Newbie 1986 Sundancer Questions

B

Bryansumrell

New Member
Dec 11, 2011
6
Edenton,NC
Boat Info
1986 268 Sundancer
Engines
(1) Mercruiser 260 hp, Alpha 1 outdrive
I am the proud new owner my first SeaRay. 1986 268 Sundancer. In great shape just needing a little tlc, hoping to splash it by Christmas. This is the narrow beam 8' I think with 1 260 Merc, Alpha 1 outdrive swinging 15.25 x 15 prop. Can anyone give me some performance specs on this thing? WOT rpm and speed and cruise rpm and speed and most importantly any idea of fuel mileage or gph? We are coming off of a 1996 Bayliner 1952 cuddy that we've owned and ridden for almost 4 years. In say a 2-3 foot chop it would beat your teeth out. Having never been on a SeaRay I hafta ask, will our 268 ride any better? Thanks for any advice or info. Bryan
 
Welcome Bryan. There are quite a few 268 guys on here so hopefully you will get some info soon.
 
Welcome to the oldies but gooodies dept.
The boats....not us
 
Got one! And I love it.

Sea Rays have about the deepest cut v's built so blasting waves is not a problem. They offer a smooth and most importantly a dry ride in heavy seas. Being they are narrow with a deep cut V, they do wallow some from side to side in a beam sea, so make sure newbie boaters are loaded with Dramamine...:smt101 I've had more people barf on this boat than any other I've had...LOL!.

Also, being that she's a narrow beam boat, you will be on the trim tabs quite often to keep her level especially if you have people wandering around the boat while you are cruising.

I've got the 330hp big block with the Alpha drive. I get pretty decent fuel mileage for an 8500lb boat.

If you have the 260HP small block, your boat will probably struggle some getting her up on plane and staying on plane at lower speeds.

I went to a 16x16 prop so the ole girl stays on plane at 17/18 mph. Here in the Great Lakes, you are almost always dealing with at least a 3ft chop, so staying on plane at slower speeds is a must. My top speed is 31 and maybe tick 32 on the right day with a 1/4 tank of fuel and 2 adults on board. She's no speed demon, but she's a tank.

When I bought mine in August of 2010, I discovered she had a wet transom and stringers. I tore everything out of her from the transom to the bathroom and installed new stringers, supports and transom. I also rebuilt the engine, transom bracket and drive. I've been through every inch of this boat so feel free to ask questions. The 86's are very similar to the 88's as far as I know.

Bob

Here are a few pics:
BoatinFrenzy.jpg

100_6741-1.jpg


She catches fish and wins salmon tournament too!
100_7047.jpg
 
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You'll be impressed with the ride of your new SR. I wanted to cancel the appointment I had with the previous owner of mine for the sea trial because at the time hurrricane Andrew was just off the coast and heading our way. He replied "no problem, c'mon over". Long story short, the ride was one I would have never attempted myself but she took the weather like a walk in the park. As far as GPH, it was pretty horrible til I replaced the Q-jet carb with an Edelbrock. Much better performance and slowed down the fuel guage immensely.
 
I went to a 16x16 three blade on my Alpha drive. Best performance yet for my boat.

She planes easy and stays on plane at low speeds (17-18mph).

Top speed is 32mph with the big block twisting it.
 
Hey Getaway,
You sure have lots of fishing goodies on your boat.:thumbsup:
 
Thanks Tail Chaser. We take our sport fishing seriously up here.:grin:
 
Out in my waters. Most lesser boats head back in during the afternooon whitecap and swells.
I have my own little joke for these guys. Whitecap? What whitecap. :huh:LOL

The 16x16 is a great prop for these boats. Per a local prop shop. (I never used it)
Performance numbers may be.... WOT 4200/4600 RPM. doing 32 mph or a little better.
Cruise may be.... 3600 RPM @ 26MPH with small block.
My MPG was only 1.4 avg.

My new engine/drive...
WOT 5000rpm doing 44 mph (underproped)
Cruise 3150 RPM doing 27 MPH Burning 10.5 GPH if I recall.(only 2 sea trials of 75miles)
Boat jumps to life at 3200RPM (Crazy Fun)

Girl friend had never been on a private boat before.
1st sea trial after dark... Waves overhead. She just sat in the helm chair enjoying the ride the entire time.
Up some steep faces, Wild fast ride down the backsides, then tested through the troughs. then ride the waves back in. She couldnt believe how smooth the boat ran. On the throttle, over 3200RPM seemed the boat was going to jump forward out of the wave and water.:wow::grin:

We didnt sit and fish in these condition though. Boat pitches too much at rest. Not even safe with the outside sets rolling in.
 
In the Great Lakes the waves are closer together than what you see in the ocean. My boat loves a 4ft following sea. She gets right up on top and straddles the waves making for a really smooth ride. In my old boat, I'd never think of running 30 in 4ft seas, but this boat loves them. Had her in 10fters once and she plows along at 12-13 mph into the seas only washing the bow once in a while :wow:. I'm not in a rush to do that again. Is that 8.1 ltr you have just a souped up 454? Sounds like just the right amount of power for these ole girls.:thumbsup:
 
Getaway said:
In the Great Lakes the waves are closer together than what you see in the ocean. My boat loves a 4ft following sea. She gets right up on top and straddles the waves making for a really smooth ride. In my old boat, I'd never think of running 30 in 4ft seas, but this boat loves them. Had her in 10fters once and she plows along at 12-13 mph into the seas only washing the bow once in a while :wow:. I'm not in a rush to do that again. Is that 8.1 ltr you have just a souped up 454? Sounds like just the right amount of power for these ole girls.:thumbsup:
Click to expand...

The 8.1 does not have a single piece off the 454ci.
New design of the block, complete engine makeover. Nothings interchangable.
 
That's right, those are the new LS motors like they put in Chevy trucks. Very cool!
 
Bryansumrell said:
I am the proud new owner my first SeaRay. 1986 268 Sundancer. In great shape just needing a little tlc, hoping to splash it by Christmas. This is the narrow beam 8' I think with 1 260 Merc, Alpha 1 outdrive swinging 15.25 x 15 prop. Can anyone give me some performance specs on this thing? WOT rpm and speed and cruise rpm and speed and most importantly any idea of fuel mileage or gph? We are coming off of a 1996 Bayliner 1952 cuddy that we've owned and ridden for almost 4 years. In say a 2-3 foot chop it would beat your teeth out. Having never been on a SeaRay I hafta ask, will our 268 ride any better? Thanks for any advice or info. Bryan
Click to expand...

Welcome Bryan! How about some pics of your new ride?
 
JoRay said:
. As far as GPH, it was pretty horrible til I replaced the Q-jet carb with an Edelbrock. Much better performance and slowed down the fuel guage immensely.
Click to expand...
How much of an improvement in fuel economy did you notice?
 
Bryansumrell said:
I am the proud new owner my first SeaRay. 1986 268 Sundancer. In great shape just needing a little tlc, hoping to splash it by Christmas. This is the narrow beam 8' I think with 1 260 Merc, Alpha 1 outdrive swinging 15.25 x 15 prop. Can anyone give me some performance specs on this thing? WOT rpm and speed and cruise rpm and speed and most importantly any idea of fuel mileage or gph? We are coming off of a 1996 Bayliner 1952 cuddy that we've owned and ridden for almost 4 years. In say a 2-3 foot chop it would beat your teeth out. Having never been on a SeaRay I hafta ask, will our 268 ride any better? Thanks for any advice or info. Bryan
Click to expand...

I agree with Getaway. I have the same boat as you. I use a 15 X 17 four bladed prop and I've found it to work well. My WOT is about 4300 and I cruise at 3200 and 25 mph. I don't really know about the GPH, but it doesn't seem too bad. I still have the original Q-jet and was afraid if I changed it my GPH would get worse.

Getaway is also right about being tippy. While underway, if people are walking around, you will be all over the trim tabs. The beam is 8'6" though. Ours (the 260hp 350ci, Alpha one) weights in a around 5500lbs dry.

The one thing I really disliked on the 268 was the transom seat, so I re-worked it.
DSC01107.JPG
It still folds down out of the way, but needs to be removed to open the engine hatch fully. BTW, another great thing about the 268, it's super easy to work on. A friend of mine has a 90's 24' Maxum and you need to be 4' tall and a 100lbs to work in the bilge.
Rob
 
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