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    Carb advice, please.

    A little background...I've had my boat (1999 Bryant 182 Ltd, with a 4.3 Merc, A1G2) a few years now, and it's always run pretty "iffy". This year I had a guy put a new (remanufactured) carb on it, and it has run great ever since! Starts right up, no problems. What I want to know is, what can I...
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    Finally got my boat to full speed

    Ok, so I've finally gotten my boat out in calm water, with just me and my dog. It's a 1999 Bryant 182 Limited with a 4.3 Merc. I have a 4-blade, 19 pitch prop on it (Turning Point, I think), and the boat topped out at 4500 r.p.m. and 40 m.p.h. Does this sound about right? I occasionally take a...
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    Replacing winch

    I'm ready to replace my old corroded winch. My question is: if my boat weighs 2500 lbs, is that the rating I need to get for a winch? And is this "2 speed" and "3:1", "4:1" stuff about? Any recommendations? It's for a Boatmate trailer that came with my '99 Bryant 182. Thanks!
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    Nav lights not working

    Ok, so it got dark on us while eating at a restaurant, and I got nothing when I tried to turn on the nav lights, but my horn works (in the same panel). How should I go about troubleshooting the problem? It's after midnight right now, so looking for pointers before I start on tomorrow. Thanks!
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    Backfire

    Ok, so I dropped my boat off at my mechanic's to have a remanufactured carb installed... He just called and said that he it had a hard time cranking up, and when it did, it backfired and blew out the intake gaskets. How does a backfire occur, specially that big of one? Ugh! Btw, it's a 4.3...
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    Towable recommendation

    Looking at getting a towable. Don't need anything real fancy - just a 2-person tube. I've also seen these little balloon-like things that folks tow between the boat and the towable (to keep the rope out of the water and minimize splashing, I believe?) Any recommendations for these items? Thanks!
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    Vortec or not?

    I have a 1999 4.3 liter Mercruiser with a 2 bbl setup. Looking at 4 bbl setup from a 1995 Merc 4.3 LX. Will this work? I don't know when Merc started putting the Vortec heads on their engines (I assume it makes a differdnce). Thanks for any info/advice!
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    TKS carb as replacement

    Got a question: I'm about to purchase a remanufactured Metc 2 bbl carb for my 1999 Mercruiser 4.3L V6 (807764). Can i, instead, replace it with a later, TKS model (866141)? What else would I need, and is it even a worthwhile "upgrade"? Thanks! Tony
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    Ride quality

    I've been curious about something. Given the same basic hull design (best if it's the same model, like Glastron does with their runabouts), would the ride in an OB boat be worse than with an IB/OB, seeing as how it would weigh quite a bit less? I just instinctively think that a lighter boat...
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    Do I need a different prop?

    I have a 1999 Bryant 182 Limited (dry weight, 2500 lbs), Mercruiser 4.3 liter V6 with Apha 1 Gen 2 outdrive. Currently running an aluminum Turning Point prop, 4-blade, 19 pitch. The outdrive has 2.0 on it, indicating it has the 2:1 ratio, meaning it was originally sold in a high-altitude area...
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    fuel tank vent?

    Could someone please explain this whole fuel tank vent thing to me? For some background, for a while now, every time I would put gas in my boat (1999 Bryant 182 Limited, and the fuel tank is up front) I would get this very strong smell of gas - as if there was a leak in the fuel line going to...
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    To cover or not?

    Got a question about preventing mold/mildew: The carpet in my boat is wet/damp right now. I have a boat water-repellent cover that "breathes" (also has a couple of vent holes). Should I go ahead and cover the boat up? Seems like all that moisture in the carpet could lead to mold/mildew, both on...
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    Vapor lock?

    Ok, went to the lake yesterday...cruising along at about 3000 - 3200 rpm when the the rpm started dropping, engine losing power. Got all the way down to idle, but never died out completely. Shut the engine off, cracked right back up, started off, same thing - started bogging down at cruise...
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    Fuel flow meter

    I'm toying with the idea of installing a fuel flow meter system to keep a better track of my fuel and most efficient running. I have a 1999 Bryant with 4.3 Mercruiser (carb). I've read of some kind of system that replaces the tach in the dash for the readout - that would be nice, but not 100%...
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    New vinyl

    My boat, 1999 Bryant 182 Limited, is getting reupholstered at the moment. Could y'all tell me the best way to protect the new vinyl? I've already got some Marine 31, and will use that according to instructions, but what I want to know about is the cover. Can I safely assume that a generic boat...
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    Starter Bendix?

    Launched my boat today...went to crank it up...it cranked, but never would start. It would make this "whirring" sound, as if the starter would keep spinning after releasing the key. A guy who listened to it said it sounded to him like my starter bendix isn't engaging, or it's disengaging too...
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    Bogged down badly...need a fuel/water separator?

    So, there were four of us on my boat ('99 Bryant 182 Limited, with Merc 4.3, Alpha 1, Gen 2, 4-blade 19 in prop) cruising along around 3000 rpm when I decided to open it up some more, just to see what she'd do. When I did, the engine bogged down big time, finally slowing down to idle, then died...
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    Show me the ropes...

    Someone educate me on what are all the ropes I need for my boat. It's an 18', 2" bowrider runabout (1999 Bryant 182 Limited). How many docklines, bowlines, sternlines, etc. should I have on my boat, how long, and diameter for each type, and what exactly each of them are. I.E., the difference...
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    Tilt/Trim not functioning

    Ok, so my drive (Alpha 1, Gen 2) is all the way down and I can't get it to come up. Neither the transom-mounted control unit, not the regular unit at the throttle control will work. When pushing down on either unit, I can hear the "whirring" noise, but pushing up - nada, zilch. Obviously, I...
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    tube towing equipment

    I've towed my tube around before, but it's been a minute. Some of my stuff has gotten lost/misplaced. So my question is: what all do I need to tow my tube? I think I had little harness thingy I used (my tube has a hard plastic hookup thingy on it), which hooked up to a 40 or 50 ft tow rope...
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