New boat owner needs advice

[LGS.AZ]

I just inherited my first boat, a 1981 Centurion w/ a Chevy 454 IB. The boat has been sitting, covered, for 10 years. I need to change oil, gas, and other fluids but not sure how to access oil pan drain plug or empty gas tank. What other maintenance is necessary before trying to start engine? How do I run water thru engine to cool? Any & all help will be greatly appreciated.

 

[Bondo]

Re: New boat owner needs advice

I just inherited my first boat, a 1981 Centurion w/ a Chevy 454 IB. The boat has been sitting, covered, for 10 years. I need to change oil, gas, and other fluids but not sure how to access oil pan drain plug or empty gas tank. What other maintenance is necessary before trying to start engine? How do I run water thru engine to cool? Any & all help will be greatly appreciated.

Ayuh,.... Welcome Aboard,.... So,... Just how Handy are ya,..??

While not everything will apply to yer Inboard, much of the Info is relevant, 'n important,...
Have a read through Here to get an idea of what needs lookin' at, 'n where it is, 'n what it's called....

Get a vacuum sucker type oil removal tool,...
It'll pull the oil out the dipstick tube, 'n can be used to pull the gas from the tank...

Yer motor will have an impeller pump on it, change the rubber impeller, 'n feed it water to run the motor...

 

[ktbarrentine]

Re: New boat owner needs advice

Hiya! Welcome aboard.... Sent you a PM.

 

[LGS.AZ]

Re: New boat owner needs advice

Hey, Thanks for the link, it is very helpful!! I am just handy enough to get into trouble but my son in law is a mechanic and auto enthusiast. He is willing to help with this project. I read thru the link and learned alot. My next step is to send a pic & ID# to Centurion and find out the model and availability of owners manual. I live in the Phoenix area and have several lakes relatively near by plus the Colorado river a couple of hours away to the West and Lake Powell to the North. Getting very excited about putting the boat on the water. Should the boat have a name? Thanks again.

 

[Ned L]

Re: New boat owner needs advice

LGS, - Good information there, but keep in mind that your boat is an inboard and therefore some things are a bit different (mostly all in the 'drive train'). After being out of service for ten years you should check the shaft alignment (nothing like on an inboard/outboard). To do this you need to remove the coupling bolts that couple the propeller shaft coupling to the reverse gear coupling (usually six bolts for a traditional coupling). When you move the prop shaft back away from the reverse gear, and then back forward, the two coupling flanges should match up dead on with no coaxing of the shaft, and the faces of the two coupling halfs should mate up so nothing more than a .003" feeler gauge can be slipped bewteen them at any point. If things line up fine then you are all set, if not you need to align the engine to the shaft (move it around on it's adjustable mounts) until things line up correctly.
Inboards are the most trouble free set up between the three, but like everything they all need maintenance.