1971 53 MY Upgrade Advice

[caryboat]

Great Forum.New to Hat world not boating have 2 other boats and am a vintage guy,

Just starting this week on this newly purchased 53. great cosmetics 40 year 1 owner fresh water
boat. 1800 hrs on orig engines and 600 on onan 15

plannned upgrades include- new batteries (ouch on the 32 v system) carpet ,galley, led lighting in all headliners,gps/radar,new plexi in stern,sat dome,all cushions,soft goods,wallpaper,etc

We have a nice bow thruster,vacu flush,new a/c units,fresh paint ,mathers controls and some other nice work done by PO

questions;

1) we have orig onan 15 kw. dont know if it runs yet and how loud. any advice from those still running one or if need be what i should put in?

2) engine room- looks stock excepts for airsep. any advice on engines-upgrades chargers etc or past problems i should look for

3) Am re-doing bridge. taking rib off moving marquipt 800 and adding railing around and panels. need a source for panels?. Would like to add an ARCH-need a source and if anyone knows exact size? adding bimini. biggest issue i want to replace dash and have this old top wheel pod design. need a source for making a new dash console.

sorry for all the questions and i can provide pictures and email for direct help

thx

Kevin

 

[magnawake]

Welcome to the Forum. Your in the right place. Lots of 53' owners. Unfortunately I have a 43 MY. I'm sure you will get many responses and help needed. Posts some pics for us.

 

[holtcl]

I also have a 1971 53 MY that I bought as a project boat and have done extensive refitting over the past 3+ years. Replaced original gen with a Phasor 15KW and have been happy with that. Very quiet with no sound shield.

Had new battery charger installed this summer as well; ended up with the same 32v Sentry and it's doing well- would have gone withe Outback 32 charger/inverter that others on the forum have talked about if I could have found someone to install it for me but oh well.

There's a ton of other stuff and I won't drone on; and a bunch of folks here who are also willing to share. WELCOME!!

The last thing I'll add is make a list, prioritize, and have patience, if you're doing a serious refit consider it a multi-year process, and document everything (ok that's my "type A" side chiming in). I've learned to remove the words "done; complete; and finished" from my vocabulary.


Cheryl
Cinderella
1971 53 MY

 

[saltshaker]

Congratulations and welcome. Some more details would be helpful. Did you have a survey done and if so what were the problem areas? Which engines? Has the boat been used or sitting? What concerns do you have about the generator? You mentioned it only has 600 hours. Are you planning a redesign of the bridge or just adding some railings and dodger board? Dodger board is available here through SAMS marine. Slane marine can help you with an arch and custom console. Where are you located?

 

[caryboat]

I have the Hatt on Lake Michigan in chicago where I had my other boats that are now in Ft Lauderdale that I have chosen not to bring back and needed something for here. This just ended up being a good deal. No Survey done but I was fine with that as I know enough and I had my mechanics go through the main items. Engines are the 8V71T. Boat has not been used much in the last 5-8 years but was maintained well by the original owner.who used it for several trips around Lake Michigan but unfortunately I have very few service records but it was taken care of I plan to redesign the bridge and do seating in the the back. I will either have it made or have looked at using pontoon furniture and having in recovered . The galley has new corian as well as the heads so in the galley am getting rid of the fridge and putting a side by side under the counter to open it up. As well, Am adding a fridge next to ice maker in stern. I expect to spend about $50K in the next 3 months doing mostly cosmetic and updating unless I drop another 15k for a gen. I am curious if the orig Onan is quiet?. I dont like to replace things just because they are old- I like originality but reliability and safety are always a primary concern.

Thanks for all the fast responses as I am moving fast - have already order the batteries- just snowed 5" last night and I plan to get down to the boat tomorow and start to take off all the PO stuff on board . Unfortunatley it was an estate purchase and everything was left as it was.
Luckily, I have every original manual and book ,build plans ,bill of sale etc on this 53- one of the reasons I looked at it.

The boat seems to have a lot of family history,lots of had written journals from the 80 and 90's on trips and every trip had a time, heading ,course, est GPH speed log etc. Very cool. I plan to send them to the family

So I did my homework on these tanks -spoke to my boaters in florida who know I am nuts and pulled the trigger to bring this boat back to its grand state . They have a good rep so here I go.

I will post some pictures ASAP feel free to give any and all advice as to what I should or should not do. I have a well trusted but sometimes expensive team that can do anything needed that work well with my direction.

The boat will splash in mid April so we can start to work on any mech issues at the dock.

Thanks to all

Kevin

 

[holtcl]

I would not characterize the old Onan as "quiet". Did they come with a sound shield (mine did not)? If it is working I'd not jump right into a replacement either as you may have other "surprises" to deal with or other priorities that you identify. And, as you note it's expensive; also disruptive.

Best of luck and look forward to seeing pictures!

Cheryl
Cinderella
1971 53 MY

 

[TopHattandTails]

600 hours? That's new in my book! For what its worth - if it runs and turns out voltage - keep her running as long as possible. Most folks that "upgrade" from the Onan's do so when the Start-Run Disconnect switch fry's itself. That's when these genny's turn into mooring balls. Just about everything else on the genny can be fixed with parts (the disconnect switch is long out of production and gone). Seriously - If your going to keep it on Lake Michigan and just do mostly day trips with an occasional week up North - that genny would be fine. If your going to do some major cruising (the loop or something), then I'd consider replacing once it blows up the first time. Seems thes old genny's need a repair a season at about $500 - $1k per year.... Welcome and take lots of pics on the rehab for us! That's the fun part!

 

[jim rosenthal]

Show some photos, we always love to see those.

Fire up the Onan once you commission the boat and live with it for a while. A decent size replacement is going to cost you 15-20K. Onans are loud but everyone has their level they can live with. As far as replacements, we've had good reports on Phasor, Kohler, Northern Lights (my favorite), Westerbeke. Also NextGen, I think they are called. The only one I'd avoid is Fischer-Panda, because some of their models use seawater to cool the generator end and it corrodes and stops working. It would be fine in freshwater, I suspect.

Save what you take off until you're sure you're done with it. You never know. Ask me how I know.

 

[SeaEric]

Last Fall I replaced my original 1966 raw water cooled Onan 6kw gen. It still ran fine and made power, but it was only a matter of (borrowed) time. It was quite noisy. I replaced it with a Beta Marine 9kw genset which is a 3 cyl Kubota diesel and a Marathon gen end. I like the way it's packaged and I like the standard control panel. This unit was recommended by a mechanic I trust that has installed a bunch of Beta Marine small sailboat repower diesels. The whole deal cost me $13,000. with the gen and install. This included about a $1,200. yard bill to haul the boat and re-locate the new exhaust port which meant closing up the hole in the hull where the old one was. I sold the old, still running Onan gen on craigslist to the first responder for $1,000. cash. The new unit is slightly smaller, lighter and much quieter. If it lasts 1/2 as long as the old Onan, I'll be thrilled.

 

[saltshaker]

I guess a lot depends on how the generator is set up. I'm not terribly familiar with the 15KW Onan. The PO of my 46C replaced one with a new 12.5KW Onan back in '97. That unit ran flawlessly when I sold the boat a couple of years ago. Very quiet. You couldn't hear it run from the bridge and it was quieter than the AC's in the boat. I have 2 20KW Onans on my 65 and again they are very quiet both in and out of the boat. All of mine have had a factory sound shield and the ER in both boats are very well insulated. I re did the ER soundproofing in the 46C with SoundDown when I repowered the boat but the generator was quiet before. Try it out before you junk it. A new generator is a pricey item. If you need it go for it but don't write it off until you're tested it out.

 

[Nonchalant1]

Had a 1978 53MY and ran it on the Great Lakes a lot (we live near Chicago) and did the 6,000 mile Great Loop in her. The best money I ever spent was $48K for Naiad stabilizers with the new digital controls. Wow, what a difference in the waves, also what a difference for the Admiral and landlubber visitors onboard.

 

[caryboat]

Thanks for all the comments to date.

I have decided to keep the bridge console and just paint and update w GPS/Radar and AIS and keep originality. I am not too sure about the array located right below me on the wheelhouse deck for "RAYS' but thats where it was in the 1971 brochure so for the amount of time used and what "I" have left - I will take the chance. Going to use SIMRAD- think

Does anyone know about the sort of strange wicker furniture I see a lot of pictures of in the AFT salons? . It has a round table with triangle under seats. I will be changing itout but curious if it was some 70's thing. Thanks for the info on dodger boards I will contact Sams and will see how Mr GEN performs.

The only real area to clean up is the engine rooms. If anyone has experience on any weaknesses and what I should replace before it goes let me know.

How will the boat be used? This summer 3-4 months in water and probably get out 10x with 3-5 trips to Chicago Yacht Club -about 30 miles port to port. If I like the boat I may have shipped down to florida for the winter and bring back up my other one and rotate them. In florida it would be used about the same but more trips from Ft Lauderadale going S to keys and maybe 1-2 to Bimini.

My goal in a couple of years if the HATT idea works out is to sell the fleet and move into maybe a Hatt 72-74 CMY or LRC .( I have an 80' dock) I have looked at many boats in the 500K-$1.3mm range and realize that due to scheduling and usage even in the future- the best value is a 4SR classic like theses that can go anywhere,reasonably economical and can be run by yourself or a capt.

I dropped in a current picture

thx

Kevin

 

[bobk]

Re PM in the ER, check your hose clamps. I had four break on the way south last year and decided to change them all.... 140 not counting bilge pump hoses or starboard engine coolant hoses. We found several others waiting to 'go'.

Bobk

 

[jim rosenthal]

Don't get rid of the wicker furniture until you find out whether it came with the boat! some folks want the items that came in these boats when they were new. Steve at Sam's will know all about it, he can tell you whether they were added on or came in her as OEM.

I spent years looking for the salon sofa for my Hatteras and was lucky enough to find one. One of the POs had thrown it out. Once this stuff is gone, you can't replace it, and much of the furniture items shipped with new Hatteras Yachts was top-grade stuff, since the plant was in High Point etc.

 

[holtcl]

All good advice- also think your plan re: fly bridge is a good one. With a new to you boat, sometimes best to live with it for awhile and see how it works out before diving in and replacing.

Cheryl
Cinderella
1971 53 MY

 

[carolinacoast]

2 best additions from the PO on our boat were: oversized naiad stabilizers and a 2nd generator. He added a 12.5 phasor/kubota. Our onan is a 20kw. I have never had both break!!

 

[caryboat]

Thanks- also what I was thinking

 

[novusvita]

Welcome to the forum. You will get great advice from devout Hatteras owners. I have a 58'YF...a 53' with a cockpit...love the cockpit. Same Generator as you, still running fine with about 1200 hours. Just replaced the Fuel Solenoid this fall and had to get it from Cummins. Worked out well but seemed expensive. $400 + shipping. Noise wise the generator is louder than some, especially in the Galley but have run it all night and did not bother me sleeping in the master cabin. On the flybridge, you can barely hear it. I agree with the above recommendations to wait for something catastrophic to happen to it before replacing. I sure you will find many other things to fix/replace/restore to take funds. Good luck with the project.

If you are thinking of moving the boat to Florida, plan for the 19' maximum height bridge in Illinois when you install the radar arch.

And if you need crew to help with the move, I am always up for an adventure. Have previously done the trip.

 

[doc g]

Best advice I could give would be to get everything that can be fixed and working up and running and use the boat, then decide what you want to change,rehab, add to the boat . I made a list of things that "had" to be done when I got mine and six years later less than half have been done. Use it then decide what is important......Pat

 

[grandpa]

Congratulations and welcome. Some more details would be helpful. Did you have a survey done and if so what were the problem areas? Which engines? Has the boat been used or sitting? What concerns do you have about the generator? You mentioned it only has 600 hours. Are you planning a redesign of the bridge or just adding some railings and dodger board? Dodger board is available here through SAMS marine. Slane marine can help you with an arch and custom console. Where are you located?

You mention the original build plans. I am looking for some from which to have a model built. Do you know how i could get a copy?