a boat

Hi, we have used Bakker transport for years and Paul and Vicky do a great job. Can not help you on boat inspection but give Paul or his lovely wife a call on 1800 803 161 and then get bring her back down if you buy it. What sort of boat is it and what are they wanting for it? Cheers, Huey.

Hi, just changing the fuel lines is one thing, you will need to make sure it is not sucking air and the company you mentioned are not BRP dealers and I would guess they do not even understand how the oil system works. If that was my boat, as I said earlier, I would make sure no air is in fuel system, make sure the engine is reaching correct temp and then power tune it-very easy to do and then drain all the old oil (who knows what it is) and then fill with XD-100 replacing the oil tank filter while you are at it. All this that I mentioned is easy to do at home with some minor mechanical skills and then go for a good hard run in the water to blow any cobwebs away and get the good oil going thru the system and I bet you will not see the oil again-going for a "tune up" will not help especially if the person does not know what they are doing. Cheers, Huey.

Hi, your rig would be approx. 800-850Kgs with normal gear. I would think a car like that would have no problem towing it, unless your trailer does not have brakes and then some cars have very low ratings for unbraked trailer. Technically your rig needs brakes because it will be over the 750Kg limit. Cheers, Huey.

Hi, all oil is meant to met a basic level, that being TC-W3. Mercury make fine oil but the min if you want to stick with Quicksilver would be premium PLUS in that V6. XD-100 is the best oil in terms of lubricating qualities, clean burning and more but it will also cost a little more than say that premium oil. That is good RPM for that engine if that was with your normal load. Cheers, Huey.

Hi, your V6 Mercury is designed to run hotter at low RPM and that is the job of the thermos and pressure valve. If the thermos are stuck open or the pressure valve is faulty the engine runs cold at idle and low speeds -that is not good for many reasons. Once working hard the engine produces enough temp for the themro to be permantely open and you will run coller at high RPM. Temp gauges are at best just an indication and since you have just bought this engine it might pay to get a water pump service including servicing the thermos and pressure valve as preventative maitenance. Then you can start your own service routine Very solid engine your 140HP, just not the best on fuel economy being a carby engine and not the best on emissions, but if that was my engine I would make sure the water pump and above has been done, run XD-100 and make sure she is propped right to see around 5500RPM at WOT. Cheers, Huey.

Hi Chris, I choose to stock and sell Evinrude for a reason, I believe they are the best and tick all the boxes for the owner from performance, reliabilty, low running costs, best warranty, lowest ownership costs, SST prop standard and more. Nothing wrong with the Tohatsu, but they are a pretty complicated little engine with compressor, belt, injectors ECU and more. The E-TEC system is the simpliest clean engine with the least moving parts and being an overengineered engine they are designed to last. The 50HP is the V4 basically chopped in half so the piston and conrods are the same as a 130HP, the gearbox is heavy duty and again the 50HP uses the same prop as a 130HP so again overengineered. At the end of the day you would be happy with both, I have used the Tohatsu TLDI and they run OK, but the E50 will outperform it, cost less to own and has the best factory backed warranty in the business. PM me if you are interested in learning more and getting Raider pricing. Cheers, Huey.

Hi, that serial number of 0N046299 does not come up in the Merc listings so is it right and if it was a 2007 model it would say that on the compliance plate as well as thhe serial number. If that number is correct it is an earlier serial number that would be closer to a 2004 model than a 2007 model. Post a picture of the compliance plate but at the end of the day that carby 30HP LW Merc is no where near worth spending $5K to fix andd if it is just a manual tiller engine you can buy brand new outboards for $2,600 or even forward steer electric start brand new 40HP outboards for $3,600. Cheers, Huey.

HI, different brands of outboard rely on either model or serial numebrs so without even knowing what brand of outboard you have hard to say what the year model is. Best to post the serial and model number and let us know what engine got damaged. Cheers, Huey.

Hi, you will want to make sure the fuel system is all secure and the engine can not suck air because if it does there will be a rich fuel/oil mix going to the carbies and then if you are using cheap oil and the engine is running cold that makes the problem even worse. If it was my boat, I would go over the whole fuel system very carefully making sure no chances of sucking air and even better I would replace all that old fuel line with good 3/8 fuel lines and fitting. With todays fuel the internals of the fuel line could be bad. Then I would use XD-100 after giving her a good dose of paower tune and then make sure the thermos are doing their johb at low speed and the engine is reaching the correct operating temp. Of course checking the basics first would be worth doing. Cheers, Huey.

Hi Luke, no problem mate and I hope you had some luck in the Challenge yesterday. It was a ripper of a day to be on the water. Cheers, Huey.

Hi Nathan, the Savage 645C is not the most serious fishing orientated 6.5M boat on the market but with the few adds on you wanted like the LBT/cutting board combo, SST rod rack and seat boxes you can turn her into a great offshore fishing weapon that also can give the family many hours of enjoyment on the water. All this plus alot of cockpit room for the money and a good riding hull. If money was not an option there are better boats like a HH or CC but at $30-$40K more for a similar boat and extras it is hard to beat the Savage. If the better half allows you to spend a bit more then the one ony stock HH 585R at $70K driveaway with plumbed LBT, deluxe cutting board, deck wash, SST rod rack, outriggers, bimini, clears, HDS-10 GHen 2 with 1Kw tranny and more is unbeatable value. All with good clean tech power and sitting on a top of the line Tinka Classic trailer. Cheers, Huey.

Hi Leo, suspension pedestals work great and some brand are better than other. I have a new set of ESM ones that are heavir duty and come with sliding seats mounts as well. They are left over froma new boat and will save you alot compared to order in ones with pedestals and seat sliders. Cheers, Huey.

HI, if they are the same boat the DI will use about half the fuel at the end of a normal days boating. At different RPMs the difference can be more or less but considering the average user spends time at different RPMs a safe rule of thumb is about 50% less fuel with a clean tech engine vs an old tech engine. Now if the boats are different that can greatly affect fuel economy because some hulls are more efficient than other hulls and the difference can be alot. What boats are they? Cheers, Huey.

Hi Guys, I have just finished moving back all the boats from Rosehill and yes sorry to Geoff and any others it was a very busy two days for me talking to fellow boaters, or perhaps boaters to be. The industry did put on a good show from my quick walking around before it started each day and lets hope some sales were made by everyone becuase it is tough at the moment economically. Yes the ARK spare wheel complete system is a good design a nd we have fitted a few to trailers. Cheers, Huey.

Hi pappy, yes the 75HP Merc were and still are very fine engines and pretty built proof. Being a carby engine not much to go wrong and you just need the basic knowledge to repair them unlike some clean engines. As with any outboard the basics want to be confirmed like compression test or better yet leak down test, 3 good strong spark and good fuel system. Check the condition of the gearlube and factor in a water pump service if it has not been done in a while-csots about $600 and most important go for a run in the water and make sure she is seeing around 5400RPM at WOT. They are stron engines being the de-tuned 90HP and in its class and technolgy the pick of the crop if she is a good one. Cheers, Huey.

Hi, I would save the $5K and buy the Savage if it passes workshop checks and looks good with no major battle scars. Cheers, Huey.

Hi pappy,the Savage is a better built boat and it will perform better with that engine on the transom although the Stessco, with its engine ,will be better on fuel. As mentioned they are two pretty different boats but the Savage Rangers were and still are very good boats. I am guessing they are both second hand and if they are the same sort of money that should answer which is a bettter boat but the Stessco being less than 12 months old would be under warranty if the boat or outboard has a problem whereas the Savage you would be own your own. Are they the same sort of money? I would stock and sell Savage long before Stessco-like comparing a Mercedes to a Kia. Cheers, Huey.

Hi, if I was you I would just service those carbies with new gasket kits and needle/seats. Check and clean all passages and make sure the float height is right. Also service the fuel pump and make sure the boats fuel system is good. Of course as I mentioned earlier first make sure compression is even and you have four good sparks. You mentioned earlier about having some problems with saprk, do you have four good sparks and correct plugs in it. We would be able to supply all the parts and at a guess aboutless than $200 would be what the carby kits, fuel pump kit and plugs would cost. Cheers, Huey.

Hi, what is the ponit of bolting on a trandsucer bracket to then bolt the transducer onto this bracket. If you do not weld these brackets on, which is the best way, then just bolt the transducer directly to the bolt, either way you need to drill holes in the boat and then use Sikaflex to seal-it will eithr be the bracket or just the transducer. Cheers, Huey.

Hi, a bit hard to answer without knowing if it is a 60 degree or 90 degree V4, but make sure the basics are there first like good even compression, good fresh fuel and 4 strong spark with correct spark plugs. Once all this is confirmed DO NOT raise the cold start lever until the engine is running, if at all. If you press and hold the key in to choke it, which I am guessing is working, that introduces more fuel to a cold engine but if raise the cold start lever at the same time, therefore introducing more air, you have just cancelled the choke. 9 times out of 10 it is operator error and once you know how to start an outboard it is easy. Some engines have a certain way of cold starting. Cheers, Huey.

Hi, on the Merc side they have Premuim, Premuim Plus and DFI oil and either of the first two is what you want to be using with the Premium Plus being the better oil. I would not use the DFI oil in that carby engine if that is what you mean by "mercury injection syntheyic" oil. If you mean it leaks when tilted up then as I mentioned the needle and seats want to be looked at inclding correct float height. Cheers, Huey.

Hi, I know the Basin well and with the outboard trimmed up you will be fine but make sure she is secured becasue there is alot of wind up here at the moment and keep an eye on the internal water level if you do not have an auto bilge pump because as I mentioned in another post when we get alot of rain boats sink pretty quickly. You would have the Basin to yourself today I imagine with this weather. Cheers, Huey.

Hi, Tournament make good honest boats, they are certainly not the best but they are not the worst either. I have used many and they do a good job for what they are intended to do. Which model are you looking at? Cheers, Huey.

Hi, I agree with Leo, this topic has got way of base and if anyone would like to learn or discuss more feel free to call me. I am guilty of this thread wander and I hope Dave has learnt a bit and can make an educated decesion if he decides to import an outboard, either new or old. Cheers, Huey.

Hi, I have seen it on earlier model and latter model outboards because the basis of how they get the fuel into the combustion chamber has not really changed from when Ralph developed it back in the day. Yes with recalls, service bulletins etc, the good companies put these out to dealers becasue they are always looking to improve their product (as they should)and trust me they ALL learn from what happens in the real world especially in extreme environments like we have here. Do not get me wrong, a 2013 model(even though they have not had model years for a while) OPTI is a superior engine to a 1998 model just like a 2013 model E-TEC and a 2013 model 4-Stroke is a better outboard than a ten year old one . This is why I say all new outboards today are good and they have come a very long way in a very short space of time due to our friends at the EPA. Cheers, Huey.