Can I vent???

270win

Well-Known Member
Jul 12, 2009
1,019
Atlanta, GA
Boat Info
1995 Sea Ray 330 SunDancer
Engines
7.4 V Drives
So I spend the money over the winter to have the carb rebuilt and a thorough tune up done. Back in January when I had the work done the mechanic says that in the spring when it's time to splash the boat he'll come over and tune the carb and set the timing so we won't have to re-winterize it...plus it was FREEZING at the time! Anyway, last week we talk and he says he just can't get over to my marina to do the tune in the water...just bring it over to his place. So I do.

When I show up he drags out the hose...says he can tune it one the hose just as well as he can in the water. He litterally spent 1 minute listening to it run at 1,500rpm, touches nothing on the engine, lets it idle for 5 seconds and shuts it down...He says, "That thing sounds great!"...I'm thinking, "that's it"?!?!?

Well I leave with it and today we launch it. I won't idle for crap! As soon as you put it in gear it starts to die and I have to lightly pump the throttle to clear it every 15 seconds or so. And the top end sucks too, 3500 rpm at WOTand it surges really badly.

I know it can be adjusted and it should be fine, but this really pissed me off today. I've spent $2,000 with this guy in the past 8 months and the first time around the work was great...what a disappointment, it ran better needing to be rebuilt!:smt013
He
 
He didn't put it in gear on the hose? He didn't rev it up? He should have been all over the carb assuring it was idling right, accelerating right etc. It's his money now and his time! I'd insist HE come to YOUR marina and FIX IT on his time and dime!
 
He didn't put it in gear on the hose? He didn't rev it up? He should have been all over the carb assuring it was idling right, accelerating right etc. It's his money now and his time! I'd insist HE come to YOUR marina and FIX IT on his time and dime!
Actually he did put it in gear, but he reved it twice and then let it idle for a few seconds. That's my plan too, I already brough it to him once, he's going to have to come see it...and soon, my daughter is on spring break this week and we planned to use the boat...
 
What a D***CH BAG!!:smt009
yeah, I'm glad tghe kids were with me...kept me from really getting out of hand. I never question pricing and don't mind paying...but it dang well better be right when I get it back.

And I understand mistakes, but this was just crappy work by not being thorough...
 
I rebuilt my Weber 4-barrel over the winter, and can't wait to get it back in the water. If the Weber 4-barrel is what you have, the guy is an idiot and you are better off getting a real mechanic to check his work. The carb has electronic idle control, and will idle quite well even if the idle mixture is off. The procedure requires temporarily disabling the electronic idle speed control. Otherwise, the electronics buck the mixture changes to keep the idle speed regular. It will run much better if you get the mixture and idle speed spot-on, and then engage the electronics to keep the idle smooth through changes in engine load.

I would be worried about rough running at speed. There is no adjustment for that other than go into the carburetor and replace jets. Hopefully, the idle settings are so far off that it is affecting the lower mid-range.

Good luck getting that resolved. A rebuilt carburetor should idle and run as well as a fuel-injected engine. FI has a slight edge in reliability, fuel economy, and emissions, but a carburetor runs great if it is clean in in adjustment.
 
Yeah a well adjusted QJet (which is what I have) is close to FI IMO. This guy is actually a good mechanic, he just did a crappy job of adjusting my tune. He needs to set timing and get the idle adjusted. It was probably loaded up pretty bad when I went to WOT, once it started surging I backed off, from 1200-3000 it was smooth as silk. I left him a message but I'll still be calling first thing Monday...
 
Ok, so I call the mechanic today. Of course there's no way they can come to my marina...WAY too busy! I'm stuck because my kids are on spring break and my wife wants us to use the boat some this week. So I reluctantly decide to have the marina put the boat in the water to take it to the other marina. It still idles like crap in the no wake zone leaving but this time it runs great above 2000 rpm to WOT.

Then I get to the no wake zone at their marina. As soon as it drops below 2,000 rpm it starts surging and dies. It's flooded and will not start. I get the anchor down and call the shop. They tell me they don't have a boat to use and ask me to flag someone down to pull me in...fortunately I get a nice guy to pu me to the gas dock, he refuses to let me pay him(one of two bright spots in this fiasco). Finally the mechanic shows up. He can't get it to run either so he asks if someone can come get me. At this point I'm thankful that my Glock is still in the truck. I say no so he walks over to some folks fueling up their pontoon and asks them if they can take me to my truck. They are generous enough to help. So off we go, at a blazing 10mph...it took FOREVER to get back and by the time we get there positive they regret giving me the ride. But again, they refuse to let me pay them for their trouble...(second bright spot)

So I call the shop and ask them when the boat will be fixed. They say they're going to look at it in the morning so I ask them to please put the cockpit cover on the boat beause the pollen count is 12 million and I spent 5 hours cleaning it out on Friday. She acts like this is a big P.I.TA. for them... So I asked her, Why is it that my boat is not in it's dry rack right now? No answer. After a long pause she says they'll try to cover it.

I'm going up there now to make sure it's covered...

Am I pissed???? I can't express here adequately how mad I am. IF they get it fixed it'll be the last time they touch anything of mine!
 
Get really pissed! This is incompetence at it's highest level! I would think a "no charge" on your bill would be the right thing to do.
 
Wow 270win, I would of had that guy by the throat by now !!. :grin:
Sorry they're giving you the run round on this problem. :smt021
 
Unbelievable!!! I hope they got that cover on! Sorry for ya
 
~Sigh~:smt009

At this point I'm just at a loss...I get up to the boat at 8:00pm tonight and it's sitting there uncovered, cabin door open, bumpers on the starboard side but the boat tied with the port side to the dock....seriously....fortunately I didn't see any marks on the side. Although it doesn't matter, they obviously couldn't care less about my boat...or getting any more business from me.

I can't even think think straight...I know if I raise cain tomorrow aqbout that it'll just mean the boat won't get fixed...I've already paid for this back in Feburary when he did the work. Otherwise I would have taken my boat back tonight and told the guy to shove it!

If it's not fixed by tomorrow I'm going to go buy a new carb and sue him for the cost.
 
.....If it's not fixed by tomorrow I'm going to go buy a new carb and sue him for the cost.
Price on the Weber 4-barrel was $930 last year. Even a brand new unit needs adjustment on the boat.

You might have better luck getting another mechanic to document the problem and fix it. Then you might have a reasonable case. Collecting on the cost of a new replacement for a 20-year-old carburetor would be a very long putt.

I sure hope my first splash goes better than your's did. Good luck getting this resolved.
 
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Price on the Weber 4-barrel was $930 last year. Even a brand new unit needs adjustment on the boat.

You might have better luck getting another mechanic to document the problem and fix it. Then you might have a reasonable case. Collecting on the cost of a new replacement for a 20-year-old carburetor would be a very long putt.

I wouldn't expect him to pay for a new carburetor, but he would need to give me the money back for the carb work that failed to fix my carb...good point.

I've found that most mechanics don't mind fixing someone else's work, but when it comes to making a case against another mechanic they don't want to get involved.
 
It may be time to let casually mention that you have shared your experiences with thousands of boaters on a forum, and whether you recomend them or not depends on the outcome and promptness of your repair. Otherwise, if they continue with their piss-poor service, let this thread become the poor man's better business bureau.

I plan to do that very thing today if the answer is anything other than "we've got it fixed, sorry for all the crap!"

I'm giving them to lunch before I call the mechanic. It would be nice if they called me first, but I'm sure that won't happen.
 
I called him at 4 this afternoon. He said they found a few things that needed attention and will have it back together and in the boat tomorrow. He also said he would do an extensive water test to make sure it's perfect...I just hope it's right at this point!
 
I called him at 4 this afternoon. He said they found a few things that needed attention and will have it back together and in the boat tomorrow. He also said he would do an extensive water test to make sure it's perfect...I just hope it's right at this point!

Please keep us posted.....we feel your pain :smt009
 
I got a call this afternoon, they said the boat is running "perfectly" now. They also appologized for not getting it right the first time. I'm going to get it in the morning, hopefully before the rain gets here. I really hope it runs as well as they say it does.

So I'll be optimistic and say that things are looking up,,,:grin:
 
I got a call this afternoon, they said the boat is running "perfectly" now. They also appologized for not getting it right the first time. I'm going to get it in the morning, hopefully before the rain gets here. I really hope it runs as well as they say it does.

So I'll be optimistic and say that things are looking up,,,:grin:

Looking forward to good news......:thumbsup:
 
I picked it up this morning. It starts, idles and runs great...until I hit WOT. Then it bogs, I can work it up to 4400rpm but that's it and it's not as strong as it was before the rebuild. He said to bring it back next week and he's going to replace the plugs and verify the timing. He thinks it's most likely got a fowled plug or two from the carb dumping so much fuel before.

I think we're on the right track now. It was nice to have it idle and start the way it's supposed to.
 

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