The understatement of the century, and it's only 2016. Stay tuned. Never a dull one with the Bird.
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The understatement of the century, and it's only 2016. Stay tuned. Never a dull one with the Bird.
Well, another opportunity will be coming up week after next when I fly down to Clearwater for a little Gulf crossing cruise with Robby and Brenda who are headed back to Alabama for the summer. Should be a fun trip, but you never know. Stay tuned.
Their boat must be running very well indeed to invite the Bird along. Look out.
Oil line??? There are no oil lines on a 12/71n. The only oil line on mine is the one that goes to the pressure gauge and that has a restrictor on it. Did you have remote mounted filters?
The oil line to the pressure gauge is in fact the one that ruptured, and it did not have remote filters. You would think (or at least I would) that such a rupture would do two things... show low oil pressure on the gauge, not let enough oil leak out to cause engine problems. I didn't know about the restrictor, but maybe that was part of the problem.
No doubt it was a freak deal, and I've often wondered where I would be today if not for that freakish trip.
Of course I'm sure the gauge worked. Both gauges gave identical readings all the time while starting out on zero. I lost several gallons over a few hours running time. Both engines showed full when I left the dock, and I'd have to refer back to this same thread, but total running time would have been less than 10 hours.
Trust me, I was keeping an eye on the temp and pressure gauges the entire time. The PO had always run the boat at hull speed, and it had been setting a lot when I bought it. I guess it was a ticking time bomb that may never have exploded had I run it the same way. I don't think he had ever ran it over 1,300 RPM, and he was having heart problems when I told him we were going to run it for at least an hour at 2,100 as part of the sea trial. That's where I was running it when it started slowing down, but there was no defining moment that lead me to believe I had hurt anything. No changes in readings, no big bangs (or little ones), just the sound of the engines coming out of sync and the later realization I was out of fuel. Seems like just yesterday.
Sounds like a leak more than a blowout. Mine literally blew apart at the connector and withing seconds the pressure drop showed on the gauge.
Either way it sucks to wreck an engine.
I only pop into HOF once every few months and I have to admit I smiled to see one of my favorite threads bumped up.
Hey Freebird, Sparky or Freeebird - whatever you call yourself these daze - go to page one and see who made the first reply to your first foray into internet boating forums.
Happy 10 year anniversary you old fuster clucked Bird.