New Fountain Owner. Advice??
04-18-2010, 11:01 AM
#1
Registered
Platinum MemberThread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Lake Norman, NC
Posts: 190
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
New Fountain Owner. Advice??
Hi all,
So yesterday I purchased a '91 Fever, 29ft with twin 454's (not sure which one's yet) and 'OL' serial number B1 drives. Its very clean for an older boat, and I paid $23,500 for it (cash).
I wanted twin drives because I'm a family man and didn't want my family stuck on the lake with an engine that won't start or a blown drive. I figured this way I can always get them back to the dock (hopefully!). I can afford the fuel and maintenance with twins, and apart from building drives can easily do all the maintenance myself, I've been a race car mechanic / fabricator / engineer all my life and now in my early 40's can afford some reasonably priced toys to play with.
Everything works except its got a dead hydraulic seat switch. Whatever, I'll fix that.
I've always wanted a Fountain, and bought a 29 because I figured it should ride better with my family in it than a 24 or similar size.
It ran 69 mph with four guys in it yesterday when I bought it on 28 pitch props. I don't need faster than that. It'll probably cruise around at 50 - 55 mph from now on :-)
But I'm a relative rookie to owning a boat. I've spent a lot of time on friends boats, and been around the scene for about 15 years. But this is my first real ownership.
After reading on here for a few weeks now prior to my purchase, I respect the knowledge of many members on this forum. Apart from the obvious "don't beat on it out of the hole" and "easy on the throttle for the sake of the drives", please feel free to beat me up a bit and offer advice so I can be a safe, courteous, and respectful member of the boating community.
Also, if anyone would care to offer advice with specifics to maintenance, or things I should look at prior to use that might save a rookie much aggravation (or dollars!) later, that would also be much appreciated.
I know boats cost money, and older twins cost more. I'm ok with that, just trying to be as educated as possible.
Feel free to tell me I bought the wrong thing, or I paid too much, or anything else that might help me understand what I just got into :-)
Thank you all in advance!
So yesterday I purchased a '91 Fever, 29ft with twin 454's (not sure which one's yet) and 'OL' serial number B1 drives. Its very clean for an older boat, and I paid $23,500 for it (cash).
I wanted twin drives because I'm a family man and didn't want my family stuck on the lake with an engine that won't start or a blown drive. I figured this way I can always get them back to the dock (hopefully!). I can afford the fuel and maintenance with twins, and apart from building drives can easily do all the maintenance myself, I've been a race car mechanic / fabricator / engineer all my life and now in my early 40's can afford some reasonably priced toys to play with.
Everything works except its got a dead hydraulic seat switch. Whatever, I'll fix that.
I've always wanted a Fountain, and bought a 29 because I figured it should ride better with my family in it than a 24 or similar size.
It ran 69 mph with four guys in it yesterday when I bought it on 28 pitch props. I don't need faster than that. It'll probably cruise around at 50 - 55 mph from now on :-)
But I'm a relative rookie to owning a boat. I've spent a lot of time on friends boats, and been around the scene for about 15 years. But this is my first real ownership.
After reading on here for a few weeks now prior to my purchase, I respect the knowledge of many members on this forum. Apart from the obvious "don't beat on it out of the hole" and "easy on the throttle for the sake of the drives", please feel free to beat me up a bit and offer advice so I can be a safe, courteous, and respectful member of the boating community.
Also, if anyone would care to offer advice with specifics to maintenance, or things I should look at prior to use that might save a rookie much aggravation (or dollars!) later, that would also be much appreciated.
I know boats cost money, and older twins cost more. I'm ok with that, just trying to be as educated as possible.
Feel free to tell me I bought the wrong thing, or I paid too much, or anything else that might help me understand what I just got into :-)
Thank you all in advance!
04-18-2010, 01:14 PM
#2
Registered
Welcome aboard !!! Fountains are great. The first thing I would do is check the oil in the drives. If it is at all dirty in anyway..Change the gear oil . This will save the drives. Use only recomended gear oil. Run the engine and make sure there is no fuel leaks or excesive fumes. make sure your halon light is on and it is charged. Make sure you have good water pressure. I only get 2 pounds on the trailer but in the water it is up around 15 IIRC hope this helps...
04-18-2010, 06:00 PM
#3
Registered
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Buffalo, Ny
Posts: 56
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Welcome to the wonderfull world of boating i myself have a 38 Fever and with it like any boat comes many responsibilities. I run a bussiness in Buffalo Ny, called Teachmetoboat.com. This is not a sales pitch but feel free to contact me with any questions (free of charge for a fellow Fountain owner) [email protected] or 716-289-6746.
04-18-2010, 06:06 PM
#4
Registered
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: Cincinnati, OH
Posts: 710
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I would change the oil in the drives and engine oil/filters so you have a baseline to start from. I would ask the previous owner about the age of the sea water pump impellers, too. If more than 2 years old, or if you cannot find out how old, I would replace those also, again, so you have a baseline to start from. Disintegrated or disintegrating sea water pump impellers can ruin more than just a fun day of boating! Be sure that the bilge blowers work ... and use them!
04-18-2010, 07:17 PM
#5
Registered
Congratulations! And welcome to the Fountain family.
Are you happy with your boat? Yes! Then you did the right deal! On the water treat others as you would have them treat you and you will never have a bad day .......... well except for the occassional chit head ......... they're out there, but you'll learn to ignore that!
Are you happy with your boat? Yes! Then you did the right deal! On the water treat others as you would have them treat you and you will never have a bad day .......... well except for the occassional chit head ......... they're out there, but you'll learn to ignore that!
Commercial Member
04-18-2010, 10:03 PM
#8
Hi all,
So yesterday I purchased a '91 Fever, 29ft with twin 454's (not sure which one's yet) and 'OL' serial number B1 drives. Its very clean for an older boat, and I paid $23,500 for it (cash).
I wanted twin drives because I'm a family man and didn't want my family stuck on the lake with an engine that won't start or a blown drive. I figured this way I can always get them back to the dock (hopefully!). I can afford the fuel and maintenance with twins, and apart from building drives can easily do all the maintenance myself, I've been a race car mechanic / fabricator / engineer all my life and now in my early 40's can afford some reasonably priced toys to play with.
Everything works except its got a dead hydraulic seat switch. Whatever, I'll fix that.
I've always wanted a Fountain, and bought a 29 because I figured it should ride better with my family in it than a 24 or similar size.
It ran 69 mph with four guys in it yesterday when I bought it on 28 pitch props. I don't need faster than that. It'll probably cruise around at 50 - 55 mph from now on :-)
But I'm a relative rookie to owning a boat. I've spent a lot of time on friends boats, and been around the scene for about 15 years. But this is my first real ownership.
After reading on here for a few weeks now prior to my purchase, I respect the knowledge of many members on this forum. Apart from the obvious "don't beat on it out of the hole" and "easy on the throttle for the sake of the drives", please feel free to beat me up a bit and offer advice so I can be a safe, courteous, and respectful member of the boating community.
Also, if anyone would care to offer advice with specifics to maintenance, or things I should look at prior to use that might save a rookie much aggravation (or dollars!) later, that would also be much appreciated.
I know boats cost money, and older twins cost more. I'm ok with that, just trying to be as educated as possible.
Feel free to tell me I bought the wrong thing, or I paid too much, or anything else that might help me understand what I just got into :-)
Thank you all in advance!
So yesterday I purchased a '91 Fever, 29ft with twin 454's (not sure which one's yet) and 'OL' serial number B1 drives. Its very clean for an older boat, and I paid $23,500 for it (cash).
I wanted twin drives because I'm a family man and didn't want my family stuck on the lake with an engine that won't start or a blown drive. I figured this way I can always get them back to the dock (hopefully!). I can afford the fuel and maintenance with twins, and apart from building drives can easily do all the maintenance myself, I've been a race car mechanic / fabricator / engineer all my life and now in my early 40's can afford some reasonably priced toys to play with.
Everything works except its got a dead hydraulic seat switch. Whatever, I'll fix that.
I've always wanted a Fountain, and bought a 29 because I figured it should ride better with my family in it than a 24 or similar size.
It ran 69 mph with four guys in it yesterday when I bought it on 28 pitch props. I don't need faster than that. It'll probably cruise around at 50 - 55 mph from now on :-)
But I'm a relative rookie to owning a boat. I've spent a lot of time on friends boats, and been around the scene for about 15 years. But this is my first real ownership.
After reading on here for a few weeks now prior to my purchase, I respect the knowledge of many members on this forum. Apart from the obvious "don't beat on it out of the hole" and "easy on the throttle for the sake of the drives", please feel free to beat me up a bit and offer advice so I can be a safe, courteous, and respectful member of the boating community.
Also, if anyone would care to offer advice with specifics to maintenance, or things I should look at prior to use that might save a rookie much aggravation (or dollars!) later, that would also be much appreciated.
I know boats cost money, and older twins cost more. I'm ok with that, just trying to be as educated as possible.
Feel free to tell me I bought the wrong thing, or I paid too much, or anything else that might help me understand what I just got into :-)
Thank you all in advance!
04-19-2010, 09:30 AM
#9
Registered
Platinum MemberThread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Lake Norman, NC
Posts: 190
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thank you all very much for the answers and suggestions.
And of course, I have another couple of questions... :-)
The valvecovers say these engines are 420HP, and the engines are obviously big block Chevy (454 I presume).
I've tried looking for serial numbers but cant find them. And its a bit tight in there :-)
Any other way I can tell what these things actually are? The previous owner says he runs them to 5200 rpm, per the chips in the MSD ignition boxes. That sounds right if they're 420's, but if they're only 330's and have a cast crankshaft...
The engines look real stock, but I'm not willing to trust a valvecover sticker. The air filters say HP500 on them, and I know that isn't right!
I've seen conflicting info with intake manifold identification, so not sure what the real deal is there to identify what I have.
And although anything could have been changed I guess, is there any Fountain listing by hull number that would tell me what it was originally built with?
Also, some research has shown some owners run Amsoil synthetic gear oil in the drives. Whats the consensus on gear oil weight and synthetic vs. petroleum based? I'm taking your advice and changing all the engine and drive lubricants... besides, it'll tell me if there's any water getting past the prop seals and if the gears in the upper are in good shape.
If research is correct, the 'OL' serial number drives still have the thin floor gears in the upper, so I want to give them every chance they can have.
Very much appreciate the advice with checking fuel systems for leaks, using the blowers, and checking the Halon system.
I've already repaired one of the blower vent tubes that had come off at the hull end.
You guys are awesome, I really appreciate all the help. This forum is outstanding.
Apologies in advance for so many questions... and thank you to all of you who take the time to answer :-)
And of course, I have another couple of questions... :-)
The valvecovers say these engines are 420HP, and the engines are obviously big block Chevy (454 I presume).
I've tried looking for serial numbers but cant find them. And its a bit tight in there :-)
Any other way I can tell what these things actually are? The previous owner says he runs them to 5200 rpm, per the chips in the MSD ignition boxes. That sounds right if they're 420's, but if they're only 330's and have a cast crankshaft...
The engines look real stock, but I'm not willing to trust a valvecover sticker. The air filters say HP500 on them, and I know that isn't right!
I've seen conflicting info with intake manifold identification, so not sure what the real deal is there to identify what I have.
And although anything could have been changed I guess, is there any Fountain listing by hull number that would tell me what it was originally built with?
Also, some research has shown some owners run Amsoil synthetic gear oil in the drives. Whats the consensus on gear oil weight and synthetic vs. petroleum based? I'm taking your advice and changing all the engine and drive lubricants... besides, it'll tell me if there's any water getting past the prop seals and if the gears in the upper are in good shape.
If research is correct, the 'OL' serial number drives still have the thin floor gears in the upper, so I want to give them every chance they can have.
Very much appreciate the advice with checking fuel systems for leaks, using the blowers, and checking the Halon system.
I've already repaired one of the blower vent tubes that had come off at the hull end.
You guys are awesome, I really appreciate all the help. This forum is outstanding.
Apologies in advance for so many questions... and thank you to all of you who take the time to answer :-)
04-20-2010, 01:16 AM
#10
Registered
I would change the oil in the drives and engine oil/filters so you have a baseline to start from. I would ask the previous owner about the age of the sea water pump impellers, too. If more than 2 years old, or if you cannot find out how old, I would replace those also, again, so you have a baseline to start from. Disintegrated or disintegrating sea water pump impellers can ruin more than just a fun day of boating! Be sure that the bilge blowers work ... and use them!
