Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

[HeloMech]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

well THAT was horrible!! Entirely too much drag for that thing to even be worth launching again. It doesn't help that I'm at 7,000' level to test it out. What a HUGE difference over my 17' with the same engine. Boat in neutral, engine runs great. Revs freely. Put it in gear, it's like you seriously forgot the anchor or parking brake. Not sure if the speedo is working, I forgot my GPS. Best speed today indicated on speedo was about 22mph and it had trouble getting to 3000 rpm without a tail wind. Guy at the marina suggested trying a 14x17P blade to help out wih the altitude. I might just head down the hill to normal altitudes and see how differently it works out. Needs a V8 and Nitrous...

 

[NYBo]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

What was your RPM at WOT? You may have to go to a 14x15 prop.

 

[HeloMech]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

WOT, it would fall on it's face, bog down and lose rpm's. the best rpm I ever saw was 3200. Off the line, if you tried to just punch it, dead on it's face. With the boat in neutral, you could just nail it and it would rev quick and clean. The 3200 was after finding a throttle position where it wouldn't choke, then playing with the trim. I think I might have seen 3200 twice.

I need to take it down the hill and see what it does down there before investing in another prop. Unless I can find a place that rents them so I can find what works.

 

[spoilsofwar]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

Yeah, pretty much what we were afraid of. If you couldn't get to rated WOT RPM though, there may be some hope. A re-prop with significant drop in pitch is definitely going to be in order provided there is no other reason why the engine fails to achieve peak RPM.

Also, while a four blade prop will generally turn a little less RPM at a given pitch then a three blade, I still think a four blade will be your best bet trying to get that beast out of its own hole.

I'm not trying to be a downer at all, because as I said before you got a good deal regardless... but you may need to reevaluate your expectations for this boat. I honestly think it is going to be an unpleasant craft to operate no matter what you do to it, short of adding at least two and probably four cylinders. This boat should never have been built with that engine.

 

[HeloMech]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

Yeah, while it's not going to be pulling a skier out of the water, it was still a day on the water and not at the office.

I'll see what the prop change does for it. Either way, it's on the trading block next season. Bigger is better... aft cabin... sooner or later. lol

 

[Quit It]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

Yeah, while it's not going to be pulling a skier out of the water, it was still a day on the water and not at the office.

Great attitude. I hope to remember it

 

[spoilsofwar]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

Yeah, while it's not going to be pulling a skier out of the water, it was still a day on the water and not at the office.

I hear ya. A lot of my day's out on the water just consist of me launching the boat, running a few miles down the river, and then tying up at the Alex Bay docks to hang out. When the ignition switch is turned to off, it doesn't really matter how fast they go

 

[jestor68]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

Interesting. When I look up that boat in the NADA guide, it lists it as having 250hp.

Perhaps someone re powered it with whatever was handy and cheapest; the four banger. :facepalm:

Now we know why it was a good deal.

 

[bekosh]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

Interesting. When I look up that boat in the NADA guide, it lists it as having 250hp.

Perhaps someone re powered it with whatever was handy and cheapest; the four banger. :facepalm:

Now we know why it was a good deal.

I'm totally shocked, but that boat came stock from the factory with the choice of a 3.0l or a 4.3l.

I had the older version of that boat, a 91 Eclipse 216XL, with a 7.4l and she'd hit 60mph and cruise at 40mph.
I wouldn't want it with less than a small block V8 personally.

 

[HeloMech]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

That dealer info is quite interesting. It lists 3.0+ seconds to plane with a top speed of about 42mph. I would actually be happy with those stats. I will most definitely get it down the hill and swap props to see what works out.

 

[jestor68]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

At your altitude, I would try a 15.5 X 15 Solas aluminum. At a lower altitude, you could probably get by with the 15.5 X 17.

 

[HeloMech]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

What about at sea level, or a max of 1500' or so? Wondering what would have come standard on this configuration...

 

[TomB985]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

I hear ya. A lot of my day's out on the water just consist of me launching the boat, running a few miles down the river, and then tying up at the Alex Bay docks to hang out. When the ignition switch is turned to off, it doesn't really matter how fast they go

You guys are bringing back some memories talking about Drum. I was there from '04-'07, and my wife is from Sackets Harbor!

And Robert, if you haven't, I'd recommend dropping by the Mercruiser subforum further down the main forum page. Lots of great folks there that may be able to help you get your engine sorted out. It certainly should not bog down and die when you give it the juice, and so that should be your first priority even before looking at other props. Do you have old gas with water in it?

 

[HeloMech]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

Hm, will have to check that subforum.
I'm not sure about water in the gas. The boat sat since last season. Gas cap was tight. There was maybe 1/3 tank of gas in there. I've added a can of seafoam. It had some of the marine Stabil in it. I've since topped it off with super unleaded. Boat runs great in neutral. Idles nice and smooth... it's not like a helicopter. I can't just go to the drain and grab a jar of fuel. lol

 

[04fxdwgi]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

1st, let me say "Thank You for Your Service" from a Military family here.

After a tank is run thru and she's full of "new" fuel, if she keeps falling flat on her face, maybe it's time for a tuneup and maybe a carb / carb rebuild.

The 3.0 seems a tad smallish for a 21', but have seen them before. Not speed demons, but get the job done, just takes a little longer. Sounds like you have some extra gremlins.

Since you are someone I bow to on getting deals in trades, maybe you can wheel and deal a "donor boat" with a good SB Chevy and drive and swap over, dumping what ever you have left over, ie: the 3.0 and drive, and maybe comining out ahead in the deal and having a little screamer worth a ton more than you have in her, to boot.

 

[HeloMech]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

I picked up a couple of used props yesterday along with a few other accessories from an ad on craigslist. I removed the 4blade 14/20p prop and installed a 3blade, 14x19p composite prop. I took the boat back out to big bear lake again to see if there was any difference. I remembered to bring the GPS with me today as well. The prop, if anything, was worse. On the GPS I could hit about 18 mph. I thought maybe the air cleaner was restricting airflow, so I pulled it off... no change. I decided to see if advancing the timing would do anything. I started the boat and let it idle. I moved the distributor until I was right around 1k rpms. It was a bit low before. Snugged it up and tried again. HUGE improvement. Still not much of a holeshot at that altitude, but I am now able to get 30mph on the gps. Now, looking forward to getting it in the water at a lower altitude. I plan on running it on the watermuffs and hitting it with a timing light to see where it's at and where it needs to be. Much happier with the boat already.

 

[TomB985]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

That's great to hear, 30 MPH is respectable for a boat that size with the 3.0L Merc. Keep us updated!

 

[jbillingsley]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

I'm amazed that you can get it on plane.

 

[jbillingsley]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

What gear ratio is your outdrive? I worked at a Wellcraft dealership in the 90's and never saw a 21' sold with anything less than a 305ci V8.

 

[MrShaggs]

Re: Latest trade project: 1995 Wellcraft 21' cuddy cabin, mercruiser 3.0

If you get bored of it, let me know. I grew up with a severely underpowered Wellcraft Excel 19SL with a 4 banger. I don't really ski or wakeboard anymore due to a ruptured disc in my neck. I'm in NorCal, Sonoma County. I work in auto biz and have swapped motors before. I like the small boat size with a cabin as it's just me, the lady, and dogs. This would be a perfect weekender for me. You aren't gonna squeeze any more speed out of it. The Comprops 4 blade usually are the fastest to plane on these boats/outdrives.