Repower

photo finish · Post by **photo finish** » Tue Jan 11, 2005 4:31 pm

no the hurricanes did not affect us here that much.it is january and all the seasonal residents are coming back to their boats needing repairs.if this was june i would not have any trouble Tim Stamm Photo Finish 1981 33' Bertram FBC

lobsta1 · Post by **lobsta1** » Tue Jan 11, 2005 4:34 pm

Tim, your boat must really be different than mine. When I replaced my lines from the engine mounted oil head to the cooler & remote mount filter I had to pull the oil head off the engine. Previous owner had the engines & trannys rebuilt at the end of 1998 & the yahoo did not replace the lines at the same time. Fittings were frozen onto the head. Had to remove the head on the port engine to crack the fittings free. Only way I could do it was to climb over the front cross stringer & shimmy on my back under the engine. What I'm trying to say is my cross stringer must be about 1 1/2' in front of the oil pan. Al P.S. This site just came to screeching crawl. 1978 33 FBC NITES OFF

photo finish · Post by **photo finish** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 1:43 am

my cross stringer is just aft of the oil pan so if and when i move the new engine back it might pose a problem Tim Stamm Photo Finish 1981 33' Bertram FBC

captgene · Post by **captgene** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 2:58 am

Tim, I saw in one post you mentioned 8 weeks? Are they for real? One of the guys we hang out with (32 Luhrs) repowered with Yanmar 315s from Gas. In the yard and out, and missed 2 weekends of boating. The only thing he did himself was paint the bildge. Looking at the MP specs, I see no reason the 8.1 won't drop in there. I looked at the Crudader and MP side by side at the Ft. Laud show. The MP appears to be bulkier and a bit disorganized with the add-ons. Will if you are listening...I'm keeping an eye on the 33FBC across the waterway. Soon as the guy kicks we'll get you back into a Bert. E.W. Dugan

will newton · Post by **will newton** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 5:30 am

Tim, I'm sure you have looked in Ft Myers. There used to be a pretty good marina on the river. Would be a long way to go on one engine or a tow but may be worth the look. E.W, I can't tell you how many times I've walked the local docks looking at boats. I've looked at a Jearsy 36, a Bertram 42, a Bertram 31 and 28, Blackfin..... Very few compare to B33 FBC I had in terms of affordability, useability and overall practicality in the way I use the boat. If the guy does decide to sell, let us know and I'll come down and check her out. Hell, I'll just leave it down there and cruise with you to the Keys this summer. Best, Will

captgene · Post by **captgene** » Thu Jan 13, 2005 2:17 am

Will, I'm watching...this boat has not moved since it came here 2 years ago. I think the owner is a very "old" condo commando, that just needs to see his boat from his balcony. But yet I see new canvas, bottom gets cleaned. I don't get it. E.W. Dugan

photo finish · Post by **photo finish** » Thu Jan 13, 2005 10:22 am

poll question; based solely on manifolds would you take crusaders cast iron manifold and elbows or mercruisers aluminum manifold and stainless steel elbows? and is this a big enough reason to choose one over the other? Tim Stamm Photo Finish 1981 33' Bertram FBC

Post by **dougl33** » Thu Jan 13, 2005 11:16 am

Tim, I think I'd go with the Crusader setup. I can't get the whole dis-similar metal thing out of my mind. Overall, it seems that I've heard zero complaints about the Crusaders, and have heard/read several on the Mercs. Anyone lining up to take your money yet? Regards, Doug L. 1986 33 Bertram FBC Queen Elizabeth

billb · Post by **billb** » Thu Jan 13, 2005 12:10 pm

Tim: I agree with Doug, I would go with he crusaders, i think in the marine environment the metals might react and corrode after some time..... Bill B.

lobsta1 · Post by **lobsta1** » Thu Jan 13, 2005 1:53 pm

In the last 6 or 7 yrs. Merc has gone through about 6 or 7 iterations of exhaust. From ceramic coated elbows where the ceramic ended up cracked & holding salt deposits locked in & corroding to > rwc > fwc > stainless > stainless & cast iron > gaskets that the antifreeze in a fwc system eats up. In other words, there have been a LOT of guinea pigs in the last 10 yrs. while Merc keeps experimenting with ANOTHER NEW BRIGHT IDEA that always seems to fail in service. I just can't help but think that aluminum & stainless & salt water is a recipe for disaster. Al 1978 33 FBC NITES OFF

franklyprice · Post by **franklyprice** » Thu Jan 13, 2005 5:48 pm

For what it's worth, I have to agree with everybody here. I've played with aluminum alot and the combination of aluminum and stainless alot and as good as an engineer might think he's figured it out, only time will tell what you'll end up with. The stainless fastners eat the aluminum, the salt water eats everything, they anodize and coat aluminum and try different alloys but mixing stainless and aluminum is risky, at best.Especially with exhaust. I actually like the idea of stainless risers but with cast iron manifolds, not aluminum. Let's face it, exhaust risers and riser gaskets are the weak link in a marine engine, at least in my humble opinion. Frank Price

Bob S · Post by **Bob S** » Sat Jan 15, 2005 5:25 am

Iwas describing my repower on the SF forum and someone suggested I look here. I will give you all the specifics. 1986 33 Sportfish with Merc 340 BW 2.5/1 gears, 1-1/2" shafts, 23x26 3 blade props. Blew one engine (2000 hrs). Removed engines and examined rebuild. Decideed to go new gas. Purchased new Merc 8.1 370 with ZF 63a (8 down angle). I have not done install yet as I am redoing engine room. Everything is stripped out and ready for paint. I am replacing the stuffing boxes with drippless, new shafts, new battery cables and all bonding wires, new intake and bilge hoses, and backing blocks for the thruogh hulls. I haven't figured out how much I need to move the mounts. I will try to keep all updated on progress.

photo finish · Post by **photo finish** » Sun Jan 16, 2005 11:23 am

Thanks Bob, but you did not really answer any of my questions. Tim Stamm Photo Finish 1981 33' Bertram FBC

captgene · Post by **captgene** » Mon Jan 17, 2005 3:25 am

We need to rename this the Tim Thread. Crusader always had a better exhaust set up. Oil & Transmission Cooler set up too. The Crusader risers don't let SW intrusion drop right into the middle cylinders as does the Mercruiser. Althought they are trying hard to eliminate failure of the cast iron risers and manafolds, I don't think they changed the design to solve the intrusion problem. Looks like they are still would leak dead center to me. Stainless, Aluminum and Salt Water just don't like each other much either. E.W. Dugan

Bob S · Post by **Bob S** » Mon Jan 17, 2005 2:57 pm

I chose Mercruiser solely based on price quotes. I feel that they are both great products and the technical differences are just different engineering ideas. I am sure if you talk to the engineers at Crusader they won't like the Merc set up and vice cersa. Personaly I believe that Mercruiser is one of the largest Marine engine manufacturers in the world and they stand behind thier products. My old Merc lasted 18 years and could have been rebuilt but I chose to go new. I hope I am happy but I feel that either cjoice would be OK.