I am looking at what amounts to a derelict 34 CHB which has twin 80
engines. The hours are 1600 and 1500 (maybe). I had a pro engine survey
and of course there are minor external issues but the big one is that
both engines have blown head gaskets.

Not that big a deal with these engines.

.... The question is what would be a
good guess at what did them in. Over heat/ (most guages did not work),
Age? Design flaw? On top of all that the previous owner over filled the
oil by 3 US gallons on one engine and the engine was run in that
condition from the dry dock to the dock for sea trial. My instinct says
these are rebuilds. Waht would be the odds of a gasket replacement fix.
I expect to bid the boat down by the cost of the repairs.

Or more... it's a certainty that there are other problems
lurking and will have to be fixed later.

.... Is it worth
the risk? It could be a big can of worms or work done a hull with
serviced engines.


Eisboch wrote:
I would call Bob Smith at American Diesel. He knows everything there is to
know about the Ford Lehman engines and is a super helpful, down to earth
guy.


What he said!

His email is:
address and phone number:
American Diesel Corp
PO Box 1838 (Rt. #3 North)
Kilmarnock, Va. 22482
Phone: 804.435.3107 Fax: 804.435.6420


My experience dealing with the Smiths (father & son) and
American Diesel has been very good. The Lehman is a great
engine and the support is above and beyond anything you'd
expect.

It sounds to me like this boat had an extreme case of
operator error (multiple times) like maybe running with the
seawater intake valves shut. Not be harsh, but some people
just plain should never own boats and this guy very probably
screwed up everything else he put his hands on. Doesn't
sound like a bargain to me.

Fair Skies- Doug King