Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

[MahtyMaht]

I'm a nervous new parent. Got a used 1988 454 in this tub, got the Bravo 1 bearing carrier, new rear bearing, straightened prop shaft in. Transom assy's installed, got the engine aligned, outdrive's on, trim cylinders hooked up, bypassed the dead trim limit switch. Wired up the electric choke, temp and oil pressure senders and switches, got the t-bolt IV and coil hooked up, adjusted the shift and throttle linkage, speedo tube hooked up. I guess my problem now, is that I am scared I will have forgotten something. This can't be a new problem, what to watch out for - I'm thinkin 1st, is it takin' water, then, will it light off, then does it vibrate or sound wrong, then does it shift, then does it overheat. I'm thinkin 15 minutes in, I'll know if I need to take it off the trailer to load test, or scat on back to the dry dock. What am I missin', people

 

[Don S]

Re: Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

Haven't you run it on muffs to make sure everything works before you head to the water, if not. DO SO.

 

[thumpar]

Re: Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

I was thinking the same as Don and don't forget the plug.

 

[Bifflefan]

Re: Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

My first outing after doing all that plus some, I just went to a ramp during the week and there was no one there. Backed it in and let her run on the trailer for an hour just see what happened. For me I was good to go so backed if off and tooled around a bit.
I had the engine cover off all the time to see what was going on.

Dont forget the plug and the blower if your engine cover is on.

 

[howlnmad]

Re: Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

Bilge pump hooked up and working?

 

[Joshua Nichols]

Re: Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

You may laugh at the plug.. I saw a guy forget to put his in and it filled his boat up so fast it pulled his truck into the lake from the weight... Always check to be sure its in.. Check twice and carry a extra

 

[roncoop75]

Re: Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

I know the feeling. I've done so many little things and a few big things that I'm sure I've screwed one of them up.

First time at the ramp after the repairs and only second time total... ya, I left the plug out. I noticed it while still on the trailer though and only had about an inch of water in it.

Go to an empty ramp, alone, with no expectations and a LOT of time.

 

[sethjon]

Re: Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

You may laugh at the plug.. I saw a guy forget to put his in and it filled his boat up so fast it pulled his truck into the lake from the weight... Always check to be sure its in.. Check twice and carry a extra

Great advice. My son learned that the hard way but got lucky and jumped in with the plug just in time to stop a disaster.

 

[bigdan1]

Re: Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

I`m due to do just this too....get the boat in the water for first time after engine change + maintenance....

ill back up just so that the outdrive is in water to do some testing first .....

tha plug is already screwed in the transom lollll

I started it on muffs for over 1/2 hour already .....temp: 150 oil press: 40

timing at 10 deg ....

go when there is no one around ..........stress kills fun !

 

[Friscoboater]

Re: Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

I know that feeling all to well. Check out my thread and you will get to see my first day test. No one around except for my family, and the camera. Good luck.

 

[Joshua Nichols]

Re: Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

Funny how no one wants anyone around.. Other people don't stress me out at all.. I guess it helps I am 6'2" 295. lol I am stuck using a public ramp... Even have to pay to use the one close to the house..$5.. Now the nearest free one has 8 lanes... People everywhere, but not like you can hold much up there... People need to help each other.. I would gladly help a fella out at the ramp...

 

[Dshow]

Re: Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

Im sure part of the no one around comment is also due to ramp courtesy... If you've got people waiting in line to get their boats out and someone is working on their boat on the ramp, it can be very frustrating...

 

[MahtyMaht]

Re: Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

Yeah, it's a ramp courtesy thing. Hey, Don, you durned skippy I ran it in the yard first. I slung it from a couple of come-alongs, and semi-supported it underneath, adapted the garden hose to the pump hose. Cam sounded great, elbows stayed cool over 20 minutes, good response to throttle blips. It's just that I've messed with wiring, installed a new bravo1 bearing carrier and seals, got no shift linkage adjustment tool, lots of other stuff. I still haven't made it to the water yet, though. The stainless exhaust tip screws have wallered out holes now, so I have made some aluminum blocks to epoxy inside transom with 1/4 - thread holes to threu bolt'em. What a pita. This saturday, baby!!! May the force be with me, and thanks for the responses, guys

PS We're not starting the trip to the ramp without the plug installed.

 

[MahtyMaht]

Re: Goin' to the ramp tomorrow- EEEK!

Made it to the water with that thang. It ran fine, but the temp sensor is pegged, so I guess I'll run around yankin' wires till it drops, then I'll know which one it is. What's really buggin' me is the oil collecting in the pan of the Endelbrock airgap intake, below the runners. Maybe a half a shot glass every 15 minutes of run time. I think there was a hack workin' on the boat for the PO, and there's this huge squeeze bead of clear silicone at the manifold gasket. Why do I think he cocked it up somehow? Where would oil be comming from?