1998 SR 290 Sundancer - Little Ducky II

Didn't go out that much this weekend. Chilly and windy to start the weekend off. Today was a great day. Went out a little later then others and almost had the water all to myself. ;)

One bone head move...... could not get the starboard engine cranked.... thought the battery was flat but the volt gauge showed it was good to go.... then I was like crap it can't be the starter could it??????. Then I jiggled the dam throttles and I heard a click... Dam thing wasn't in Neutral. :confused: In all my years this had to be the 3rd time I've done this but why isn't it the 1st thing I check. :rolleyes:

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Little Ducky said:
Didn't go out that much this weekend. Chilly and windy to start the weekend off. Today was a great day. Went out a little later then others and almost had the water all to myself. ;)

One bone head move...... could not get the starboard engine cranked.... thought the battery was flat but the volt gauge showed it was good to go.... then I was like crap it can't be the starter could it??????. Then I jiggled the dam throttles and I heard a click... Dam thing wasn't in Neutral. :confused: In all my years this had to be the 3rd time I've done this but why isn't it the 1st thing I check. :rolleyes:

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I was in a center console boat a few years ago ready to leave the dock. Boat would not start. Nothing. No clicks. Nada. After checking everything over and over, I called a friend over. He checked the safety lanyard switch first and found I had inadvertently pulled it just enough to kill the ignition. All he did was pull it out and reset it. Boat started fine afterward. What could I say but, Thanks?

We have all been there. Glad it was something simple.
 
I took my 1988 s24 sea ray sorrento out one day and the water was a little rough. Turned around and came into the shallows to just chill. When i went to start it to leave i had nothing. Knowing the Neutral safety switch was always a culprit i ended up being towed in and taking apart the entire shifter to inspect and repair. After about 4 hours of cursing and no luck i decided to go under dash to look. Well, to my happy suprise i saw that 1 of the wires just came off the ignition switch. Pop on and vroom, now if i have a problem i always start small and work my way up. Dont just dig into it, think about it, you tube it, google it then start to repair it.
 
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08NJ8627V/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

WOW what a neat little device.

I saw this on another thread and I just had to have it. Now to have it with me when I need it will be the next thing. I now can find stuff that drops and goes under one of the engines ;) It even comes with a little hook and a magnet attachment.

I could have used it a few years ago when the dip stick from the generator dropped and went under the port engine.

Now get ready to see some pictures from the neither regions of the 1998 290 DA. :D
 
I had to get this last year for my 88 sorrento with a tight ass 5.7. Had a oil leak in the oil pan and could not for the the life of me find it. Short of pulling the motor i just assumed it was the drain plug. Got a scope and wallah found it. A pin hole rust spot in a corner. Mixed up some marine tex and smeared it on with my hand and all fixed. Its a life saver on a boat. 5his is what i bought.
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Well this happened. :(

Note to self do not start your generator w/o the water turned on.

Even though I got 4 fins out there was one that went down towards the heat exchanger. I'll have to dig that one out at a later date.
 

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Was out and about last night on the TN river. Parents are visiting the water was nice a warm and the boat was running really good. It what a nice evening.

One thing I downloaded to assist navigating at night was an app for my phone from navtronics. Once I cautiously confirmed it noted all the channel markers I had a blast zipping back to the marina.

It's going to be a great tool to use tonight after the fireworks on Soddy Lake.

BTW you get a number of days for a free trial so give it a go if you are out on the water this weekend.
 
Well LD II is running great and now clean and covered.

Because of my work situation I haven't been able to use the boat as I normally would this season. I did a good spray down, wash all the surfaces, killed the spiders and evicted the dirt dobbers then enjoyed the water for a few hours this past weekend and then put the canvas back on to keep the helm clean during my extended absence.

I'm hoping to get some boat time in during the fall and take a few polar bear swims at that time.

View from my office.

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Well I didn't go boating that much this year but I did take LD II out for a few zoomies up and down the TN river over the weekend. Saturday it couldn't have been better..... 65 plus degrees and just a handful of bass boats on the water. Today was a different story around 43 as the high burrrrrrr.

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Did one of my final boat cleanings and winterized the fresh water system and the septic. This year I decided to go the air compressor route and blow the water out of the lines. It worked quite well. I'm surprised how much water the system holds even after the tank was empty.

Here's my set up.

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Small victory today. Little Ducky II is financially mine. Tossed a few extra bucks at it this month and paid it off. ;)

I'm so glad I ditched the 2011 260 DA which I purchased new in 2012 and went with an older, somewhat maintained, 1998 290 DA. As a fixer upper its has been a great boat. Now I can enjoy the 290 and put the extra money towards something else or just start a LDII maintenance fund. :)
 
I absolutely have a maintenance fund running all year long. Its a 1998 and even though i keep mine in excellent running condition ya never know when some shit will break, some shit head friend will break it or i just want the next best new thing to f with
 
Love it gents, my “maintenance fund” is the wife’s yearly Duke bonus, yay! Boat show this weekend in CLT, took Thursday and Friday off so I could attend and hopefully avoid a bit of the crowds. I’ll post pics. This weekend is supposed to be good weather, we’ll see.
 
Well it's a new boating season with some new problems.

But when I'm zipping down the river I just love this 25 year old barge. :)

New Problem: Starboard outdrive will not trim up but will trim down..... but both outdrive will trim up using the trailer switch. o_O Wondering where to start first. Switch in throttle handle perhaps? Thoughts?
 
Little Ducky said:
Well it's a new boating season with some new problems.

But when I'm zipping down the river I just love this 25 year old barge. :)

New Problem: Starboard outdrive will not trim up but will trim down..... but both outdrive will trim up using the trailer switch. o_O Wondering where to start first. Switch in throttle handle perhaps? Thoughts?
Click to expand...

Almost certain it is the trim limit switch (puck on port side of drive). They get old, the wires corrode and eventually short and won't allow the drive to trim up with the trim switch, only the trailer. Sometimes you can take the puck apart and clean it, but if it is old you just need to replace. Problem is boat has to come out and remove the drive on an Alpha. Until you can do that, you can just bypass the limit or use the trailer button to trim - just be careful not to overtrim the drive. You can also bypass the limit switch. On an Alpha, you should be able to find the wires that come through the transom assembly and connect somewhere around the back of the motor (follow the wires from the trim pump). There are two sets for each drive, one set is the trim sender (guage) other is the limit. Unhook the limit that is not working and jump the two pump side wires together.

Funny, now that I have a Volvo Penta in my Cobalt, I am leaning lots of new things -- my VP does not even have a limit switch, you have to watch the gauge and pay attention. It does have a nice digital gauge though.
 
Its the trim pump solenoid. I for up and 1 for down. The trailer will always work. Replace the solenoid and your in business. I just did my down on 1 side and always keep extra on the boat
 
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