A Quick Fix to Get The Boat Home

As we found out last time the boat looks like a chain smoker and I still needed to get it to my parents cottage. The problem was that the boat would not start with out extra throttle and while trying to shift into gear the engine would choke and die. After recharging the battery I came up with a quick fix so that I could get home I adjusted the throttle linkage to open up the primaries during idle. This allowed me to get the boat home and put it on my makeshift mooring of 4 cinder blocks. Before the carb rebuild my boat did not have a smoking problem. This helps narrow down what the issues is. I think the choke is set wrong and the choke is staying on all of the time. Also, the accelerator pump might need adjusting. The bigger problem is that there is no dock at the cottage and the weather was great for sailing but not for working on boats. Sadly the boat did not get worked on and the next time I will be able to get to the cottage I will be winterizing the boat instead of skiing behind it.

Tough Starting

Well, I installed my carb back onto the boat and took it for a test run, or at least I thought I was about to. With the battery all charged up I took the boat to the lake. While attempting to start the boat with out any extra throttle the engine would turn over but not fire up. So, I pulled the neutral pin and gave it some gas. Eureka, it started up right away but it was running really rich. The boat was sending up a column of blackish blue smoke like and old coal burning train. finally to top it all off the battery died after too many attempts to start the boat in neutral.

New Boat

   I have been looking for a ski boat in my budget for about a year now.  It started when I started working as the Water Ski Director at a summer camp.  After skiing behind Mastercrafts all summer there was no way I could go back to my Dad's big wake throwing deck boat.  My budget was small but I had plenty of time to wait for the perfect boat.
   I finally found a boat in my budget.  It is a 1985 Sylvan Ski-Tastic.  The boat needs some work and is not a collector boat.   I met with the owner and took it out for a test drive.  It has two big problems, one is a major vibration and the other is a lack of top end power.  Apparently the vibration was started after the owner hit a stump.  I am taking an educated guess that the lack of power is a carb issue.  Here are a few photos of the boat.

Minor issues with the boat are
ripped interior
drivers seat is not original and sits too high
gelcoat and teak platform are dull
trailer jack is not sturdy and unsafe
stereo is old and speakers don't work
no glove box or cup holders
carpet is dirty and doesn't match
bow vents are bent
speedometers don't work
horn doesn't work

I will keep posting with each part of the boat that I fix.

~Ryan