1969 Chris Craft Roamer 46 refit

[jim rosenthal]

You're doing the right thing. Addressing the leaking seavalves before you leave the slings and the yard is the RIGHT thing to do. Just remember how hard you've worked to get where you are, and that the last 5% of the project usually takes a lot more than 5% of the time.

For those of you who haven't seen Quentin's Roamer, which I think is everyone except me, well, this boat is an absolute showpiece. She is just perfect, not a bad line anywhere. She is just gorgeous.

[Dan Mapes]

It certainly is obvious that he has put in the work to make this show so well. Hopefully the bugs shake out early and easily!

[SKYCHENEY]

This is normal. There will always be bugs. You will overcome them. I thought I was all ready to go after re-power. It ended up taking another 9 months to get everything right. But it's all worth it in the end.

[q240z]

Thanks guys!

It ended up taking another 9 months to get everything right.

What sort of issues did you have to deal with?

[Timeless72]

This is normal. There will always be bugs. You will overcome them. I thought I was all ready to go after re-power. It ended up taking another 9 months to get everything right. But it's all worth it in the end.

Same here. We splashed and came right back out. Shaft logs and intakes were leaking. Bonding issues with all the new wiring. We launched three times last summer before getting it right. You'll get there!

[jim rosenthal]

Hang in there, Quentin. There IS a pot of gold at the end of this rainbow. Honest, there is.

[Captain Ralph]

Hang in there, Quentin. There IS a pot of gold at the end of this rainbow. Honest, there is.

He just can not let that pot leak.
One more sea-cock and the pot-o-gold will be floating.

[q240z]

Thanks guys!

While awaiting a new seacock to replace the one that leaked on Splash Day (sorta), I started digging into what's turned out to be another challenging problem from splash day: my starboard engine won't start!

I'd test fired it without an impeller in the yard a half-dozen times. On splash day, it started and ran great on the second crank. Perfect idle, good pressures, and when the Travelift operator yelled out "GOOD WATER," I knew the raw water was flowing out the exhaust the way it should. And then the engine died, which triggered the low oil pressure alarm. I hit the key, heard the starter try to engage, but it wasn't turning the engine over. Tried it again...and one more time. The engine seemed stuck.

I had a video camera rolling in the ER when I lit off the engine, so you can see exactly what happened. It's at the linked article, along with a video of Splash Day, when they had to use a big forklift to pull the Travelift out of the soft gravel. For some reason, my videos don't display here.

On the engine:
It bars over normally when I put a wrench on the alternator pulley nut, so it's not hydrolocked or catastrophically busted (probably).
Electrical connections are tight.
I checked the aftercooler and muffler--the former is dry inside and the latter has ~3" of water in it, so there's no way raw water got into the engine.
It can't be a fuel problem, because the starter engages but won't roll the engine over.

I'm stumped. Thoughts?

1969 Chris Craft Roamer 46 Refit: Splash Day Breakdown

Cheers,
Q

Only 3" of raw water in the muffler

[johnjen50]

If you can bar the engine over it seems it would be an issue with the starter binding up or the teeth caught in the flywheel. As long as the engine turns I’d focus on the starter. Is it old, or a brand new part?

[johnjen50]

Just reread your post. Check voltage to the starter.