My $500 270DA.

The previous owner of our 270 had a custom mattress made that fills the aft cabin. It's basically a queen sized bed now. We figured we have the couch in the galley already, and it's perfect for overnight guests.
 
Thanks for the advice - and my boat is "sand", the off-white color (not sure why they didn't just make them white?).

Try googling "white" gelcoat. You will find about 50 shade variations, and none of them are pure white. Having an off color probably makes it easier to identify what the name of the color is...

Bryan
 
Woohoo! :grin:
I got to go visit her for the first time since I put her away. I was worried how she'd weather the winter, but she did just fine :)
Pictures, of course (please excuse the filth):

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And here's how my helm sits as of now; I still need to make/buy a base for the bench seat and install it.

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It's funny, I detailed a 1997 270 Sundancer earlier this week, and it just made me appreciate mine so much more... it DWARFS the '97. Feels like a whole other class of boat. Really surprising how small the newer 27' felt.

Info in the next post.
 
Okay, so obviously there's work to be done, and I kind of need to come up with a game plan.

The big ticket items are:

1) SOMEHOW take care of the broken crank bolt on the starboard motor. What do you think, weld a nut to it and remove it that way? Any other options?

2) FULL service on both outdrives (EVERYTHING). I think I'm going to tackle this myself; I more or less did it on a Cobra, I think I can handle it on a Merc.

3) Drain the gas tank of all the old gas.

4) Replace hard fuel lines with soft lines with inline filters. I did this on my previous boat and it did wonders to prevent the carbs from getting clogged.

5) Reinstall rebuilt starter on starboard motor.

6) Replace all bilge pumps (ease of mind).

... and that's about all I can think of that would get her in the water. Everything else is largely superficial and I can do while I'm enjoying the boat.

Any suggestions on how to go about these things, DIY guides, advice, etc. would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!
 
I've been reading this thread with great interest. Brings me back to when I had more energy than $$. I didn't see a response to your question about gell coat color. If it's the same as mine (and it looks like it is) Sea Ray calls it "Sand" I've found that Rustolium makes a very close match. They call it CANVAS. Comes in a spray can.

On the teak: the circles are plugs. only way I know to remove them is to carefully drill a small hole in the center then sink a screw in and pry out. You can buy new ones online. You can get them pretty cheap at either amazon or ebay. Otherwise, they're spendy and you have roughly 260 of them. I just bought 300 for $12.50 on ebay . Oh yeah, they are 3/8" diameter. keyword; teak plugs.

Your boat is really looking great!! if mine comes even close I'll be happy.

I have a 1986 268 Sundancer and I found the the Interlux Brightside Y4218 Hatteras Off White (1990) is as close to a match as I could find.
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Okay, so obviously there's work to be done, and I kind of need to come up with a game plan.

The big ticket items are:

1) SOMEHOW take care of the broken crank bolt on the starboard motor. What do you think, weld a nut to it and remove it that way? Any other options?

2) FULL service on both outdrives (EVERYTHING). I think I'm going to tackle this myself; I more or less did it on a Cobra, I think I can handle it on a Merc.

3) Drain the gas tank of all the old gas.

4) Replace hard fuel lines with soft lines with inline filters. I did this on my previous boat and it did wonders to prevent the carbs from getting clogged.

5) Reinstall rebuilt starter on starboard motor.

6) Replace all bilge pumps (ease of mind).

... and that's about all I can think of that would get her in the water. Everything else is largely superficial and I can do while I'm enjoying the boat.

Any suggestions on how to go about these things, DIY guides, advice, etc. would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

Just replaced the a Starter on mine... if you currently have all fluids in, get some coolant... we had to remove the hoses to get to the starter properly.

P.S. - She looks fantastic!! Been doing a restoration on mine over the last year, and looks like we will be twins out there on Lake St. Clair! Hope to see you out there!
 
Still need to pick up the starter from the rebuild place before I can do any real work, but I went and cleaned/organized a bit, which she desperately needed (haven't touched the outside since last year though).

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Who did you end up going with for your Carbs? I now have a carb issue on both motors (hoping it's nothing more), and am having a hell of a hard time locating new Quadrajets... or similar to replace them with.
 
If you want new carbs, get a set of Edlebrock marine carbs. I have a pair on my new engines and they are more efficient than the old Q-jets. They should fit on the spread bore manifolds like the QJ's used. As to rebuilders, look for an older boat shop, usually have at least one guy good with carbs. Also, check speed shops that cater to racing, they usually know a few sprint car guys who are good with QJ's. I had my old QJ's done by Baker Carburation, a local race car carb rebuilder.
 
Who did you end up going with for your Carbs? I now have a carb issue on both motors (hoping it's nothing more), and am having a hell of a hard time locating new Quadrajets... or similar to replace them with.

Go with edelbroks with electric chokes. Won't cost much more than getting your Quadrajets rebuilt if you shop around online. You'll be happy with them.
 
Just read entire thread and enjoyed. Congrats on all, nice job. As for carbs, check with the carb shop llc. They are very reputable and knowledgable on quadrajets, in business since 1974. Hardly can wait to get her wet I am certain.
 
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I'd bet if you took the hours you are going to spend on another boat and got a second part time job or casual labor somewhere you would come out ahead on a $ per hour basis and would have no risk. You also might save a friendship.
 
After giving it some more thought, I think I agree with you.

At first I saw "25' Sea Ray for $2k? Runs well? Buy buy buy, and flip!", but the truth is, it's an odd boat; it's not a Sundancer or an open bow, so it doesn't have the broad appeal that so many Sea Rays do.
And while I'm confident I could make a profit on it, how long or how much, I simply don't know.

Time to concentrate on booking more details to make some money!
 
ok if you can't afford the storage fees due on boat #1, how will you be able to buy boat #2 and then need more dough to fix that one up.
 
I have an 86 270 DA that I restored. Complete new wiring, interior, carpet, dash panel, electronics etc....
When you drain those fuel tanks take out the sending units. That gives you enough room to stick a hose in there to suck out the gas. Also and VERY important. Remove the fitting that your fuel line attaches to. pull it out of the tank. There should be a metal tube attached to that fitting. That tube screws on to that fitting. remove the tube from the fitting. there is a filter in there that's probably all shitted up. I took mine completely off and threw them away. They were so clogged that I couldn't believe fuel could pass through. install a good external filter/ water separator.
 

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