88 Bayliner Capri Help

[wagostino]

Hi everyone. I am relatively new to boating and just picked up a 1988 Bayline 1950 BR with a 3.0 Litre OMC Cobra stern drive. I have big plans for this boat but first I need some assistance with some basics.

1. The seller told me that I would have to replace the alternator. I pulled out the old unit and can get a replacement near my home for $225. They will test the old one for me. Any advice on the alternator? Anything I should stay away from?

2. The middle trim solenoid neeeds to be replaced. The one that makes the outdrive go down. Forgive the dumb question, byt when would I want to adjust the trim in the water and why?

3. The boat has the female portion of snaps all around the bow and main area for a two piece cover. I don't have the covers. Would these snaps follow a standard layout? Can I order covers to fit these snaps, and if so, from where?

Other than that all is well. I test drove the boat and it seamed great. It starts instantly. I know not to run it out of the water without the earmuffs and a hose. The seller suggested a tuneup. The engine sounded smooth to me but I will follow his advice. On a car of that vintage I would replace the rotor, distributor cap, spark plugs, wires, pcv valve, fuel filter, air filter and engine oil. What more do you recommend on this boat?

I have an idea in my head of soon removing the carpet and replacing it with a rubberized decking compound like this

http://www.sanitred.com/BoatRepair.htm

Do any of you more experienced hands see any issue or folly with wanting to do this?

Thanks, I look forward to any advice you can give.

 

[Mr.Swee]

Re: 88 Bayliner Capri Help

Ok?I?m also new at this whole boating thing but I will give you my two cents.

As far as an alternator, I would think just get the same size as the one you have. To big and you can fry your battery and too small you can burn up the alternator and the battery. I was told this once before.

The trim is important.

When you are in deep waters and you want the full power of the motor, the trim needs to be down. This is how the boat was designed.

When you get to shallower waters, you can trim up to keep the motor from hitting bottom and this allows you to get closer to the beach.

As far as covers go, don?t know much. You can check this link out and they may be able to help you if cost is not an issue. http://boatcovers.iboats.com

The final issue was the floor. I like this idea and might try it on my 87 Bayliner Capri that I?m restoring. I would like to know if anybody has tried this on their floor.

 

[wagostino]

Re: 88 Bayliner Capri Help

Thanks for the comment.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: 88 Bayliner Capri Help

Welcome to iBoats. We'd love to see some pics of your new-to-you boat. I'll try best with the questions.

1. You have to have a marine alternator. Marine electronics are designed to not produce any spark which could ignite fuel vapors in the bilge. So you may be stuck buying the $225 one. However, do you have a shop locally that rebuilds automotive starters and alternators? Perhaps they could repair yours much cheaper. However make sure they know the difference between and automotive one and an marine on and don't inadvertently "convert" yours

2. Trim works (basically) like this: you trim all the way down to get up on plane, then once on plane you adjust it up for the optimum ride. There's a much better explanation somewhere on the site but I'm not sure where. If you leave it all the way down all the time your boat will plow.

3. Sadly these are pretty much always a custom job. A marine canvas shop can make new covers to fit your existing snaps and it is a common job. However like all custom work it can get $$.

As for your motor questions? I don't know jack about motors so I'll leave that to the experts. The guys in the I/O section of this forum are gurus so your best bet may be to post your engine questions there.

 

[wagostino]

Re: 88 Bayliner Capri Help

I will try and post some pictures tonight. I went with the $225 new alternator. I ordered the trim solenoid and tune up parts and hopefully I well get to tune it up tomorrow after work.

Thanks