Major Maintainance

[Captain Incredible]

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[krazyfisher]

Captain Incredible...... so are you saying Bertram's are all lake boats?????? big lake!!!
don't know who has the "stupid statement of the day" award but you need to get it off them.....

My Bertram I sold was years old with the original inboard still going strong and never had much done to it. If you have the time to do the work yourself than that is what I would do, its nice to know how it all goes together.

[MEG-A-BITE]

Mate, you have a nice hull. Please don't take this as a personal critiscism. Mercruisers were only ever designed for fresh water use. If you have a component of salt water use, keep it simple. Throw away the Mercruiser and bolt on an outboard of some description. It may seem like a dramatic solution but having owned and operated plenty of vessels over the past thirty years, there is such a thing as quitting when you are ahead.

Check out the American web sites. The Mercruiser boats are all Lake boats. Offshore boats have outboards.

To be kind, you can probably do all the work required to fix the problems at a price, but you are gunna be there again real soon because of the corrosive nature of the salt.

Cheers, Keith

Man... Bertram's and Riviera boats make very good water ski boat!!! no good for the open ocean!!! dont you think Think I better change my 4.3 MPI for a Yamie or Suz they dont rust???

[terryc]

I installed the hi tech stainless manifolds/ risers on my 2003 mercruiser 4.3 in my whittley 660 cruiser, 12 months ago. So far so good, pulled one off after 9 mths to inspect looked still like new. I found noise level seemed quieter, only downside was screwing in allen head bolts was a mission also had to move oil filter slightly (sits at top of motor) by extending bracket. I also opted for taller units to help protect against reversion. I just didn't like the look of the cast iron. I guess only time will tell if i made the right decision

[MEG-A-BITE]

Terryc ,A mate and I have to do the job on our boats soon so good to know somone has installed the Hi-Tech ver.Did you do the replacement yourself? Looks like a bugger of a job.I have the 6.3 Sea L and not much room to work on the back. Did you take your motor out to make the change?

cheers

[The-easyrider]

Hi Terry thanks for the imput, The hi-tech ones are the ones I am cosidering, I have spoken to the maker and he seem very helpfull. Did you notice any improvments in fuel economy or proformance?

[Mtx]

One issue no one seems to have raised yet is what method will get you back on the water the quickest? do you have time to do it properly without getting frustrated due to having the boat out of the water for too long.
just food for thought.

[The-easyrider]

Good thought MTX but it was right up with dollars when prioritys were looked at. The time wont be to much of an issue as I work for the GOV these days and when I have a project like this I tend to hook in and spend all my spare time and then some getting it done. Unlike when I have to do some work for the Mrs and put it off and off. But you can bet your left nut that as soon as the boat is commited the wind will stop completly untill the job is done then it will blow its ass off when the tub is right to go again.

[terryc]

I installed the ss units myself, definitely didn't take the motor out, getting old ones off was a piece of cake, the lack of space around the motor was what made it difficult to put on the new SS, but i'm mid 50's and still managed it ok. When you buy the units they supply a cut back allen key which is needed. to tighten up you can only turn quarter turn before repositioning allen key. I would go SS again and would not hesitate to do it myself. I found the manufacturer very good and helpful to deal with. One tip i found was to hold the manifold gasket in place on the unit with zip ties until all bolts were started then cut off zip ties and continue tightening. I love the Whittley's but i wish they could have designed easier access to sides & back of the motor. I almost drove myself crazy researching whether to go SS, listened to the knockers, however i am pleased now with my choice. Corrosion in the cast iron is scarier because the outside may look good but is no indication to inside. Don't have any figures on economy, performance is good and possibly better, hope this helps

[MEG-A-BITE]

Thanks Terryc,thats great news,think i may look at the SS option now.Aaron let me know when you going to start so that I can come and help you.
cheers.

[Lucky 1]

Hi Aaron, looks like ur going to be busy and out of the water for a little while. I have just put my sea legend in to a boat builder who is going to increase my fuel capacity to 250 litres. I hate not having it handy, but when its finished...... Fitzroy reef here I come !! Let me know when you want a break from knuckel scraping, and enjoy a beer at that pub near your work with the forgetful bikini girls who forget to wear their tops .

Regards,

Lucky

[MEG-A-BITE]

Well, took on the job of changing my risers and manifolds today. Bought the new parts from Wondall marine for a good price went with the merc original cast iron ones, was not too sure about the SS option. New parts came to $1850.
Then started on the job, removing the old ones was easy took about 20min a side.
But installing the new ones was a different story. You need 4 hands if you’re doing it alone and a way to hold up the manifold when inserting the bolts. Also getting the gasket to line up properly was a challenge. But in the end took 3 hours to install both sides with some swearing cursing as things don’t always go the way you plan.
Paddles let me know if you want the part numbers and price of the individual parts.
Cheers.

[The-easyrider]

Went to the boat show today and bought a set of stainless manifolds for not much more than originals will take some real time data and compare when the change complete

[PADDLES]

good on ya mega, yeah i'm interested in how much they charged, fire me across a pm with the pricing.

[The-easyrider]

The new manifolds arrived today and what a serious bit of bling they are and only 6kg apiece. If all goes to plan I will get them fitted up over the weekend.