The Official 450 Express Bridge Owners Club

How these covers became lost is a mystery to me & prev. owner. Might have fallen off on 1st owner.
 
RE Salon AC outlets, on mine, there is a 3rd AC outlet on top of the convection oven/fridge/freezer cabinet. It shoots straight up and is easy to miss, and easy to put something over it to block it without knowing (kitchen towels, bowls, trays, etc. )

And I've heard mixed reviews on chlorine tablets in sea strainers. Could do more harm then good. I've heard copper plumbing fittings help as well, but I haven't risked that either.
 
RE Salon AC outlets, on mine, there is a 3rd AC outlet on top of the convection oven/fridge/freezer cabinet. It shoots straight up and is easy to miss, and easy to put something over it to block it without knowing (kitchen towels, bowls, trays, etc. )

And I've heard mixed reviews on chlorine tablets in sea strainers. Could do more harm then good. I've heard copper plumbing fittings help as well, but I haven't risked that either.
Gosh, will have to look for that salon vent. Yes, heard pros/cons on chlorine tabs. Haven't heard much negative on copper tubing.
 
How these covers became lost is a mystery to me & prev. owner. Might have fallen off on 1st owner.
Jack,
So just to be clear, you have the center section of the "vent" but the outer section that screws into the hull that you refer to as the "insert" is missing? Without the insert, you must have a large gaping hole like this? (Photo credit to Kevin)
SeaRay450Insert.jpg

Or is this your picture of the current condition of your boat, with the section screwed and caulked in and you are missing the center section???
searay450insert2.jpg
 
Last edited:
Jack,
So just to be clear, you have the center section of the "vent" but the outer section that screws into the hull that you refer to as the "insert" is missing? Without the insert, you must have a large gaping hole like this? (Photo credit to Kevin)
View attachment 113676
Or is this your picture of the current condition of your boat, with the section screwed and caulked in and you are missing the center section???
View attachment 113677
Correct, missing the center piece, a cover, or as Sea Ray parts describes it, an insert. The screwed in frame if the vent assembly is intact. The center plastic piece is missing, presumably fell off, prior owner(s). My understanding from past research is this center piece is merely glued on.
 
Tony, I don’t remember, do you have a 2 or 3 stateroom model? Next time you are at the boat, post a picture of your HIN # so we can decode it.
View attachment 113663
Yes 3 stateroom layout.....my hull numbers are SERP4828B001
 
Beautiful workmanship Tony! Hats off to you and your son!!!! I call first in line if you ever want to sell a set. I'd love to have those on our boat.! :cool:
He is pretty busy making custom teak tables in his spare time but I will gladly ask him if he interested in printing up another set and get you a price, I know they took a lot of material to print as I recall each one took 32 hours on the printer to get the best surface quality. You would have to have the finish work done locally.
 
Yes 3 stateroom layout.....my hull numbers are SERP4828B001
Tony, here is you HIN# decoded with the information from Frank Webster:
SER: Vessel is a Sea Ray
P: boat built in Palm Coast FL plant
4828: this is the serial number of the boat The next number in sequence could be a 19' bow rider or a 680sss.
B: boat was built in February
0: boat was built in 2000
01: manufactured as a 2001 model boat

Do you have the lower number also? It should be "450EB-5**". It will be interesting to see if it is "501" (the first boat built that year) or "545" or so which would be the end of a run.

What is odd about your HIN, is that a February built boat in 2000 should be 2000 model, not a 2001. I think the year line for the boats we have looked at in the past was in June or July. Frank indicated that these numbers sometimes are all over the place, so they don't conform to the same standards each year.
 
Correct, missing the center piece, a cover, or as Sea Ray parts describes it, an insert. The screwed in frame if the vent assembly is intact. The center plastic piece is missing, presumably fell off, prior owner(s). My understanding from past research is this center piece is merely glued on.
The old school way to reproduce just the center section (the "insert") would be to make a mold from an existing unit as the plug. I have done this in the past with car parts, and I'm itching just thinking about it, laying down the glass and resin. :eek: If you want to go this route, I would probably suggest that we find a reputable shop near me (maybe a Corvette shop) to do the work and I'll ship you the completed pieces. Or see if your neighbor will let you take his vents and inserts to have it done there in Florida.
 
The old school way to reproduce just the center section (the "insert") would be to make a mold from an existing unit as the plug. I have done this in the past with car parts, and I'm itching just thinking about it, laying down the glass and resin. :eek: If you want to go this route, I would probably suggest that we find a reputable shop near me (maybe a Corvette shop) to do the work and I'll ship you the completed pieces. Or see if your neighbor will let you take his vents and inserts to have it done there in Florida.
Thanks much. I don't know the owner of the boat I took photos of it's vents. Before I spotted it, I didn't even know what the heck these inserts looked like. That boat is on Lake Allatoona, GA, as is my other boat, a 1988 Sea Ray Sorrento. My 2002 Sea Ray 450 EB is in Ft. Meyers. Next time I'm at the lake, I can leave a note on the 450. Who knows, he may not even know those inserts might be loose. Yes, if I had the parts, I could find a fabricator. Someone on this forum also suggested laser scanning and 3D printing. I'll be looking into that to perhaps use a handheld laser scanner. Might be stretch of possibility.
 
Tony, here is you HIN# decoded with the information from Frank Webster:
SER: Vessel is a Sea Ray
P: boat built in Palm Coast FL plant
4828: this is the serial number of the boat The next number in sequence could be a 19' bow rider or a 680sss.
B: boat was built in February
0: boat was built in 2000
01: manufactured as a 2001 model boat

Do you have the lower number also? It should be "450EB-5**". It will be interesting to see if it is "501" (the first boat built that year) or "545" or so which would be the end of a run.

What is odd about your HIN, is that a February built boat in 2000 should be 2000 model, not a 2001. I think the year line for the boats we have looked at in the past was in June or July. Frank indicated that these numbers sometimes are all over the place, so they don't conform to the same standards each year.
I am on the boat this weekend and will snap a pic of the lower numbers as post accordingly.
 
Now wonder if a handheld laser scan is possible of this part in place. I couldn't even figure out what it looked like till found exact model with the vent covers intact and took pics attached earlier thread. Boat is on a lake in GA where I live. My boat is in Ft. Meyers.

Looks like @SR450EB Captain and his son might be able to advise based on those awesome speaker pods they made (I want some too).

I think you would need the two pieces seperated to scan the cover. I worked for a company that scanned images to build 3D models of military aircraft for VR training. The process wasn't all that difficult to laser scan, but the scanner is like $5k. You also need the piece and then a 3D printer that is big enough. I didn't realize how big those vents are until I took them off the boat, they are big. There must be a company that does this stuff end to end. Another option would be to have something machined out if delrin after taking some basic measurements off of the other boat???

I am sure all of us are going to go make sure our covers are secure, and I am concerned that my adhesive is failing and will be checking them regularly.

Not sure if this helps the discussion, but here is the pic of the vents from the back (sitting on my office flloor). For reference, I measured the couch and it was 48" wide at the bottom. That would put the vent around 5 ft.

20210910_083829.jpg
 
Looks like @SR450EB Captain and his son might be able to advise based on those awesome speaker pods they made (I want some too).

I think you would need the two pieces seperated to scan the cover. I worked for a company that scanned images to build 3D models of military aircraft for VR training. The process wasn't all that difficult to laser scan, but the scanner is like $5k. You also need the piece and then a 3D printer that is big enough. I didn't realize how big those vents are until I took them off the boat, they are big. There must be a company that does this stuff end to end. Another option would be to have something machined out if delrin after taking some basic measurements off of the other boat???

I am sure all of us are going to go make sure our covers are secure, and I am concerned that my adhesive is failing and will be checking them regularly.

Not sure if this helps the discussion, but here is the pic of the vents from the back (sitting on my office flloor). For reference, I measured the couch and it was 48" wide at the bottom. That would put the vent around 5 ft.

View attachment 113735
Yes it starts with a 3D scan and/or he could model it up manually if he had the part. Wonder if SeaRay would have/share their file? Furthermore THIS IS A BIG PART to 3D print. Not many shops have the ability to do this big of a job and the finished product would then have to be preped and painted to match. To get a "fiberglass" smooth finish surface on a 3D printed part that I would mount on my boat, requires a bit of work.

As it relates to speaker pods I have him getting me a quote to print them and will let you all know.
 
On the vent/insert issue, my neighbor has a 2000 Sea Ray 420 aft cabin. I’ll confirm it tomorrow when I’m at the marina, but I believe it uses the same parts. There is a good chance that the Sundancer/DA and Sedan Bridge/DB boats from the 99-04 era also used them. There is a boat junk yard near me in Wilmington CA that might have the parts. I’ll try to check it out.
 
Last edited:
On the vent/insert issue, my neighbor has a 2000 Sea Ray 420 aft cabin. I’ll confirm it tomorrow when I’m at the marina, but I believe it uses the same parts. There is a good chance that the Sundancer/DA and Sedan Bridge/DB boats from the 99-04 era also used them. There is a boat junk yard near me in Wilmington CA that might have the parts. I’ll try to check it out.
I agree my buddy in the slip next to me has a 2000 38 SR Aft Cabin they do look similiar but I believe slightly shorter and installed inverted as I recall.

Perhaps the larger aft cabins are the same. Below is a pic of the 2001 420 AC, looks spot on

upload_2021-10-14_15-24-7.png


Searay 2001 460 Express looks a bit different

upload_2021-10-14_15-18-34.png
 
I have seen a couple pics of 450EB with AC vents at the helm. Seems like some one once told me they duct air to the helm for the mid cabin. I have looked through my manuals and on Searays online resources but haven't found a schematic. Anyone have any experience with this?
 
I have seen a couple pics of 450EB with AC vents at the helm. Seems like some one once told me they duct air to the helm for the mid cabin. I have looked through my manuals and on Searays online resources but haven't found a schematic. Anyone have any experience with this?
Tony,
I have not seen a 450 with AC vents on the helm. I know Kevin mentioned that he planned on getting air to his flybridge.
We are back Avalon after 6 weeks. My buddy Matt is here with his 450.
6708CDC1-829A-465A-9528-7BF93171E61E.jpeg
 
Tony,
I have not seen a 450 with AC vents on the helm. I know Kevin mentioned that he planned on getting air to his flybridge.
We are back Avalon after 6 weeks. My buddy Matt is here with his 450.
View attachment 113794

I am planning on putting a seperate self-contained A/C up top. Originally, I had planned on putting it in the space port and aft of the trash can.

After some time, I have shifted my thoughts and plan on putting under the seat just starboard of helm. My thought on the change is that with the ice maker already under the steering wheel that is enough excess heat in that space (I think it killed my autopilot computer, since replaced).

I am trying to decide between an 8k and 10K unit, knowing that really the cool air is only going to blow on folks and not drop the temp up top. I do also want it for heat for Christmas parades and other "winter" excursions in Northwest Florida.

I am thinking two small vents for the helmsman, a vent for the forward starboard seat, and vents blowing aft towards the big couch across the aft of the bridge. Maybe, a small vent to cool under the helm to save electronics.

As hot as it gets here, I can't imagine "stealing" from an 8k BTU mid-ship is going to give the relief required for a full day hanging out on the bridge. Other flybridge boats have hard windshields and other ways to allow folks to close off the bridge, not my boat. It is going to be about airflow to blow cold air on people giving some respite from heat/humidity

Going to run cooling water from the manifold in the aft state room up (yes, will increase pump size), and then back down to the "main drain" where the salon A/C dumps cooling water. The cooling feed and return all will go through the starboard area behind the washer dryer (3 SR model). Condensate will go out the helm sink drain which shares the washer/dryer drain.
 
Last edited:

Forum statistics

Threads
112,950
Messages
1,422,864
Members
60,932
Latest member
juliediane
Back
Top