt it if it's been repowered along the way since 1968 which is very possible.
  11. K1W1

    K1W1 Senior Member

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    Hi,

    NYCAP- It was your question to the original poster that spurred my reply to FISH.

    Another thing to be considered is that if these are the original lumps hey have done somewhere around the equivalent of 50,000 Road Miles ( I have read elsewhere that 50 miles is approx equivalent to 1 hour of engine running, although when I did my time the machines use to get their first service at 50 hrs or 1500 hrs) so they should still have a good squirt left in them if they are looked after correctly and not run WOT all the time.
  12. lacabina

    lacabina Member

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    Thanks for all of the responses.

    The hours on the engines are original. I bought the boat in 2001 with 750 hours on them. I just sent NYCAP123 a detailed response that I should have posted.
    If he could cut and past it the story is an interesting one.
    I re-read some of the details on the fuel tanks and now I try and find someone to clean them. Not a large pool of marine talent here in North Georgia.
  13. NYCAP123

    NYCAP123 Senior Member

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    Lacabina asked me to paste this:
    427's

  14. NYCAP123

    NYCAP123 Senior Member

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    With diesel motors you'd be using an addative with each fill up. No big deal. Considering your situation I think I'd just buy the lead addative in bulk and enjoy the boat. Sounds like you've got a winner.
  15. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    i woudn't touch the motors except for things like belts, hoses, impellers and inspect the manifold and risers. Even in fresh water, if they are original they may be getting "there".

    if you dont' have any vibration, dont' bother pulling the shafts and props... just repack the stuffing boxes.

    I'm not familiar with the trannies, if the shaft turns very slowly i'd be tempted to leave it alone. depends on the trannies, do some research or ask someone who's familiar with that model/design.

    the fuel tanks are a possible issues... what are they? alum or fibeglass? dont' know if CC used glass tanks or not.. if fiberglass, ethanol will be a problem, potentially catastophic. if alum, in fresh water, if installed properly and kept dry, with no water at the bottom they could be fine. again, if you dont' have signs of baf fuel (frequent filter change) dont' mess with them. it's not going to be easy to see what's really lurking at the bottom.

    what i would do right away though if you dont' have them already is put a fuel vapor detector in the engine compartment, to alert you of any fuel spill or leak, and a automatic fire extinguisher. and obviously a CO detector in the cabin. Sorry if this is obvious and you already have that on board, but you'd be surprised to see how many gas boats dont' have that minimum and critical safety equipement.
  16. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    I too have seen this many times. When you do a valve job on an older or somewhat tired/used gas engine, it will start burning oil because the increased compression from the valve job pushes more blowby through the worn piston rings. I think it's best not to do a valve job if you can get away with it. Also, I would run them until they show signs of needing a rebuild, before actually rebuilding. A compression test and/or a leakdown test should show where the engines are at.