bringing a quinny 455 coastrunner back to life

[austronymous]

Hi,

Firstly, sorry for the long post.

I've just picked up a Quintrex 455 Coast Runner with a Mercury 50hp ELPTO 2 stroke (2002). The boat has been sitting idle A LOT over the last 18 years, with only 70 hours on it with the last service about 3 or 4 years ago. I do know that when the boat has been used it has been flushed, but thats about all the maintenance thats been done.

The family and I spent the Christmas break down at St Georges Basin and went out on a friends boat a couple of times. Happy to report, the family now have the boating/fishingand funds have been approved to get the boat seaworthy.

About me

Im reasonably handy, no mechanical skills, but eager to learn and have been churning through the Dangar Marine videos on youtube. Ive given up on fixing the outboard for the moment, while im keen to learn how to look after an outboard and fix some of the more common issues (especially on the water) I'd really like to get the boat on the water asap so will send to a mechanic this week to give the motor a service/health check.

Anything i should be getting the mechanic to check to make sure the motor is salvageable?(e.g. compression)?

Batteries

The boat has a dual battery setup with a 1,2,1+2, OFF switch. Both the batteries are dead. I bought a c-tech smart charger to try and bring them back to life but no luck so will need to buy two new ones.
What battery combo would you recommend?

I expect two main uses:

1. pulling the kids around on a tube and/or exploring the basin/sussex inlet.
2. Day and (hopefully) day & night trips on the basin learning how to fish. I plan to replace the fishfider and add an electric motor, but the leccy might be a year or 2 away.

What battery monitoring options are out there? Dont need full LCD just something to tell me the state of charge.

Also, if anyone has any history with this boat/motor, especially suggested mods please let me know.

Thanks for your help

Ant

[Noelm]

Just buy a couple of Century Marine batteries, they are as good as anything else, without spending a fortune, make double sure you connect them up correctly, probably not a huge need for a battery management system, but, can't hurt. The older Quintrex hulls were OK, as long as it been looked after and not corroded, might pay to give the trailer a going over, do the wheel bearings and so on. If the mechanic is reputable, he will replace the water pump, plugs, any fuel filters, compression test (and report) maybe drain the oil tank if it has been sitting for years, all that stuff can be DIY if you're handy, probably be a good idea to check the steering and control cables too.

[disorderly]

Do you have a photo of the new beast mate..?

[austronymous]

Not any good ones.

Took one of the front to start thinking about how the leccy will attach. And one of the inside to start thinking about layout.
Attachment 123186
Attachment 123185

[austronymous]

Thanks Noelm

This is really helpful.

[Noelm]

Not any good ones.

Took one of the front to start thinking about how the leccy will attach. And one of the inside to start thinking about layout.
Attachment 123186
Attachment 123185

Photos don't work, there's a help thread to explain how to attach pictures, if you can't find it, let me know and I will run you through it.

[austronymous]

20210128_092018.jpg20210125_151244.jpg

What about now?

Thanks again Noelm

[Noelm]

That's better....

[disorderly]

One other thing to keep an eye on if its been sitting for 18 yrs is the sealant around the bungs, transducer and any other screwed or riveted stuff on the back of the transom..

It often can be a point of water ingress as the sealant gets old and breaks down or comes away with the paint..

You may not even notice if you have an auto bilge pump but if your 20 year old pump stops pumping then its surprising how much water can get in through such little holes over the course of a day..

I also feel satisfied after pulling off old fittings, cleaning them up and re-applying some teffgel and sikaflex.

have fun mate..nothing better then a day out on the water with the family..

[tjotter]

Check the trailer spare wheel actually fits. I bought a second boat/trailer similar size and found the trailer had holden wheels,
but the spare was a ford and did not fit?!.

Sent from my SM-T820 using Ausfish mobile app

[Dignity]

Check the trailer spare wheel actually fits. I bought a second boat/trailer similar size and found the trailer had holden wheels,
but the spare was a ford and did not fit?!.

Sent from my SM-T820 using Ausfish mobile app

A surprisingly common occurrence.