The official "Stray Current II" thread. '07 260DA

My 4th of July trip to lake George got squashed. Between work and other obligations I just couldn’t get the trailer dialed in and we decided to not stress it and stay home. We’ve been using the hell out of the boat and I have put just about 120 hours on the main and 180 on the generator since we’ve owned it.

I lost my raw water hose between the seapump and the fuel cooler orifice 2 days ago. The engine went into guardian mode and dropped to 500 rpm. I shut it down and got towed home. I got a piece of radiator hose to serve as a temp fix but I have all the raw hoses on order. They looked fine outside but all have internal bubbles.

I’m going to replace the freshwater hoses this fall as they actually run at significantly lower pressure than the raw side. 8psi cap vs 20 psi at 4K rpm.

the little squiggle on the screen is the stop, drift, anchor and tow.
had her back up 3 hours later

Rüger the boat dog really loves his boat

I replaced my par36 sealed beam for a Chicom knockoff Led bulb in my spotlight. It’s a decent improvement but it doesn’t reach the level of “pontoon blinderizer” I was hoping for.

I’m looking for something that will bake the retinas of your typical slack jawed drooling retard of a pontoon boat owner running around with their docking lights on. Welcoming all suggestions

May go with a legit FAA approved par36 led spot landing light bulb, but they’re spendy

Wandering through the anchorage at a privately funded July 4th fireworks show in Toms River nj.

an auto dealer put on a professional show since all were cancelled due to the plandemic

Caught a zombie dragonfly eating the brains of a greenhead fly

Grill sautéed kielbasa and pierogi with olive oil seems to be a new boat favorite


I’m still getting water somewhere. I’ve ruled out the engine, transom assembly, bond flange, transducer and transducer tube. I’m thinking it has to be coming in at a thru hull and leaking between the hull and liner. I just can’t seem to find anything else.

i have some ghosting in the bilge that would suggest either the seacocks were all removed and reinstalled, or replaced entirely at some point. Hopefully I can rebed them this winter, doesn’t seem to be getting worse and it’s a very small leak.

I think I may rebed my deck hatch as well. I got a few drops in Fay. I believe it was just from blowing in where the gasket ends meet as the were facing the wind, but I’m worried about water in the foredeck core so better safe.

Got my trailer all dialed in. 12’9” high with the radar removed. Went over the scale at 17,300 gcvw with 3 passengers in the truck and all tanks full. Figuring it’s right about 11,500 all up. leaves me 1100 under my max gcvwr.

The weight distribution hitch tows like an absolute dream with the EOH. Tows nicer than my 6k center console behind an f250

EOH is fantastic. Used in conjunction with the WD, it's amazing how much of a difference it makes.

Quick thought... check that winch. From the pictures, it looks too small. Roughly speaking, it should be rated about a 1/3 of the boat weight. Also, the strap... double check the capacity of that - those greyish/bluish straps are typically the ones used with smaller bowriders and rated around 4,000lbs. Look for the 10,000lb strap - these are typically yellow.

Also, you might consider changing up the way you use the safety chain. Since you don't have a typical bow roller where the boat's bow eye will tuck underneath to "lock" the bow in... use a chain and turnbuckle from the bow eye down to the trailer frame. That's a more secure way to do it.

Looking good, though! Except... I can't believe you didn't clean that rust streak off the stbs side before you took a picture!

Lazy Daze said:

EOH is fantastic. Used in conjunction with the WD, it's amazing how much of a difference it makes.

Quick thought... check that winch. From the pictures, it looks too small. Roughly speaking, it should be rated about a 1/3 of the boat weight. Also, the strap... double check the capacity of that - those greyish/bluish straps are typically the ones used with smaller bowriders and rated around 4,000lbs. Look for the 10,000lb strap - these are typically yellow.

Also, you might consider changing up the way you use the safety chain. Since you don't have a typical bow roller where the boat's bow eye will tuck underneath to "lock" the bow in... use a chain and turnbuckle from the bow eye down to the trailer frame. That's a more secure way to do it.

Looking good, though! Except... I can't believe you didn't clean that rust streak off the stbs side before you took a picture!

Click to expand...

Funny you should mention that...


It’s a 3200# winch. For whatever reason my 10k strap has been delayed in shipping twice now, but it will be installed before we take the boat anywhere (besides back to the slip, it went yesterday)

im not even sure I need the winch on this one, I power load it. I could run it up, attach the turnbuckle and be good. I also use a 10k ratchet strap through the stern eyes back to the trailer frame. I think I’m going to remove that chain.

I’m thinking about an electric winch and tongue jack anyway. My shoulders don’t care for either

Out again for maintenance. Zincs, engine and gen oils, gear lube, and all new raw water cooling hoses. Trailer pulls like a dream Ans should be ready for a 330 mile trip ate the end of September

So, who else made their boat a focal point of their wedding and wedding photos?

Well, last day of my 2 week wedding/honeymoon trip, and...

New oem Sherwood water pump installed and back up! I had my mercruiser guy do a total drive service and replace the seals. So nice dropping it off Monday and picking it up Wednesday!
another great pic from lake George, no place like it

I found my leak!

It's the bond flange in the "corners" of the swim platform! The water traces down the braces into the bilge when the boat is coming up on or dropping back off plane.

I'll pop the stainless and rubber off before I shrink wrap it and reseal everything.

Other than that everything is working properly and running pretty well. still using it every weekend even though there's not a lot of time with work to use it during the week right now. Hoping to go through at least the middle to end of November

Just read from page 1. Nice job! Sharp rig.

I'm looking at a 2005-20xx 260 myself and this is my favorite thread so far. Thanks for all of your write ups George. Added to my watch list.

Are you towing with a F-150? How does it handle?

OllieC said:

I'm looking at a 2005-20xx 260 myself and this is my favorite thread so far. Thanks for all of your write ups George. Added to my watch list.

Are you towing with a F-150? How does it handle?

Click to expand...

pits the highest rated package f150 at 18,400 gcvwr. With the EOH and WDH it tows incredibly well. The 3.5 ecoboost with the 10 speed does not leave you wanting for power.

no problem towing in upstate ny mountains

Stray Current said:

pits the highest rated package f150 at 18,400 gcvwr. With the EOH and WDH it tows incredibly well. The 3.5 ecoboost with the 10 speed does not leave you wanting for power.

no problem towing in upstate ny mountains

Click to expand...

I have a 2011 SuperCrew FX4 with the 3.5 tow package and a 4.10 rear end. That 260 may exceed my GVWR tho.....there's been other threads on here about 1/2 tons so I won't hijack this one.

Keep up the information on your 260DA, it's fantastic.

OllieC said:

I have a 2011 SuperCrew FX4 with the 3.5 tow package and a 4.10 rear end. That 260 may exceed my GVWR tho.....there's been other threads on here about 1/2 tons so I won't hijack this one.

Keep up the information on your 260DA, it's fantastic.

Click to expand...

Best bet is to look up the 2011 ford towing guide. You’ll need to know your wheelbase, drive, package, and options and there’s a spreadsheet that will show your gvwr/gcvwr.

mine is 7050/18,400

I went over the scale fully loaded for a vacation 6700/17,700. Went with all 3 tanks full to get a real worst case scenario weight. This also included our regular gear and camping gear for “well equipped (glamping) camping” locked out 9+10 in the mountains but very rarely did it downshift from 8 at 70 on the interstate

Gross Vehicle Weight Rating is 7,070
Max Tow with tow package is 11,300
Gross Vehicle Combined Weight Rating is 17,100

Had to download the manual.
Dang.......

Thanksgiving Day
Sunday Ride

Still getting after it, probably hauling for the season this coming Saturday. I'd like to hang on a few more weeks but I don't want to be out winterizing and making my final repairs before shrink wrap at the end of December

I stripped the enclosure and bimini's off before a quick last ride. Came back to the dock and folded the light and pulled the radar dome (trailer height)


12/6 and it's out, ac and freshwater system winterized. I have my 300 watt light bulb of doom in the bilge to keep the chill off until I can change oils and properly winterize next weekend. It was a great first season with this boat

I hate winter, but I have some more updates to make to this thread this year I believe!

With the pink elixir of evil fully administered, winterization is complete



And so it begins...

Going to rebed the rails and seal the leaking bond flange before shrink wrap.

Once I'm in the wrap I have a good bit of work planned for this winter. Nothing like last winter, but it's getting closer to where i want it to be

It never fails. I was hoping to get the rub rail off and back on and resealed with new screws where it needs them quickly and get shrink wrapped but of course the weather would f*** me in the process.

I've developed a new leak somewhere forward of my kitchenette that's tracing down along my countertop, I only hope it's tracking up the open Bond flange as there's a separation right there.

as it is I was hoping to get my hatxh re bedded as soon as I get the boat in wrap as that's still currently actively leaking.

Really starting to get worried about core damage on the deck hatch. There's been a small enough leak to wet the foam every time it rains but not always drip.

The absolute most frustrating thing about this boat has been the f****** leaks. Not much, but just enough to piss me off beyond belief. Truly makes me miss the simplicity of my center console. seems like every single leak so far has cost an entire weekend of f****** misery trying to locate and fix.

Making progress. I have the bow section and side sections back on. Seems the best way to remove the old sealant is 2 big screwdrivers used as wedges and then oscillating tool run sideways as a scraper. A quick wire brushing after and a shot of compressed air leaves it ready for an acetone wash.

I've been using 4200 UV for this job. I wanted the strong adhesion of a polysulfide, but I didn't want to have to burn it to the waterline to remove it like 5200.

80% of the screws were loose! only 2 were actually stripped and got upsize from #8 to #10. I'm sure that happened at assembly but the rest backed out. They all went back in with 4200 on the threads. Hopefully they stay put at least another 13 years, certainly not a fun job and I hope to be in something with twins (hopefully diesels) by the time this needs too be done again.

I'm actually a little surprised how sloppy the workmanship was in the joint. Very little sealant, ragged cuts, slightly inconsistent spacing and countersink depth.

Unfortunately in spite of marking every piece and reassembling it exactly the stainless strip went back on and is 3/16 of a screw hole off. I think the variation in temperatures as I'm working on this is the issue. The screws just can't line up perfectly with the countersunk holes to fully countersink. Aggravation but it is what it is. It gets close enough. I’m not going to let it drive me crazy