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OA 440 with 2011 Cummins 6BTA5.9 315 HP

Discussion in 'Ocean Alexander Yacht' started by Richard C, Apr 8, 2015.

  1. Richard C

    Richard C New Member

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    Hi,
    I'm about to do a survey on a 1998 OA 440 sun deck I am under contact with. The boat was repowered in 2011 with remanufactured by Cummins, 315 HP 6BTA5.9. I won't get into why but do know the answer as to why it was repowered. I do not know what was in the boat originally so don't know the speed/ fuel consumptions originally and am trying to find out. My concern is if the boat is powered right or is it under powered. I am told at 2400 rpm, the yacht speed is 9 knots and at 2600 it is 14 knots. Does this seem reasonable? I'm going to have the engine surveyor measure this when we do the sea trial. I also can't find any fuel burn charts on these engines on the internet to know what it is burning at certain RPM. Does anybody know where to get these?

    Also, is there anything I need to be looking at that has had issues before in a yacht of this age and time period?
    Thanks for any feed back!!!
    Richard C
  2. K1W1

    K1W1 Senior Member

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    I did a bit of googling for that model and year and see that a few similar ones had the CAT3126 Power.

    This was not a good product line for CAT. The rebuilt Cummins if done and maintained properly will be good long life engines.
  3. RER

    RER Senior Member

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    Across the 440 model run OA used CAT 3116, 3126, 3208, Cummins 6BTA and even some Detroit 8.2L with a range of HP from 300 to 375.

    The 6BTA is a good motor. It likes to cruise at about 2200rpm. Your speed doesn't make sense. With 2x 315hp the OA 440 should cruise around 14-16 burning about 16gph. Max RPM should be 2800 and top end speed should be at least be 20 mph.
  4. Richard C

    Richard C New Member

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    Thanks for the reply and research. I didn't think so either, that is what the other broker is telling us, just from his own observation. He said at 2400 the boat cruises at 9 knots and at 2600 it is at 14 knots. We will survey next Friday. I have a Cummins marine surveyor coming along with a boat surveyor who will give us the right answers. I will find out what engines it had tomorrwo when we take our second walf through. You in sites are appriciated and valuable. Our ultimate goal is to do the loop and looking at this one to do it.

    Attached Files:

  5. RER

    RER Senior Member

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    That boat was sold in 2003 as CAROL ANN. At that time it had 638 hours on the original 1998 315hp Cummins 6BTA motors.
  6. Richard C

    Richard C New Member

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    That is very good information to know. I'm glad it was repowered with the same performance engines. It gives me a good comfort level. How were you able to come up with that information? thank you
  7. RER

    RER Senior Member

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    Sold Boats database. Broker access to certain sold/listing history.
  8. Richard C

    Richard C New Member

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    We believe the previous name on the boat was Wings.
  9. RER

    RER Senior Member

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    It was ...and before that, when sold in 2003 it was CAROL ANN.
  10. Richard C

    Richard C New Member

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    RER, To confirm I now own the boat. Her name wil be changed to Dreamcatcher III to be morned in Apollo Beach, FL. at my house. She will leave Ft. Myers May 11 to St. Petersburg for a haul, service and some upgrades then to our house May 21. We are estatic.
  11. RER

    RER Senior Member

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    Congratulations. By all indications from the listing your new boat appears to have been very well cared for. So, I'm curious, what was the cruise and top end speed on sea trial?
  12. Richard C

    Richard C New Member

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    Keeping in mind the bottom had not been painted for 4 years, yes 4 years, it topped at 2400 rpm, 14 knots. The bottom was clean though. At 1900 we were doing 9.7 knots, not too bad. So, we will be painting a new bottom and doing all service. Then we will get a true gage on it. But we were full fuel, 400 and water 150 gal also.
  13. RER

    RER Senior Member

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    For the purpose of a sea trial, poor paint condition is a non-factor so long as the bottom is clean.

    1800-1900 RPM is an inefficient place to run the 6BTA. That's right where the turbo boost kicks in. You would be better off either down at hull speed, I'm guessing probably around 8 knots in that boat, maybe 1400-1500 RPM? ...or run it up at 2200 or above which is where the 6BTA makes all it's horsepower.

    You're waaaaaay short of RPM's at WOT ...400 RPM's short. I'm assuming your gears are 2 to 1 reduction. You would likely gain speed in excess of 1 knot for each additional 100 RPM.

    At any rate I'm fond of that model OA, and it looks to me like you bought yourself a nice boat.
    Last edited: May 7, 2015
  14. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    You have a serious issue going on if you're short that many rpm's and the bottom is clean. You either have major issues with the engines not making power, or a serious weight gain like the hull is full of water. Check the weight when it is hauled.
  15. RER

    RER Senior Member

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    It could be a combination of factors. My first question is the max RPM based only on tachs at the helm? They can be inaccurate.

    And I often see boats come up short on WOT due to a little too much prop/pitch - this is usually outside the mechanic and vessel surveyor scope of inspection and left unresolved.

    Also those re-man 6BTA's need a valve adjustment at 200 hours which a lot of times doesn't get done. That's going to affect peak performance.

    How many people were onboard? Those are some of the things I'd look at. Also, I'd run it without the dinghy on the back and compare.
    Last edited: May 8, 2015
  16. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    I wouldn't be alarmed if it was 100 rpms.....but 400 rpms is typically 8" of pitch too much. That's excessive and there's a serious issue going on here. Not minor issue.
  17. Richard C

    Richard C New Member

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    The engines topped out at 2850, right in spec, I was meaning at 2400 we were at 14 knots, sorry to miss lead you. Not sure what WOT means, please clarify. Both engines ran within Cummins spec. I used a Cummins surveyor to do the engine surveys. He found they needed full service, none had been done in 2 years except oil changes. The aftercoolers need servicing and heat exchangers as well. All will be done by certified Cummins mechanics. When we bring it up, we'll run at full throttle and get a more accurate top end. I'll check on the valve job. We had 7 on the boat plus 400 gal of fuel and 150 gal of water. Will let yoiu know more after Monday. Thanks for the replies, I'm no mechanic but have had 2 other boats so know enough to understand the big picture.
  18. RER

    RER Senior Member

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    ?
    Oh, well then nevermind.
    Wide Open Throttle.
    No, not a valve job, I said a valve adjustment.
  19. RER

    RER Senior Member

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    By the way my original post was in response to your comments on the boat's performance above, which we now see have changed.
  20. Richard C

    Richard C New Member

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    Yes the performance is different than what the listing broker originally represented.