Bozeman Bob

I would talk to the local Fire Dept and see what they have to say. They usually have a lot of pull in those matters.

The big ones from Canada should be coming this way once they learn the border crossing regulations have been changed !

Make sure you swap out the alternator and starter motor to the marine version. No spark = no kaboom..

Sign up sheet indicates cash only which is no problem. The issue is we will be fishing it out of Wilson and do not want to drive to Sandy Creek to pay for the entry. Are there any options for people that do not live close to there ? And I take it we weigh in at the same stations as we do for the LOC ? IF there is something on your sites that I missed in regard to this I apologize in advance. Thanks

Whatever ... A true fisherman will make the most of what's presented to him. And with so many choices close by from the Finger Lakes/ Niagara River/Erie Canal/ St. Lawrence/Chautauqua to the 2 Great Lakes all within a stones throw for most of us they will find a launch ramp open. Its not like owning a snowmobile when there is no snow on the ground for two- three years in a row.. You can fish year round in WNY How many of your friends are actually selling there rigs because of the high water ? If anything not using them for a year will help them pay it off early. They don't have to buy any tackle, gas for towing or on the water , insurance ,maintenance for trailer and boat and the list goes on and on.

^ Hardly, a fisherman isn't going to throw the towel in because the water level is high. Someone looking at a 27' is more than likely not looking at a boat that is launched on a weekly basis. I bet most of the guys with boats had to get the OK from the Mrs and isn't going to give it up because of water levels. Most of the slips that are useable are earmarked for Charter/fisherman boaters. They use more gas, bring people into town or the local eating places/tackle shops on site marina store etc.. I see that in Wilson/Olcott so I imagine its like that lake wide.Just my opinion... HOW MANY GUYS ON HERE ARE THROWING IN THE TOWEL because the ramps are closed ????? I bet zero....

The Tiara ,as all true inboards will have a through hull exhaust and as I noted in my first post the exhaust manifolds will more than likely have to be replaced. I just googled your specific intake manifold for sale and a there is no shortage of them, which has nothing to do with the OPs question, but I thought I would look anyway !

^ Not winterizing a motor properly has nothing to do with salt water. Raw water cooling system rig that you bought tells it all , vs a closed system,cant compare apples to oranges Now a aluminum outdrive sitting in salt would not be my first choice and I would figure that replacement cost right away in the purchase price. Inboards do not have that issue. Also do not think engine and outdrive problems are limited to salt , just look at some post from Fishing the FL and his nightmare fresh water boat and that's just one example. I am sure you will see a ton if you go through the post on this Old Boat Forum.

Crusaders are a chevy block with there bolt on parts ,like maybe the shape of the exhaust manifolds,type of carb / ignition system/ heat exchangers but the basic long block is Chevy. If there high hours but a closed cooling system I would not worry to much. The 350 blocks if properly maintained will go from 3,000 to ,yes I have seen it, 6000 hours. Long blocks [ complete with cylinder heads etc ] go for 2500 -3500 and are pretty much plug and play,not that hard to swap out. Good luck and report back your findings, hopefully it comes with a trailer ,if not there is one on here for sale. Makes it a lot less expensive as far as winter storage and paying some one to haul it here. Pays for itself in a few years along with resale value if it ever comes to that. And a lot easier working in your driveway than driving to a marina and forgetting some tools etc. needed.

What year is the boat and how many hours on the engines. Most , but not all saltwater engines are a closed system, meaning they have a heat exchanger and use antifreeze. The raw sea water is pumped into the heat exchanger to cool the antifreeze and then exits out the exhaust manifolds. The exhaust manifolds under these conditions are usually replaced every 5-7 years and is not a big deal. Very easy for yourself to do, no need to pay a marina for that. They probably go for 350 per engine from ebay. Once in fresh water they last just about forever. If its a open or raw water system you should figure the cost of replacing the engines into your offer as they will be needed to in a very short time. You are not very clear to me what it actually has. Other than that I would not hesitate to buy a salty providing it passes a survey which includes a sea trial and inspection on land. You pay for that and can figure it will run you around 600. Some people are very negative on this but in most cases if you follow my advice there are no more issues than a poorly or even well maintained fresh water setup. I have a bunch of saltys docked near me and none have had issues do to them coming from salt water. And yes most did it because of the cost vs a fresh water boat that can go fro 2 - 3 times as much mostly IMHO because they are not used as much as the warmer climate salt water boat vs the Great Lakes and 8 months of being laid up.

Was over Darien Lake at 1; 45 heading towards Rochester ,had a good tail wind

Tournament Trail First off I appreciate all the effort by the organizers of these events and most go unsung and maybe this has been brought up before and went no where. Having said that it would be nice if they could all get together and run them week after week in one direction ,then anyone that has two / 3 events, schedule them on the return trip. I would guess that a lot of the bigger non-trailerable boats do not want to make a run [ just a example ] from say Olcott/Oak Orchard to Sodus Bay then back to Rochester then to Oswego. Some may be more inclined to enter if it went from port to port West to East, migrating like the Kings. Fuel, lodging, transport vehicles, crew Lake O kicking up for a few days , would be a lot more manageable if it was about 20-30 miles between events instead of all over the place. If your port has a few tournaments line up the biggest one to coincide with the "Trail" so you would have maximum exposure and entries/payout. I know there are a few stand alone events like WHI that is real early in the season that wouldn't fit into this ,but once the lake heats up it seems a shame that the Tournaments are not all linked up. Any thoughts on this ? Pro or Con

Excellent !

Agree with using The Oak as a port as well, would be in it if that was the case.

The weight hanging there will always be the same . Doesn't matter if you put tubes on the cylinders the weight is still the same. Just raising it with your pump will do the same thing and it wont hurt the hydraulics to drive around with it in the up position. Most throttle controls have a 2 selection trim switch, one for in the water and one for trailer mode.The only benefit would be, as noted, to keep the drive from moving left to right which is no big deal. A ratchet strap/bungee from the trailer to the outdrive holding it to one side will do the same thing. A outboard is a different story,the complete weight of the motor hanging and bouncing on the transom in one direction vs it somewhat centered over the transom with the motor raised.

You say its not hot to the touch, maybe your gauge and or wiring to it along with sensor have issues. A cheap harbor freight heat gun would not be a bad investment. You could also remove the thermo as new ones can be bad ,unless you checked that on your stove. That will allow full flow and at least take that out of the potential problem list.

Try calling Traxstech direct or PM them on FB.

Remanufactured in my mind is the same as rebuilt.

The primer bulbs don't last long , I bought a bronze 3/8 " 1 way fuel check valve off ebay for around 10.00 and problem was solved, Your line may be 5/16.

Check the shift interrupter switch to see if its stuck in the closed position, if its a I/O. Usually located on the secondary shift cable above the outdrive. I believe you can disarm [ to see if its the issue ] it by following one wire to coil and removing it. If it is the "pointer" , it can be adjusted so its not always engaged.

If it was growling the damage is done. I believe you can get one from NAPA or on ebay for a reasonable price. You can stick your hand in there and rotate it,should be able to feel the roughness as it rotates. . The race that holds the bearing should pop out if it was replaced recently. I have had some that didn't want to budge . You can remove the bearing by itself, there are two detents on each side of the race, rotate the bearing where the indentations are and it will slide out by hand. You might have to put a tube of some sort into the bearing hole to get it started,just use it as leverage.When putting it back ,lightly tap into place with a small peice of wood against the bearing so you don't compromise the bearing. Some may insist you replace the race but it worked great for me when I skipped that step.

Your main bellow is cracked and that's where your water intrusion into the gimbal bearing is coming from. Not your exhaust,they are two separate circuits. While your changing that out do the shift bellows as well. NAPA sells those parts. Then make sure the engine is aligned to the gimbal. Thru hull pipes would be a expensive time consuming loud fix. Exhaust manifold do not have any pressure so if there cracked where you can JB weld them they may hold up. One other option is ebay and just replace them. I drain all the water out of my block and exhaust manifold ,blow some air into all the openings and use a pick to make sure the exhaust holes are clear of debris. Air don't freeze.