1983 260EC Power Options

[jcjones]

I had (apparently incorrectly) assumed that all twin drive EC's from 1983 would have been powered similarly (OMC Stringer drives). I'm not finding much that is conclusive on what drive options were available other then a single V8 seemed to be the most popular option but I have seen on this site a lot of references to similar vintage and size cruisers with Merc power.

Were Mercruiser I/O's an option in 1983 on the 260's?

If so, would that indicate that the transom would not need a lot of work (other then adequately patching and reinforcing the OMC holes) for a repower to Alpha or Bravo drives? Maybe using a 3 step cut and plug as others have mentioned?

With relocating where the boat will be in salt water my concern for the longetivity of my OMC stern drives is increasing and I'm seriously considering a repower to something a little easier to maintain and get parts for but one of my concerns has been the strength of the transom since I would be moving the force applied from the stringers directly to the transom instead.

Any advice, experience, knowledge on the subject, etc.?

Thanks!

 

[ghuskin]

sell your current boat and buy a larger boat with inboards. A boat that's the age of ours may not warrent the investment in repower/new outdrive(s). Just sayin'.

 

[jcjones]

I love my boat, it's the perfect size as it's big enough to spend even weeks aboard, has all the amenities we need, but still small enough and powerful enough for water sports such as skiing, tubing, etc. Plus it handles awesome, gets on plane very quickly, cruises at 42mph at over 5000' altitude (can't wait to see how it performs at sea level). I also love the styling and wouldn't be interested in anything newer then about 1989 for this model anyway.

Someday we would love to add a 390 Express Cruiser (big enough for long open water cruises), but would still keep the 260 as well. Biggest problem there would be enough dock space for both.

The sig picture is at 48mph (GPS verified) at 5300' altitude.

 

[glenncal1]

JC-you may wat to contact these guys to see if they have any ideas:

http://www.sterndrive.cc/

 

[tdappleman]

Looking at online classifieds it appears the price range for a 26-28 is 6-11k - most I saw appeared to be twin Mercruisers with Alpha drives. You could easily spend that much on a drive swap. This is a Sundancer vs. an Express but gives you an idea of what you may be able to get once you get down there - appears to be in fantastic shape and has a 454 as well.

http://www.yachttraderonline.com/listing/1987-Sea-Ray-268-Sundancer-95330869

Here is a Weekender 30 - twin 5.7 with straight drives: http://www.yachttraderonline.com/listing/1986-SEA-RAY-Sundancer-270-94393968

 

[ghuskin]

will you need to change the drive ratio due to altitude change?

 

[fwebster]

I don't know how to make this much plainer..........you cannot successfully keep an outdrive boat in salt water unless it is trailered, drystacked or stored on a lift and flushed after each use. It really doesn't matter whose drives are on it, whether they are black, silver or white, they are going to $ you to death in salt water. Worse, they may leave you stranded somewhere and we have some real big water down here.

The whole issue with OMC drives is parts availability and knowledgeable service technicians for a drive system that has been out of production and not supported by the manufacturer for a number of years.

If you love the 260EC and cannot live without it, t hen move it to Florida and use it until you cannot or will not continue to repair the drives, then consider repowering. Honestly, I don't think repowering a 27 year old boat is a wise choice because you will probably have as much in the 2 engines and labor as the boat is worth.

Good luck with whatever you decide.............and the move.

 

[jcjones]

Frank, Thanks for the wishes...

I plan to keep it on a lift since it is an I/O boat. My biggest concern now is how long the original OMC drives will last even being on a lift and flushed regularly. Most of the local OMC guys and several I've talked to online have said they would be surprised if they made it more then a season or two with salt water exposure. They need to be resealed right now and since I don't have time to do that myself I have checked around and gotten quotes in the $1100 and up range per drive just to reseal them. By the time I start spending $2k and up just for seals which will inevetably need to be done again soon I might as well see what options I have for repowering with something a little less expensive to maintain. Another problem is that my exhaust manifolds are original (27 years old) and I understand that even with flushing they will need to be replaced probably every 5 years or so anyway once subjected to salt water and I can't find any anywhere online at any price for my 3.8l V6 engines.

So, unless I want to convert to some type of through hull exhaust with headers or something or completely customize an exhaust system to match up with the OMC ports I'm going to be hosed anyway as soon as they rust through.

We both love this boat and fully intend to keep her for at least another 10 years or so. With that in mind it seems that some type of repower to something more serviceable makes sense and is probably worth the investment. Especially when considering that our original investment in the boat was somewhere around 10% to 15% of what I'm seeing them selling for all over the country.

ghuskin: I'm just planning on going to 19 or maybe 21 pitch props instead of the 17 pitch that I have now. Depends on how underpropped I wind up being at sea level with the 17's. Unless of course I repower, then I'll be starting from scratch.

glencal1: Thanks for the link, while they don't have anything to help with a repower solution from the stringer style OMC, purchasing complete outdrives from them would certainly help out the pocket book substantially over buying Alpha's or Bravo's.

tdappleman: I've been looking at the classifieds - especially in Flordia. Have found about the same thing, but what I have noticed is that while there are lots of 390 express cruisers, the smaller ones don't seem to come up often and when they do they really need a lot of work - neither of us are very fond of the interior and cockpit design of the Dancers. One thing I do have on my side with Atlantis is a very very solid boat with the exception of the stern drives. The rest of the boat is very solid and in excellent shape. Better then any other I've seen around here of the same age.

If my boat had been equipped with Mercruiser drives of some type to begin with I would not be having to make these kind of decisions, but alas it was not. And I knew well many of the issues with the OMC drives when I bought her, but the price combined with the excellent condition made for a deal I simply couldn't turn down. Especially since I have been looking specifically for a 26' to 28' Express Cruiser with twin drives for several years with no luck until I found this one. I came across lots of Dancers but no EC's.