480 DB Owners Club

Mr McGuire: I own a similarly configured boat and for a California boat the price is unbelievable. That would be my concern. I would research the history to see if it is originally a Florida boat. There are others on the board that can weigh in on the risk of the CAT 3196 risers when the boat is in salt water. I have had no problems and the engines are head and shoulders above the Detroit diesels, and in my opinion, the Cummins (speed and torque). Others will surely weigh in.

It is a BIG boat but the best handling vessel I have ever owned.

Bill

PS: PM if you want to discuss.
 
mmcguire2002 said:
I've read through this thread and it looks like the oldest 480 owner that has contributed is a 1999. Does anyone know what to look for in a 1998. I am going to look at a 1998 480 Sedan Bridge in the middle of January. I'm curious to understand any known issues or other things to be aware of...thanks in advance for any input. The link to the boat is pasted below:

http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/1998/Sea-Ray-Sedan-Bridge-2178860/San-Diego/CA/United-States
Click to expand...

I have been a member for quite some time, however I went dark a few years ago in an income preservation program, so I have not contributed in a while. I do have the notorious 1998 480DB. There are some inherent flaws in the 98 that I think have been corrected/refined in the newer models. The boat you are looking at has what I think is referred to as the Mediterranean Layout on the bridge without a hard top. I looked at one of those 3 years ago before buying the ESweet. It is much harder to back into a slip as you cannot see the corners behind you. There is no hardtop (which I am sure you know the pros and cons to that). I don't believe (even though I was told the contrary) that the bridge air or the TNT lift was a factory option, so the installation depends on what shop did the work. My boat did not get the best installations of both. The 3196's are often overshadowed with rumors and opinions (both can be researched on this board) however if the boat has 500 hours, it is past the head problems. You want to ensure it has the upgraded after-cooler design (again at 500 hours in probably has it).

The boat has been awesome. It is a 98 so there are many things to consider (but I think any 98 would have similar issues) like water intrusion: Caulking, seals, etc. My boat took me and my new wife from Charleston, SC down to the Turks and Cacaos last year to get married (me and my wife, not the boat). I have had relatively few problems and the problems I have had were related to poor maintenance (some of it on my part - damn engine zincs). I do a lot of my own maintenance and upgrades, so let me know if you have any questions. I am not going on my annual trip to the islands, so I will be reading this board more often.

Good Luck.
 
The boat shows Naples Florida on the stern. Any idea what all of the square things (backer plates) are on the transom? You can see them on the engine room picture. Unless you plan to open the flybridge up all of the time, which is a royal pain, I would opt for the hard top. With any boat especially a balsa cored Sea Ray get a good inspection no matter what year. The Cats left new boat owners at the dock for about a year, but should have been overhauled during the campaign. (Ask)
 
Backer plates are probably for the swim platform (?)
 
That would be my guess.

You think they could of at least got them square.
 
OK 48 DB owners.... how slow can your boats go can they troll at 2.6MPH or less? You see I salmon fish on Lake Michigan and I need to know if these monsters can troll I see where they have Auto Pilot so I can fish and have the Auto Pilot do the driving, but I do not know if these boats will troll, let me know...
 
I have never heard of any diesel powered boat that can move at less than 6 knots without dropping into and out of forward.
 
boltman said:
OK 48 DB owners.... how slow can your boats go can they troll at 2.6MPH or less? You see I salmon fish on Lake Michigan and I need to know if these monsters can troll I see where they have Auto Pilot so I can fish and have the Auto Pilot do the driving, but I do not know if these boats will troll, let me know...
Click to expand...

You will have to have trolling valves on your transmissions... You can then go 1 knot if you want. If anyone fished their 480 DB, they probably had them installed. Good question to ask though.
 
My new 410 idles at 4.5 to 5.2 knots....depends not the current. As Gary says, there is always a way. Don't let trolling speed get in your way!
 
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Ok Another question, can you run 1 Motor to reduce speed while trolling, that's what we do the 320 and most big boats do anyways... two PROPS make too much speed, and I know you big boat boys call them WHEEL, but i only have props still , although I do have 4 of them two on each shaft.....Let me know if you can run 1 motor at a time to troll and this won't sway my decision, but it sure does help...
 
boltman said:
Ok Another question, can you run 1 Motor to reduce speed while trolling, that's what we do the 320 and most big boats do anyways... two PROPS make too much speed, and I know you big boat boys call them WHEEL, but i only have props still , although I do have 4 of them two on each shaft.....Let me know if you can run 1 motor at a time to troll and this won't sway my decision, but it sure does help...
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Yes and no. One engine in gear will give you 5-6 knots.. two engines is 6-8 knots. You can't turn off your starboard engine or your steering won't work. That's one of those dirty little Sea Ray yacht secrets. You can have any engine fail as long as it's not the starboard one. On the 480 DB, the power steering pump is on a PTO port on the starboard transmission. And you ain't going to steer it without power steering.
 
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Hey Foursuns, How do you like the QSM 11's in that 48DB? I'm looking at one with the QSM's and one with MANN's the MANN's were put in as a preference for the only owner of the boat and he Loves them. Again how do you like the QSM's?????
 
I like the QSM's... You've seen all the links I've posted. That is my history. Go to boatdiesel.com and verify the reliability. Although I've had a some little crap go wrong, these engines are well proven and the "little stuff" is very consistent across the product line. The core technology is 20+ years old.
 
OK and another question, Did you put your satelite TV on top of that tower you have, Ive' seen it with the Radar in the back and the satelite in the front but seems as theough the radar would have a black spot on the screen, talk with Searay40 Dad today and he says nothing really blocks it...
 
boltman said:
OK and another question, Did you put your satelite TV on top of that tower you have, Ive' seen it with the Radar in the back and the satelite in the front but seems as theough the radar would have a black spot on the screen, talk with Searay40 Dad today and he says nothing really blocks it...
Click to expand...


He did put the sat dish up there, see below:

http://clubsearay.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1759

You can sort of see the original configuration in my sig pic. It is a stupid design, and I will be doing something similar soon I think. The problem I have is a bridge that I just clear now.

As far as interference with the RADAR, if it were only a black spot I would be happy. The problem is, as the boat moves around, the sat dish does to, so the reflections change. It is extremely annoying.

I have kind of gotten use to it, but you really have to keep your eye on the screen to know what is real and what is not.
 
Brimanst, My wife & I purchased a 2000 480 DB in July 2010 in Vancouver BC, was a 1 owner boat cat 3196 with upgrades, engines had been out in 2001 for full rebuild but knew all of that going in, we went away on holidays and when it rained we had water coming in the engine room, water ran across the HWT and shorted out the controls, luckily the previous owner had an espar hydronic heating system installed with an indirect system on the HWT so the Espar would heat the water so we weren't running to shore for showers, you mentioned the water intrusion, I am just starting to do some upgrades, electronics, new batteries & inverter that was pooched with water damage also, where did the water ingress come from?, I can't see anything obvious from below, but suspect it comes from the bridge, thanks in advance with any help.
 
Ok , I looked at my first 48 Sedan Bridge today, an '03 with MANN's what a clean and immculate boat, owner is said to be Maticulous.... It showed....I was impressed, He wants a bit too much for it, but it's a start.... I'm not making an offer yet though have more to look at and time is on my side.
 
And Yet another question for this thread of 48DB owners, How many of you Winter store in Heated Garage, or do you winter store outside and shrinked wrapped.....Just asking because here in Michigan there's a substantial difference in price between the two....So which is it? Let me know, all this information is give me tons of info before making a huge decision...
Thanks Gentlemen it is greatly appreciated.
 
When I was on my hunt, which I am sort of for a 480 DB but thats here nor there. The majority store indoors because of the height. Most marinas around here don't / wont order shrink wrap wide enough to go over the top of the hardtop down to the waterline or even the rub rail without making a seam in it (which is a recipe for disaster) so they end up storing inside either heated or cold.

I would do the same.

The costs for everything including storage, slip, fuel, maintenance in my area are 2-3X what I currently pay which is why with my current financial status I am pretty in the market for a nice clean Diesel 410 to have for a few years.


For what its worth, the easier boat to re-sell will always be the Cummins QSM-11 boat over the MANs.
 
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I winter outside on the hard with shrinkwrap. So far it seems ok, where I am they don't have the facilities to store inside. I too was looking into how to best winter store the boat, but I was looking at in the water or out of the water.

Some said it was better to store in the water, others say that is risky.

As for the shrinkwrap, I haven't noticed any seams, they do a pretty nice job. It always appears dry inside when I check on it.
 
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