[Public-list] Rebuild/Repower/Upgrade to Diesel

[Cole, Andrew L]

Dan,

We're in exactly the same boat, literally and figuratively (a 1966
Alberg with a dead gas 4cyl.).  I am going through the same analysis at
this very moment.  Here are the options, and my thoughts on each
(reasonable folks may differ):

Option 1 - Rebuild, if you do it yourself, depending on how much you
spend in parts, etc., is probably at least a $1,000-$2,000.00
proposition in parts and machining depending on what parts you need.
Add the labor to pull and reinstall to that (probably a half to full day
on each end of the job) or, as C.B. said, do it yourself, it's not as
hard as it looks and there are folks who will help if you're in the
area.  This is probably the least expensive route, but involves some
uncertainty as to price and how long the boat will be out of commission
waiting for the machine shop or mechanic to get the necessary parts and
do the work.

Option 2 - A straight (rebuilt) replacement Atomic 4 will run $4-5,000
plus shipping and labor to put it in, and is arguably more reliable and
longer lasting than the rebuilt Atomic 4 you have done locally (again,
this is arguable).  The nice thing about this option is that the new
motor arrives on a palette, you drop it onto the existing mounts, bolt
up the prop, attach the hoses, and you're done.  No uncertainty as to
price or fit, low stress, etc.  If you do the pull and install yourself,
the cost is more or less capped at the total cost of the rebuilt engine,
and you can more or less control the timing of the repower.  Van Ness
Engineering in NJ has some rebuilt Atomic 4s for sale at very reasonable
prices (I spoke with him this morning).

Option 3 - A diesel will probably run $4,500 and up, for the motor and
transmission, and that is for a used one, new will start at slightly
more (probably around 5k).  You will then possibly have to rebuild the
bunks, clean the tank (which you should probably do anyway), buy and
install some gauges and controls, replace the prop and possibly
prop-shaft with a 3 blade (which also precludes lining up the prop in
the keyhole to reduce drag).  That said, I saw J's installation
recently, it is a thing of beauty.  It is clean, small, very sharp
looking, reliable (well, it is new, so it should be), and plenty of
power to motivate his Alberg even while towing mine around for an hour
or so (at idle for that matter, probably sipping a teaspoon of fuel an
hour...).  I don't know the total minimum diesel conversion price, but
as nice as the package is, it is more than I can justify spending.  

The diesel is obviously the "proper" repower for durability, fuel
economy, etc., but when I look at the 40+ years of service our Gray put
in before croaking, the gas engines can be fairly durable as well.

Andrew

PS, CB helped me pull the motor two Sunday's ago with the boat bouncing
around under the lift during the gale we had, even with all that, it was
still a fairly straightforward low-stress operation which basically took
a morning (thanks again CB).  It does help to have access to a pickup
truck into which to deposit the engine.


>Thanks for the information. That's what I'm trying to get a handle on,
the cost of the diesel vs. doing some repair with the A4.
   
>I like the reliability of a diesel, but just not sure how much I want
to blow on it.  

Cole, Andrew L
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