Repower Articles

26 ft. SEAWAY - a typical repower?

Not often that I run into a guy that has some old memories of how his 10+ year old "wooden" 26 ft. Seaway used to be. Well, I met this gentleman, Don Pyne, and he had some memories..... and wanted a repower.

We did what we call a "typical" gas-to-diesel repower, but by the time we were done with the basics, Don wanted more, a whole lot more. The boat was then stripped from bow to stern of all glass and paint, windows, electronics etc, etc. .A few months later and we had a beauty as he really made our work look extra good! Yes, this was done in reverse as far as we are concerned, but who am I to argue. Actually it was kind of a "side job" for us anyway.

We sea trialed her last week and she was as quiet and smooth as they get and only reached 87% load while hitting 30K in totally crap conditions - was over 2 MPG at all speeds above 20K, and was he happy!

Some pics to share how she went and a few ideas that may help you with your project.

The vessel has the typical " Seaway" look. A little commercial, but still has those lines that appeal to so many. Don't know if you are aware of the Seaway heritage, but just about all of the "Baywatch" boats, here in So. Cal. were made by them......


Your typical Volvo 454	Not that bad for the years of abuse...


Due to a poorly designed exhaust system, this 454 had eaten saltwater many times over the past decade.	Some elbow grease and re-design, and we were moving forward.


We always mount the transmission first as this sets all the rest.. Note the unique engine mounting design-No stringers !! This is kind of a "Seaway" trademark, but not all his boats were done like this.	Once the tranny is in place, the rest is easy...

Our fully prepped QSB - Always easier to do when all the 'set-up' is done in the shop, rather than trying to do it in the boat. That's my #1 mechanic, "Pat". Good guy with a lot of heavy equipment experience from CAT. To him, these QSB's are toys !!


All installed and ready to go. Oops, forgot to pull the tape...	Simple layout with easy access to all that matters.


Obviously, we did not want to think about water up the exhaust.	Simple exhaust with a "punched out" muffler.


We had good access to all of the running gear.	Don's new ZF 220A trans gave us the perfect combo of fit, a needed trolling valve, and the performance as to engine matching.


Dash was very simple-"Always-on" DVM for monitoring isolated batteries, accurate mechanical transmission pressure gauge to help monitor "trolling" pressures, simple controls, etc, etc...	The "Deck Layout" - It took me awhile to convince him that an aluminum hatch was the "practical" way to go. ZERO maintenance and tough as nails.

A few Specs:
26 x 10 Seaway made by Bob Stapp
( http://www.proboat-digital.com/proboat/200602/?pg=22 )
Plywood construction - about 8500 Lbs loaded for bear
Cummins QSB 380 w/ a ZF 220 A - 1.5:1
19 x 23 C 4 Blade Nibral Dyna Quad
1 3/8" shaft