420/44 DB Owners Club

I use the same oil for genny as the mains, Valvoline Premium Blue 15W40. The first time I changed the oil I bought it in 5 gallon buckets. I found it very difficult to handle the big buckets in the cramped space, and hold it up while it was filling.

Now I use the 1 gallon containers, it is much easier. I do have several translucent containers to pump the old oil into that I re-use. 2-3 gallon containers that I keep on the boat. These are great for changing the genny oil while on trips. I also have 2- 5 gallon containers. The Scale-Break I used to flush the engines came in these.

I also have 15 gallon containers, These are nice in that you can dump the whole engine into one, but it is too heavy to carry down the dock when full. I tried that one time, never again. Now I fill the smaller containers.

I find that being translucent is nice, you can see when it is getting close to full. The first time I used regular 5 gallon oil buckets, but had to keep stopping to check and see how full it was.
 
Thanks Greg.

What is the "Scale-Break", some sort of flushing chemical? Can you send me a link to the product?
 
That looks like a great product. Do you use it as part of the winterization process or spring recommissioning or just anytime during the season?
 
Guys,

Which wet cell batteries do you buy and where?

The specs say that Batteries min requirement: CCA 1250, Res Cap. 640, MCA 1560

I have currently installed: 31-P6, CCA 1000, Res Cap. 185, MCA 1190

I need to replace one battery and I'm trying to find something similar. But, after reviewing the specs numbers I see a big difference and wonder if I should spend extra and get something close to the spec numbers or should I not worry too much and get something cheaper?

MM has interstate 31 PMHD (cca 950, rca 195) for $123. I actually bought one of those from MM in 2009 for my 320 and it worked just fine. But, 420DB is very different boat with different load requirement. Autozone has similar battery for $99, the brand I never heard of.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
 
First off - congrats. And as this is now an "owners thread" I'd like to see what A/V mods our 420/44 owners have made. I am looking to add a Mac Mini to replace the CD changer and drive music and movies. Has anyone messed around with this gear on the 420? I know the TV is on crazy rotating bracket. I've have the panel behind the glass doors out before. But I have no idea how to access the zenith DVD player. And if I did - no vision has presented itself to make use of that space if I replaced it with the Mini. Any elegant solutions?

I'm also interested in AC / DC options - I boat with the genset running 95% of the time - but sometimes \the kids are watching a movie when shifting shorepower - and that takes it all down.

So I've been considering adding a UPS to keep the gear alive during the switch - or I just saw a mention of an inverter running off of the bowthruster bank - makes sense! I'm looking for ideas for the spring commissioning! Many thanks in advance.
 
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Thanks Ed.

That would be a nice mod. Looking forward to see what others did.

I changed the oil yesterday and wanted to hear how do you guys handle the oil filter on the port side? I did the stbd side first and the filter was easily accessible. When I moved to the port side I said to myself that if I don't do something different I'll have about a gallon of oil spilling to the bottom since there's no way to get that filter out of the place keeping it positioned vertically. So, I had to use an old trick with mercs oil filters. I placed the oil container under the filter and punched a whole to drain all the oil from the filter in controlled manner. When the filter was empty I had no problem removing it without creating any mess at all.

I wonder what tricks others use.
 
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Are all 420/44 DB's inboards (straight drives) or are some of them V-drives? Reason I ask is that I see some articles referring to the 44 as a V-drive. There are also references to V-drives in the Sea Ray parts manual that is available online.
 
First_Mate said:
Are all 420/44 DB's inboards (straight drives) or are some of them V-drives? Reason I ask is that I see some articles referring to the 44 as a V-drive. There are also references to V-drives in the Sea Ray parts manual that is available online.
Click to expand...

I've seen the same articles. All 420/44DB's are straight drives.
 
Alex,

Some mechanics slip a large ziplock bag up over the filter and let it drop in the bag when it is off, then close the bag and remove the filter in the bag from its hiding place.
 
bmac said:
I've seen the same articles. All 420/44DB's are straight drives.
Click to expand...

I found it really strange that Sea Ray refers to V-drives in their parts manual. Can't imagine boat would be very good as a V-drive though...
 
fwebster said:
Alex,

Some mechanics slip a large ziplock bag up over the filter and let it drop in the bag when it is off, then close the bag and remove the filter in the bag from its hiding place.
Click to expand...

Thanks Frank, that's an idea. But, it'll require a lerge ziplock bag to hold such large filter and ~1gal of oil.

I changed my impellers on Sunday. Wheee....did someone complain about impellers in 320 as a tough job? Try the port side of 400/420s. Since this is my first time with these engines I decided to be concervative and didn't take the risk of removing the whole pump. So, I only took the cover plate off and changed the impellers while the pumps were in place. To my luck the port side had threaded impeller, so I was able to use the bolt puller (this little thing saved the day). But, boy....2hrs on one side squeezed between the engine and the bulkhead and operating with one arm using a mirror as a primary guide was one task to remember. As I gain more comfort with the engines I'll try removing the whole pump next time as I'll have to deal with only 2 nuts holding the pump vs. the whole impeller installation process.
 
Does anyone know how to clean between the two pieces of glass (one glass and one plastic) on the vent in the hard top? It has a sliding louvre inside to select for light or sun block.
 
I thought that was a sealed unit?
 
Hampton said:
Does anyone know how to clean between the two pieces of glass (one glass and one plastic) on the vent in the hard top? It has a sliding louvre inside to select for light or sun block.
Click to expand...

Turn the 2 oval knobs 90 degrees so they align with the oval slot. Raise the hatch all the way up and then pop the sliding panel thru the oval knobs. Then try to pull the plastic panel down using the knob and sliding it thru the hatch. If you cant get it out, you may need to remove the hinges from the glass.
 
I've been scanning through the threads on 44 Sedan Bridge boats... I currently have a 05 390 DA 8. Horizons... my first boat... I've gotten pretty comfortable with Engine Maintenance, most repairs, and winterization etc.

What can I expect with an 07 44DB / cummins QSC 500s ? I'm a pretty experienced mechanic having worked on alot of different types of Gasoline Engines, Air Cond Systems, but Idon't know anything about diesels... much less turbochargers.

Any thoughts on the 44 DB ? or the Cummins QSC 500s.

Rob
 
cod said:
Turn the 2 oval knobs 90 degrees so they align with the oval slot. Raise the hatch all the way up and then pop the sliding panel thru the oval knobs. Then try to pull the plastic panel down using the knob and sliding it thru the hatch. If you cant get it out, you may need to remove the hinges from the glass.
Click to expand...

Thanks,

John
 
RobWell said:
I've been scanning through the threads on 44 Sedan Bridge boats... I currently have a 05 390 DA 8. Horizons... my first boat... I've gotten pretty comfortable with Engine Maintenance, most repairs, and winterization etc.

What can I expect with an 07 44DB / cummins QSC 500s ? I'm a pretty experienced mechanic having worked on alot of different types of Gasoline Engines, Air Cond Systems, but Idon't know anything about diesels... much less turbochargers.


Any thoughts on the 44 DB ? or the Cummins QSC 500s.

Rob
Click to expand...


I'm with you. Once you get everything up and running, it seems to me that it's zincs, zincs, zincs, oil and filters. Every once in a while we'll need to get a qualified mechanic on board for heavier stuff, but the stuff bolted on shouldn't be too much hassle to learn (pumps, alternators...). The big disaster comes with overtemping - stay on top of the cooling system, and things shouldn't be too bad.

As far as the 44 goes, it's just more boat. ?
 
Televisions-
Has anyone replaced the Zenith TV in the Salon, and if so, how happy are you with the larger and or HDTV in that location. I am redoing the A/V and am looking for an improved TV to go along with the Mac Mini. Any pictures?

Many thanks,
 
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