Conference vicki::boats

    Are you sure of the engine size?  The Ford Y series (239, 256, 272,
    292, and 312 Cubic inch) was discontinued in 1962.  I would bet that
    you have a 302 in there which is much better due to the availability
    of parts. (260, 289, 302, and 351 share many parts and are still
    produced).  Who is the maker of the jet drive unit?  
    Wayne

Hi Wayne,

	No, I am not sure of the engine size.  I have a friend comming over 
tonight with some books to look at the numbers on the engine, etc. He will
be able to tell me.

	I will look again tonight, but I think the Jet Drive have a TurboCraft 
tag on it.

Gregg

    I had a boat with two small ford engines -- and I can never remember
    the size -- 352, I think -- In any case, the bottom end of the engine
    can turn it into a 389 -- We took the "small Block Ford" and converted
    it to a 389 by changing the connecting rods and the crankshaft.  We
    found an old FORD truck engine for next to nothing and scavanged parts.
    
    Make sure U seal the rear seal at the corners when U put it back
    together -- The thing has a tendency to leak oil in the corners.
    
    
    Regards,
    
    
    Dennis
    

Thanks Dennis.  The engine is a ford 292. So the boat must be a 62 not a 72, or
the motor was changed.  The tag on the Jet drive says it is made by TurboCraft
in Indiana.  I can't find any tags on the boat at all to say what year it is.

Thanks,
Gregg

    It would certainly be a 292 if the boat is a 1962.  That was the last
    year for the Y block before the new series started.  Horsepower should
    be 175 if manufactured in 1961 or 170 if manufactured in 1962.  Either
    engine serial number would start with a "W".  A quick check way of
    telling if it is a Y block is that the valve covers are held on with
    two acorn nuts thru them while the later small block has fasteners
    around the perimeter.  Also, Y blocks have the distributor in the back
    while newer engines have it towards the front.  Of course it is very
    easy to swap around marine engines so you may very well have a 1972
    boat with a replacement motor that someone grabbed from whatever was
    around.  Can you locate a hull number stamped into a stringer anywhere?
    Not knowing where to look, you would just have to comb the boat front
    to back to find hidden numbers.  My boat (wooden) has the hull number
    stamped into the transom, into the stringer near the rear reverse gear
    mount, and engraved into the windshield frame where it can only be
    found when the windshield assembly is removed.  The hull number is
    coded for the year and size.  You might try calling a place like
    Harper's Boat Restorations in Meridith, NH. (603-279-8841).  They deal 
    mostly in wooden crafts but they have had just about everything there
    at one time or another.
    Where are located?  I'ld be interested in seeing this if it were close
    by.  (I'm from Southern NH.)
    Wayne

Wayne,

	The value covers are held on by bolts though the covers and not
fastened around the perimeter.  I will have to do some more looking around the
boat for a number.  It still needs lots of cleaning, among other things. :^)

	Thanks for all the great information. I'm in north-central MA..

Gregg



	

	What is the performance like with a jet drive boat?  Is it slower to
a comparable prop boat?  Is it just another form of propulsion in the water?
What are the pros and cons?  I was just curious.

Thanks,
Gregg

    See note 738 for more stuff on Jet drives.
    Wayne
    

	Well, last night working on the boat I finally found the manufacturs tag.

		       TurboCraft
		  Indiana Gear Works Inc.
		 Indianapolis  18  Indiana
		     Boat No.  D0135

	Anybody know how to figure the year of the boat from this?


Thanks,
Gregg

    
    From past experiences with boats, the last two digits of the serial
    number represent the mfg year of the boat. Your boat being 35 it
    doesn't work unless the last digit which is a five is it or represents
    the year 1965 for that series boat.
    
    Bob

��    From past experiences with boats, the last two digits of the serial
��    number represent the mfg year of the boat. Your boat being 35 it
��    doesn't work unless the last digit which is a five is it or represents
��    the year 1965 for that series boat.

    Only boats manufactured since 1972 have to have a Hull ID
    Number as you describe.   Often the month of manufacture
    is included as well.

    Which I presume means that the boat was manufactured before
    1972.

    
    
    More likely it's the company's fourth mold (D), and 135th hull from it.
    
    Could also be linked with phases of the moon.  Seriously, you'll need
    to contact the mfgr, or whoever bought whatever is left of the mfgr.
    
    (watch it turn out to be Bayliner or Hatteras!  ;-) ;-).)
    
    Carl
    

Carl,
	> contact the mfgr, or whoever bought whatever is left of the mfgr.
	
	      Any idea where to start a search like that?  I guess it really
      isn't that important knowing the year.  It is just curiousity. :^)
      Maybe I should just call a marine place and ask them if they know?

Thanks,
Gregg

    BUC has:

    	The Beuhler Corp
    	Indianapolis, IN

    Sorry, no address or phone. (There are no current listings,
    which makes me think they are history.)

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KISMIF::COTE "I bagged a BUG over 8 lbs!!!"           4 lines  16-JUL-1993 16:21
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What is BUC?  And thanks for the additional info.

Thanks,
Gregg

    If you can find a dealer that has been doing jet boats for a long time,
    even if it's a different brand, he probably knows of your brand boat,
    could possibly point you to a previous dealer of your brand, or he may
    know who bought molds and inventory, etc.  Of course, you'll need to
    get lucky, and hope the dealer isn't an a**hole; some really are nice
    people willing to help you.  
    
    You might find a large library that stocks old boating mags and find a
    review of your boat brand - they have indexes that can help your
    search.  An article might mention a holding company name, or maybe the
    company president's name.  You could then call directory assistance for
    that city looking for him.  I know, it's a long shot, but then again
    it's a small world sometimes.  
    
    Carl

    
    Performance Boats of Northern New England is heavy into selling and
    repairing jet boats. They are located in Hooksett, N.H. Phone, 603-
    627-1250.
    
    They service Berkeley and Dominator Jet Drives as well as rebuild and 
    blueprint other makes.
    
    Kurt Hardy is the owner. 
    
    
    Bob

    My hull number "RF6557" was coded by Century back then to mean:
    
    RF = 15' Resorter runabout (other sizes/models had different two
         letters
    65 = 1965 year of manufacture
    
    57 = boat number 37 in the line (for some reason Century started at
        #20)
    
     Bottom line, back then every manufacturer probably had their own
    system and unless you can find someone knowledgeable about the system,
    it's onluy a guess.
    
    DO could equal model number.  The "1" could stand for 1961. 292 Fords
    where everywhere in 1961.  The last two might be the number in the
    line.  Of course this is only a guess!
    
    This may be a long shot, but try calling Conrad Adamski at A + A
    Marine, Manistee, Michigan. (616-723-8308).  He was one of the managers
    at the Century factory at the time and now is the secretary of the 
    Century Boat Owners Club.  His company (A + A Marine) sells everything
    for the antique boat owner (but mostly Century stuff).  He has numerous
    contacts in the old collector boat world.  He may know of someone who
    is into Buehler Craft boats.  He even got me a contact to get a copy of
    my original Interceptor engine manual (Streeter Marine).  Connie loves
    to talk but he also may have parts you need at excellent prices.  Most
    of the harware used back then was pretty much made by the same
    companies (Perko, Taylor, Interceptor, etc) and Connie sells most of
    it.  He also bought out the original Century inventory and all the
    upholstery patterns and hardware molds when Century first went bankrupt
    in 1968.  Smart guy!
    
    I would also try the Chamber of Commerce and the library in
    Indianapolis to see if they can help you.  They might have a yearly
    get-together of the "Buehler-Craft" owners club the way Manistee,
    Michigan (original home of Century) hosts the Century club's yearly
    event.
    I forgot about Performance Boat as Bob suggested.  Kurt is a very nice
    guy to deal with.  I bought an old Warner Gear from him for $50 bucks
    or something real cheap.  He said if it was un-rebuildable, just bring
    it back and he'ld give me my money back.  Of course when you see the
    jet boats he has at his place, you may give up on the Buehler-Craft!!
    Wayne
    You may even try calling the chamber of commerce or the library in 
    Indianapolis to see if they can help with your search.

Hi,

	The rebuild of the engine is almost done, and I am starting the 
overhaul of the boat.  All of the chrome trimmings etc. has been removed and 
I am down to basically to the hull and top.  While washing out the leaves and
junk yesterday I made a discovery.  When we first got the boat I pulled the gas
tank out to get it out of the way.  The tank was in the bow, behind the dash
board (if that is what you call them on a boat :^) ) with the fill comming
up just infront of the windshield.  What I found was that the tank was 
originally behind the back seat, above the jet drive.  I am looking for advice
on where I should put it.  I have no idea why it was moved.  If I put it back
in the back of the boat I will regain storage and access to the bow compartment.
But, maybe they moved it to the front to put more weight in the front.

Any help or advice is appreciated.

Thanks,
Gregg

    
    I think your guess is ther same as mine. Thet moved the tank to be able
    to get the boat to perform better and come up on plane easier. Better
    weight distribution.
    
    Too much weight back aft.....
    
    
    Bob

    I suppose that you'll never know for sure until you get the boat back
    in the water and see how it performs.  If it seems to be "plowing", I
    would strongly suggest moving the tank back where it originally was in
    the stern.  That's alot of weight to move that far forward.  It surely
    must effect the balance of the boat.
    Wayne (who will get over to see your boat one of these days.)
    

    My suggestion is to leave it up front.  We had a 16' with twin
    outboards and found but better performance and a smoother ride when the
    24 gal. tank was in the bow.
    
    /Steve

Would power trim tabs fix the problem if I put the tank back in the rear of the
boat and I wanted to improve the ride?  It would give much more storage in the
boat if I put the tank back in the rear, but I will leave it upfront if that will
be better. I will need to cover the filler hole in the front and reopen the hole
in the back if I move the tank, but I would rather not do this once the boat 
has been repainted, unless I have too. :^)

Thanks,
Gregg

RE: > Wayne (who will get over to see your boat one of these days.)
 	
	Great, anytime...

    
    Trim tabs are not cheap! I had them on my last boat. They work great
    but you still need room in engine compartment for drive motor and
    hydraulic fluid container.......
    
    $400+, and more for installation......
    
    
    Bob
    

    Hi,
    
    Jets have a couple of additional problems when compared to
    outboards/inboards.
    
    I assume that like all the jets I have played with the intake for the
    jet unit is positioned within about 2-3 feet of the transom. It is
    normally place directly below the shaft between the motor and the jet
    unit.
    
    With both the motor and the unit in the back the boat will already be
    tail heavy. Additional weight from tanks is not helpful.
    
    However the worse problem is the "suck" from the intake. The boat will
    really sink in the tail until it gets some way on. It will settle down
    quite quick if you have enough power but may take quite a while if the
    power is lower.
    
    I have owned several and its quite common to move the tanks forward to
    get the nose down earlier. It either that or you put someone on the
    bow.
    
    Now that will sound strange but jets were designed to run on shallow
    water, rivers etc. All mine was done in quite steep fast flowing
    shallow rivers and if you happened to stop, normally due to lack of
    water, you simply pushed the boat back to the next pool.
    
    Now that where the real problem started, because the intake wanted to
    suck the back of the boat down you often had to put 1 or 2 on the bow
    so we could get up and running again. 
    
    Othewise the suck was so strong you ended up sucking the river bottom,
    down here its shingle/gravel/rocks etc, through the jet unit. Yes we
    ran a grill but that would just get blocked. No water in no go
    anywhere.
    
    Probably some of the best fun boating I have ever had, the sound of
    touching the bottom at 50 mph in 2 to 3 inch of water in a 3 foot wide
    side channel is just great. Rapids either small or big were a real
    challenge.
    
    

    Gregg, unless the tank that is now in the bow is the same one that was
    in the stern I would leave it in the bow.  Tanks are not cheap and to
    buy one that will correctly fit behind your rear seat and have good
    capacity may have to be custom made.  Why not figure out a way to hinge
    your rear seat cushion so that you can gain access to the now empty
    space behind it.  Besides, you will only end up filling up any empty
    space available with what may not really be needed.  Stuff = extra
    weight.  Before you know it, you'll be wondering why the boat won't
    plane at all.
    Wayne 

Thanks for all the great info.  The tank seems to be the same one that fits in 
the back of the boat.  The curve of the stringers and the size and shape seem to
all match. Using the back for storage is also a good idea and possibility. The
previous owners must have moved it for a reason.  Maybe leaving it where it was
is the best solution.

Thanks,
Gregg