I bought another boat

crash1371 · August 20, 2010

I bought another boat it is a 1989 Skeeter SD 80 with a 75 HP mercury 3 cyl. on it. Here's the story. First they took it to a backyard boat mechanic who is really good, back in the day. And we are friends from a distance. He had his own marine shop in Dallas but chronic alcoholic and can't hold a job down at any marine place, he is already flashin by 10 AM the guy that owned the boat must have been just as bad. So I got a call to see if I wanted to buy it, How much he said 500.00 and by his voice I could tell he was drunk but nothing new I'm use to it. This is at noon. What's wrong with it I asked and was told that the power pack or the rectifier was out, No spark, ok did some research 60-125.00 depending on the part. I asked about the compression, he said the motor had good compression. What is it he said about 95 per cly. Ok I said I will take a look at it so I did around 2 PM. The boat was in fair shape has a foot controlled 24 volt trolling motor on it, the usual trash in them solid floor, looked at the motor and he starts in with all that is or could be wrong with it and that he changed the fuse link and it kept blowing ? So I asked clear title on boat and motor and he says yes, but he is to drunk to deal with for me. I told him I will take it and we will do it tomorrow morning. I'm thinking it is a fair deal considering the way it all looks. The dude that drove it over to the mechanics house did it with the motor trimed down and the skeg guard is lets just say small. And the back of the trailer cross member is rusted in 2.but the rest of the trailer is in really good shape Wow and I feel like I just walked out of the twilight zone. So I head over in the morning a little after 8 and we start doing some diagnostics with a beer in his one hand but I caught him early he is fairly sharp, cant get power to the motor. So we go to hook up the charger to ;the battery. Now get this the guy that brought the boat over and the owner of it hooked up the battery. You know where I'm going with this Red on negative Black on positive hence blowing the fuse in a upside down world. Wow he should have slept at a Holiday Inn. I reverse the cables and we get power. I asked how did you do the compression and he says off another battery here on the ground hooked up to the starter with a starter button on it. Ok well we now have power going to the power pack and to the rectifier and getting spark to all 3 plugs. But the key switch was not working. He said that I might have to replace it and that it just maybe a loose wire inside because he had a problem with it the day before. You think ? He walks over to the switch where I'm standing and the safety kill switch tether is off Wow now the motor is turning over. I give him the money hook up and leave. I get it home and clean all the crap out of it took up the bottom floor deck carpet it was hit and miss anyhow and vacuumed and wash it looking pretty good now. I check the compression and getting 110-115 great, check the water pump pee line you in the south know why and it is plugged dirt doper the line and the fitting. Disconnect the fuel line and stick it in my gas can pump fuel into a new fuel filter hook up the muffs and start tuning it over and it catches runs rough I look at the area of the carbs and the top one is just peeing gas out of the back draft jet. I shut it down tear off the front to get to them and clean them out fixed starts better still needs tuned