New Member -looking for diesel power boat

F

fighterpilot

Member
Nov 30, 2009
50
panhandle Florida
Boat Info
2550 WA Hydrasport
Stamas 32 Sportfisherman
Californian 34 LRC
Engines
200 Johnsons
454 Crusaders
3208NA 210hp
I'm looking for my 4th boat in 5 years, trying to get it right this time. Looking for 31-41 ft, salon type boat with lower helm and diesel power. We cruise out to the Gulf about 24 miles to the pass and than 24 miles out, or so, bottom fish for the most part, family, grandkids etc. Also want to cruise the bays and Inland water ways--picnic and anchor overnite, and in the winter fish the bays. Must be able to drive the boat from the lower helm--need A/C in the summer. Upper helm desired as well but not a hard requirement. I have had a Chris Craft Commander, upper helm only, than a 29 Ft. Aquasport Tournament Master, express type boat-these both had yanmar diesels and now have a Hydrasports 2550 WA with twin200 Johnsons. Great fishing boat but no salon and I don't want to mess with the ethanol gas anymore. Bought the 32 Stamas with intentions of converting to diesel but no one upgrading so running take outs are not there. I prefer Cummins.

So I still look for one with diesels already in place. Hence my interest in a couple of 1985 Sea Ray 390s. Need some dialogue with experienced owners. Thanks
 
You aren't going to get much of a response since the boat you are looking at is rare. I think yachtworld only shows 4 in the world and I only noticed one diesel. The one CSR member with a 390SF has gas engines.

For your intended use, I would encourage you to broaden your scope to include the 43/44 Convertible from the late 80's. Almost all were diesel and a few were ordered with lower stations.

Good luck with your search...........
 
Thanks for the reply. Was the 390 express/cruiser on the same hull? Would the handling, construction, be similar so I could extrapolate from them? Access to the engines is important to me--would that be the same? Thanks
 
Where are you located? Eglin? Tyndall? It wouldn't be Pensacola because your name would be "Single seat naval aviator," or something like that.
 
I believe the hulls were identical. And there are some handling quirks due to the extremely shallow draft and deep prop pockets. These are not very good sea boats for heavy conditions...anything more than 8 ft and the props can break loose if the period between waves is short. That makes you slow down and slowing down keeps you in the slop that much longer. Cross wind handling is also a challenge since there isn't a lot of boat under the water and the 390 hull will try to weather vane. The other boat I suggested, i.e. 43/44 CV, has none of those handling issues.

Engine access on the 390EC is excellent since there are 3 giant removeable hatches which completely opens up the area above the engines. However, the more deckhouse and furniture you pile up around it, the harder it will be to remove the hatches and do what you need to do. We owned a 390EC for almost 10 years and found that removing the center hatch was really all that was needed to do anything a normal owner/D-I-Y boater wants to do on his own.
 
Treasure Island Marine in Panama City has a very nice 37 EC with diesels that you may want to consider. I think it is a '97~'98 model. I'm sure the price is negotiable.:thumbsup: I fished out of one of these not long ago and was very pleased with it.

You can google their website.
 
The 370EC is a great boat but it means the original poster would have to ride in un-air conditioned space........

The 370EC is Caterpillar powered, about 650 hours, is loaded, has been fished regularly and needs some TLC, but can be easily made like new. This isn't a distress sale and the owner isn't desparate, but he does want to move up and has located a 45 Cabo he wants to buy and is afraid he'll lose the Cabo if he doesn't react soon. I believe his thinking is that he'll make up any loss he takes on the Sea Ray when he buys the Cabo. Don't make an offer on this one if you don't want to own it.
 
You could look at the Australian built Riviera. either the 33 or the 37. but you can go bigger Some did come with the lower helm. Most with diesel cummins or volvo some with cats. I have the 37 brilliant boat

I have seen them for sale in the USA

below are a couple of pics of my boat

DSC_2706.jpg


DSC_2704.jpg
 
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Ozzie-iv said:
You could look at the Australian built Riviera. either the 33 or the 37. but you can go bigger Some did come with the lower helm. Most with diesel cummins or volvo some with cats. I have the 37 brilliant boat

I have seen them for sale in the USA

below are a couple of pics of my boat

DSC_2706.jpg


DSC_2704.jpg
Click to expand...

Yep, my dad had an '03 40 and now an '06 47 G2, we fish it all over the West Coast, pretty good boat for cruising, great boat for fishing. There are several 33's on the West Coast with lower helms (I helped deliver two). I have not checked yachtworld, but there are usually a few available to look at in Texas and the Gulf Coast.
 
Glad to get some more information. Since we don't go out if more than 3 foot seas the handling won't be a big driver. Docking for us on the bay means weather vane is of interest. The large three hatch doors over the engines is great because I do most of the routine maintenance. My Stamas is that way. Aussie boats are beautiful but above my budget. I'm out of the Pensacola area and am an old F8 supersonic, single seat, Crusader pilot. Vietnam era type. Thanks for the additonal information.
 
"The 370EC is a great boat but it means the original poster would have to ride in un-air conditioned space........"

Frank,

The new owner of my 390 had to replace the salon air not long after he took delivery. In the process of replacing it, he had a marine A/C mechanic in New Orleans set up a decent size vent at the helm. This vent is fed by a piece of flex duct attached to a good capacity "squirrel cage" blower that is pulling suction from the cabin just above the fridge. The salon/galley is now cooled/heated by a strong 16K BTU unit that does a good job of cooling the salon and providing a source of cool air for the helm.

I haven't seen pics of this rig yet but when I get them I will post. Sounds like it might work.

Fighter Pilot,

I came across a 390 Sport Fish for sale in Jacksonville a few months back that has 3208s and a custom hinged tower that was done here by Pipe Welders. I will see if I can get a line on it and send it to you. With numbers as low as they have been in years...you might consider a mid '90s 44 Express Bridge with Cat 3116s. The boat has a great layout and may be a bit friendlier in wind than the 390. I honestly can't imagine trying to maneuver a "layer caked" 390 hull in close quarters in the wind. As Frank said..a 390 EC is a hand full in those conditions. The boats just don't have enough hull in the water to prevent them from weather vaneing all over a marina.

If I can locate that 390 I'll get back to you.

John F

P.S. I found this one http://www.boattrader.com/listing/1985-Sea-Ray-390-Sedan--Very-Rare-Sportfish!!-Must-See!!!-94916980
 
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in regards to Maintenance I can crawl on 3 sides of my engines the 4th is where the gearboxes are with exhaust so a bit hard to get through there. The 37 Riv has 2 6bta's 370hp

Considering this boat is smaller than my 400db with 8.1 which I struggled to get spark plugs into the difference in layouts probably allows for ease of access

Ozzie
 
The boat in Fl. is the one that prompted me to try to find out more information about Sea Rays. I had read Pascoes reviews and heard of negative comments about them but thought I would try to get first hand information. Regarding the boat with 3116 engines I would pass with any boat with that engine unless it was cheap enough for me to replace with some other engines. Notwithstanding the negative comments about the Sea Rays, if I could find one with Cummins I would be more interested. The Deep V aspect of the hull gives me some concern since we are at anchor more than we are pounding through heavy seas. If more than 4 feet seas we don't go. I have ruled out the Bertrams for that reason but thought I would try to get first hand infromation about the Sea Ray Deep V to see if it is a hull like the Bertrams. Thanks for the infromation.
 
I will say that the 390EC for me was a great compromise. It handled 3~5 ft seas very well and after I got used to it...I would idle up into 3 ft water regularly. I developed some real skill though backing it into a slip in windy conditions.
 
I found a 390 SF with 3208s and Air Conditioned Fly Bridge (single station) if you are interested. Boat is in South Florida.

I have pics
 
Im curious what negative info you read regarding Sea Rays. Im on my 3rd Sea Ray and am personally 100% satisfied with their performance and design. I crossed the channel from Catalina Island with 3-5' seas with 5 other boats in our group ( 34-38 footers) and half way across, the seas built to 10' with 20 knot winds. Out of the 5 boats that went to the Island with us only 2 made it back to port without turning around. I credit the weight and beam of my 36' Sea Ray for its stability and recovery in heavy seas. Hard to find a 14' beam on a 36' boat.
 
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