New member looking for advice

Hi all, I'm looking at purchasing a Grand B. 42 Classic and was wondering about the engines. One boat has the John Deere 6404DF's. Any opinions on these--are pumps and other parts impossible to find?
I live in Denver and the boat will be near Seattle. Looking forward to NW cruising!
Cheers, Rob

Welcome aboard.

Rob
Welcome aboard TF
I have no first hand knowledge of those but will guess others that do will be right along.
If you don't get good responses consider posting in the power system section as some old hands don't pay much attention to the welcome section.

Welcome,
The John Deere is a hearty engine if it has been maintained. Fluid analysis will give you lots of information.
Per parts, do an internet search on your engine to locate parts dealers.
Per other parts..... get up a list of pumps, nnodles and go internet hunting. You did not specify the year in but, I doubt if you will have any problems.
There are lots of GBs out there to abandon the parts.
Find a GB forum and post you concerns and you will get loads of information and recommendations

There is very good support for that engine in Seattle.

What year is the GB with Deeres? My friend with a 1975 GB 42 classic has Deeres. As those are not common among GBs here in Vancouver he had asked around lots before buying in about 2015, He did, and they have been completely trouble free so far., no need to worry about them due to brand name.

A quick google seems to show that American Marine marinized those. Not sure if that's the same engine that you have. Isn't AM the Lehman guy? If so contact them and see what you can learn

Like you we keep a boat in the PNW but don't live there. We also strongly considered the GB. While older GB sometimes have the JD engine, which are good engines from what I learned, I would check carefully on parts supply. The vast majority of older GB used Leymans, which were used in many many boats and part supply is well documented. I'd be afraid the that the Deere would be like the Hinos that Bayliner used, good engine but not widely marinized. If parts like exhaust risers, raw water pumps, etc are easy to get then go for it.

JD is widely used in the marine generator world. Parts are not going to be an issue.

tiltrider1 said:

JD is widely used in the marine generator world. Parts are not going to be an issue.

Click to expand...

Not sure that's true, especially for this engine. Lugger marinized a few JDs but their 6 cylinder engines were based off Komatsu, not Deere.

Do a search on TF for "6404DF" and you will find a few threads. Best I can tell, this engine was built by Deere as a tractor engine and marinized by American Marine. Parts for the base engine will come from a tractor parts supply house. Parts for marinization will be more difficult and time consuming to match and source, especially the exhaust manifold if a replacement is ever needed (admittedly, an unlikely event)

The Grand Banks owners group would be the best source for answers.

Good luck. OP is right to be concerned.

Peter.

I asked a friend who used to work at Deere Marine Propulsion before joining ADE/Lugger/Northern Lights 20-years ago.

BASE ENGINE: JD6404 is a good engine, but was not built/marketed to the marine industry. Parts for the base-engine are likely available.

MARINIZATION: No idea - OP would be on his/her own.

So, unless the GB club has some magic (and they might), you may have issues with sourcing marinization parts; and finding a marine mechanic who is familiar with going to a tractor-diesel engine store for parts. I see the comment all the time "you can replace Kubota (or other) for 50% less by going to a tractor store." But I have never known anyone who actually does that.

Peter

Oh goodie a newbie, we get to spend his money!!!

6404D engines

I have these engines, installed in 1974. The cast iron intake/exhaust manifold and reverse rotation camshaft (starboard engine only) might be the hardest items to find. I removed my intake/exhaust this fall to replace the gaskets and inspected the cast iron. It's very thick. I suspect a shop experienced in cast iron repairs and resurfacing a camshaft could deal with these rare parts.

John Deere engines

I have a couple JD 4045 engines over 20 years old, I have found that, in addition to new parts, there is a wealth of “Reman” parts available as I needed to replace front main seals last year. Also, in my opinion, these JD engines are some of the most reliable long term.

I had GB42-125 that had DD 4-53's but I really like the sound of JDs as well. Congrats and welcome aboard.

Thanks all for your thoughts and advice. Today I’ll pull oil from the engines for analysis after some sea trials.
Hopefully it all goes well and I end up with a boat. I’ll let y’all know when where the other.

Greetings,
Welcome aboard.

I have twin JD6359's in my Tolly. They were built in Sarin, France. As a result, the serial numbers do not coincide with most JD part dealers, making it difficult to find parts. PO who put them in marinized them. I source parts from tractor supply companies. At one point, could not find exhaust manifold and had to have one made ($$!!). Great engines overall and easy to work on. Full mechanical with no electronics. As noted, they do sound like a tractor, but it's a good sound . If you pull the trigger and need sourcing, can give you names of local (Puget Sound) and distant parts folks.