32' Fever report
 

Finally made it on the water this weekend with the new boat. Was a nice change going to the 32' from the 27'.
Speedo worked 1st day, but not the second. Now, how did both drives get plugged while on a lift? :rolleyes: Will investigate this weekend. Something minor.

Water pressure on both motors OVER 35# at WOT. Screwed with this pressure stuff for 3 yrs on last boat. Not again!!!!!!!! Didn't check oil for water. Don't think I want too. What is it with Mercury on this issue, do they have no idea??

Water leaks past the rubrail like crazy! Pumps kicked on every 2 minutes. You would think that since Fountain goes to the trouble of FGing the deck to hull joint along both sides where it accessible, they could at least put sealer on the joint along the swim platform. At least on the 32's where the rubrail at the platform is underwater. :rolleyes:

All in all, life was good!

Kewl- give numbers when you get them- 32s are FAST:cool:

Regarding the rubrail leakage, I had the same problem. The swim platform is laying right at the water line on most 32's. I was only able to solve my problem when I repowered by purchasing Tyler Crockett 600's to replace the merc engines. Crockett uses aluminum heads and intakes and of course the headers are a lot lighter than the cast iron manifolds. All in all I think I saved about 300 lbs or so right off the transom. The rub rail now sits about 4 inches above the waterline greatly helping the water issue. And of course I picked up about 15 mph at the same time!:D

Twinn, no idea what she runs, but it sounds awlsome! Has the real deep tone to it, not the loud like my 27 had.

Curt, yep. My 27'r leak there also, and it was around 6" above water also. Got water past the rubrail when launching. Water in boat......bad. Removed the rubrail and sealed with 5200. All was good then. Going to do same thing on this one this weekend. New motors, huh? Wouldn't it have been cheaper to just use sealer? :D

Mike, I hear yeah. Unfortunately twins doubles the cost for new exhaust, but then a repair bill will be doubled too. No win situation. ;)
Wonder if all the cast iron exhaust are prone to this condition? 350,454,& 502's. Aren't all those ex. systems basically same design? So whats the scoop, you still have the 29, or have 2 boats now with the new avitar?

Re: 32' Fever report
 

I feel for you! Been there done that! Which engines do you have? I would guess there 454's or 502's with the newer style thermostat housing. I think that may be the cork in the system that causes the high pressures. Keep an eye on your circulating pumps for water weeping out the weep holes. Also the increased pressure can cause water to be forced into the Seawater housing. I found more water and fuel in mine than gear lube.:(

When I launch at steep ramps I get some water leaking in. I'm going to try the 5200 under the rub rail. You think they could do that at the factory. :confused:

Dan

Re: 32' Fever report
 

Removed the rubrail along swim platform, scraped out the sparcely factory installed sealer and filled it up with 5200. Not a drop this weekend. :) Thats 1 thing crossed off my repair list, several more to go now. :rolleyes:

Re: Re: 32' Fever report
 

502 MPI's. Going to have to scratch my head on this one for a bit. My plan when I bought this boat was to never have to turn a wrench on it. So far, that's ALL I've done. Sure can tell the quality is not the same as what my '94 was in many places.

I had heard about the reversion problems when I first got my 32. Talked to Dick Simon Marine, and was told that it is a huge problem. Not 'IF' it will happen but 'WHEN' it does. I was told that it is necessary to upgrade the exhaust elbow joints to reduce the possibility of reversion. Expensive, but cheaper than the alternative.
Also be sure to regularly charge the grease fittings on the drive coupler. Other than these kind of things, I have been extremely satisfied with my 32. Outstanding performance - even in some relatively serious Pacific bluewater conditions, I have pushed the Gaffrig gauges to over 80 < no GPS >. Water pressure runs a little high, but not dangerously so - yet.
Note: Be careful when benchmarking your drive trim and tabs at WOT. I discovered an almost-unrecoverable chine-walking speed wobble with tabs and drives maxed to the up-stops. And it sneaks up QUICK. Just a heads-up if you're doing it yourself, with one hand on the tabs and trim and the other on the helm.
Good luck - with any luck at all, you will love it.

What type of joint upgrade are you talking about, New exhaust?
How much pressure are you seeing? I'm guessing mine is pushing 45-50#. At cruise, I'm showing 25#

Don't let it go. Take a look at the large hose off the circulating pumps. Mine looked like a balloon. I ended up spending the money to get Gary Grimes water dumps. It was over kill but I was sick of chasing the problem with no results. Merc's response was if its' not overheating and there’s no water in the oil don't worry about it.: mad: :mad: :mad: Fountain didn't lend a hand either. Wett Vette has a valve like you had before that seems to be doing the trick. I think Seadated had high water pressure problems with his 502 also. I run 24 lbs. WOT and cooler oil temps.

Dan

US1, I just splashed today after a couple weeks dry. I will try to get you definitive water pressure numbers within the next couple days.
This weekend, I am benchmarking the gauges. Oil pressure @ 2000 & WOT, water pressure @ 2000 & WOT, etc., etc. Looking for minor deviations from the norm. Dialed in the tach vs trim and tab settings a couple weeks ago. As you know, we bought 32's at around the same time. I will give you numbers as I validate them.

Another sharp lesson learned . . . check the nut that secures the bolt that connects the engine hatch hydraulic arm to the engine hatch. Somehow my bolt came loose, the hydraulic arm fell down between the engines. No big deal yet - however, on it's way down, the arm popped the low-pressure 1/4" hose off the hydraulic steering pump. ATF EVERYWHERE, and no steering. This kind of event can almost take the glow off a perfectly good day of boating.

So, I guess that means you didn't get any numbers for me then, huh? ;)

When I pulled my motors to replace the drive couplers, I drained alot of PS fluid. Didn't bleed it when done, figured it will self bleed itself over time. At most steering positions it is fine, but when going to full lock, I get what sounds like aireation in the helm itself. Must still have some air in it?? From what I gathered, bleeding is a MESS. Kinda hard to do when on the lift. Thought about wrapping trash bags underneath to catch the fluid. Let me know how yours turns out.
Thanks.

No numbers as yet. However, I fixed the engine hatch, sucked all the fluid out of the bilge with a rabbit pump, and pressure washed the entire compartment. Looks like new again.
Attach flush adapter (water) to your engine so you can run it, and add PS fluid up to the line on the reservoir and start the motors. As you turn the helm lock-to-lock you will see the fluid level dropping in the reservoir. Just keep adding fluid until the noise goes away. It takes a little while, but it will go away. It is not messy at all.
The weather is supposed to clear up Thursday, I should be able to get some more numbers together. Did your drive couplers fail, or is it just preventive maintenance? I did mine as well.
One other - when you say 'on the lift', are you storing your boat on a HydroHoist?

My hatch lift bolt is just barely long enough too! Must of saved a whopping $ .50 by using a shorter bolt.
So you didn't bleed them by cracking loose a fitting at the cylinders and just let it cycle itself? I have about 2 hrs of run time and it still gargles at the helm at full lock. I think I need to actually bleed them if it continues.
Couplers....No, they did not fail, yet. I was just doing preventative maintance after I 1st bought it by checking alignment and greasing the u-joints. The couplers would not have made it thru the summer. They were both dry, splines worn and way out of alignment. Both motors needed over an 1/8" shim behind the lower engine mount bolts at the aluminum angle brackets in order to drop the rear of the motors. They had to have came this way from Fountain. 130 hrs. Only way the drives could have been originally installed is for the motors to be left loose during the install, then tightened after the drives were on.
Yes, I'm keeping it on hydro lift in a covered slip. No way am I leaving it in the water all summer. Damn thing would sink as soon as I leave for the week. :) Can't beat not having to trailer every weekend.

I had no problem with the PS after I replaced all the fluid. I just kept topping it up to the fill line, over and over until the gurgling stopped completely.
My drives were perfectly aligned when I replaced my couplers. The grease fittings, however, had never been charged.
I am storing my boat on a HydroHoist as well. The reason I asked is that when launching it is necessary to lower the stern all the way first - before lowering the bow. This puts the engine compartment blower outlets under water for a time. Then my bilge pumps kick in furiously until the bow comes down and raises the back end out of the water again. Looking into the engine compartment as this happens, I see two seacocks down low on each side of the bilge pouring water into the engine compartment. I am wondering the source/entry point for that water, and the consequences of plugging the outlets into the engine compartment. I have heard that Fountains can accumulate a large quantity of water under the cabin, forward of the companionway step. I have also heard that this water can be difficult to remove. My thought is: Could this be the source of the water coming into the bilge when the boat is at an extreme angle during launch? Do you have any thoughts on this?. . . Anybody??

Next chapter in 32 fortitude: The cabin-step bilge pump . . .

I have never seen a Hydro lift that can lowered front and rear independently. Not that there isn't. The lift should raise and lower level and equally throughout the full swing. Mine has a tie bar that goes from the front to the rear swing arms to positively lift level. Is yours not a Level Lift Hydro Hoist? My lift is a Galva Lift, but basically the exact same as HH.

If you are talking about the 2 holes at the rear outside corners, those are drains for what leaks past the swim platform rubrail. You cannot plug them. I got water thru there just while sitting. It is imposssible for Fountain to get to that area from the inside and bond the hull and deck like the rest of the boat is done, so they fill the joint with a sealer from outside. Mine had tons of gaps in the sealer, that was the entry point for water. I removed the rear rubrail section and scraped out the old sealer and FILLED with 5200. No more leaks!

Mine had a little bit of water in the cabin step. It comes from the front. I'm going to remove the forward cabin mirror and hose down the nose to see if the bow cleat and light are sealed. Another thing I noticed is that the step bilge pump hose does not have a loop in it. So under the right conditions, water can enter at the thru hull discharge fitting and run into the step. I pinched the hose in the step and after a day, it had just a bit of water in the line, so it is one entry point. I keep a full cover on my boat to keep the sun off it and since then, the step is dry during the week. I do see a little (paper towel soak up amount) after I wash it which leads me to the lite or cleat. Interior has not get wet since I have owned it, nor plan to, so don't know if it could come from the cockpit area. Another thing, the cooler drains into the hull. Mine only had a 2' length of drain hose to direct it under the passengers area. From there have no idea how the drainage flow is.
The bilge pump........mine is a fully automatic 500GPH rule hooked up with a float switch. Why not just a manual pump if going to use a float? sheesh!

I just looked at the Galva-Lift, it is entirely different from mine. Mine is a pneumatic lift, and the Galva- appears to be winch- or cable-driven. I have tried to feather mine down - keeping it level the entire time. At one point, every time, the boat will fall right over sideways so the deck is at a 45 degree angle to the water. Scared the sh*t out of me. I don't think I'll be trying it again.
How bad was it pulling the rubrail? Any problems?
When I picked up my boat, the cabin-step bilge pump was disconnected. I connected it, and the pump kicked in, but would not discharge the accumulated water. So it would run - and run - pumping the same water over and over again. I reached in through the hull-access, and pulled on the hose (suspecting a kink), and it started to discharge, and stopped again when I released the tension. Shortening the hose from the pump end didn't seem to help. May be time to replace that hose.
It's just stupid minor crap like this once in a while . . . otherwise, the overall performance of the boat is stupendous (close-quarters handling aside), and I doubt I could be more satisfied with my purchase.

Next Chapter: Low-water pickups . . .

It is under Galva-Foam, a sub directory on the Galv-lift web site. Mine is a 10,000# lift. We bought, assembled and installed 3 of them ourselves. This is assembled w/o the swing arms installed. Otherwise it would have been a 12' wide load hauling to the lake.
Really didn't want to replace all the mail boxes on the 2 1/2 hr route. :)

OK - that looks a little more like mine . . .

Finally got out on the water today.
About 4 foot, blowing hard, sloppy as hell. Not a great day for benchmarking the gauges.
What I got is sketchy as hell.
Water pressure up to about 65 mph is between 30-35 psi. At WOT, it jumps up well past 35.
So - I went back to the original performance report as described by R. Fountain.
What it reads is (paraphrase): "@ 5050 rpm, 80 mph, WP both port and stbd, 35+". . . ??!! ?
I guess that's how they ship from the factory. . . More research needed.

Sounds like we are in the same boat with the WP.

Between us, I'm sure a viable, economical solution will manifest itself . . . I'll contact Dick Simon Marine in the morning. See what the local authorized Fountain dealer has to say. For now, I am tempering the 'need for speed' as mandated by my WP gauge. Mid- upper 60's for now . . . nothing over 35 psi, for controlled bursts. I'll post what I hear back . . . ain't no thang. . . .
BTW - do you have low-water pickups?

Yep....... LWP

I'm thinking of locating 2 of the old style t-stat housing assemblies that use 2 water lines to each manifold. Our risers have a pipe plug in them that would be used for the second set of hoses. This may also help with the issue of the riser gaskets that are prone to leaking????? Possibly the high water pressure is the main cause of the gaskets leaking. Just thinking out loud.

US1 let me allow you to gain from my unfortunate experience. When I bought my 32 it had through the hull water intakes. Aparently the guy I bought it from had a bad habbit of running the drives into the mud and cooking his motors. So his mechanic made it idiot proof by installing the through hull intake. It worked. However, fast forward to my removing the water pumps and installing crossovers in their place. Instant water pressure problems. As it turns out the water pumps were limiting the amount of water that could enter the blocks. My oil would turn to mud within an hour. My mechanic created a bleeder hose and ran it out the side of the boat right above where the bilge pump dump is located. That reduced the pressure to an acceptable level. No more problems. The next year, in search of more speed, I had the through the hull intakes removed. They had to be a big drag, being located right on the bottom of the boat. Once the water intake was back in the drive foot where it belongs, the bleeder hose was no longer needed. Something tells me your problem is the low water pickups.
Good luck!
Curt.

I'm thinking the same thing . . . gotta be the LWP's. I have read on this forum something about plugging two of the four holes. Supposedly a 2mph top-end gain by doing so. However, nothing definitive has been posted about the impact on water pressure, or the best method for plugging them. Would it be possible to temporarily block these holes, and monitor the results? Any suggestions as to how to do it temporarily, for testing purposes?

I don't know. I would think that in order for the LWP to be the cause, water would have to blow past the impellor in the pump faster than the pump could move the water itself. Even when in nuetral, I can give the the throttle a quick rap and the wp will increase. Not a great deal more. That is with no ramming effect from the LWP moving thru the water. My last boat with both side pickup, and then later the dual pickup, the pressure wouldn't raise as much as this one does. I have to consider the size of the incoming water lines, size of water passage and hose thru the drive itself, and compare that against the lines going out of the motor to the exhaust. It would seem that there is plenty of hose size for the exiting water to keep up with the incoming, providing there is no restriction. Where I keep on going back to the newer style t-stat housing, or possibly the gasket area at the manifold to riser area????? Thoughts????

I might try plugging a covering of the pickup holes on 1 of my drives with duct tape this weekend just for chits and grins and see what happens. Then can compare both motors at same time.

I keep going back to my local Fountain dealer, Dick Simon, with limited results. He tells me he is still awaiting a call back from Merc Marine. I'll try again tomorrow.
Re: the t'stat housing - what year did the housing change? Did earlier 32's experience the same problem? I wonder do all current 32's have this problem?

Dude,
Why you selling so soon, gas tank getting low? What does the shore power operate....Power inverter, Battery Charger? If I recall, it has an outlet in the cabin.
Thanks

Good Luck with the sell.

US1 Fountain
 

What marina are you keeping your 32 at?

US1 -
Just keeping the options open, taking names. I still have a full boating season in front of me (and a full tank of gas).
Shorepower operates anything that runs on AC power. TV, computer, Jacuzzi.

Re: US1 Fountain
 

Fourwinds Marina@ Lake Monroe.
We are there every weekend.

US-1 - How you coming with the WP issue? I've been a little preoccupied of late. Any breakthroughs?