www.iFourWinns.com

Greetings FourWinn's Lovers. It was a sad day on Thursday when I was got word that my 1986 FourWinn's Freedom 16 is not safe to use anymore. As my Mechanic was removing the OutDrive for maintenance, he noticed that there was oil seeping through a series of spider cracks in the Transom. After further investigation, it appears that the wood in between the fiberglass his rotted to the core. I have taken his advice and I am in the process of Decommissioning my Lil' 86. I bought her used in 1988. She was a rental the marina was looking to move, and we got a gem. She's been my Pride and Joy for all these 33 years. I will truly miss being by myself flying across the water on a moonlit night on Lake Leelanau. I have many pictures and videos to go back and watch, so she'll be in my thoughts forever. My very first boat.

Rough estimate from my Mechanic.....3 to 5 grand....Plus another 1K to replace seals and such in the drive system. Blue book with trailer is 3K, if it didn't have rotten wood.

I went on Craigslist and found a very nice replacement boat. 2005 FourWinn's Horizon 170 Fish & Ski. She has a brand new VolvoPenta 3.0 L engine with about an hour on her. New rubber and a spare tire on the Trailer. All the canvas and Bimini top. Upholstery in great condition, carpet too. I really got lucky to find this available, especially the week before Memorial Day Weekend. WOW!

So the owner was so cool and allowed me to bring the boat to my Mechanic for a once over. I've been all over it and everything about it is perfect. No hull damage, Fiberglass is clean and is show ready. After the check out, I am pretty confident that she will be mine.

So.....My question is to my fellow boaters....Should I sell my 86 as-is or Part it out? The engine is fine. I put an hour meter on it when I bought it. I have only put 350 hours on her....in 33 years. The outdrive is fine as well. Steering system good and could be reused I am sure. Engine Control is good. Just about everything is operational.....except the damn Transom. I would just hate if some Jack Wagon bought it from me and put it back in the water and lost the backend of the boat somewhere out on a lake. I'd like to prevent that and maybe parting it out is the answer to that.

Looking for your thoughts. I have included a picture of my Lil' 86. I will miss my Her....and if it checks out....LOVE the 2005!!!!

Well I’d probably fix it and go thru it & make it better than new. If you part it out the engine drive and transom mount can bring good money. People do this on eBay all the time.
The 2005 if that boat is all composite it can be fine, but if wood cored could wind up with the same problems. Choices!
I did major work to my 1988 H-200, it’s been good but eventually you want something newer I totally get that .

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88 Four Winns 200 Horizon
4.3 OMC Cobra-4bbl
2002 Walker Bay 10/2012 Suzuki 2.5
2008 Walker Bay 8

1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0/Selectrac
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7 Hemi/Quadradrive II

First off, sorry to hear that. It's a huge downer when something like this happens.

If it was me I would buy the new one to get on the water this year and over the winter fix the old one myself. Then sell whichever one you like least.
If you sell the older one you will have piece of mind it is sound for the next person. If you can do it yourself it shouldn't cost too much.

It's a super hot market now so you are lucky you even found something to buy that doesn't cost a fortune. I watch the listings just for fun and I'm starting to see the craziness. I saw a 1998 pontoon boat with a 50hp asking $45k. Granted it was in good shape but still. LOL

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--2002 3880 Regal Flybridge | Twin Merc 8.1HO **Seven**
--2003 AB 13 VST Console Inflatable | Tohatsu 40hp TLDI **Phish'n ski**
--310 Mercury Inflatable | 1982 9.9 Johnson

Thanks so much for the reply. Still have not decided what I want to do yet. I love my '86 and will be real hard to see her go. Happy Boating My fellow 4Winns Lover.

You are so right about the market right now. The seller of the 2005 put it up on Wednesday. I was fortunate enough to see it on Friday, and trail it away with me. I own it now. I am happy, but having an issue with the brand new engine. It overheated on me on Tuesday. I have been working on it all week. Think I have it narrowed down to a Thermostat issue now. Arrrrrrrggggggg! It's a BRAND NEW engine. WHY ME? LOL. Anyway, the seller has been really cool and has offered to pitch in if the boat need to go back to a shop. BOATS. A HOLE IN THE WATER YOU POUR MONEY INTO.

I usually pull out the stat and test it in a pot of hot water. They are supposed to open at approx 160*F and be fully open by 180*F.
How about the raw water pump (impeller) on my Cobra I usually change them every 3-4 years and they are hardly worn.
Other spots that can be elusive, there is a plastic fitting in the pivot housing for the hose that goes from there to the transom mount that can crack if all the water is not drained out at winterization. This would cause overheating on plane, not at low speeds because on plane that area is out of the water & air can be sucked in. The way to test this:
disconnect the hose from the impeller housing to the transom. tilt the drive up slightly so you can see under the pivot housing, and put duct tape over the water intakes. Now have a helper fill that hose with water while you watch under the pivot housing on the left hand side as you face the back of the boat. Any water dripping from the bottom of the pivot housing? If so I bet its that fitting.
Leaky head gaskets can cause overheats because the combustion gas can get into the cooling water but with a new engine that should NOT be a problem!
I'd check the thermostat and impeller first they are the most likely causes. Here in salt water land we also have to replace exhaust elbows, they get clogged from rust & cause overheating, have to change them about every 5-7 seasons. But in fresh water you don't have to worry about that.
I'm sure you'll get it sorted but this is the nature of boats. My next one will be nearly new. And outboard powered!

_________________
88 Four Winns 200 Horizon
4.3 OMC Cobra-4bbl
2002 Walker Bay 10/2012 Suzuki 2.5
2008 Walker Bay 8

1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0/Selectrac
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7 Hemi/Quadradrive II