Das Boot, or "Why my hair is turning grey"

[Bun-bun]

So my buddy Dave and I have been owners on this 1994 Luhrs sportfishin boat for about five years now.


Everything went fine 'til last November, when I got a call that the boat sank at the dock. Turns out that one of the shaft seals had blown. The bilge pumps did their job, til the batteries ran down. This is the shaft seal.

So the insurance company paid up, and we bought the boat back for $5k, and started the rebuilding process. So far, we've pulled the old motors, replaced the shaft and rudder seals, replaced the fuel lines,
replaced all of the wiring, switches, breakers, and fuses


And pumps: livewell, macerator, saltwater washdown, freshwater washdown, and trimtab.

[Scottish]

COOOOOOOOLLLLLLL!!!!! I wanna big boat like that! Seriously awesome! %k? How much are the engines? What is the real cost you'd be looking at to rebuild? Not the insurance cost they over blow everything.

[Bun-bun]

The boat came with a pair of GM 350 inboards, and by last November, they had lived full lives. We had already started to build one new motor, so we just started building a matched pair. We upgraded from Gen I small blocks to the Vortec 350's since they had a better head design, and roller cams. We got lucky, and found a good deal on one rebuildable four bolt motor from a friend with a wrecked '98 Suburban. I had to make a 400 mile round trip to Maryland to get the other one.
We sent both motors and all four heads out to a local machine shop, and head the blocks bored .030 over, and the heads decked, tanked, and marinized with stainless valves, and all new internals. We built the blocks with Keith Black pistons, Crane rods, and marine roller cams, which were extremely hard to find. Once the blocks were built, we turned to the heads. We opted for roller rockers, which will add about 8-10 hp.

We painted the blocks and heads with a two part epoxy paint, and mated them to the blocks. ARP fasteners were used throughout.
We then installed aluminum intakes, water pumps, and aluminum pulleys, both for weight, and corrosion resistance.
We've got two rebuilt marine carburetors, two marine distributors, rebuilt marine starters and alternators,  just waiting to be installed.
Now you know why I'm always tired on Mondays.

[Bun-bun]

COOOOOOOOLLLLLLL!!!!! I wanna big boat like that! Seriously awesome! %k? How much are the engines? What is the real cost you'd be looking at to rebuild? Not the insurance cost they over blow everything.

We could've done this cheaper, but we take this boat offshore 60-80 miles each way for tuna and marlin, so we opted to spend a bit more than we would've if we just wanted to resell it.
We've got around $4k in each motor, and about $5k in materials. We saved a ton by doing our own labor, and having a good buddy with a boatyard is a huge advantage.
Both Dave and I have years of experience working on boats for pay. It's not something I'd recommend for anyone without experience. If you screw up, you can't walk home.

[Magnus]

i nearly had a stroke when i heard how much it costs in gas to run one of these bad boys for a day...

[DesmoTull]

i nearly had a stroke when i heard how much it costs in gas to run one of these bad boys for a day...

I used to date a girl who's Dad had a Baja on a lake in NH.  Believe me, the gas is just a drop in the bucket compared to the overall cost.

[Popeye the Sailor]

I used to date a girl who's Dad had a Baja on a lake in NH.  Believe me, the gas is just a drop in the bucket compared to the overall cost.

You people are *not* helping me convince the girl a boat is a wise purchase.

[DesmoDiva]

You people are *not* helping me convince the girl a boat is a wise purchase.

You could always tell her the boat you want doesn't have a motor. 

Or it does.....her.   

[Scottish]

Small block Chevies are great, I didn't know if a boat that size would have a special marine motor..... I had a 455 olds' build as a marine engine once. I dropped it in a little flat bed half ton and had a haul ass truck for a bit..... didn't hold up though. Tore up a piston, I've heard that it common for a boat built engine to not last as long on the street. You know anything about that Bun?

[Scottish]

You could always tell her the boat you want doesn't have a motor. 

Or it does.....her.   

Did you just tell him to motorboat ms.incredible?? 

[DesmoDiva]

nah, just saying if he bought a non-motorized boat, ms.Incr. could row it. 

[Popeye the Sailor]

nah, just saying if he bought a non-motorized boat, ms.Incr. could row it. 

Nah-I spent 10 seasons on a crew boat. It's one of the few things I can probably do better than her at 

[DesmoDiva]

 

[Bun-bun]

Small block Chevies are great, I didn't know if a boat that size would have a special marine motor..... I had a 455 olds' build as a marine engine once. I dropped it in a little flat bed half ton and had a haul ass truck for a bit..... didn't hold up though. Tore up a piston, I've heard that it common for a boat built engine to not last as long on the street. You know anything about that Bun?

Yeah, you build a motor differently for marine use because the loads and operating RPM's are different. Boat motors are under load all of the time, and operate for long periods at a set RPM. The load on an automotive engine is not as constant, and car motors operate at constantly changing RPM's as you accelerate and decelerate. Marine engines use a different cam, the lift and duration are closer to that of a generator than for a truck or car.
The other differences are in the ancillary components. All electrical devices must be ignition protected to prevent sparking, which could cause an explosion. The alternators, starters, distributors, etc, are all specially designed for marine use. Also, the carburetor has a spark arrestor in place of an air filter housing.
The previous motors burnt about 20 gallons per hour (GPH) at cruise, or about 1.2 gallons per statute mile. Hopefully, the new motors will do slightly better.
An overnight tuna trip ran us about $1k last year, including gas, food, drinks, bait, ice, etc.

[herm]

You people are *not* helping me convince the girl a boat is a wise purchase.

yeh, good luck with that. which reminds me....

a boat owners two happiest days?
date of purchase, and date of sale.