SS64 Pros Cons and Mods

[GregOug]

17 minutes ago, WilliBoaz said:

Do you mean in the walkway between the 2 seats? Doesn't that block walkthrough access to the bow section?

Yeah, I was wondering myself.

[Rusty_Nail]

@WilliBoaz - on our boat I lowered the aluminium brackets that support the board that the esky sits on, which combined with a lower height esky from Anaconda (still 42L though from memory) allows about 10mm of space when the seat cushion is there. The esky can be opened in place when the seat is removed, although the lid does rub against the gel coat. If it's a decent day in Brisbane tomorrow (or sometime this week) I'll take some pictures and send them through.
On your other post about where to put in, I've been looking at going to Fig Tree pocket until the pontoon at Jindalee is repaired. There's no pontoon at FTP, but there is a reasonable section of sand/mud to beach the boat on if the tide is low enough.

[Rusty_Nail]

Fig Tree Pocket ramp. Need to plan around low tide.

 

[Rusty_Nail]

Jindalee with damaged pontoon.

[Rusty_Nail]

2 minutes ago, Rusty_Nail said:

Fig Tree Pocket ramp. Need to plan around low tide.

 

From what I understand, there is a plan to build a pontoon at Fig Tree Pocket sometime in 2022 - not sure what the timing will be now with all the other damage that needs to be repaired. 
Expect it might be a little easier to drive on at FTP when the tide is right as well given the direction of the current vs Jindalee.

[AUS-BNE-FISHO]

4 minutes ago, Rusty_Nail said:

Fig Tree Pocket ramp. Need to plan around low tide.

 

It's a pretty long ramp there actually, but before the floods it was all mud. It seems a lot of the sand from the dunes under Indooroopilly Bridge got washed up and down the river a fair distance. I don't know how the fishing will be now but there used to be good mullet and prawns to be caught from high tide up, and there's some good territory in that stretch for fishing (which probably won't be worthwhile until all the debris is out of the water there).  

Cheers Hamish 

[Rusty_Nail]

On a different topic, had to get some of my spark plugs on the 200 Pro XS replaced a few weeks ago, as we went out for a run on the river before the floods and had no power. Check-up with Hayden Wyld showed that two of the plugs were dodgy from water, so useful to keep an eye on the fuel/water filter. Good news was that the rest of the motor was in perfect condition after about 90 hours of use mostly in salt water.

[_Sloth_]

14 minutes ago, Rusty_Nail said:

On a different topic, had to get some of my spark plugs on the 200 Pro XS replaced a few weeks ago, as we went out for a run on the river before the floods and had no power. Check-up with Hayden Wyld showed that two of the plugs were dodgy from water, so useful to keep an eye on the fuel/water filter. Good news was that the rest of the motor was in perfect condition after about 90 hours of use mostly in salt water.

I don’t even know where the filter is on mine …

[_Sloth_]

49 minutes ago, GregOug said:

Yeah, I was wondering myself.

Yeah I guess but I just step over it or on it. I often have the barrier in anyway so I step on the esky to step over that…

[GregOug]

1 hour ago, _Sloth_ said:

I don’t even know where the filter is on mine …

Filter?

[_Sloth_]

8 hours ago, GregOug said:

Filter?

Yeah. The water separating fuel filter. Usually located in some relatively easy to access location. 

[Rusty_Nail]

Mine is located (on the left hand side (looking to the stern) in the void underneath where the esky sits - so is pretty easy to access.
There is also another filters on the engine itself that is useful/easy to check periodically (per youtube) as part of home maintenance.

[WilliBoaz]

16 hours ago, Rusty_Nail said:

@WilliBoaz - on our boat I lowered the aluminium brackets that support the board that the esky sits on, which combined with a lower height esky from Anaconda (still 42L though from memory) allows about 10mm of space when the seat cushion is there. The esky can be opened in place when the seat is removed, although the lid does rub against the gel coat. If it's a decent day in Brisbane tomorrow (or sometime this week) I'll take some pictures and send them through.
On your other post about where to put in, I've been looking at going to Fig Tree pocket until the pontoon at Jindalee is repaired. There's no pontoon at FTP, but there is a reasonable section of sand/mud to beach the boat on if the tide is low enough.

Thanks mate, look forward to seeing those pics.

I've used the FTP ramp before, but didn't really fancy loading the family into the boat through the mud, or having the boat grind on the ramp...

Looks very different now, so might be worth a look. It's the closest ramp to my house.

[Old Scaley]

You aren’t too far away from the South Brisbane ramp.  It used to have a pontoon but Inot sure after the flood. Excellent parking. 

[WilliBoaz]

1 hour ago, Old Scaley said:

You aren’t too far away from the South Brisbane ramp.  It used to have a pontoon but Inot sure after the flood. Excellent parking. 

Had a look at it last week, it's currently being upgraded so closed until July

[Rusty_Nail]

Is anyone heading out this weekend given some nice weather on the cards. I'm heading out to Tangalooma for the day from Shorncliffe/Cabbage Tree Creek.

[_Sloth_]

9 hours ago, Rusty_Nail said:

Is anyone heading out this weekend given some nice weather on the cards. I'm heading out to Tangalooma for the day from Shorncliffe/Cabbage Tree Creek.

Nah. Got the dreaded lurgy going through my house at the moment. Should be good though. Post some pics when you get back. 

[WilliBoaz]

15 hours ago, Rusty_Nail said:

Is anyone heading out this weekend given some nice weather on the cards. I'm heading out to Tangalooma for the day from Shorncliffe/Cabbage Tree Creek.

Couldn't get out today (would have been ideal), thinking about a run on the bay tomorrow but a bit worried about the wind. Interested to hear your thoughts?

[_Sloth_]

5 hours ago, WilliBoaz said:

Couldn't get out today (would have been ideal), thinking about a run on the bay tomorrow but a bit worried about the wind. Interested to hear your thoughts?

I would not go to moreton tomorrow. Won’t be pleasant over there. Strong westerly. Will be a **** trip back too. If you are really keen I’d hang on this side of the bay. In close to redcliffe/Scarborough. Probably going to be pretty ordinary out there. 

[GregOug]

1 hour ago, _Sloth_ said:

I would not go to moreton tomorrow. Won’t be pleasant over there. Strong westerly. Will be a **** trip back too. If you are really keen I’d hang on this side of the bay. In close to redcliffe/Scarborough. Probably going to be pretty ordinary out there. 

I agree.

[Rusty_Nail]

On 16/05/2022 at 1:44 PM, WilliBoaz said:

Thanks mate, look forward to seeing those pics.

I've used the FTP ramp before, but didn't really fancy loading the family into the boat through the mud, or having the boat grind on the ramp...

Looks very different now, so might be worth a look. It's the closest ramp to my house.

Hi WilliBoaz,

Didn't get out on the weekend as my crew all bailed on me at the last minute unfortunately due to illness.
However, I did get some time to take the covers off the boat and took some pics of the esky storage area. The esky is the Dune brand from Anaconda which has a lower profile than the one that was originally supplied with the boat. After lowering the aluminium brackets a little, it fitted neatly under the seat cushion with a few mm to spare.
I also cut a few small sections out of the base board as it was in direct contact with the fuel pipe and added some extra bracing on the back of the base board and rear of the esky area.

The esky opens easily, but doesn't stay open on it's own - which isn't too bad as it ensures the kids don't leave it open accidentally. 

[Rusty_Nail]

On another topic, I wasn't too happy with how the anchor well cover was attached to the hull. The original install only used screws, and I noticed after a bit of use there were some small stress cracks in the gel coat starting to appear where the hinges had come a bit loose and were pressing down on the gel coat during opening - especially when helpful crew accidently dropped the hatch a bit too quickly. The screws also were loosening over time.

To resolve, I used some metal bog to build up the section underneath where the hinges are attached, and then used stainless bolts and double nuts with washers to secure the hinges.

In hindsight, some marine epoxy putty would have been a more elegant and neater solution vs the metal bog which was pretty messy.

Hope this helps someone avoid a similar situation with potential stress cracks.

[Hweebe]

@Rusty_Nail why not doing away completely with the washers, and find/cut ad piece or 3mm aluminium / pre drill holes and form a stronger backing plate?

The washers may still dig in under load, a plate will spread the load wider

[Rusty_Nail]

4 hours ago, Hweebe said:

@Rusty_Nail why not doing away completely with the washers, and find/cut ad piece or 3mm aluminium / pre drill holes and form a stronger backing plate?

The washers may still dig in under load, a plate will spread the load wider

Fair point and good idea - am always a fan of spreading the load from an engineering perspective.

[WilliBoaz]

On 31/05/2022 at 12:23 AM, Rusty_Nail said:

Hi WilliBoaz,

Didn't get out on the weekend as my crew all bailed on me at the last minute unfortunately due to illness.
However, I did get some time to take the covers off the boat and took some pics of the esky storage area. The esky is the Dune brand from Anaconda which has a lower profile than the one that was originally supplied with the boat. After lowering the aluminium brackets a little, it fitted neatly under the seat cushion with a few mm to spare.
I also cut a few small sections out of the base board as it was in direct contact with the fuel pipe and added some extra bracing on the back of the base board and rear of the esky area.

The esky opens easily, but doesn't stay open on it's own - which isn't too bad as it ensures the kids don't leave it open accidentally. 

Thanks for posting your mod.  I think Tim must have made some changes to the boat since you bought yours, as my esky fits nicely under the seat.  The problem I have is that the whole esky tilts forward when you open the lid as the back of the lid pushes against the back of the compartment.  Not the end of the world, I guess.

[WilliBoaz]

On another note, I finally got some time to use the boat in good weather up the Sandy Strait over the weekend with a few mates.  It was sensational, and all the boys were duly impressed with the new toy.  I'm very pleased with the performance, and super happy I waited for the V8.

Last weekend I took the boat up the Pumicestone passage for a bit of a whirl.  Disappointingly, on the way back I hit a sandbank going pretty fast, so took some paint off the skeg.  Hopefully no serious damage to the motor itself; I spoke to Tim Catanese and he said it should be OK.  I've hit sandbanks before in other boats, but still sucks doing it in a brand new one.

Can I ask what you guys do for motor flush? Earmuffs or the hose connector? If earmuffs, do you block the high-speed pickups with some tape?

[_Sloth_]

1 hour ago, WilliBoaz said:

On another note, I finally got some time to use the boat in good weather up the Sandy Strait over the weekend with a few mates.  It was sensational, and all the boys were duly impressed with the new toy.  I'm very pleased with the performance, and super happy I waited for the V8.

Last weekend I took the boat up the Pumicestone passage for a bit of a whirl.  Disappointingly, on the way back I hit a sandbank going pretty fast, so took some paint off the skeg.  Hopefully no serious damage to the motor itself; I spoke to Tim Catanese and he said it should be OK.  I've hit sandbanks before in other boats, but still sucks doing it in a brand new one.

Can I ask what you guys do for motor flush? Earmuffs or the hose connector? If earmuffs, do you block the high-speed pickups with some tape?

It’s a sweet engine that’s for sure. Especially with a full boat. Still hauls ass. Sooner or later you take the paint off the skeg. It’s a sign of a boat that gets used. I would have thought any damage would be immediately noticed. If she is still running smooth then I’d say nothing to worry about. I use the hose with double sided muffs (ie the water comes through both sides of the muff not just one side). I have a strap with a rubber stopper that sits over the high sped pick ups. Need pretty good water pressure. At my house everyone waits for the engine to be flushed before  having showers etc. I keep an eye on the temp. If the water pressure goes down the temp starts to climb. Usually one of the kids has jumped in the shower mid flush. 

[GregOug]

I always use the muffs to flush the engine. Maybe I’m just old school but I think it is better for giving the engine a proper flush than the stupid connection on the side.

[WilliBoaz]

I used muffs yesterday, with tape over the high speed pickup. Got a temp warning even though water coming from telltale was cool. Obviously switched it off immediately.

Interestingly, when I took the tape off the high speed pickup, the water that drained from there was quite hot. There must be a sensor in the lower unit that detected that. 

Any thoughts? I've read the motor's manual and they recommend using the engine flush attachment. 

I'm confused now, as I've always thought earmuffs are best, but it's a bit stressful when you're getting temp warnings on a big new motor like that.

[_Sloth_]

32 minutes ago, WilliBoaz said:

I used muffs yesterday, with tape over the high speed pickup. Got a temp warning even though water coming from telltale was cool. Obviously switched it off immediately.

Interestingly, when I took the tape off the high speed pickup, the water that drained from there was quite hot. There must be a sensor in the lower unit that detected that. 

Any thoughts? I've read the motor's manual and they recommend using the engine flush attachment. 

I'm confused now, as I've always thought earmuffs are best, but it's a bit stressful when you're getting temp warnings on a big new motor like that.

I suspect your water pressure is not high enough. Do you have dual feed muffs? If not you will need them  

the water from the tell tale will always be cold. I queried this myself with Mercury. The water that comes through the tell tale has not been through the block. The water that pours out the exhaust and other returns is very hot during flushing. From memory the thermostat opens at around 65 degrees and the temp oscillates from 60-65 or so if engine cooling is sufficient. If not it creeps up until the alarm goes off. I crapped myself the first time. Now if I am having trouble due to low pressure or high input water temp (in summer) I just flush until it hits around 75. Switch it off. Wash the boat while it cools and give another flush at the end. 
some other things I have been meaning to try are using smallest length of hose possible and also using 18mm hose instead of 12mm. That should significantly increase water flow. 
One other thing. Maybe taping the pickups is not good because no water can escape from there and it might continue to get hotter?

[GregOug]

1 hour ago, _Sloth_ said:

I suspect your water pressure is not high enough. Do you have dual feed muffs? If not you will need them  

the water from the tell tale will always be cold. I queried this myself with Mercury. The water that comes through the tell tale has not been through the block. The water that pours out the exhaust and other returns is very hot during flushing. From memory the thermostat opens at around 65 degrees and the temp oscillates from 60-65 or so if engine cooling is sufficient. If not it creeps up until the alarm goes off. I crapped myself the first time. Now if I am having trouble due to low pressure or high input water temp (in summer) I just flush until it hits around 75. Switch it off. Wash the boat while it cools and give another flush at the end. 
some other things I have been meaning to try are using smallest length of hose possible and also using 18mm hose instead of 12mm. That should significantly increase water flow. 
One other thing. Maybe taping the pickups is not good because no water can escape from there and it might continue to get hotter?

I’m not sure what either of you mean? I’ve used muffs since I first got the boat. I’ve never had any alarms go off. I just run it for ten minutes or so and switch off. Mine just have a hose attachment on one side and the other side just covers the intake.

[Angry51]

8 minutes ago, GregOug said:

 I’ve never had any alarms go off. 

That's the best part of getting old.

You don't hear half the sh@t you should.

[WilliBoaz]

2 hours ago, GregOug said:

I’m not sure what either of you mean? I’ve used muffs since I first got the boat. I’ve never had any alarms go off. I just run it for ten minutes or so and switch off. Mine just have a hose attachment on one side and the other side just covers the intake

Do you block the high speed intakes? If I don't, I don't get water out the telltale which worries me.

[_Sloth_]

11 minutes ago, WilliBoaz said:

Do you block the high speed intakes? If I don't, I don't get water out the telltale which worries me.

Yeah. I do. But I use a strap with a rubber stopper on it. This slows water escape but doesn’t stop it fully. 

[TheStej]

I have the V6 200. I was using the strap/plug to block the high speed pick up , the muffs that pump in water both sides. The donk was getting hot each time I flushed it. Eventually one arvo the warning came on that it was over heated( I got distracted with the neighbour over the fence and a beer) 

I spoke to Tim who put me onto Hayden at Wyld about boats . I took Hayden's advice and haven't had a problem since. I now tape the high speed pick up and put the strap over it, I tape one side of the water pick ups and use the old school water in one side muffs. Temp stays stable now . 

[WilliBoaz]

34 minutes ago, TheStej said:

I have the V6 200. I was using the strap/plug to block the high speed pick up , the muffs that pump in water both sides. The donk was getting hot each time I flushed it. Eventually one arvo the warning came on that it was over heated( I got distracted with the neighbour over the fence and a beer) 

I spoke to Tim who put me onto Hayden at Wyld about boats . I took Hayden's advice and haven't had a problem since. I now tape the high speed pick up and put the strap over it, I tape one side of the water pick ups and use the old school water in one side muffs. Temp stays stable now . 

Awesome, thanks for the info, I will give that a go.  Did he tell you how long to run for?

[WilliBoaz]

50 minutes ago, _Sloth_ said:

Yeah. I do. But I use a strap with a rubber stopper on it. This slows water escape but doesn’t stop it fully. 

Thanks.  Is the strap something you made or did you buy it somewhere?

[TheStej]

6 minutes ago, WilliBoaz said:

Awesome, thanks for the info, I will give that a go.  Did he tell you how long to run for?

No worries. With all my boats I've always flushed for 10-15 mins . Same deal with this one. Never had a problem with engine temp before when flushing but this is the biggest donk I've had. The motor just sucks alot of water so if it ain't getting enough it will over heat. I just use the grey duct tape. 

[TheStej]

10 minutes ago, WilliBoaz said:

Thanks.  Is the strap something you made or did you buy it somewhere?

You can see the strap I use breifly in this video , also the tape on the side water pick up. As mentioned I also tape the high speed pick up and then put the strap over it . The strap came with the motor and boat on delivery.

[TheStej]

14 minutes ago, WilliBoaz said:

Thanks.  Is the strap something you made or did you buy it somewhere?