2800SX Outboard Restoration Begins!!!

[JUPITER PULSARE]

Freshly powder coated CLE gearcases dropped off for reassembly at Nick's Creative Marine.

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

Some more progress! Newer style cowls and pans have been installed on my 2.5's!!

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

Finally started moving forward again this weekend. Due to the motors being mounted 3" higher, 1" further back and 6" further apart I had to reroute my shift/throttle cables for more reach and extend some battery lines. I have all my cables now running from the boat, through the new rigging tubes and into the motor cowls. It sure looks cleaner when you only have 2 rigging tubes vs 4!! I also spent 3 hours high speed wheeling out the deck to bring back the shine! Next weekend I should have both motors completely rigged and hooked up. The last step will be the new front ram steering...I'll get some pictures up next weekend..

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

The problem with having my new Pulsare 2400 is that I've been too busy boating and neglecting my 2800! Today I finally picked up my left hand CLE gearcase and new battery cables for both motors. I need to get motivated to rip the old steering out of the boat and replaced with the UFLEX steering. It's been way overdue as I started this in may...but got sidetracked by the yellow Starflite and now the Pulsare 2400. Time to focus on my twin engine beast again!

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

Reunited again! Matching counter rotating, 2-hole, powder coated, Mercury Racing CLE gearcases with new seals, bearings, gaskets and water pumps!

 

[Hayabusa]

Looking good.

 

[karzrus]

The problem with having my new Pulsare 2400 is that I've been too busy boating and neglecting my 2800! Today I finally picked up my left hand CLE gearcase and new battery cables for both motors. I need to get motivated to rip the old steering out of the boat and replaced with the UFLEX steering. It's been way overdue as I started this in may...but got sidetracked by the yellow Starflite and now the Pulsare 2400. Time to focus on my twin engine beast again!

I don't know how you and some others find the time to look after multiple boats? I switched from I/O power partly because winterizing and maintaining a new O/B would be much simpler, and it is. But at the end of this past season I still checked on getting someone to winterize it for me as I was running out of time. In the end I did it myself because I figured I could do it in the same time it would take to bring it to and pick it up from a shop. On vacation I find all kinds of time to wax and maintain the boat, but the rest of the year, not so much.

Really like how this one is turning out. I'd say good luck with it, but it really is about work not luck and this ones getting the work, so you be enjoying her again soon.

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

I don't know how you and some others find the time to look after multiple boats? I switched from I/O power partly because winterizing and maintaining a new O/B would be much simpler, and it is. But at the end of this past season I still checked on getting someone to winterize it for me as I was running out of time. In the end I did it myself because I figured I could do it in the same time it would take to bring it to and pick it up from a shop. On vacation I find all kinds of time to wax and maintain the boat, but the rest of the year, not so much.

Really like how this one is turning out. I'd say good luck with it, but it really is about work not luck and this ones getting the work, so you be enjoying her again soon.

Karzrus, As I get older I find it harder and harder to maintain multiple boats. The boat resurrection thing has been an addiction as well as a hobby but I think I've reached the end. My 2007 Pulsare 2400 Bowrider/ Verado 275 is the newest, most modern and most user friendly boat I've owned in years. Other than keeping the boat clean and waxed, the rest is easy. In fact, my only plans are to add more setback, swap props and remap the computer. (Unless I hit the lottery and rig a Mercury 400 ROS on her) If I get her to run 70+ I think I would be happy. The 2400 makes boating very easy. My 2800 is a different story. The boat is an animal! It gobbles snotty water, runs and excellerates hard, jumps ocean swells, nimble for a larger boat but also remains fun and challenging to drive. She's an old boat that I've put alot of hard sweat equity and time into and there's still more to do. It's an ongoing process and each year she gets better and better. Everytime I've made a change was to improve a very rare, fun to drive hull that gets alot of attention wherever we go. The biggest problem I have is the limited amount of time I have to get the projects finished which equates to alot of down time on the 2800...especially when I get side tracked by other boats. So, to make a long story short, there will be NO changes to the Pulsare 2400 until my 2800 is back together and running like a raped ape!! In Florida we don't need to winterize which does give us an edge on boat maintanance!

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

After numerous delays and saving up $$$ I finally bought my new steering for the 2800! Time to get some work done!

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

It's alive!!

Made some good progress late sunday afternoon and monday. As badly as I wanted to go boating in my new Pulsare, I forced myself to stay home and work on the 2800. Brand new battery lines were run through the rigging tubes to both motors. All fuel lines, wire harnesses, cables hooked up, both gear cases now have new waterpumps and gear oil, tie wrapped and cleaned up some lines in the bilge, wired up tilt/trims on both motors and fired up the starboard motor!!!!! It was like music to my ears after 9 months of sitting! I think I even got a woody!!!

The only thing that prevented me from firing up the port motor was a bad pin in the motor harness plug.. Hopefully I'll get the new steering rams on next weekend!

Here's a little FB video of the starboard motor firing up:
https://www.facebook.com/steve.eisenberg.96/videos/vb.1249001914/10208474951811858/?type=2

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

So I got motivated today and installed my new Uflex steering rams on the twin Merc 2.5s. Going to drop off the tie bar at the machine shop to get it cut to size. Then it's time to work on the hyd. lines..

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

Quick update....finished making all my hyd. steering lines/fittings today. All hooked up and working..just need to bleed the lines! After discovering and replacing a bad ground wire along with one drained battery, I fired up the port 2.5 for the 1st time!! Both motors are now running! All I have left to do is mount my CLE gear cases and chopper props and my 2800 is back on the water!!!

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

So close and yet so far..steering is bled, gear cases and props are on. Having a water pressure issue on the counter rotating gearcase. It won't pump water from the nose cone flush..only when it's completely submerged. Yes, water pump is brand new and has been rechecked twice along with the water pickup tube.Gonna remove the windows on the CLE case and order new O rings and check for blockage..

 

[sonicss31]

So close and yet so far..steering is bled, gear cases and props are on. Having a water pressure issue on the counter rotating gearcase. It won't pump water from the nose cone flush..only when it's completely submerged. Yes, water pump is brand new and has been rechecked twice along with the water pickup tube.Gonna remove the windows on the CLE case and order new O rings and check for blockage..

You probably already know this, but just in case, there are different flushers for CLE's vs add on nose cones. Double check to see which one you have. BTDT.

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

She's back! After 11 months of tinkering with two other Checkmates (1990 Starflite/Pro XB 250 and my Pulsare 2400/Verado 275), I finally focused and finished my twin Mercury 2.5L powered 2800 and splashed her for the 1st time yesterday with the newer motors, CLE lower units and new steering. With no dial in time I was seeing 6200-6300 rpm in excess of 65 mph gps. I may raise my motors as I'm still about even with the bottom at 25" of setback..

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

Re-rig #3 about to take place. I sold my twin 2.5L Mercs and will be installing some very low hour Mercury 3.0L 225 Carb motors. (They're about 245hp at propshaft and only weight about 440lbs each) I may go back to standard rotation but will keep the motors at 24" centers. Hopefully be back up and running in a few weeks based upon how much time I have to tinker. I'll be installing to shift cables while the boat is apart. With the torque of the 3.0L motors I expect the boat to be well into the 70's!!

 

[ekkick]

Might as well stop messing around and hang a couple of v8s on her. HaHa!

 

[DropTop5.0]

Nothing wrong with good ole carburetors.

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

Nothing wrong with good ole carburetors.

The most important thing with these 28' twin outboard boats is balance. Back when they were racing these boats (Ocean Outboard, Water Heater, Ashland Special, Wild Bill's Express, etc.) they were all running Gil brackets at 24" of setback to get cleaner water flow to the props and run higher motor heights for less gearcase drag. They were fast and stable with that much setback as long as you were running higher speeds (in excess of 50mph) and none of those guys cared about the handling at 30-45mph (when the flag dropped it was throttles to the glass) . Back then (early to mid 80's) the most potent motors were the 2.4L Bridgeports at 245hp (or more if efi) which were relatively light motors. When you have that much setback (24" or more) with 800+ pounds hanging off the brackets and a narrow beam boat it's hard to keep them from porpoising at lower speeds. The carbed 3.0L 225's I'm installing are only 440lbs each so I'm not adding that much more than the Merc 2.5L 200's that are on the boat now. I can tell you that at my fastest speeds since I've owned my 2800 (72+mph) the boat was rock stable and begging for more power. It felt right on the edge of riding up on the pad and loosening up. At 50mph or more there is absolutely NO porpoise and I run NO trim tabs..I'm really looking forward to seeing how the boat responds to the torque of the 3.0L Mercs and hopefully make some prop changes to take advantage of the additonal hp and torque!!

You can see the Gil Brackets with 24" of setback and the 2.4L Bridgeport Mercs on the old Waterheater race boat and he's running with no tabs:

 

[miller]

No tabs....or sandbags in the bow.