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I have been an avid reader of all the great information in these forums for the last 3 years and never *registered*. I am now registered and hope to provide some benefit and also get some help on a few questions.
Here we go. It looks like a relocation down south is in my future and i would like to bring my boat down with me as it is a dream of mine to have a nice cruiser on the ocean for "sun and fun".
My main question is this: My 1994 370 express has been in freshwater its whole life (Up in Minnesota) and currently spends its summers on the river. Can i just ship her down (would love to drive her down the river - but think that would bankrupt me. ) And put her on the ocean as is?
I talked to a marina down where i hope to be staying and was told that as long as i flushed out every time i ran it i would be okay. Does that sound right? The 370 has its hull painted - not sure if i have to replace the sacrificial anodes with different ones? So in short would i be better off dumping it up north and buying a different boat down south? Other thoughts would be if i need to go diesel for better milage / range and if an unleaded will break the bank?
Sorry for the onslaught of questions any any help would be greatly appreciated.... P.s. i loved the trojan history thread i read a few days ago about the history of this boat line. I really do love this boat but do not want to ruin it either by dumping it in saltwater if it is not designed to do so.
Thank you!
** 1994 370 Trojan Express (Catchin Some ZZzz's) **
The sacrificial anodes will need to be changed to zinc for saltwater. Most likely they are now either aluminum or magnesium since you are in freshwater. If the engines are raw water cooled, you will need to flush after every use or convert to fresh water cooling. It may be easiest to install a flush kit but without knowing your specific setup I'm not sure. Can you post pictures of your engines and cooling system?
1993 Sea Ray 200 Overnighter OB with 1993 Mercury 150 hp Outboard
1979 Starcraft 14' Rowboat with 2011 Mercury 9.9 hp Outboard
Former boat: 1971 Trojan F26
Ditto on on dog houses post . If the boat is raw water cooled there are flushing kits you can get and you can always and a fresh water cooling kit too .
Jam3930 wrote:
Other thoughts would be if i need to go diesel for better milage / range and if an unleaded will break the bank?
!
Yes Diesel will get better mileage/ range . Will gas break the bank ? That depends on you bank account But changing over to diesels or up grading to a diesel boat could break the bank a lot easier then buying gas .
Boating is good for the soul
77/78 TROJAN F36 Conv.
6BTA Cummins diesels
Life is to short for a ugly boat
let me start by answering the tricky one. It sounds like yout motors are gas so the expense of actually driving the boat down the river(mississippi?) all the way to the gulf of mexico(you mentioned salt water). I know I'm making assumptions here but I'm just trying to fill in the blanks. I believe that most states make you file for a special trailering permit(wide load) if your boat's beam is over 12 feet. Filing and paying for the permits can be time consuming, costly and a pain. Taking the boat to the gulf of mexico by water may also be time consuming, costly and a pain. I guess I would figure out how much each method would cost, weigh the value of experince gained against the possible complications you may encounter(repairs, extra time, etc.) and pick one. I can say from experience that I delivered a 37 foot sportfish from Rhode Island to Florida and it was an adventure.
As far as putting your boat in salt water, you don't have to change your cooling system to a closed system. You don't even have to flush out your cooling system after every use. Just understand that the manifolds/risers/block will all have a shorter life expectancy if you do not do those things. I just repowered and I am using a raw water cooling system. Raw water cooled engines can last over 20 years and thousands of hours if they are properly maintained. Trojans are designed for the ocean so I wouldn't worry about that. Bottom paint and sacrificial anodes are made for every type of water you can put a boat in, so do your research and choose the right ones.
Thanks everyone. Some additional info. the engines are the 454 xl crusaders it is not a closed cooling system and is a raw water system, my concerns are that if i start running salt water though the manifolds that in one year i will have a beautiful boat with 2 large lumps of rust in the engine compartment
I am not familiar with flushing out this boat - are the kits mentioned standard kits that install into the strainer? Assume they can be bought at any marina or like overtons?
For the delivery: freddy your are spot on. It would be from minneapolis MN down the st. croix to the mississippi and into the gulf and then a stretch to tampa. My rough calculations based on a 30 gallon per hour burn would be roughly 11K + alot of memories and 1.5 to 2 weeks. (estimated best speed)
I will most likely pay a shipping company to trailer it down but have not checked on that at all yet.. Don't even have the foggiest idea how much it would be but from buying boats at dealerships and them shipping it around it would feel to me like something in the 5 - 8k range.
I normally am a 7 - 9 Kts guy with the point the boat that way and give the helm a tap every 5 minutes or so. I believe this is a save the bank approach to boating as well as being just darn fun.. Would you agree or is it better to get it up on plane and hammer it out to the destination?
** 1994 370 Trojan Express (Catchin Some ZZzz's) **
hello and welcome to the forum. it's a great resource. when my dad shipped our 1972 f-36 tri cabin from washington, dc to san diego in 1996, he had a fresh water flushing system installed once the boat arrived. the risers and manifolds were changed about a year after she got to the west coast. they were the originals and still showed the casting stamp from chrysler marine on the inside, much to the delight of the mechanic doing the work. now, dad did say the only reason for the flushing system was the space constraint in the engine compartments (these engines were v-drives under the aft stateroom bunks so space was really tight). he did say it was a real pain to use. now for the nuts and bolts..... i think the whole thing stems from how much you love the boat. if you really love her, and want her in tampa, then my thought is by all means, take her with you. it saves the stress of wondering if the boat will sell in your area and searching for a boat in the tampa area. after all, you will be bringing a fresh water boat to florida and the chances are she will maintain her 'clean' looks long after you've brought her down to florida. another consideration is space for the closed cooling system. if you have room in the engine area for a closed cooling system then that is the way i would go. after all, taking the time to convert her will add to the resale value when you get ready to sell. also, it's probably less expensive to have her shipped down and converted than searching for a new boat.
just my thoughts on this.
here is a link for a 370 with a closed cooling system, so it gives you an idea of what it would look like once it is converted over. keep us posted.
short answer, Change it over to a closed system if you're going to keep her. Risers are cheap, and that's about all you'll have to worry about once you change over. you'll need to go to Zinc's. Bottom paint will need to be changed to. Fresh water paint is different than salt, Call the suppier of what you have on now and they'll tell you what you need to do. Re-power to oilburners ? I've thought about it...I'd start getting my money back in 15 yrs. If you want them buy another boat. Very few guys change them over, yes I've never heard anyone say they want gasser's back and when I buy my retirement boat it'll have them. For now I too am a 8 knot guy....And so are most oilburners...
Carver 3607 ACMY 454's Merc's
10' Dinghy 6hp Merc.
La Dolce Vita
Let's hit the water !
) And put her on the ocean as is?
But changing over to diesels or up grading to a diesel boat could break the bank a lot easier then buying gas .
