1992 Gulfstream * 232 G Gulf Stream *

[4/0]

Hi all,

I am the new guy here. I'm looking for some info and help, looking at a 1992 G-W Gulfstream with a brackett. The boat has two 150's on it now which if I buy it I would repower with two 150's, thinking about yamaha 150 4 strokes but I am not sure about the weight.
I would be buying the boat as project boat that would be done over this winter.

** I have been doing some research here on the faq section and the boat is a 232 G gulfstream **

The boat would be trailered a little be not on a regular basis. If it is 23' is the beam 9'3" ? That seems to be very wide for a 23' boat?

I am pretty sure the gas tanks would need to be replaced and from what I have found G-W 's have aluminum gas tanks and have around a 20 lifespan so of course the hoses and vents lines would be replaced too with the ethanol we have to deal with now. What about access to the tanks?

Then being at this age all of the pumps and hoses would replaced with thru hulls needing to be resealed. Are all of the exsiting thru-hulls bronze?

The boat has a hardtop with a pulpit and I would also be installing a windlass and think it would be better to have the batteries? (two)installed towards the bow so there is not 30' of wire to have that draw through. Is there any place to use for battery room in the bow area? Of course then there would have to be some charging wires run there from the stern.I am sure that could be a challenge.

What about the holding tanks, is that something that would need to replaced also. I am sure that the all of the hoses on the boat would need to replaced. Is there access to these tanks with out having to cut the boat up?

Also we would be fishing out of it. Any info on the baitwells / fishboxes ? How do they keep bait, are they insulated?

To warn you if I do buy this boat I am just getting started asking questions here.

Thanks in Advance for any information,

Butch

 

[no problem]

Wow! you have thought this out. Most of your questions are talked about extensively in the archives. If your patient you should be able to access everything on a 92. All original thru hulls were plastic and need replaced. The decks are removable to access the tanks. Those removable panels will need to be re-cored. The bulkhead behind the helm is usually rotten on the bottom. This is assuming the previous owner never did any of these upgrades. Your battery idea sounds a little overkill to me but it's your boat, have at it . Good luck and keep us posted!

 

[4/0]

no problem,

Thanks for the reply. I am pretty sure that the owner has not done anything with the bulkhead. The boat has been sitting on a trailer for awhile. He did take it out recently but that is another story to tell.

The bulkhead sounds tough to do ?

I feel good about the transom. I was able to get in there and look and I like the idea of the brackett.
I am concerned about the additional weight of four strokes. Right now it has 150 oceanrunners on it and I have found out that they weigh around 363 each. The yamaha's are 466 each, difference of 103 lbs. x 2 = 206 lbs. more. But there would not be the oil in the tanks for the two strokes eithier.

The access to the gas tanks is very good, not many boat builders can boast about that. What about the holding tanks would they need to be replaced also? I do not what kind of lifespan to expect from them or what material they are made out of.

I have researched the livewell / fishboxes here and found that info. Yes you are right there is a lot of information here on this boat. The thru-hulls are good to know about too.

Thanks,
Butch

 

[4/0]

The bulkhead sounds tough to do ?

I feel good about the transom. I was able to get in there and look and I like the idea of the brackett.
I am concerned about the additional weight of four strokes. Right now it has 150 oceanrunners on it and I have found out that they weigh around 363 each. The yamaha's are 466 each, difference of 103 lbs. x 2 = 206 lbs. more. But there would not be the oil in the tanks for the two strokes eithier.



Thanks,
Butch

I found this thread about the bulkheads viewtopic.php?f=3&t=10829 .
Not nearly what I was thinking. Bulkheads had me going down to the stringers and having to cut and reglass.

Does anyone have any thoughts on the added weight of the four strokes ? I am thinking with the bracket that the extra weight would be more pronounced.

If I can figure this out I might be getting closer to having a surveyor look at the boat.

Thanks,
Butch

 

[BobP]

4/0 - go to the GradyWhite Website and find the catalog and owners manual for your year gulfstream.

i believe the HP rating is higher than 150 x 2, if 200 x 2, then the original 2 stroker V6s of any brand were the same weight now as current 4cyl 4stroke 150s.

200 V6s had a larger block than 150 and 175s V6s.

 

[4/0]

4/0 - go to the GradyWhite Website and find the catalog and owners manual for your year gulfstream.

i believe the HP rating is higher than 150 x 2, if 200 x 2, then the original 2 stroker V6s of any brand were the same weight now as current 4cyl 4stroke 150s.

200 V6s had a larger block than 150 and 175s V6s.

BobP,

Thanks for the reply. I found the catalog and owners manual and downloaded both of them. The boat is max. horsepower at 350 so that would make two 175's.
So I am thinking these four strokes would be close to the max. weight wise if not over. I am hoping someone here might have already done this.
The more I research this boat here the more I am surprised with all of the information here.

Thanks again,
Butch

 

[JeffN]

I would call Grady White custoer serviceand ask the about the engine four strokw eight issue. I would think they get that question a lot.

 

[BobP]

We have at least one member on this site who installed F150s on the Gulf, I recalled he was selling boat.

For the 232g as in Gradydrive, i expected the catalog to show what twins max are recommeded, considering the boat was sold also with motors on transom as I recall, as well as single bracket motor not only twins.

 

[yankeecause]

Your boat is rated for 350 hp. I would look into a pair of 175hp E-Tecs. As 4 strokes are too heavy. If I repower, thats the way I would go. Joe.

 

[4/0]

I am going to call G-W and ask. First I am having the hull numbers e-mailed up here to me so I have those in hand when I call so I prepared the best that I can be.

The E-Tecs could be a way to go. I have not been around any myself. My CC now has a 150 Johnson on it and I am tired of the noise.
I have a daughter in college and my son is 15 so we will be fishing out of it but with a head my wife will come along more and in a couple
years it will just be us using it since he will be off to school too. (trying to plan ahead here and she does not like the cc)

I would like to be able to cruise and troll in peace and quiet so that is my Yamaha reasoning. I have been around those and they are very quiet.

I am going to go ahead and look for a surveyor. I have never used one before ( bought my last CC new). Any of you have any advice or thoughts on what I need to look for in the surveyor and also in regard to anything special about a Grady-White to look for?

The boat is located in Wilmington NC.

Thanks to all of you, I appreciate your help and advice,

Butch

 

[4/0]

Hi All,

I would like to say thanks for those of you helping out. I recieved a reply from Grady-White today. I had to wait a couple days to get the hull id numbers sent up here to me before I sent to GW. The reply is pasted below:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Thanks for writing, Butch

I'm sending you the brochure spec sheet for your 1992 232 Gulfstream and
a scanned copy of the owners manual. These items should help with
options and specs on your boat.

As for the twin 150 Yamaha 4-stroke engines they should not be a problem
its rated for 350 hp. We do suggest putting the boat in the water with
the old engines and simulate the extra weight by standing (192 lbs) on
the engine bracket to check and make sure the aft scupper drains aren't
sitting below the waterline with the additional weight. I would do this
before installing the 4-stroke engines. You might even have the transom
checked to verify it is structurally sound. If you have any additional
questions, please don't hesitate to contact us.

Best regards,

Carolyn Ray
Customer Relations
Grady White Boats
252-830-8600

Very fast reply and I thought it was very nice to include down loads of the owners manual and the brochure spec. sheet with out my asking, class act. and of course even better for me because I do want to go with the four strokes instead of e-tecs.

I am having zero luck finding a surveyor. I do want to check around the Grady Drive and also the transom. Do any of you have any advice on how I can check out the transom myself besides maybe trying to shake the drive up and down? If I can get this figured out I think I am going to buy the boat.

Thanks again,
Butch

 

[GWL139]

My experience with testing transoms (without drilling and so forth) is to tap the entire area with a rubber mallet. The sound should be a solid "thud" across the entire span. Having a Grady Drive (bracket) will be the safest gamble if you are unsure of the transom issue. Conventional notched transoms, especially on older hulls, were prone to water permeation due to the splashwell and exposed upper edge, which were often only sealed with an aluminum strip and some caulk. Be extremely cautious when repowering with the 4-strokes, because the weight is a serious issue. Besides the boat squatting in the stern at rest, the added weight on the back will also change the planing characteristics and ride of the hull. I don't know if adding any sort of floatation material inside the bracket cavity will help or just cause more problems. I'm repowering my '94 228G Seafarer (full bracket) with a 225 Optimax 2-stroke. It's still about 100lbs heavier than the carb 200 it's replacing, but my hull is rated to 270hp, and it will float just fine. Good luck with your shopping. Spending the money on a quality hull will allow you to repower without hesitation, because they will last with proper care and maintenance. Replacing wear components such as thru-hulls and hoses is a minor expense and chore versus cracking the nut for a brand new rig.

 

[4/0]

My experience with testing transoms (without drilling and so forth) is to tap the entire area with a rubber mallet. The sound should be a solid "thud" across the entire span. Having a Grady Drive (bracket) will be the safest gamble if you are unsure of the transom issue. Conventional notched transoms, especially on older hulls, were prone to water permeation due to the splashwell and exposed upper edge, which were often only sealed with an aluminum strip and some caulk. Be extremely cautious when repowering with the 4-strokes, because the weight is a serious issue. Besides the boat squatting in the stern at rest, the added weight on the back will also change the planing characteristics and ride of the hull. I don't know if adding any sort of floatation material inside the bracket cavity will help or just cause more problems. I'm repowering my '94 228G Seafarer (full bracket) with a 225 Optimax 2-stroke. It's still about 100lbs heavier than the carb 200 it's replacing, but my hull is rated to 270hp, and it will float just fine. Good luck with your shopping. Spending the money on a quality hull will allow you to repower without hesitation, because they will last with proper care and maintenance. Replacing wear components such as thru-hulls and hoses is a minor expense and chore versus cracking the nut for a brand new rig.

GWL139,

Thanks for the transom advice, I will do that. This boat is rated for 350 horsepower and I e-mailed Grady to get their advice and they said it would be ok. The extra weight is 196 lbs. for both motors. So I have been pricing twin 150's to make sure my numbers/budget are good. The good news there is that my numbers will work. I have also budgeted for gas tank replacement and thru hulls with all hoses.

I need to get back down and look at the boat one more time but I can't do it this weekend so that means it will be over the Labor day weekend. I normally stay home on those type weekends because of all the dummy's that come out but I want to keep this moving.

Butch

 

[4/0]

Well it has been awhile but, I was going to add a picture but I can't get down past 388 kb so..
But the good news is I sold my cc and we (my son 15 and I) bought this Grady.
If I can figure out how to get the size down more I will post a picture of it.

Thanks,
Butch