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Old 11-12-2018, 05:52 AM   #11
tedted
Veteran Member
 
City: Marblehead,Oh
Vessel Name: Castoff
Vessel Model: 77 Heritage West Indian 36
Join Date: Feb 2016
Posts: 54
Have an oil test done and a survey by a good diesel mechanic. Don't forget a good sea trial putting the engines under high rpms for a long enough period of time to show problems there. Have the mechanic aboard for the sea trial. The combination of these will tell the overall health of the engine. House keeping in the engine room is another clue.
Agricultural diesels in horrible conditions easily go 10,000 hrs before they begin to show problems. They experience bad fuel, shock loads, constant variation in rpms and some serious lugging along with a hostile working environment of dust, heat, cold, mud and water. They still have an amazing lifespan. A diesel being 30 years old has nothing to do with it's overall health. Here on Lake Erie thirty year old boats usually show less than 1200 hrs. So if the boat doesn't have a history of extensive long distance cruising, it's hours are most likely fairly low.
Our West Indian 36 was repowered 27 years ago with unknown hours. The Perkins runs flawlessly. Oil test showed very low wear. A reliable mechanic was quite happy with the overall health of the old girl. We purchased the boat 3 years ago and have put 360 trouble free hours on the engine.
The crankcase oil should have some hours on it show the engine wear, so that is a consideration on having the test done. The military was the first to use these tests on jet engines. They were so reliable in showing overall engine condition that the test has since become commonplace in the open market. While the purchase of your dream boat is in the end and coin toss, at least these considerations will put the toss in your favor.
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