Used Marlin Sea Trial handling & Fisher Panda Generator

[Aquanut2]

I am looking at a used 04 Marlin with fairly low hour 300 Yamis on it and was surprised by the way it swayed on plane especially when crossing wakes and waves parallel to the beam. Is this normal for the Marlin? Also the steering was fairly stiff and the wheel squeaked when turned. (no power assist but did have a recent auto pilot upgrade) so maybe that needs to be lubed. Boat does not have a 2nd station or cobia tower that would raise the CG.
Also I've done a lot of maintenance/service on my previous boats but never had a generator or A/C on board. It was winterized but will dig into that with a surveyor any idea why the hours would not show on the breaker panel?

My previous experience is running both a 90's Gulfstream with a single 250 and a 257 TrophyPro with twins understood these boats wander at slow speed because of hull design but they didn't rock as much with random waves

Thanks,
Mike

 

[ElyseM]

can't speak to the genset, but i haven't been on ANY boat that didn't have a significant reaction to a broadside wave. i almost tossed my father when i was a young teenager.

i don't know what "stiff" means to you. hydraulic should be smooth, but you are still turning the engines. if trim tabs are not set probably, you may be fighting torques. possibly needs a service on the steering.

good luck, ron

 

[Meanwhile]

My squeaky wheel turned out to be trouble with the tilt mechanism. A stainless screw had backed out and was causing a squeak. It is possible for those stainless bolts to back out enough to lock up the wheel, although the hydraulic will be fine. On its replacement I used some lock tight.

It is fairly straightforward to remove the wheel and inspect the tilt mechanism.

 

[ric]

on my 7th boat now and crossing wakes at low speed is an issue with most of them, definitely the higher the cog the worse the problem, worst was my 305 robalo with an extremely heavy t top and support structures

 

[Fishtales]

I am looking at a used 04 Marlin with fairly low hour 300 Yamis on it and was surprised by the way it swayed on plane especially when crossing wakes and waves parallel to the beam. Is this normal for the Marlin? Also the steering was fairly stiff and the wheel squeaked when turned. (no power assist but did have a recent auto pilot upgrade) so maybe that needs to be lubed. Boat does not have a 2nd station or cobia tower that would raise the CG.
Also I've done a lot of maintenance/service on my previous boats but never had a generator or A/C on board. It was winterized but will dig into that with a surveyor any idea why the hours would not show on the breaker panel?

My previous experience is running both a 90's Gulfstream with a single 250 and a 257 TrophyPro with twins understood these boats wander at slow speed because of hull design but they didn't rock as much with random waves

Thanks,
Mike

Sway: It can happen with the right period of waves but to be honest nothing that I really noticed fromother boats.
Steering: Surprised no power assist. With it, you can turn with one fingr.
Gen: Hours should show on the panel with powered. If you hit the ON button the panel comes alive and the hours are shown. If winterized, just don't hit start.

 

[Aquanut2]

Sway: It can happen with the right period of waves but to be honest nothing that I really noticed fromother boats.
Steering: Surprised no power assist. With it, you can turn with one fingr.
Gen: Hours should show on the panel with powered. If you hit the ON button the panel comes alive and the hours are shown. If winterized, just don't hit start.

Thanks Fishtales will be on the boat tomorrow and will check that out

 

[Aquanut2]

My squeaky wheel turned out to be trouble with the tilt mechanism. A stainless screw had backed out and was causing a squeak. It is possible for those stainless bolts to back out enough to lock up the wheel, although the hydraulic will be fine. On its replacement I used some lock tight.

It is fairly straightforward to remove the wheel and inspect the tilt mechanism.

Thanks No Bail that makes perfect sense when I tilted the wheel up it got even stiffer and squeaked more. I'll be back on the boat tomorrow and will report back here.

 

[georgemjr]

if the wheel wobbles, then the bushing is getting worn I replaced my tilt mechanism (front half of the unit). Made a big difference, common problem. If it is difficult to steer it could be tight engines (you disconnect the steerring and move motors by hand to check) It can also be in the hydraulic mechanism which is the back half. Its about 700 for the whole thing, half that for just the front half. If it is just squeeky, a shot of lube will help that.

 

[Harpoon]

Steering on my Marlin is indeed a little stiff. Whatever you get used to feels right after a while. The Steering knob is helpful.

 

[Dhirsh]

Sway:
So I just got into a 336 Grady and Yes I have more side to side sway or steering instability on my Grady than I did on my 25 SeaCraft when crossing wakes. The SeaCraft was very precise because the deeper V runs from front to back of the boat. I’m assuming that the sway or instability crossing boat wakes ( Especially from behind when overtaking a boat) has a lot to do with the Grady hull shape at the stern ( its basically round with no strakes) It’s certainly noticeable and requires attention to correct steering. But in the end its a trade off that I’m willing to adapt to. The boat is so stable in most conditions that it requires hardly any tab adjustment to level the boat. It also has a very sharp entry and rides nearly flat with no bow rise to speak of at cruise or when planing .My SeaCraft ran on rails but if anyone moved around the boat, it required total readjustment of the tabs to compensate and also required motor trim adjustment with speed to keep it level and efficient.
I’m happy with the Grady hull and I’m sure I’ll continue to get better at adjusting the ride and steering with experience.

 

[Aquanut2]

Sway: It can happen with the right period of waves but to be honest nothing that I really noticed fromother boats.
Steering: Surprised no power assist. With it, you can turn with one fingr.
Gen: Hours should show on the panel with powered. If you hit the ON button the panel comes alive and the hours are shown. If winterized, just don't hit start.

Pressed the On button but hours did not display. Did some research which seems to point to the timing clock installed behind the control board. FP has a real bad rap on THT so not sure it is worth spending any $$ on it if not needed for overnighters.