Buying a Boat.

[LeightonBuzzard]

HI I'm looking into buying my first boat! After looking at Bowriders and Cuddy's I've started looking at Broom Aquarius'. I have seen one with a 150hp Mercury engine which I've had insurance quotes for etc. I intend it for summer/fun, wakeboarding etc.

Can anybody tell me what to look out for on an engine and boat? Im a vehicle tech for Honda so know my way around an engine just never had much experiance with marine engines or outboards. Do boats like this have some sought of Bilge?

I've also looked at RYA Level 2 Power Boat training; has anybody had any experiance/ recommendations of the training?

Thanks, Tom

[Rum Runner]

Yes if you can get your RYA PB2 done. With regards to boat choices what is your budget ?.

[MOTORVATOR]

Aquarius is a nice ski boat. Not so good in rough water but depending what you use it for to be recommended. Solidly built by a good builder so apart from looking for obvious stress cracking in the gel you should be fairly safe.

You can tell a lot about the structural condition of a boat just by looking at it on the trailer. Should be nicely supported and straight along the keel with no obvious depressions at supports.

Depending on the age have a good look at inbuilt tanks as they can degrade and cause safety problems. Take care of the steering if it is a large single cable they have a tendency toward just letting go internally with dangerous consequences.

Inspect the electrical connections carefully and check for black wire corrosion. Quite common.

150 2 stroke mercs assuming 85 or newer are the V6 and depending on what year will maybe have nikasil bores. Best bit of knowledge you will gain from inspection will be a compression test. Not too important what they are but they should be even. Odd and it shows a problem with lube or cooling. Have a search on the net for the right method to do this so you don't bugger the stator up. If you've got a boroscope even better. upto 2000 ish with the pre optimax they are a doddle to work with standard gear after that you need to plug into a box to get any useful servicing.

If it's getting on a bit and has oil injection give some thought to doing away with it and premixing as they have a tendency to fail.

Bit more info on age etc and I'll try to help some more.

[Fat Albert]

If it Flies, Floats or F***s, rent it...

[SeeFive]

Just set fire to a big pile of £50 notes, and that way at least you will keep warm

Are you going to use a Bowrider on the sea? I have head that there have been quite a few swampings for some models - probably avoidable by careful use but I am no expert on them.

in fact, a google on "bowrider swamping" brings up quite a few articles - one from here.

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

[LeightonBuzzard]

MOTORVATOR said:

150 2 stroke mercs assuming 85 or newer are the V6 and depending on what year will maybe have nikasil bores. Best bit of knowledge you will gain from inspection will be a compression test. Not too important what they are but they should be even. Odd and it shows a problem with lube or cooling. Have a search on the net for the right method to do this so you don't bugger the stator up. If you've got a boroscope even better. upto 2000 ish with the pre optimax they are a doddle to work with standard gear after that you need to plug into a box to get any useful servicing.

Thanks, I take it having Nikasil bores it has similar problem that the BMW engines had at that time with high sulphur in fuel etc? And yh V6. Not too sure about something I need to be reliable being 2 stroke though! I suppose its not too heavy considering power output; I have also read about Poppet valves on them being crap? Is it refering to the read valves?

The boat I saw which caught my eye was:
http://www.boatsforsaleinuk.co.uk/broom-aquarius-s...

Thanks again, Tom

[MOTORVATOR]

LeightonBuzzard said:

Thanks, I take it having Nikasil bores it has similar problem that the BMW engines had at that time with high sulphur in fuel etc? And yh V6. Not too sure about something I need to be reliable being 2 stroke though! I suppose its not too heavy considering power output; I have also read about Poppet valves on them being crap? Is it refering to the read valves?

The boat I saw which caught my eye was:
http://www.boatsforsaleinuk.co.uk/broom-aquarius-s...

Thanks again, Tom

The nikasils are really good but any damage and you're a bit stuffed. That looks like a late 80s / early 90s black max - 2 litre v6 - steel liner. Pre major electronics which can be a pain.

Actually a good reliable engine and the boating world would still largely be using 2 strokes today of it weren't for emmissions.

The popet valve referred to is on the cooling circuit. No great shakes realy unless you're going racing, which to give you an idea they would run upto 11k rpm whereas this will be doing 6k rpm max.

Get the serial number and you will get an exact model and date off any number of sites. Lots of interchangeable parts with the larger motors and plenty of them about to be able to lay your hands on secondhand parts easily.

The boat from what you can see looks ok and a newish trailer is worth a few bob so I doubt you'd be going far wrong. £600 trailer - £1200 engine so the boaty bit's all but free.

I would just check that the trailer supports the boat all the way to the transom, it looks like it might stop quite a bit short in that photo.

Run it up check the steering, cooling and those compressions and you should be the right side.

[Rum Runner]

Fletcher

[Simpo Two]

'Rum Runner' is a very appropriate name!

Must change mine to 'Revenue Cutter'

[Total loss]

Rum Runner said:

Fletcher

Rum Runner, seeing as you are in the business, do you know any thing about Fletcher built Glastron Carlsons,were they the same or just used the hull (they do look very similar) ? .I would love a '70's Glastron & have found out very little about Fletcher building them in the UK & thought that a Fletcher would be easier to find than Glastron. Arrowbow/ Arrowbolt ?

[Simpo Two]

The BatBoat was a Glastron, according to the little plastic version I had as a child:

[MOTORVATOR]

All Sunseekers are made by Fletcher as well fact.

[Total loss]

Simpo Two said:

The BatBoat was a Glastron, according to the little plastic version I had as a child:

Yes, my ebay search for glastron allways returns 3/4 of the results as them.
So were the "Live & let die" boats, "Billy Bobs is the fastest in the Bayou"

[paintman]

I've got a 135hp Black Max on a 17'dory. (Basically a detuned 150hp - most bits are interchangeable)Electrics are basic as its carbed . Plenty of spares around & often find one being broken on ebay.
Manual gives cast iron bore sleeves on the 135, 150 & early 175, the later 175, 200 & 220 are chrome.
Engine weight given as 172kgs. (For 135 & 150)
Oil injected, with main oil tank separate (linked by feed tubes to reservoir)& reservoir on top of engine. Common to find the oil injection disabled & normal 2-stoke premix used instead.
Easy to work on for servicing and - so far - no issues.
You might want to ask him what the fuel consumption is like.

Edited by paintman on Saturday 29th January 13:26

[LeightonBuzzard]

paintman said:

I've got a 135hp Black Max on a 17'dory. (Basically a detuned 150hp - most bits are interchangeable)Electrics are basic as its carbed. Plenty of spares around & often find one being broken on ebay.
Engine weight given as 172kgs.
Oil injected, with main oil tank separate (linked by feed tubes to reservoir)& reservoir on top of engine. Common to find the oil injection disabled & normal 2-stoke premix used instead.
Easy to work on for servicing and - so far - no issues.
You might want to ask him what the fuel consumption is like.

Thanks for your input, I have no idea what fuel consumption should be like though?

MOTORVATOR said:

All Sunseekers are made by Fletcher as well fact. wink

I went to the London Boat show and had a look around some of them and wow!!!

[paintman]

I've never really kept a record so can't tell you what mpl I'm getting as I mainly use it for coastal fishing out of Coverack around the Manacles & down towards the Lizard & normally use about 1 tank (20 litres) a day.
I suspect skiing & playing would use rather more!

[MOTORVATOR]

LeightonBuzzard said:

paintman said:

I've got a 135hp Black Max on a 17'dory. (Basically a detuned 150hp - most bits are interchangeable)Electrics are basic as its carbed. Plenty of spares around & often find one being broken on ebay.
Engine weight given as 172kgs.
Oil injected, with main oil tank separate (linked by feed tubes to reservoir)& reservoir on top of engine. Common to find the oil injection disabled & normal 2-stoke premix used instead.
Easy to work on for servicing and - so far - no issues.
You might want to ask him what the fuel consumption is like.

Thanks for your input, I have no idea what fuel consumption should be like though?

That's always a hard question to ask of anyone as it depends so much on what you are doing with it. As a guide it should be burning approx 20 gph at wot but at cruise would be down to 10 gph. Skiing if your rider stays up will be about that but constant stopping and acceleration burns it quickly.

LeightonBuzzard said:

MOTORVATOR said:

All Sunseekers are made by Fletcher as well fact. wink

I went to the London Boat show and had a look around some of them and wow!!!

I'm on my second one maybe surprisingly not because of their fitout wow factor but for the hull form designed by Don Shead.

The bit about Sunseekers being being built by Fletcher was tongue in cheek. Internet stories tend to grow right out of proportion to truth. Like the story of the Bond Glastrons being built by Fletcher there is a similar one about them making hundreds of Sunseekers.

Norman Fletcher was a boatbuilder in his own right with his designs progressing from his racing experience but as with all builders they will pick up bits of subcontract work off each other and before you know it they built the whole thing.

[Simpo Two]

MOTORVATOR said:

Norman Fletcher was a boatbuilder in his own right

Middle name Stanley?

[MOTORVATOR]

Simpo Two said:

Middle name Stanley?

Might have been.

Another bit of trivia is that he built the shells for the Ogle SX1000, a kit car built around a mini chassis. Ended up buying the rights and produced his own version called the Fletcher GT.

[Total loss]

MOTORVATOR said:

Might have been.

A bit of a moment there ?
Careful, or somebody might come along & nick the bell off your bike