Maiden Voyage

Post by **dougl33** » Fri Jun 10, 2005 3:31 am

Well I took the QE out for its maiden voyage of the 2005 season. Everything seems OK, but I seemed to lose some rpms and definately lost some speed since last fall. Topping out around 3850rpms on the port and 3900 on the starboard. Speed at WOT was 23.5-24 knots. Thats down from just over 4K and 25.5-26 knots from last fall. The only major change over the winter was a rear curtain for my enclosure. I can't imagine that would slow me down another 2 knots? The bottom is in great shape (I highly recommend Micron CSC Extra). No extra weight has been added. In fact my spare props are still sitting at home in the box that Tim mailed them back in and the inflatible and outboard are in my garage. Plugs, caps, and rotors were changed last August. The engines fire right up and seem to be running great (knock on wood). The wires were last changed in spring of 2003 (about 200 hours ago). I've got a brand new set on the boat so I will probably change them this weekend and see what happens. Regards, Doug L. 1986 33 Bertram FBC Queen Elizabeth Marblehead, MA

GMarty · Post by **GMarty** » Fri Jun 10, 2005 6:24 am

It is an epedemic! Whay kind of power?

Post by **dougl33** » Fri Jun 10, 2005 7:16 am

Mercruiser 454's. Regards, Doug L. 1986 33 Bertram FBC Queen Elizabeth Marblehead, MA

skyking · Post by **skyking** » Fri Jun 10, 2005 1:47 pm

Hi Doug, Thanks for the email- I needed a "jump start" to get back into the Forum. I see there is another "Blue Chip", what are the odds????? This is my 7th season with my "Blue Chip"...all great. Just wanted to say hello to all my fellow B33 guys. Have a great summer... Ken 1982 33 Conv. Blue Chip Westbrook, Ct. pretty much original drive train (EVERYTHING) else replaced 454/350 Crusarers, 4.5 Onan, Cruisar 1600 www.kenliller.com

franklyprice · Post by **franklyprice** » Sat Jun 11, 2005 2:23 am

Doug, Could it be differing amounts of fuel on board? I've never done a test but I'm sure your top speed can vary by a knot or two , depending on how full the tank is. We're talking over a ton of fuel here. Last sunday I opened mine up for a minute with 80 gallons less than a full tank, three POB ,maybe half a tank of water, and she hit 26.5 KTS @ a little over 4000 RPM. I'd still like to see more RPM but I'm not investing any more $ into these props. Ken, It's nice to see you back, I was wondering if you still had the boat.I guess you answered that question. Frank Price '87 SF "JEANNE CLAIRE" Rowley Ma

Bompapen · Post by **Bompapen** » Sat Jun 11, 2005 3:37 am

Hi Doug Do you test the compression of the engines. What you use to measure the speed. David

skyking · Post by **skyking** » Sat Jun 11, 2005 6:39 am

Hi Frank, Glad to be back...thanks for the welcome back. How's things with you ???? Ken 1982 33FBC "Blue Chip" 454 Crusaders Westbrook, Ct.

franklyprice · Post by **franklyprice** » Sat Jun 11, 2005 1:19 pm

Ken, Things are good. The boat's working pretty well, the summer is starting to warm up , what could be bad about that? Frank Price

Rick · Post by **Rick** » Sun Jun 12, 2005 3:46 pm

Doug, You might want to run 'em for another trip or two before doing anything drastic....current alone can slow you down that much. I didn't know we had the same engines. What year are yours ? I re-powered in 2000 and got the 454 MPI's. When mine start to lose power, and I mean a lot of it, it's always been the fuel pump. I found out last summer that the Merc's want a minimum of a 1/2" fuel line. My '85 SF had 3/8" fuel lines with shut off's that closed it down to 1/4". So it was just what I wanted to hear...the boat was starving for gas ! I put all new 1/2" fuel lines in and it seems better but time will tell. I already lost a fuel pump this Spring, but it was in there before I replaced the lines and could have been already damaged. Take Care, Rick

Post by **dougl33** » Mon Jun 13, 2005 6:19 am

Frank, The boat was loaded as such: 2/3 fuel 1/2 water 7 pob (4 adults and 3 kids) I know that at the end of last summer I was getting 4300 and 26 knots @ WOT, but that was before I put on the hardtop and enclosure. I'd be lying if I said I was positve, but at the end of last summer, I was still getting 25 knots and right around 4100 rpms @ WOT with the top and enclosure. David, Here are the latest compression numbers taken last fall at layup: Cyl Starbord Port 1 145 145 2 150 145 3 140 135 4 145 145 5 140 140 6 140 145 7 140 130 8 145 140 I used a GPS to track the speed. I held it at WOT for a couple of minutes to let the GPS catch up but nothing really changed. Rick, My motors are carb'd, not fuel injected. FYI: I didn't get a chance to work/test the boat this past weekend. I was in Chicago watching the Red Sox play the Cubs. I actually spotted an older FBC at a marina on Lake Michigan. Wrigley is a great park and Chicago is a great city. Regards, Doug L. 1986 33 Bertram FBC Queen Elizabeth Marblehead, MA