Cant beat an 80s era sundancer

I cruise at about 3200 rpm at about 24kts. I have A/C and heat but no generator. I usually have close to full tanks. My boat has the 5.7s also but they are raw water coooled, something I'll change if I ever repower. My props are standard 15x19 3 bladed aluminum, I think I mistyped in the other post. When the boat was surveyed in 2008, full of fuel and four guys onboard, the boat reached WOT of about 4300 rpm, speed was in the high 30s. I haven't pushed her to WOT since. We usually have lots of stuff onboard so I'm sure we have the equivalent weight of a generator in gear aboard.
 
Ken this is going to be the new stripe and bottom paint lines. The lower blue tape represents the bottom paint line.

Post a picture once you get the bottom paint on her.

1z4ycmx.jpg


I might put a stripe back on her next year but for this summer it will be nice clean lines.

The previous owner added 4 none adjusting tabs to the stern that help a lot with getting the boat up on plane. I will have a look and see if I have any pictures of the tabs. They are the same depth as the original tabs but are fixed at the same plane as the bottom hull line.

My cruising speed is going to depend on how much weight we are carrying and my flow scan meters. I try and achieve 1.5 to 2.0 miles per gallon. It's hard when we first set off on our six week cruise as we have a lot of extra weight mostly in food and a 200lb 10' Pellican with a 2 hp on the bow. Once I get to Georgian Bay we tow the tender and that causes us to travel at a about 1000 rpm's. We sit back and enjoy the trip, we have six weeks to take in the sights.

Ken
 
Hey thanx for the stats guys. Ken that looks clean sitting in the water with no stripes. That 6 week trip sounds like a lot of fun! BTW Ken, I mounted my strtched platform to the boat yesterday to check the height location, as I am mounting it higher. Today I will make the stainless supports. I have not finish gellcoated yet. I am going to get all of the mounting done , so I can just gell it and reinstall it. Here is a shot of the platform in the driveway, with a couple of chairs on it, to show the size. I will post a couple of mounted photos tonight. Dave
 
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Katz and Dogs
That is one nice looking boat - you have done a great job there.
Thanks as you all know it is a lifestyle and not hobby. A true labor of love. Anyone want to buy it? I really want a 330!
 
Hey thanx for the stats guys. Ken that looks clean sitting in the water with no stripes. That 6 week trip sounds like a lot of fun! BTW Ken, I mounted my strtched platform to the boat yesterday to check the height location, as I am mounting it higher. Today I will make the stainless supports. I have not finish gellcoated yet. I am going to get all of the mounting done , so I can just gell it and reinstall it. Here is a shot of the platform in the driveway, with a couple of chairs on it, to show the size. I will post a couple of mounted photos tonight. Dave


Thanks for keeping us posted on the swim platform Dave. It is the number one thing on my mod list. I figure I can do that in 4 days working at it full time. If I can get the boat back out of the water the end of May I can do it then. I have 2 projects that need to be done by next week-end and I don't have time for my own boat. I am also have the same over heating problem as last year but it is now worse so we are pulling the manifolds and the heads this week. If I have to pull the engine then I will pull the platform then and get it started.

Ken
 
My overheating problem solved.

Seeing as this is the Can't beat a 80's Era Sundancer thread I thought I would post this problem and solution in this thread.
Summer of 2009
We launch the boat and use it for part of April and May with out any problems at all. We are getting ready to go out, boat is idling at the dock when the alarm goes off. I hurry to the helm and see the gauge for the temperature on the starboard engine is close to 220. I was going to shut it off but the mechanic (who I was talking to) said to increase the idle to 1500, with in seconds the temperature starts to fall down to the normal range. We had changed the impeller as I posted in another thread just 4 weeks before. Over the next few weeks I changed the thermostat and the circulating pump. Nothing helped. We went away for 6 weeks and the overheating at 600 rpms continued. :huh:
Summer 2010
We changed out the impeller with a new one, the one that was in was old stock and it was hard. Launch day and the temperature climbs to 220 and fast idle won't bring it down. I turn the engine off and after a while the engine cools to the touch but when you turn the key it won't turn over, seized or hydrolocked? We pull the plugs today and water is in most cylinders. We get the water out, let it dry for a while, check the oil put new plugs in and she starts up just fine. :smt038 The mechanic notices the bellows off the Y pipe has a small split and water is spraying out. The boot is in stock and he starts to remove the old boot. Well these older boats do sit low in the stern and the water line is 1/2 way up the bellows, he wants to put it in a covered slip and use a sling and lift the stern up about 4", easy to do. He notices the flapper is missing, once we get the stern up he removes the bellows and manages to get his arm in the Y pipe and finds the old flapper at the bottom of the Y pipe blocking the water flow. A new flapper is installed and and a new exhaust bellows we lower the boat back into the water and after 45 minutes the temperature is still normal and I now have a dry bilge something I missed last summer. :smt038

The flappers that came on these boats are no longer available, Mer put out a TSB in 1998 and a new style flapper. There is one flapper that is a drop in fit for boats with the original flappers if you don't get the right one they want you to file the round hole in the Y pipe to a square hole, not an easy job. Here is the part number for the flapper that you want if your Y pipe has not been modified.
807166A3
If you get part
807166A1 then you will need to file the square holes in the Y pipe.


Sorry for the long winded post but if this happened to me then it could happen to others.

Ken
 
THANK YOU! I had that exact problem last year and I too had done the impellers last spring. I get high temps at idle and it cools to normal when I increase rpm. I was going to change the impeller again, thought I sucked up a bag or something. I think I'll check the flapper while the boat is still on the hard. How big a job was it to install the new flapper? I have long, skinny arms so I may be able to reach down into the tubes and do the job. What bellows did he remove? Are we talking about the hoses from the metal elbow to the y-pipe? What holds the flapper in place?
Sorry for all the questions but this has me very excited, I don't want to have to tear off my OD if I don't have to and especially if it won't fix the problem. I figure I'll check the flapper first and do the water pump only if the flapper is OK.
Where did you get your flapper?
Thanks
 
THANK YOU! I had that exact problem last year and I too had done the impellers last spring. I get high temps at idle and it cools to normal when I increase rpm. I was going to change the impeller again, thought I sucked up a bag or something. I think I'll check the flapper while the boat is still on the hard. How big a job was it to install the new flapper? I have long, skinny arms so I may be able to reach down into the tubes and do the job. What bellows did he remove? Are we talking about the hoses from the metal elbow to the y-pipe? What holds the flapper in place?
Sorry for all the questions but this has me very excited, I don't want to have to tear off my OD if I don't have to and especially if it won't fix the problem. I figure I'll check the flapper first and do the water pump only if the flapper is OK.
Where did you get your flapper?
Thanks

The hose off the Y pipe is called a bellows also, there are two large hose's but we only needed to remove the hose off the Y pipe. A magnet won't work to get the old flapper out if it has fallen down inside, you must reach in. The old flapper is stainless steel with a rubber coating. It is the pin that corrodes or wears away and allows the flapper to fall in. The whole job took just over an hour to do and on a scale of 1to 10 I would rate it a 6 for difficulty. I purchased the flapper from our wholesaler but it is available on the net, you should check our sponsor a pair is around $40.00.
Here is an exploded picture of what you are looking for.

http://www.dockpartner.com/StoreFro...il.aspx?sid=1&sfid=70761&c=569159&i=133766656

The only reason I posted this site is for the picture.


Ken
 
I haven't had this problem, BUT, it's good to know and is something to watch out for! Thanks for posting! As a freshwater boater, I don't pay enough attention to stuff like risers or manifolds. Since we dump it in from the trailer, this is something to watch and inspect!
 
I didn't read that closely but I don't think anyone mentioned the point to having them in place. As I believe they act as a one way valve for exhaust water to exit and stop a surge of water from entering you engine if you suddenly stop or are extremely low in the water. When the originals wear out they make a tapping noise near the back of the engine at idle speed. Eventually they fall apart.
 
I don't recall seeing any when I replaced my risers and manifolds back in 08, I thought they were further down in the Y-pipe like OMC. I wonder if somebody removed them? I guess, I should replace them? I'd hate to have water ingestion problems.
 
THANK YOU! I had that exact problem last year and I too had done the impellers last spring. I get high temps at idle and it cools to normal when I increase rpm. I was going to change the impeller again, thought I sucked up a bag or something. I think I'll check the flapper while the boat is still on the hard. How big a job was it to install the new flapper? I have long, skinny arms so I may be able to reach down into the tubes and do the job. What bellows did he remove? Are we talking about the hoses from the metal elbow to the y-pipe? What holds the flapper in place?
Sorry for all the questions but this has me very excited, I don't want to have to tear off my OD if I don't have to and especially if it won't fix the problem. I figure I'll check the flapper first and do the water pump only if the flapper is OK.
Where did you get your flapper?
Thanks

It is the springs on the balls in the thermostat housing if it is hot at idle and cools when running. A quick fix/test is to take the balls off and stretch the springs or better yet, put new springs in. Also look at the seats where the balls rest. If the water leaks past them, it will overheat at idle.
 
Finally got the boat ready for splash. Tons of work, but well worth the restoration. Srtipping the bottom to gelcoat, wet sanding the entire boat and buffing, removing stripping and refinishing the rub rail, and stretching the swim platform were huge jobs! Ken, here are some photos of the stretched swim platform that I built.
 
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I like the chrome looking 300 DA over the grab rail! I NEED those! I accidentally wax off my starboard Sea Ray emblem, so I need to figure out how to reattach it or get a new pair! I still have the old one and figured I could use it SOMEWHERE!!

Nice looking swim step! How much to alter mine??? :grin:
 
Finally got the boat ready for splash. Tons of work, but well worth the restoration. Srtipping the bottom to gelcoat, wet sanding the entire boat and buffing, removing stripping and refinishing the rub rail, and stretching the swim platform were huge jobs! Ken, here are some photos of the stretched swim platform that I built.

Love the name and the swim platform. I will be doing that as soon as I find the time. Is the 300 from a Benz or a Chrysler? Looks good.

The flappers are right at the top of the Y pipe, I will post a picture this week.

Edit for this info
The 300 name plate from Benz is worth 33.65 Canadian and the part number is 124 817 16 15



Ken
 
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I didn't find any flappers or pieces in the system so I installed sets on both engines. I think I have the heating issue solved. The water supply hose from the leg to the transom housing was kinked over half its 3/4" ID. It looked like heater hose only stiffer. It seemed to be too long and the mechanic that installed it last year didn't trim it down. I mentioned to them that it looked a bit kinked and they said it was supposed to be that way, my BS alarm started to sound at that point.
Anyway, I replaced that hose on both drives with 3/4" wet exhaust hose with the wire reinforcement in the jacket, that shouldn't kink. I ran her for about 30 min at idle returning to the dock and she ran rock steady at 145 both engines. We'll see what happens at higher rpms soon, (never heated there) and also as the water temps increase, mid 60s now.
 
Sundancer, The 300 emblem is chrome plated plastic individual numbers from Autozone, $1.50 each. I also put them on the sides of the boat where the orig. decals were. I removed all of the topside striping. I will post some pics of the underside of the platform. I need to resize them... files too big to post. Also have pics of the completed cocpit.
 
Sundancer, The 300 emblem is chrome plated plastic individual numbers from Autozone, $1.50 each. I also put them on the sides of the boat where the orig. decals were. I removed all of the topside striping. I will post some pics of the underside of the platform. I need to resize them... files too big to post. Also have pics of the completed cocpit.

Would love to see those pictures. I am removing my swim platform (Monday June 14) and have till the end of next weekend to get it finished. I am thinking about adding 18 to 24" this would allow me to put the new tender on the platform. The marina is installing a new counter rotating drive this week so the timing perfect for the platform project.
Did you raise your swim platform higher up, I'm thinking on moving mine up 3 or 4"

Ken
 
Has anyone taken off the aft seat that hides the AC, just can not find howto do it?
 
AC seat at dinette.
My seat top just lifts off, no hinges or locks.



My fridge is only working on 120V, I have power to the breaker but I still need to check the wires at the fridge but this means pulling the fridge. Does anyone know if they put an inline fuse at the back of the fridge for the 12v?

Ken
 

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