In the great north we have a relatively short boating season, I want to provide a quick recap of how our experience went, lessons learned and what the future plans are.
Background: I have two young children and wanted to introduce them to boating; I needed something versatile, comfortable, trailer-able and economical. We happened to find a 1977 Grady White 204C walk around. The boat had sat for 8 years, been in freshwater all of it's 640 hours of life. There aren't many options in this part of the country and I really wanted a cuddy cabin to get the kids out of the weather.
Inspection: Due to our location a survey wasn't possible. The initial cost of the boat was under $2500, I was comfortable with looking over the boat myself.
1) The fuel tank hatch needed to be re-cored, fairly common problem.
2) The transom is very solid, I was impressed. No stress cracks, no flexing. I tapped it out and there is some rot about 2 inches down, tones change after that, probe revealed hard, dry wood.
3) The GW is powered by a 1979 Merc 200hp, she has also sat for 8 years. Owner said it ran, condition unknown.
4) Comes with tandem axle bunk trailer, will need tires in the future and a paint job. PO replaced all bearings when I bought the boat.
5) Electrical - very basic but will need a rework of the fuse panel.
I was comfortable with the short comings of the boat, the initial financial cost, and the unknown. Not the best picture but what she looked like when I brought it home. Let the work being:
Repair
The first issue was fixing the hatch. After reading on here and a few youtube videos, I managed quite well IMO:
I also had to fix the instrument console, I couldn't look at it any longer. From this:
To this:
At the same time I replaced the fuse panel, replaced all corroded wiring and ends with new wiring, tinned, and shrink wrapped connectors.
After that I replaced the water pump, thermostats, all fuel lines and got the engine running on muffs. It sounded fine and was time for a trial.
All went well on our trial, except the motor had a funny rattle type sound that would go away when giving it throttle. More on that later...
After a few outings, I wanted to be proud of how the boat looked, it probably hadn't been buffed or waxed in years. Again, after reading I tried using the Buff Magic product with my polisher, what a difference:
Just finished the starboard side of the floor:
(Even used it on some headlights
From this -
To this -
At this point I was really happy with how everything turned out, we even had her out in 4' Lake Superior swells and impressed with how the boat handled.
This is why we do it:
A happy ending?
On my last fishing trip, my uncle and I were trying to figure out just what was the rattle noise. It would go away with throttle and the GW would top out around 45mph so I didn't think it was too serious.
What would cause engine noise at idle but then smooth out under load...
...
piston slap would get louder....
timing? Hmmm, timing could cause a rough idle. Maybe it's just the flywheel cover, it could be loose. If it was installed. Flywheel...flywheel. uh oh.
We got the boat back on the trailer and took it home to see if we were right...
The good news is that we had no engine failure when on our trips. The bad news is the flywheel has play in it, the crank bearings are shot.
The good news is that I have (2) 1990 OMC 200hp outboards waiting for a home. I hope to get one mounted this weekend and order new controls and cables.
I'm still happy with the purchase and appreciate all of the insight this board has provided. Stay safe, be courteous to each other. I'll post an update when I get the new engine mounted..
Background: I have two young children and wanted to introduce them to boating; I needed something versatile, comfortable, trailer-able and economical. We happened to find a 1977 Grady White 204C walk around. The boat had sat for 8 years, been in freshwater all of it's 640 hours of life. There aren't many options in this part of the country and I really wanted a cuddy cabin to get the kids out of the weather.
Inspection: Due to our location a survey wasn't possible. The initial cost of the boat was under $2500, I was comfortable with looking over the boat myself.
1) The fuel tank hatch needed to be re-cored, fairly common problem.
2) The transom is very solid, I was impressed. No stress cracks, no flexing. I tapped it out and there is some rot about 2 inches down, tones change after that, probe revealed hard, dry wood.
3) The GW is powered by a 1979 Merc 200hp, she has also sat for 8 years. Owner said it ran, condition unknown.
4) Comes with tandem axle bunk trailer, will need tires in the future and a paint job. PO replaced all bearings when I bought the boat.
5) Electrical - very basic but will need a rework of the fuse panel.
I was comfortable with the short comings of the boat, the initial financial cost, and the unknown. Not the best picture but what she looked like when I brought it home. Let the work being:
Repair
The first issue was fixing the hatch. After reading on here and a few youtube videos, I managed quite well IMO:
I also had to fix the instrument console, I couldn't look at it any longer. From this:
To this:
At the same time I replaced the fuse panel, replaced all corroded wiring and ends with new wiring, tinned, and shrink wrapped connectors.
After that I replaced the water pump, thermostats, all fuel lines and got the engine running on muffs. It sounded fine and was time for a trial.
All went well on our trial, except the motor had a funny rattle type sound that would go away when giving it throttle. More on that later...
After a few outings, I wanted to be proud of how the boat looked, it probably hadn't been buffed or waxed in years. Again, after reading I tried using the Buff Magic product with my polisher, what a difference:
Just finished the starboard side of the floor:
(Even used it on some headlights
From this -
To this -
At this point I was really happy with how everything turned out, we even had her out in 4' Lake Superior swells and impressed with how the boat handled.
This is why we do it:
A happy ending?
On my last fishing trip, my uncle and I were trying to figure out just what was the rattle noise. It would go away with throttle and the GW would top out around 45mph so I didn't think it was too serious.
What would cause engine noise at idle but then smooth out under load...
...
piston slap would get louder....
timing? Hmmm, timing could cause a rough idle. Maybe it's just the flywheel cover, it could be loose. If it was installed. Flywheel...flywheel. uh oh.
We got the boat back on the trailer and took it home to see if we were right...
The good news is that we had no engine failure when on our trips. The bad news is the flywheel has play in it, the crank bearings are shot.
The good news is that I have (2) 1990 OMC 200hp outboards waiting for a home. I hope to get one mounted this weekend and order new controls and cables.
I'm still happy with the purchase and appreciate all of the insight this board has provided. Stay safe, be courteous to each other. I'll post an update when I get the new engine mounted..
