Augoose
Lieutenant Junior Grade
- Joined
- Mar 21, 2010
- Messages
- 1,220
Just bought it last week. Superb condition for 21 years old. NADA listed a low retail, which I don't think applies here due to the condition of the boat, of $3,010 and a high retail of $3,385. I picked it up, with trailer, for $2500. I took it out for several hours over the weekend and only had 3 issues. I think the shift interrupter is failing or I have a shift cable with the incorrect tension. When shifting from forward to reverse the engine dies and I think it is because I'm losing spark. Occasionally it will not want to start unless I gently push the shifter forward and back a little and when I find the sweet spot, it starts right up.
The second issue is that when I turn on the nav lights, it trips the small breaker next to the switch. Sounds like I have 12v going to ground somewhere?
The last issue is the blower and it is a simple one. The blower was working but it was making a horrible sound. After about 10 seconds, it stopped altogether so I quickly shut down and opened the cover over the engine to vent any fumes. I pulled the blower and looked inside - two broken fins. Apparently when one of the fins broke away and went flying down the line, it caught the 12v power line and disconnected it from the motor. Glad it happened that way and shut itself down!
I ran the boat all day and once it was out and on the trailer, I started an inspection. I had replaced both the lower unit drain and fill plugs/screws and I was happy to see that there seemed to be no water getting in. There were some metal shavings stuck to the screws but I've read here on the forum that is fairly common. I checked the engine oil and saw no indication of water in the oil, so that was great news as well. The engine kept a consistent 150 degree operating temp and the oil pressure held steady at about 60 psi. The steering is responsive, the engine throttles up nicely despite the shift interrupter issue, and it handles well on the water.
I'm very happy with the boat and am looking forward to digging into the huge volume of technical info that can be found on this site. I just got done rebuilding a old CJ7 Golden Eagle last year and found the different jeep forums to extremely valuable - I don't foresee anything less from iboats!
Thanks to all for all the info so far!
The second issue is that when I turn on the nav lights, it trips the small breaker next to the switch. Sounds like I have 12v going to ground somewhere?
The last issue is the blower and it is a simple one. The blower was working but it was making a horrible sound. After about 10 seconds, it stopped altogether so I quickly shut down and opened the cover over the engine to vent any fumes. I pulled the blower and looked inside - two broken fins. Apparently when one of the fins broke away and went flying down the line, it caught the 12v power line and disconnected it from the motor. Glad it happened that way and shut itself down!
I ran the boat all day and once it was out and on the trailer, I started an inspection. I had replaced both the lower unit drain and fill plugs/screws and I was happy to see that there seemed to be no water getting in. There were some metal shavings stuck to the screws but I've read here on the forum that is fairly common. I checked the engine oil and saw no indication of water in the oil, so that was great news as well. The engine kept a consistent 150 degree operating temp and the oil pressure held steady at about 60 psi. The steering is responsive, the engine throttles up nicely despite the shift interrupter issue, and it handles well on the water.
I'm very happy with the boat and am looking forward to digging into the huge volume of technical info that can be found on this site. I just got done rebuilding a old CJ7 Golden Eagle last year and found the different jeep forums to extremely valuable - I don't foresee anything less from iboats!
Thanks to all for all the info so far!
