Just had survey done, looking for opinions

[sandiegoguy]

Survey done on one we are buying.
1999 4600scb (cummins 370)

What they found (mechanical)
one of the turbos at WOT was smoking. He found there was a small bit of oil getting thru or on it. Needs pulled off, remachined and something about o-ring or gasket.

Both waterpumps need replaced even though it was all done 2 years ago, complete cooling service.

The thick hose on each shaft had cracks. They need replaced and something about going with dripless seals. This seemed like a somewhat big job.

Rough price for all was about $3500

Then found other small things.
insulation on generator was bad. Needs all redone.
waterpump on gen needs fixed/replaced

Leak at a fitting at the water heater (no coolant leak so thats good) so they said probably a new water heater would be best.

Then a few small things but overall they did mention it was in great shape and was great on the water. I haven't received the official survey on paper yet but do these things sound normal and that price seems reasonable?

[dbriceno]

$3500 seems low for the work. Once you get in there there may be additional issues. My dripless just cost me about $5000. The flange on the shaft was a real bitch to get off. Sounds like a total of $10,000. How many hours on the boat? How many hours on the generator? What condition is the canvas & eisenglass? What is the price?

[sandiegoguy]

520 hours on the engines.
Not positive on gen but i think close to 1000

yeah it does seem low now that I've researched it. The dripless was just something I thought about. it doesn't need them or anything replaced in that aspect.

The exhaust riser for one turbo was just replaced 2 years ago so i think the company that did it is warrantying it. They are looking at it Monday to diagnose. The seller never took it to 3000 RPM so he never saw the issue (plus he never was down there while running it). The seller only put 30 hours on the boat in 3 years and just uses his tender to go everywhere and used the boat as a condo from what I was told.

But he did spare no expense! Super clean boat!

Canvas, eisenglass is all perfect. He actually got this other kind of eisenglass that is much better. Not sure of name but when you look at the bends in it you can't tell you are looking thru a bend...if that makes sense. Super clear stuff.

New carpet. All wood restained. Always waxed. Engine room spotless. I would think the boat is about 5 years old.

ok so the things it needs
both waterpumps replaced
hose on the shafts is cracking
and then that turbo dealt with.
Needs bottom paint

Not exactly sure on the generator yet...exact details. i will get survey back soon.

I don't plan on paying for any of it except bottom paint. I'm hoping the seller agrees to deduct it from the price.

[Phillbo]

The most abused boat is the slip queens.

[dbriceno]

At 500 hours a major maintenance should be done. Check turbos, clean air cleaners, boil out heat exchangers, check out every thing. Engine zincs should be replaced every year. It's a boat, it will always be something. Have the sanitation lines been replaced? if not realize they are 17 years old, add another $2000. This is all normal stuff to keep in mind. Otherwise if the price is good the boat sounds great. Good Luck

Dan

[TJK]

I agree, $3,500 seems to be too low.

Do you really need new water pumps, or do you just have to replace impellers? The impellers need to be changed periodically regardless of usage hour. It’s not a difficult job.

Replacing the shaft seals is a big job. I know some of the older 4600SCB didn’t come with the dripless. If you were to replace the existing cracked seals, I would highly recommend to get the dripless ones.

The turbo issue could be a little costly. This seems to be a common issue on the boats equipped with C370s since owners tend to keep running the engines harder…. intentionally or unintentionally. The C370 is a great engine otherwise.

Anyway, 4600 SCB is a fundamentally solid boat, but you will find that you will still have to deal with issues associated with 17 year-old parts and systems.

[sandiegoguy]

Yeah I don't like the idea of turbos. I'd rather just have bigger motors and no turbos but beggars can't be choosers.

I believe the seller is going to take off the cost off all these repairs so at this stage I'm not too worried. I was told the water pumps were on their way out and one is leaking. The turbo exhaust tubing is bad on one, one was just replaced. That will all be repaired along with a rebuild. It had a small leak at 2900 rpm so its not pressing, it's just at a stage where it's starting to go. Again, that is all coming off the price from what I know.

It does need bottom paint, pedro hoses and I will cover that expense probably. I'll get that done when the boat comes out and then I'll get a quote on the dripless. I am getting prices all over the place. I'm not spending $5k on them/labor. So if they are under $2k I may do it.

All fluids were just changed and everything else is in great shape. When all done with this stuff I'll know where the boat stands and it will be a great starting point.

Only other issue is the water heater has a leak but i may try to tackle that myself. I'm guessing it's in a very tight space because nothing is easy.

And I was wrong on the generator hours. I thought 1000 for some odd reason but it only has 60. Not sure why I had that number in my head.

[TJK]

Diesel engines come with turbos, you can't get away from it

The water heater normally goes bad- starts leaking- at around 15 years. I replaced mine (1999 4600 SCB) last year.

[sandiegoguy]

TJK. I tried to send you a private message but it won't allow me to. I'd like to get more information on your water heater replacement if possible. You have the same exact boat so this would help me greatly.

Like, where did you get the water heater (model,etc) and was it difficult to replace? Anything I can do myself I will do. With some instruction I'm not opposed to doing any of the work unless it's just too time consuming or technical.

[TJK]

I will find out the model of my new water heater, standby....

[TJK]

Kuuma Model #11870, 20 GAL. Slightly larger than the original Seaward 18 GAL and it fits nicely in the same spot.