300 Dancer missing accessories

D

djbaumhover

New Member
Aug 23, 2010
19
Mississippi River, Dubuque, Iowa
Boat Info
2004 300 Sundancer
Engines
twin 6.2L Merc, Bravo III drives
Two Questions:
This year I purchased a bank repo 2004 300 Dancer that was missing manuals and some accessories. Among the missing pieces was the jumper to raise the electric hatch when the batteries are drained. Can you tell me what this is actually called so I can attempt to purchase one?

Second question: This boat sat for a year in drydock. My shifters are very stiff and it takes quite a bit of effort to shift gears. Is there a way to adjust this for easier shifting or must the cables be replaced?
 
djbaumhover said:
Two Questions:
This year I purchased a bank repo 2004 300 Dancer that was missing manuals and some accessories. Among the missing pieces was the jumper to raise the electric hatch when the batteries are drained. Can you tell me what this is actually called so I can attempt to purchase one?

Second question: This boat sat for a year in drydock. My shifters are very stiff and it takes quite a bit of effort to shift gears. Is there a way to adjust this for easier shifting or must the cables be replaced?
Click to expand...

Congrats on your purchase.

My friend has an 03 300DA and never received the "jumper" others have talked about either. Based on the amount of people with hydro hatches that seem to be missing the jumpers, I think if it was included with the boat as new, it was not on a regular basis. With that said I have heard it described as a male cigarette plug with clamps to attach to a battery. Maybe someone else will chime in with a set who can post a pic. Does not sound like something too hard to source though.

I have friends who have had the problems you describe with their shifter. They had their cables replaced to solve the problem. Don't know if that is REQUIRED to fix it. There may be another fix.

Jason
 
Yes it is a male adapter for the 12 volt accessories with 2 wires and loops to place on a battery. Shouldn't be more than $25. Or could be made easily.
 
My shifters have always been stiff since day one. Other 300DA owners have mentioned the same. I think "StrayCat" replaced his and said they are much better now. I'm sure he will chime in. What manuals are missing?
 
I think I have all the manuals I need now, I have a friend in my marina with the identical boat (forgot to ask him about the stiff shifter), but he was nice enough to let me make copies of his manuals, that I didn't previously pull off the internet, plus he gave me the Mercruiser manual that they want to charge 30+ dollars for.
 
I found it on a boat broker's website out of Stillwater Mn., lucky for me it was in my hometown, so I could check it out w/out a lot of travel. Be careful if buying one that's been sitting a while. Mine was dry-docked one year and I had some challenges with old fuel. Plus, as previously stated, some items were missing due to it sitting around. The bank did buy new batteries (that had bad cells), missing anchor, shore power cord, vhf radio. Good luck in the hunt......
 
Bridog said:
My shifters have always been stiff since day one. Other 300DA owners have mentioned the same. I think "StrayCat" replaced his and said they are much better now. I'm sure he will chime in. What manuals are missing?
Click to expand...

Hey djb...you're just down stream from me. Congrats on findng a 300 with 6.2's! Regarding your stiff throttle/shifters, until my mechanic replaced them this summer, mine really had a lot of resistance since the boat was new. I upgraded to Mercruiser's "premium" cables and both levers feel like I have DTS...minimal effort to move them and they stay where they are placed.

Something to consider when replacing the cables is, the vinyl panels need to be removed from the starboard side of the boat to gain access to them. The cables are extremely well siliconed through a bulkhead, and the only way they are going to come out is if the silicone is removed. If you choose to change the cables, I can give you some pointers on how the starboard panel comes off...they are bolted in a couple of places that you can only access if you are double jointed by sticking your hand through an access hole behind the seat...oh, there is likely a hidden screw behind a decorative button hole cover.

Just curious, which marina will you be in? I'm just above Lock 10 at Winegar Works.
 
Stray Cat said:
Hey djb...you're just down stream from me. Congrats on findng a 300 with 6.2's! Regarding your stiff throttle/shifters, until my mechanic replaced them this summer, mine really had a lot of resistance since the boat was new. I upgraded to Mercruiser's "premium" cables and both levers feel like I have DTS...minimal effort to move them and they stay where they are placed.

Something to consider when replacing the cables is, the vinyl panels need to be removed from the starboard side of the boat to gain access to them. The cables are extremely well siliconed through a bulkhead, and the only way they are going to come out is if the silicone is removed. If you choose to change the cables, I can give you some pointers on how the starboard panel comes off...they are bolted in a couple of places that you can only access if you are double jointed by sticking your hand through an access hole behind the seat...oh, there is likely a hidden screw behind a decorative button hole cover.

Just curious, which marina will you be in? I'm just above Lock 10 at Winegar Works.
Click to expand...
Jeff: Thanks for the feedback on the shift cables, what's the ball park cost of the cables? I'm at Dubuque Marina, just below lock and dam #11
 
Here is a breakdown of what he used and the costs...

(2) Mercruiser 897978A16 cables 16 ft. starboard engine $49.00 each
(2) Mercruiser 897978A19 cables 19 ft port engine $53.16 each
3.1 hrs labor to install, run, and adjust new cables $232.50

I'm not certain if the 6.2's take the same cables or not...my hunch is they would.

I removed / reinstalled the starboard panel and inspection cover near the rear seat. That took me a couple of hours trying figure out how to get if off!

From the factory, the cables leave the throttle / shift controller at a fairly tight bend. My mechanic gave them a bit more of a sweep to help reduce some of the tension, and the cable are of a construction to reduce some of the friction...it was worth it.
 
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Do you have the manuals in electronic format by chance? I bought a 2003 Bank Repo 2 years ago and it didn't come with any manuals either. I have 5.0 MPI's. Haven't had any luck getting many of the manuals. Did you get a jumper for the hatch...if so where did you find one?
Thanks!

Brian
 
Brian - the manuals I obtained are hard-copy. The mercruiser manual was the real thing my boat neighbor had two of, guess he got one for each engine? Some manuals I got online other than merc, and some I ran thru the copy machine (at work). I haven't looked real hard for the jumper yet, but thought I'd check my local SeaRay dealer for it. If I find someone with one, I'd probably try to make one, but want to be sure I have the right gauge wire before I attempt to make one myself.
 
conraymn said:
Do you have the manuals in electronic format by chance? I bought a 2003 Bank Repo 2 years ago and it didn't come with any manuals either. I have 5.0 MPI's. Haven't had any luck getting many of the manuals. Did you get a jumper for the hatch...if so where did you find one?
Thanks!

Brian
Click to expand...

The electronic manuals have come and gone on the net.

If you want a sea ray manual you can go here and select year and model.

SeaRay Manuals
 
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