My New Money Pit, 1972 Sea Ray SRV200 with an Olds 455/Berkeley Jet Drive
- Thread starter SyTy Speed Shop
- Start date
customtouch
Active member
A deep cycle will work better if you plan on having a decent stereo system in it but as previously stated, any battery would work. If it were me and I was just taking the boat out to see if it runs, I would just borrow one from one of your other vehicles for the test run before stepping out and buying one. You may need that money for more pressing matters on the boat. A good battery is usually one of the last things you will need for the boat. JMHO.
SyTy Speed Shop
New member
customtouch said:
Thanks, and yeah i was thinking about that as well! Im pretty sure all my batteries are side post but should still work fine with an adapter or just a bolt!
As always, thanks for the help guys!
I would not recommend using the side post battery's in a boat. The downward shock on the side mount bolts from the boat hitting the waves will elongate the threads and allow battery acid to leak from the battery and into the bottom of the boat. Even if you us a battery box, you will destroy the battery in a short time. There are ways to relieve the shock (supporting the battery cables) but a top mount battery or a dry cell is a better answer. :smile27:
SyTy Speed Shop
New member
Ok well it's long overdue for an update on this. Since I bought another Sonoma GT back in January I've been working on fixing it up as my new daily driver, I got the old 350 vortec and 4l60e Trans out of my Tahoe sold and have been slowly working on getting the 454 and 4L80e Trans ready to go back in.
Plus it has literally been monsoon season here in south Texas as a lot of you guys know and I'm currently storing my boat outside so it's been tough to get any work done. But today I finally made some time and I got the new ignition switch installed and hooked up a battery and the starter just goes click, well the battery has been sitting so I figured maybe it was low on charge. I then worked on the throttle control that I thought was messed up but turns out it's the carb linkage itself that's seized, so I sprayed it with PB Blaster and it moved alittle but I'm afraid a new carb will be in order.
But on a positive note the engine spins over nice and free by hand and feels tight so that is a good thing. Gonna work on the carb and starter tomorrow and maybe get it to fire up!!
Plus it has literally been monsoon season here in south Texas as a lot of you guys know and I'm currently storing my boat outside so it's been tough to get any work done. But today I finally made some time and I got the new ignition switch installed and hooked up a battery and the starter just goes click, well the battery has been sitting so I figured maybe it was low on charge. I then worked on the throttle control that I thought was messed up but turns out it's the carb linkage itself that's seized, so I sprayed it with PB Blaster and it moved alittle but I'm afraid a new carb will be in order.
But on a positive note the engine spins over nice and free by hand and feels tight so that is a good thing. Gonna work on the carb and starter tomorrow and maybe get it to fire up!!
SyTy Speed Shop
New member
Chevy2184 said:
Yeah i decided that i was just going to replace it. I found a deal on a Carter AFB 750 carb for 58 bucks that needs a rebuild, and 45 bucks for the rebuild kit and these carbs are super easy to work on so im just gonna ditch the quadrajunk that's on there.
Once i get the carb swapped out and get it running, im gonna swap out the old points for an HEI to simplify things and be more reliable. I can order a complete billet aluminum HEI with a 65K volt coil on eBay for 50 bucks, yes its made oversees but the quality is actually pretty decent as Ive used them before for other engines.
Hoping to get it splashed before the summer is over.
SyTy Speed Shop said:
Depending on what dizzy you have in their you could prob get a kit from petronix to drop right into your stock dizzy and do the same thing? I think their flame thrower 3 kits even have a built in rev limiter...
And good call on ditching the q-jet... Just remember to soak that afb in some chemtool for a couple of hours before you throw your new kit in it... It will get all the goodies out that the air hose and carb can can't get...
Sent from my shop setting in my boat making motor noises
SyTy Speed Shop
New member
Chevy2184 said:
Well i can get the complete HEI distributor for 52 bucks shipped, and the petronix setup cost twice that, plus i want to get rid of everything on the old ignition system since this thing has been sitting up for so long just to eliminate any trouble.
Next i need to get the old gas tank removed and see about either replacing it or cleaning it out really well and reusing it, right now i cant see down inside of it, but it def smells like old nasty gas. I have a new fuel filler and getting new fuel filler hose and fuel line is easy, probably get a new fuel sending unit as well.
What is every ones thoughts on upgrading to an electric fuel pump vs the mechanical fuel pump mounted on the engine?
If you are talking stock or a little higher than stock horsepower stick with the mechanical fuel pump...lot less stuff to worry about getting wet or hot or making noise... And will go forever... If it was a high horsepower type deal then yeah... Are your fuel tanks aluminum? If so this stuff works like a champ!
It's like 30$ a gallon from Amazon...
Sent from my shop setting in my boat making motor noises
It's like 30$ a gallon from Amazon...
Sent from my shop setting in my boat making motor noises
SyTy Speed Shop
New member
Chevy2184 said:If you are talking stock or a little higher than stock horsepower stick with the mechanical fuel pump...lot less stuff to worry about getting wet or hot or making noise... And will go forever... If it was a high horsepower type deal then yeah... Are your fuel tanks aluminum? If so this stuff works like a champ!
It's like 30$ a gallon from Amazon...
Sent from my shop setting in my boat making motor noises
Yeah i plan to do some minor upgrades to the engine to go with the upgraded ignition and new 750 carb, mainly a better aluminum intake manaifold, bigger cam and would like to see about the upgrading the wet berkeley manifolds for a set that flows better to make alittle more power. Right now this engine is rated at 330HP and i know this same engine was offered with up around 390HP versions, so id like to upgrade it to around that point and give the exhaust a nice loppy sound and i think it would be more than enough to have fun with this boat atleast for now. LOL
Also my fuel tank is steel i believe so it may be a lost cause and just better to swap it for a newer poly style tank.
73 Sanger Flat
Active member
I just bought a new CLay Smith mechanical pump for my boat .. They told me is would handle overs 1000 HP easy , closer to 1200-1300 on gas per their web site ..1/2 inch line in and out .. Cost is 175.00 plus shipping .. I should be getting it today .. I would run a mechanical any day before I switched to an electrical .. I am not a fan of electrical fuel pumps in a boat ..
73 Sanger Flat
Active member
It is over at EO's and he is looking at it .. Not sure how to get it apart and then back together .. EO is going to tackle it and then Trey will get it from him for a back up pump .. I think all the problem was that they did not get the two screw in the middle section tight enough from the factory .. One was pretty loose..jimsplace said:
SyTy Speed Shop
New member
Brazos River Rat ( Billy ) said:
Yeah i looked at that pump and its def a nice piece but way more than i wanted to spend right now at this stage of the project. So after some research and to find out that they no longer make marine specific mechanical fuel pumps, and im not sure the electrical system on this thing could handle a decent electrical pump i just bought a Carter M6109 with the vapor return line for 20 bucks from rockauto.com. Should be plenty of fuel pump for the time being and im gonna run all new 3/8 fuel feed and add in a 1/4 return line back to the tank so i don't have any vapor lock issues and should also help to eliminate fuel spillage at the carb since the carter AFB 750 isn't a marine specific carb.
Also, on the carb, was hoping to have the carb and rebuild kit and intake manifold adapter here by the end of this week so i could get it rebuilt and on the boat this weekend but that may no be happening, seems the seller in TN dropped it off at USPS who then proceeded to send it to MAINE instead if TX!!! So not sure how long that will take to get rerouted and delivered.
SyTy Speed Shop
New member
Ok, another question. I have gotten a new fuel/water separator as there wasn't one before and only had the fuel filter on the inlet of the Q-jet best i could tell, so along with the new carb and fuel pump im adding the fuel filter and all new fuel feed and a return line from the tank to the engine.
Do i have to use USCG approved fuel line or i was thinking about getting some of the push lock type hose they sell for racing, i figure the system will be under low pressure so it should hold up fine as well as hold up to the elements. Was thinking that or getting the braided nylon hose as i don't like messing with the braided SS stuff!!
looks like my carb wont be here till the middle of next week, so i have some time to look for some deals on new fuel line. The fuel/water sep/filter i got has 3/8 NPT IN/OUT so i was gonna plumb the system with 3/8 feed and 1/4 return, should be plenty of fuel flow to feed up to a 400HP engine.
Do i have to use USCG approved fuel line or i was thinking about getting some of the push lock type hose they sell for racing, i figure the system will be under low pressure so it should hold up fine as well as hold up to the elements. Was thinking that or getting the braided nylon hose as i don't like messing with the braided SS stuff!!
looks like my carb wont be here till the middle of next week, so i have some time to look for some deals on new fuel line. The fuel/water sep/filter i got has 3/8 NPT IN/OUT so i was gonna plumb the system with 3/8 feed and 1/4 return, should be plenty of fuel flow to feed up to a 400HP engine.
customtouch
Active member
One important question here with all of these non-marine things you are installing on this boat is, do you plan on having an enclosed engine compartment or leaving it open? If it is going to be enclosed you are makings several decisions in my humble opinion that are a gamble with safety. Just saying.