GrantS

Thanks for the link martin. I will just see what else pops up on here, but will also pass the link on to him.

Hi, Don't know if anybody can help me with this, but i have a friend who has just bought a 2002 50hp Mariner 4 stroke engine. Can anyone tell me what the cubic capacity is on these engines. Also, are these carb or EFi ? He is telling me that it has 4 cylinders and that it has a cc of 2.0l. I told him, that if its a 50hp, its going to have a cc of around 800, not 2000. Unfortunatly, i am not able to see the engine, as it is located too far away and he hasn't sent any pics with the cowling off yet. If anybody knows of a link to a service manual, handbook, or can just fill me in with some specs, that would be great. Thanks.

Hi, Regarding the paint question, There is a tint spray on the market. Normally used for tinting rear light clusters on cars to make them look black. However, i wouldnt recomend it. Firstly, You would need to remove the glass / plastic window and then even if you did manage to get a good finish with it, it will scratch off too easily. Which means that you could never clean it without the risk of damaging it. There is also a glass paint on the market as well. I know they make red, green & blue which wouldnt look too great really. As for a dark tint, this will be just a matter of applying several coats. (but not with the red, green or blue) I have used this paint on bulbs before to change the colour and found them to work quite well. A window, im not so sure.

Now that's what i call quick.......... Mind you, with that sort of boat with a 300 Merc on the back im not surprised. Looking at the spray coming from the o/b, it looked like they had the engine sitting high, which is want you want for speed. Some boats like this have a hydraulic transom jack, so they can raise and lower the o/b height.

Hi Neil,

I was wondering how accurate the Hire Boat Speeds are anyway, as i understood that they just used their rev counters. So it would depend on what they were calibrated to in the first place. I Was also wondering why the speed topic always seems to pop up from time to time ? Not being funny, but it appears to be really bad thing if you are one or two miles an hour over the limit. with the measurement being radar checked, (over land speed) as already mentioned, a tidal river is going to have a big influence on your speed and also the amount of wash that you make. The wash is also a variable here, as this will depend on what type of boat / length you have and what chop is already on the river. Regarding creating a big wash when passing moored boats, thats a no brainer really and its just courteous to slow down for a bit or just make sure that you are not going to chuck their boat about when you are passing. I don't mind a bit of wash when i,m moored up, because i'm on a boat which is on water and i expect movement. However, i wouldn't want my boat to be violently chucked about to the point where things fall over and risk damaging my boat against the mooring. Unfortunately, not everyone does this and some will really rock you about, which we experience from time to time, but theres always the good old hand gesture to let them know you weren't happy about it. Lol. At the end of the day, rules are rules (as they are on the highway) but why do we have this obsession with speed on here, where its almost a dark sin if you accidently cross the line.

Check out the link......

I didn't know that you had your windows replaced. I did mine over the winter as well. Although, i didn't remove the whole lot to replace the sides on mine. I removed the top section that runs all the way around, then unscrewed the sides near the radar arch, then the sides just slid upwards. I had to make wooden supports for the front windows, mainly whilst the top part was off, as they rely on the that plus the sides to keep them up. Once the top part was back in, the supports wouldn't really be needed at the front until the sides went back in, although, i left them there anyway. But one each side was needed near the middle of where each side window was for supporting the top part. This was to support the canopy and frame weight that was on it, otherwise it would have bent slightly. I have fitted a slightly darker tint than what was originally there. Made a massive difference to the look of the boat. The old ones were scratched and had uv damage. (which was the same with the foredeck hatch as well, as i replaced that also) Did you change to clear, or did you stick with a tinted one. Not that we are in competition here, Lol, but i think we should really meet up and compare boats.

Hi Jim, On the Laptop now....... couldn't write much with the Desk Top PC. I think i need to format & start again with it. I know exactly what you mean regarding the dirty channel under the windows. To be honest, i haven't touched that area since ive owned our boat. However, the thought of cleaning it had crossed my mind, as we bought a really long pipe cleaning type brush to do the job a while back, its about 2 & half foot long and has stiff bristles, but just haven't used it yet. The other method that i was going to try, was to mask the area off with clear platic sheet & then make a curtain across the window section with the same stuff. Then, blast it with the pressure washer. I reckon that would shift most of it. The area could even be compounded & waxed afterwoods if you wanted, by attaching a pad to the end of a a long piece of wood & then changing it over for each application. Maybe i will get around to doing mine at some point. You never know...............

Hi Jim, been trying to post a reply, but the PC keeps crashing and then recovering and then i lose everthing i have typed. Will try on the laptop at some point.

I was flicking through some boat vids on you tube (as you do) and came across this. I don't think i have ever seen a boat launched on a road trailer in this way before. It doesn't look like a very safe way of doing it and i would be blowed if i would let somebody lower my boat into the water in this way. Epecially being inside it at the time. They're flippin mad. I bet there's a few H&S comments on this one. LOL

I think i'm starting to go off the idea already, especially seeing as mark has already tried this stuff and found it it be patchy with the colouration. That was something i was also afraid of myself, because if the cleaning process that is recommended before applying this stuff doesn't remove any previous waterproofing application fully, then it may not soak in properly. This could give you patchy results.... and once you have started it, its too late to stop. I have read some reveiws from people on the net (2 of then were on Amazon) and they highly rated the product. However, its better when you get a reveiw of a product from somebody you know has treid it. Mark, thanks for showing me around your new boat on saturday and it was great to see you. It was also nice to catch up with the gang again. Thanks Guys

Okay, thanks Alan. If go ahead with this stuff, i will let you know. One of the main problems will be the weather, as i have read that you can't get it wet until it has dried and that you shouldn't do it when its sunny , as it will dry too quickly. This bit concerns me, as it doesn't leave a lot to get the perfect day to do it.

Hi All, Once i have sorted my hot water out, i shall be giving the canopy a clean and then using the old Fabsil on it again to waterproof it. (I'm pretty sure mine is an Acrylic Canvas type.) Similar to Sunbrella ?? One of the things that i also would like to do this year, is to make the colour of the canopy a slightly darker blue than it is now. I think the sun, over the years has made it a lighter blue than it originally was. I have found this product on the net, but not sure if its suitable or not, as it just mentions Canvas. http://www.boatsheen.com/restore-boat-covers.html Has anybody used this or anything else to restore or change their canopy colour. Also, if you have, what were the results from doing it. Thanks

Not trying to be funny here Ian, but i assume you are referring to cleaning the Gel Coat. Yet the product is called Fibreglass Restorer (which is underneath)

That looks like a nice camera from the photo shown, Amazing detail / colours and very sharp. Talking of sharp, I noticed that you had some cable ties on the antenna / mast. Some have rotated and are not doing the job that i assume you intended them for. Mind you, if they had, i guess you wouldn't have the shot of the pigeon. A few more of them cut at an angle closer together pointing upwards should do it............

Just had a look at one of my photo's that i took of the engine bay 2 years ago. On the starboard side of the boat is a really long glassed in wooden shelf that supports the Calorifier & the Aux battery. (This looks original) On the Port side, is a glassed in wooden shelf that looks like it may have been added at some point that supports the holding tank and between the holding tank and the engine is another shelf which supports the Start battery. The main domestic water tank is located midships (under the rear berth) We certainely don't have any listing problems, even when the holding tank is empty and the calorifier is full. So, i am quite happy with the layout of it. I have ordered the pump / kit today, so should turn up in a few days. I am hoping this will work for us, as it would be quite novel to have some hot water on tap. Lol. Also, we might be heading up your way in August Jim, I will let you know if and when it happens. All the Best

Hi Jim, Mine is located just in front of the Aux battery on the Port side. Holding tank & Engine start battery is on the Starboard side.

Oh yes, when it's not your own and almost new, then yes the sweating part is totally understandable. Lol By the way, I rang the company that is selling this particular pump that i was looking at and they informed me that it was actually made by Bosch. They also have it in stock for immeadiate dispatch should i choose to order one. Check out the spec - Motor 12-volt brushless Operating Voltage 9 - 15 volts dc Maximum Current 1.3 amps Pump Design Recirculating Centrifugal Drive Magnetic - no seals Operating Temperature -40 to +120 deg C Burst Pressure 36 psi Flow Rate 15 litres/minute @ 1.4 psi Weight 245 grammes

I'm glad that it worked out in the end after you had to drill & tap yours David. Jim, it would be interesting to know how yours performs when the engine is heating your domestic water, instead of 240vac. I will post the answer to the result that i get once it is completed. Initially, i will just connect a pump via a switch & a relay to test the performance of it. Once this is successful, i will look into controlling the pump automatically with a thermostat & relay. Thanks for your replies Guys, nice to chat with you again.

Hi all, Back in July 2011, I posted a question regarding connecting the Calorifier to my Cumminns Mercruiser Diesel Engine (Isuzu 1.7 TD) which was originally connected to the 4.3L petrol lump that used to be in there. Antares suggested, that it may need a ciculation pump inline with it. Well, i have recently done this, but due to the way this has to be connected, the Calorifier connection is in parallel with the heat exchanger and therfore does not have a direct flow from the circulation pump that is fitted to the engine. So, it looks like it will need a pump. (Antares, well spotted) There are quite a few to choose from and all have various flow rates and vary from around £26 for a cheap chinese import to well over £100 for a very good quality one. I have been doing some digging on the net and have found something that might do the job very well. Although i shall be speaking to the company, to see what they have to say about using it for this type of installation. From what i have read on the net, this type of pump is a copy of the pump that is used in the higher performance versions of the Lotus elises and exiges as a coolant re circulation pump. Lotus apparently used a Bosch PAA EWP pump, but the Davies Craig EBP pump operates at the same spec, apart from the fact that the Bosch is 20 L/pm & the Davies Craig is 13 L/pm. At the end of the day, i only want to circulate the water / antifreeze mix through the coil in the tank and don't want to be doing this too quickly, so this may do the trick. The could also be fitted on the return line, as the water temperature will lower there. (Although the spec says up to 120 deg C) There is also a plus side to having a circulation pump in line, in that i could thermostatically control the pump, so that it doesn't circulate the water through the Calorifier until the engine has reached its normal working temperature, thus preventing a slow warm up of the engine from cold. Just out of interest, has anybody else had to fit a pump configuration like this, as i have seen installations on the net that have to different marinised diesel engines and wondered what results people have had and what problems they have encountered. Many thanks

Hi John, Would be great to catch up with everyone again. Could you put us down please. Grant, Heidi & Luke (Destiny) Side on with leccy for Saturday please. Thanks

Beats making the traditional snowman.............

Here's a short video that ive just uploaded to You Tube. Hopefully it will put a smile on your face.........

We saw that Yesterday floating upside down, legs in the air laying next to the reeds in the Haddiscoe Cut. Pretty sure it was a Sheep.