RE: [omc-boats] Tow Vehicles

A year has gone by, and I've still not even had an opportunity to find out
if my Sweet 16 that I bought runs, let alone tackle any restoration to her.
It seems I always have one too many projects on the go, or maybe one too
many children under 8 - I'm not sure. But one day I do hope to be able to
take my kids cruising in this beautiful piece of history...

Since tow vehicles is the topic of discussion, I was wondering, does anyone
have approximate weight for a Sweet 16 with a 100hp (circa approx. 1965)
Johnson outboard? I'm in the final strokes of purchasing a new mini van, and
want to make sure I equip it properly for all my potential towing needs.

I also want to thank you all for the great information on this site and
list. While I'm pretty much an armchair mechanic on the boat until a current
truck restoration gets completed, I've been gathering lots of great
information "planning" the project. The biggest hurdle should be getting my
wife to let me start into something else before I complete a few home reno
projects that have been neglected...

Ian

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-omc-boats@...
[mailto:owner-omc-boats@...]On Behalf Of Paige
Sent: Thursday, March 17, 2005 12:32 PM
To: omc-boats@...
Subject: Re: [omc-boats] Tow Vehicles

I tow my boat, horse trailer, and plow snow with my 1995 Chevy 350 3/4 ton
pickup, regular cab and bed, heavy duty suspension, yes I am a woman with a
truck, an old boat, and work horses. I am not mechanically inclined, give
me a
1800# Percheron to drive and I am in my element, not under the hood staring
at
the guts of an engine or driving it on the water for that matter. I leave
all
the glory of driving and servicing the omc to my husband (not necessarily by
his
choice either), I am content to be the passenger. But still I am intrigued
with
the information that gets thrown about on these omc boats, always storing
info
into the corner of my mind. The seloc manual is essential too.
    My automotive water pump looks to not line up with the footprint of the
original water pump, but again, so far so good. My model is a 1969 and not
a
1967 though. I figure that the constant water jet coming from the lower
unit
has more to do with the impeller working properly than the water pump in the
engine, but both move water and are central to the cooling system for these
boats, can't have one without the other. My boat has never seen salt water
and
never will, so that is a plus. Plenty of green slime on the hull to slow
her
down though. Any suggestions on a good strong hull cleaning detergent? I
understand the high altitude, my truck would not make it out west, I am
happy to
be operating near sea level, good luck getting more power.
    One big question, what about the steering cables that run from the stern
drive to the wheel, mine are showing age and wear, cracking, dry rot. What
to
do to replace them or keep the plastic coating from cracking further? any
suggestions?

Thank you, Paige

lib1@... wrote:

> Paige mentioned towing his 16-foot Johnson is a handful without brakes,
> (assuming around 2400-2600 lbs for boat and trailer)
>
> That is a lot of extra stopping distance for most tow vehicles to cope
with.
>
> 1) Just curious what members are using for tow vehicles, and
>
> 2) How many are using trailer brakes (which were optional on 16-ft'ers,
> standard on the 19-ft'ers.)
>
> Lee
Received on Friday, 18 March 2005