Took boat in for normal service appointment this week and...........

[Red Childress]

then got the phone call that we all hate to hear. 4 of 6 cylinders were shot which means a new power head has been ordered for my OptiMax. It is suppose to be up and running by the 12th. The silver lining is that the river has been too high to guide anyway, I suppose.

[rodwrap]

Did it have any symptoms? 4 out of 6 bad...shoulda been hard starting at least...

[Red Childress]

Yes, that was the red flag. It would take 2-3 cranks to get her fired up but the first thing in the morning she would fire up on the first crank. I was thinking injectors or bad gas or something else besides cylinders but after 700 hours, I am not surprised. It will be my first boat that needs a 2nd break-in period.

Gonna go up to the Zoo with Charlie and pre-fish a few days next week.

[rodwrap]

Charlie..kool dude to say the least..tell him "Homer" says hi. Tons of fun going with Him & Doug...

I was on the zoo Monday..still kinda dirty, prolly moreso now....

[Bob Seybold]

Sorry to hear of your misfortune with the power plant. Can't bring myself to own a Mercury, just about everyone I know that owns one has trouble. Just about every "Lake boat" I like is partners with Mercury though. Hope you are up and running like new. Tell Charlie we said HI !

[Red Childress]

Will do, Bob. Tell Wendy I said hello as well. I am getting restless waiting around to get back on the water. I even resorted to scrubbing bugs and tar off my truck yesterday to fill the time! The day before was "bulldawg/shallow invader restoration day" with my trusty bottle of Mend-It.

I had looked at the 160 Yamaha sport jet but it just was not enough power/speed to do what I need to do around here. I really do like the gas mileage to power ratio of the OptiMax. I did run the crap out of that engine over the past 6 years and had hoped to get 900 hours out of her. If only that boat came with a 200 Yamaha or Etec.........

[Red Childress]

Just got off the phone with the fellows at Wiegel's and I will be picking it up on Friday which means back on the water Saturday.

[lowbidder]

Sorry to hear about the engine troubles Red. How long did it take for you to put 700 hours on?

I just turned my first 100 on my optimax and I'm taking it in to Wiegel's the end of this month. I can't believe it took 4 years to rack up 100 hours. At that pace, I've got 24 more years until my powerhead goes! :p

[Red Childress]

740.1 hours in 6 years which translates to about 9 months of running per year which equals 54 months of actual running time. I used the big engine to troll with for the first year and a half until I purchased my kicker. That fact alone put a ton of hours on the big engine.

After all those hours, things vibrate loose and need adjusting on a timely basis. I had never really realized just how important yearly servicing (if done the right way)is in preventing mechanical issues. They re-seated my head gasket, tightened up my shifter/bucket head, and changed alternator belts just to name a few. They had never seen an engine get so many hours in such a short period of time.

Now, it feels like a brand new boat. I had forgotten how the "new" feel felt.

[lowbidder]

Any idea if they checked your impeller and sleeve? I know I have a few gouges in mine from sucking up gravel on shallow starts. I've lost about 5 mph off the top end and it doesn't load quite as fast when I hit the throttle. I have to feather it a little now. It really doesn't affect my performance or the way I fish, but it would be nice to get that "new" feeling back like you described.

[Red Childress]

All impeller related items were in great shape. 'Surprisingly unblemished' was the quote used actually. My shifter had really loosened up which was allowing the bucket to hang down and interfere with forward thrust.