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Bought a 1981 Trojan F-36

Discussion in 'General Sportfish Discussion' started by CSlaughter, Jul 31, 2015.

  1. CSlaughter

    CSlaughter New Member

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    Location:
    Austin, Texas
    On the 3th of July, I found an opportunity even my very skeptical accountant of a wife could not argue with. Someone was looking to get out from under their 1981 Trojan f-36 / 460 36'. I did the math and I could part it out and still make money if it came to it. But lets not look down that road, This is my first step into the over 20' boating world.

    I am unsure if this is the correct sub-forum to post this in. If it is, moderator, please relocate it or tell me where to put it and I will be happy to place it there.

    I figure this is an opportunity to document my successes and (possibly more important) failures. Some of the more seasoned captains / owners can get a chuckle or provide some guidance, and the new comers and lurkers can learn what not to do.

    Currently it is located on the Texas coast in a wet slip. I have taken a number of pictures and will try and post them here shortly.

    For the first three weekends, I had gone to work on it over the weekend. My biggest issues being it is almost 4 hours from Austin and the fact that it is 90+ degrees with 99% humidity. The feels like temperature is 104 -106. The boat sat in the wet slip for several years unmaintained and it shows. I was able to get one of the two on-board AC systems working, but as luck would have it it was the one in the forward state room and dinette. NOT the areas I will be in. having a little experience with AC systems, I can see that it appears to be working, but it is just low on freon. Originally neither system got cold and I discovered the seawater pump had failed. as a temporary fix I was able to install a 110v transfer pump in it's place and get it partially working. I ordered and have received a new seawater pump from MarineAir for $250. A little pricy, but I am sure it is not the last time I am going to feel that way.

    When I bought the boat, all three batteries were dead. Completely flat-line D.E.A.D dead! I had brought a new diehard deep cycle battery just in case this happened. It has two Chrysler 440 motors and an Onan 6.5kw generator, all of which are gas. We were able to turn the port side motor over, but it never filed. upon further inspection the coil was not firing a spark. Could be ignition module, coil, or when switching the batteries around we failed to reconnect the engine electronics back up correctly. Either way, I was happy to hear that it was not locked up and sounded like it had compression. The starboard motor had been rebuilt and set back in and bolted down, but no other connections had been made, so I was not able to do any testing on it. But the oil was clean and clear, so I feel that there is a good chance it is good. However the generator has me concerned. I can see that it was installed brand new shortly before the previous owner bought it. I do not believe this boat had much use before the owner stopped using it. So the generator probably did not get used much. Only problem is I can not seem to get the starter to turn it over. The starter clicks and engages the fly wheel, but that is it. No movement or other noises..

    A new bilge pump has been installed and wired to the new batteries, a lot of cleaning and sorting has been done. finding spare parts all over the boat and a treasure trove of original manuals and documentation was a nice surprise. testing many of the on-board comfort systems trying to develop a list of what needs repair and what just needs cleaning.

    Last weekend and this weekend I have been busy with other things in life, so I will not be back down to look at it till next weekend. June was a very wet month for Texas and as such, a LOT of silt is in the water near the coast. I am hoping that next weekend, it will be clear enough for me to put on the diving gear and see how bad the bottom is covered in marine life. I also hope to check the props and make sure they are free so we can test the transmissions.

    If you have any thoughts or questions. give me a shout..
    USCH and TPWD paperwork filed.. so when she runs, she is legal.

    Carl
    Here are some of the pictures
    https://goo.gl/photos/Zt47ZywbAxHw1zsv9
  2. YachtForums

    YachtForums Administrator

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    This thread has been moved to the sportfish forum and retitled for better indexing.
  3. chesapeake46

    chesapeake46 Senior Member

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    I looked at quite a few of these boats a long time ago. I bought an F-36 too. I think mine was a '73.
    It was the traditional style, not the more Euro style.

    A couple that we looked at had rotten stringers on either side of the centerline. These also supported the inboard motor mounts. Something to look for.
    The windshield leaked in a hard rain.

    Ours did not have a dinnette but, instead, a side stateroom.

    I thought mine had Chrysler 360's but I might be wrong. It was a long time ago.
    These were raw water cooled and if yours are too, take a long look at the exhaust manifolds and risers.

    It was a nice riding boat and was perfect for my wife and my needs. I had an F-30, and an F-32 before the F-36 and the 36 was the best of the F series, I believe.

    Good luck with it, they are nice boats.
  4. CSlaughter

    CSlaughter New Member

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    Location:
    Austin, Texas
    I am looking forward to it.
    I have family coming down this weekend to assist.
  5. Mark I

    Mark I Member

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    Location:
    Long Island/Pompano Beach
    I owned a 1984 F36 and you will find out why it was one of the most popular production boats built. It is not an offshore battlewagon but has a great deal of desirable features including the separate shower stall. It is not a heavy boat so performance is decent with gas motors.

    Here are a few tips:

    First, Trojan built these in PA and used a lot of off the shelf parts. Before you spend a fortune on things like door rollers etc, check your local Home Depot.

    Second, if you need something special, there is a guy who has a decent inventory of Trojan parts. Google is your friend here.

    Third, pay close attention to the drainage holes in the stringers that allow water to move to center where your bilge pumps are. This is where problems arise as some were not fully glassed there. This was a big problem on the F32s but some F36s had it also.

    Fourth, if you want to install a vacu-flush, under the V-berth is where you have room for the pump. Not terrible but will wake you if someone flushes in the night.

    All in all a good boat for the money.
  6. CSlaughter

    CSlaughter New Member

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    Location:
    Austin, Texas
    So this is an F-36 460.
    I am curious what the 460 indicates. Everything I have found so far indicated it might be because it has a ford 460 in it.

    Any one have any ideas?
  7. CSlaughter

    CSlaughter New Member

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    Location:
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    I spent some time on the boat this weekend. I was able to get one of the engines running. The other has a bad ICU (Ignition control unit) and a dirty carb. The other engine is a fresh rebuild that has not yet been fully connected. So I was not able to start it so I pulled it's good ICU and carb, put them on the other engine and it came to life.. I was very happy. So I pulled both carbs and am having them rebuilt. It is cheaper to pay for a carb rebuild than it is to try and run a dirty carb and start to run lean and burn up a piston.. (Done that before, Lesson learned)

    Now I have to figure out the steering thing. It is a hydraulic system that does not have a pump anywhere that I can see. There is a reservoir and some sort of pressure tank. I have no idea how that is supposed to work, but I guess I am about to learn.

    Wish me luck.

    Carl
  8. Capt Ralph

    Capt Ralph Senior Member

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    On the Carbs. Don't let anybody talk you into an automotive job or replacement. Marine carburetors have some mods that may keep you alive. Don't get $kimpy. I prefer new replacements and may catch same heat stating that from others here. It's a preference, liability & warranty thing with me.

    Look up Hynautic steering systems. Under the SeaStar brand now (owned by TeleFlex?).
    Most parts are still available and serviceable.
    http://www.seastarsolutions.com/products/hydraulic-new/inboard-new/hynautic-new/
    It's pretty simple once you understand some theory.
  9. CSlaughter

    CSlaughter New Member

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    I'm not, I have someone in the Dallas area that only works on big boats and he is doing to work for me.. It was a very wet spring and all the lakes in the Dallas area are up, so he is swamped. But he is a friend of my brother and should have them done in due time..

    and I will take a look at SeaStar and see what I find. I first have to figure out how they work. It might be as simple as pressurizing the system or something (The pressure gauge on one of the canisters for the steering is at 0 psi.)

    Thanks
  10. C team

    C team Senior Member

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    Location:
    Kent Island
    I thought the later years of these boat were built in Elkton MD. on the ELk River My
    marina was right down from the factory on the Elk and I used to watch new boats coming down past my marina back in the day.
  11. CSlaughter

    CSlaughter New Member

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    I have a question for everyone.
    The controls on the upper helm consist of 2 levers for throttle and 2 levers for transmission control. My port transmission control is frozen due to corrosion of the mechanism. I am trying to google this device to find a replacement and am not sure what it is called.

    What do I call it? what term should I google for?
  12. Capt Ralph

    Capt Ralph Senior Member

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    Are you referring to the clutch or gear control lever? The thingies that would make the propeller spin for forward or aft thrust? There is usually a daisy chain of push pull cables from to top control, lower control, then the clutch. You can remove the cables from your controls and clutch and determine where the seize is.
    I recall a similar boat down the dock, you may have the big TeleFlex controls.
  13. CSlaughter

    CSlaughter New Member

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    Yes, I have already disconnected the cables and confirmed that it is the actual lever it's self.
    See attached Bad-controls.png
  14. CSlaughter

    CSlaughter New Member

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    I have disassembled it and will take a few pictures tonight and post them.
    Maybe that will help everyone with identifying it.

    Carl
  15. Capt Ralph

    Capt Ralph Senior Member

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    That's not the style I was thinking of. Maybe older TeleFlex, I'm not sure.
    By the look of that monkey metal puffing up, new controls could be an easier fix (less blood loss).