Took her out for the first time today

[Cheapie408]

Finally got some sunshine today so we decided to take her out for a ride. I'm having a little mixed feeling as I'm coming from a WA.

The deep v is definitely something to get used to. On my Striper, I can stand from the dock and hop on the boat with very little swaying. On this one, I just step on and the boat sways. The ride doesn't feel as "plush" as the Striper but the pilot house makes up for it.

The ride.. it's weird to hear all the noise of the water slapping onto the hull. The video shows the water condition, it's flat calm. Being inside the enclosed cabin, the noise intensifies and the engine at WOT is quite loud. Closing the door is better but still not as quiet as an I/O 5.7 I had. Again it just require some time to get used to.

ok, so here's the weird one, i get lots of vibration through most of the speeds, I tried to trim it in many ways and can't seem to dial it in. From 10mph, I push it to WOT and it goes through this crazy vibration and doesn't seem to bite. Easing it to WOT is not a problem but the vibration is still there. Check the shaft and everything is good, props are not spinning straight. The 05 F200 took it to WOT at 42 MPH on the odometer at 6100 RPM, I believe 6k is where it needs to be? Prop is a 15x17p 2 guys, less than 1/2 tank of gas with no gears.

The steering is feels a lot different than an I/O. Perhaps I need to bleed the hydralic steering? It doesn't track the way my old boat did. I've never driven another 21ft+ boat with an outboard so I don't have anything to compare it to.

I'm mainly concern of the vibration I'm getting

Are all of the above normal characteristic of this boat?

Came home to find the windlass and the Simrad Go7 XSR waiting at the door is a nice plus.

 

[Andy]

Finally got some sunshine today so we decided to take her out for a ride. I'm having a little mixed feeling as I'm coming from a WA.

The deep v is definitely something to get used to. On my Striper, I can stand from the dock and hop on the boat with very little swaying. On this one, I just step on and the boat sways. The ride doesn't feel as "plush" as the Striper but the pilot house makes up for it.

The ride.. it's weird to hear all the noise of the water slapping onto the hull. The video shows the water condition, it's flat calm. Being inside the enclosed cabin, the noise intensifies and the engine at WOT is quite loud. Closing the door is better but still not as quiet as an I/O 5.7 I had. Again it just require some time to get used to.

ok, so here's the weird one, i get lots of vibration through most of the speeds, I tried to trim it in many ways and can't seem to dial it in. From 10mph, I push it to WOT and it goes through this crazy vibration and doesn't seem to bite. Easing it to WOT is not a problem but the vibration is still there. Check the shaft and everything is good, props are not spinning straight. The 05 F200 took it to WOT at 42 MPH on the odometer at 6100 RPM, I believe 6k is where it needs to be? Prop is a 15x17p 2 guys, less than 1/2 tank of gas with no gears.

The steering is feels a lot different than an I/O. Perhaps I need to bleed the hydralic steering? It doesn't track the way my old boat did. I've never driven another 21ft+ boat with an outboard so I don't have anything to compare it to.

I'm mainly concern of the vibration I'm getting

Are all of the above normal characteristic of this boat?

Came home to find the windlass and the Simrad Go7 XSR waiting at the door is a nice plus.





View attachment 28061

Hi Cheapie 408... We need more than 18 seconds! (but I enjoyed those 18 second!!); from this video, I couldn't hear a vibration. (yes I am HOH, and don't have my hearing-aids in)... The engine being louder than an I/O does not surprise me as there is no barrier between the engine and the 'people'... I had a 22' boat, for 5 years with a Merc 470 I/O. It was whisper-quiet; quieter than our present Parker with the OB....
I tried to find this video on Youtube, without using this link. No luck so far, but it will likely show up soon (I want to Subscribe)....
By the way... the boat looks awesome!

 

[Cheapie408]

Try searching for parker 2120 sea trial.

I was going through a small channel and still have not gotten acquaintance with this boat, remember "drive with both hands" so 18 seconds only this time. Lol

I was doing maybe 10 mph at the time of the video would be hard to tell. It feels like cavitation on the props when the motor is properly trimmed

I do plan on updating more videos of my time with this boat. To myself, when coming in, I ran into a husband and wife with a 2120 that had a just been repower with a 150hp on their way out for their first sea trial as well.

How's the steering on yours? Is it precise and re responsive?

 

[Andy]

Try searching for parker 2120 sea trial.

I was going through a small channel and still have not gotten acquaintance with this boat, remember "drive with both hands" so 18 seconds only this time. Lol

I was doing maybe 10 mph at the time of the video would be hard to tell. It feels like cavitation on the props when the motor is properly trimmed

I do plan on updating more videos of my time with this boat. To myself, when coming in, I ran into a husband and wife with a 2120 that had a just been repower with a 150hp on their way out for their first sea trial as well.

How's the steering on yours? Is it precise and re responsive?

I did search that ( I searched exactly as you had it titled; so far it has not come up... sometimes it takes awhile.... Yes, my steering is (now!) very precise and responsive, but that was not always the case.... I bought a system to bleed the steering, and after bleeding out the bubbles it is perfect.... I have three videos posted that shows the system I bought, and how to use it, if you're interested. It was a very easy process....

 

[sydngoose]

The vibration you describe is not normal
And needs investigating (unbalanced prop, bent prop shaft, check all your bolts, mounting bolts, steering bolts, Seastar ram, etc..).
If it was prop chatter, it should go away at any rpm above 12/1300.
Have someone video tape your hands on the wheel while at cruise and post that video. I’d like to see the vibration.

The profile pic looks great. Such a well balanced hull.

That 2120 w the repowered 150 you saw... what a shame. It was the perfect time to upgrade to a 225.

 

[Cheapie408]

The vibration is weird, my buddy was out back and say everything seems normal on the motor, it doesn't seem to vibrate or anything but I can feel it. It's Friday tomorrow' so the ramp might be crowded. I'll spend the weekend going over the boat and take it out next week.

Fwiw, I put some muffs on, ran the motor in gear reved it up briefly and it had no vibration.

 

[Andy]

Try searching for parker 2120 sea trial.

I was going through a small channel and still have not gotten acquaintance with this boat, remember "drive with both hands" so 18 seconds only this time. Lol

I was doing maybe 10 mph at the time of the video would be hard to tell. It feels like cavitation on the props when the motor is properly trimmed

I do plan on updating more videos of my time with this boat. To myself, when coming in, I ran into a husband and wife with a 2120 that had a just been repower with a 150hp on their way out for their first sea trial as well.

How's the steering on yours? Is it precise and re responsive?

I found your Youtube site; Subscribed and 'thumbs' up... Also watched the video of your other 21' with the I/O. Nice boat, but I think you will prefer the Parker pilothouse, even more so once the quirks are worked out.... By the way, the reason I could not find your site when I first tried was, I typed in sea trail... not sea trial... there is a difference!

 

[Cheapie408]

So I spoke to my passenger, he said beside the occasional vibration particularly when we did a low speed to open throttle, he did not feel any vibration and thought the motor was extremely smooth.

I bled the hydraulic system and had very little air coming out. This is what its looking like now. There's still maybe 5 degree of play. The last second or so of the video will show a more accurate representation of the amount of play. Any thoughts?

 

[Andy]

So I spoke to my passenger, he said beside the occasional vibration particularly when we did a low speed to open throttle, he did not feel any vibration and thought the motor was extremely smooth.

I bled the hydraulic system and had very little air coming out. This is what its looking like now. There's still maybe 5 degree of play. The last second or so of the video will show a more accurate representation of the amount of play. Any thoughts?

I believe you still have air bubbles in your hydraulic lines. I've bled my system, and have done many others. What did you use to bleed it? If you did not use a 'device' specifically designed for bleeding, it is hard to get all the bubbles out. I use a Bubble-Purge Pro......

Parker 2520 SeaStar Steering Bleed (#2), Bubble Purge Pro - YouTube
Parker 2520 SeaStar Bleeding (#3), Bubble Purge Pro - YouTube
Parker 2520 SeaStar Steering Bleed (#1), Bubble Purge Pro - YouTube

Step one; search for signs of hydraulic fluid leakage at every fitting. (I use a clean paper towel, which will reveal even the smallest smear/film).... When you find a leak, first try tightening the fittings. If later on you find that you still have a leak, you may need to replace a gasket or 'O'-ring.... By the way, this system took me about 45 minutes to get all the bubbles out. I have two steering stations, but no autopilot. The more 'stuff' in the steering system, the more places there are for air-bubbles to hide...

 

[Cheapie408]

I bought a kit to bleed the system. A fitting goes on each end of the bleed valve and had my bottle upside down at the helm. Pushed the motor to one side, noted the air coming through and I kept on turning the wheel in one direction and continue to turn the wheels many more times after there are no more air then push the motor to the opposite direction then rinse and repeat. When i see no more air coming through the clear line the valve was locked and closed up the system.

My process was similar to this.

 

[Andy]

I bought a kit to bleed the system. A fitting goes on each end of the bleed valve and had my bottle upside down at the helm. Pushed the motor to one side, noted the air coming through and I kept on turning the wheel in one direction and continue to turn the wheels many more times after there are no more air then push the motor to the opposite direction then rinse and repeat. When i see no more air coming through the clear line the valve was locked and closed up the system.

My process was similar to this.

Did you find any signs of leakage anywhere in the system? Was the steering tight when you were done? Have you re-checked for fluid leaks at all the fittings? Roughly how long did you do the bleeding? I ask this only because on a couple systems I bled, there were a number of times we thought we were done, then a few more turns, and more bubbles would show up....

 

[Cheapie408]

I spun the wheel each direction at least 15-20 times. I saw zero leakage anywhere. I looked up helm repair kits and it's just a bunch of seals. Since I don't have any leaks the seals doesn't do me any good. The clicking and the play makes me think my helm pump is the source of the problem.

The oil looks nasty though. How many quarts does it take to fill the system? I managed to spill quite a bit of the old oil out in the process at first when one of the fitting popped up and I continue to spin the wheel so I got almost a quart of new fluids in the system. Damn thing is expensive, I might stop by the aviation store tomorrow and just buy me a gallon of aviation hydralic fluids which was said to be ok for seastar.

 

[Andy]

I spun the wheel each direction at least 15-20 times. I saw zero leakage anywhere. I looked up helm repair kits and it's just a bunch of seals. Since I don't have any leaks the seals doesn't do me any good. The clicking and the play makes me think my helm pump is the source of the problem.

The oil looks nasty though. How many quarts does it take to fill the system? I managed to spill quite a bit of the old oil out in the process at first when one of the fitting popped up and I continue to spin the wheel so I got almost a quart of new fluids in the system. Damn thing is expensive, I might stop by the aviation store tomorrow and just buy me a gallon of aviation hydralic floods which was said to be ok for seastar.

View attachment 28145View attachment 28146View attachment 28147View attachment 28148View attachment 28149

I've never done a new/dry system; only bubble purging so I don't know how much it takes to fill one from scratch. I 're-did' mine and two other systems and used less than 2/3 of one quart total. I still believe that you still have more air-bubbles.... I can tell you I turned the wheel well over 100 times, both ways (200+) in a sequence that I explained in the 'written comments' of the videos that I posted.... SeaStar 'allows' the use of other fluids, in fact the manual lists 6-8 brands... I live in a remote area, and could not find any of the other brands, and 'bit-the-bullet' at $28.00 for the quart of SeaStar. At an airport 30 miles away, they said they could/would 'order' me the aviation hydraulic fluid that meets the SeaStar spec. Only catch was, I had to buy it in five-gallon containers. They would not/could not? sell me a quart....It would have equated to only about $6.00 per quart (again, SeaStar was $28.00 +TAX).... but it would take a long time to use up five gallons! SeaStar has a huge mark-up on their fluid.

 

[Cheapie408]

I paid $25+ tax locally and it really hurted to see a bunch spilled out but after looking at the old oil, it was for the better. I'm gonna see if I can find some shell 41 locally tomorrow. I'm near a few aviation shops. Going to purge the whole system until the fluids runs clear. Spinning 100 times? This is when i was I had a knob on the steering wheel.

I'll go over all your videos again and read the descriptions. Thank you

 

[Andy]

I paid $25+ tax locally and it really hurted to see a bunch spilled out but after looking at the old oil, it was for the better. I'm gonna see if I can find some shell 41 locally tomorrow. I'm near a few aviation shops. Going to purge the whole system until the fluids runs clear. Spinning 100 times? This is when i was I had a knob on the steering wheel.

I'll go over all your videos again and read the descriptions. Thank you

The old oil looking 'nasty' could be moisture in the fluid, but the fluid in your plastic bag does not indicate that.... I can honestly say, it was many more than 100+ turns, in alternating sequences, both directions.... and a couple times, after thinking I got it all, I'd do some more turns just to be sure, and there would come more bubbles. I am extremely persistent (my buddies use the other word) when it come to stuff like this, and I wanted to make sure I got ALL of the bubbles out; and I did. I've had no issues since then, and like I mentioned, I had first found a tiny film/leak and just CAREFULLY snugged up the fitting; By the way, the fittings on your 'helm/pump' look dry. But, if you added fluid, some had leaked out somewhere/sometime over the years. Maybe the previous owner didn't know? or just lived with the sloppy steering, thinking that is 'normal'... There is also a 'Power-Purge' system available that makes the process faster; it was very pricey, and I'm happy with the system I have.

 

[Cheapie408]

I can honestly say, it was many more than 100+ turns, in alternating sequences, both directions.... and a couple times, after thinking I got it all, I'd do some more turns just to be sure, and there would come more bubbles. I am extremely persistent (my buddies use the other word) when it come to stuff like this, and I want to make sure I got ALL of the bubbles out; and I did. I've had no issues since then, and like I mentioned, I had first found a tiny film/leak and just CAREFULLY snugged up the fitting; By the way, the fittings on your 'helm/pump' look dry. But, if you added fluid, some had leaked out somewhere/sometime over the years. Maybe the previous owner didn't know? or just lived with the sloppy steering, thinking that is 'normal'...

If I understood you correctly, there should be signs of fluids at some point somewhere?

The boat went through a detailing job not long before I acquired it. There are two thought process here, either the guy was meticulous (or what your friends call you) or he had something to hide. I'm going to treat it as if he's hiding something and go over everything. At the moment, the boat floats, the trailer rolls and the engine runs. I'm off to a good start.

 

[Andy]

If I understood you correctly, there should be signs of fluids at some point somewhere?

The boat went through a detailing job not long before I acquired it. There are two thought process here, either the guy was meticulous (or what your friends call you) or he had something to hide. I'm going to treat it as if he's hiding something and go over everything. At the moment, the boat floats, the trailer rolls and the engine runs. I'm off to a good start.

Yea, when they started calling me 'that', I thought they said 'annual', as in once-a-year! so I didn't understand what they meant... (I don't wear my hearing aids very often)....
Yes, you have a great boat, and you are off to a great start! And doing these simple kind of maintenance things will help you become more familiar with a new-to-you boat. Every boat I've gotten has been a new learning curve for me.
If it is a minute/tiny/miniscule/slow leak, that takes place over years, then you may not see much leakage. It can even evaporate to some degree.... There could be a number of scenarios that could have happened. For example, an 'unknowing' person could have opened the bleed valves by the engine, not knowing what they were; some oil leaked out, and then closed the valves?... Was the hydraulic ram ever worked on, such a new seals installed? (I've forgotten what year your boat is). Although most hydraulic leaks are at a fitting, still, check ALL the hydraulic hoses, everywhere you can see and/or reach to. It's not likely, but if a hose got chafed somewhere, or if a hole was drilled near/into a hose, or a sharp point of a screw is rubbing near a hose., there could be a tiny leak.. Could there be a coupling somewhere in the lines. These are possibilities, but surely not likely ones, but then easy enough to rub the hoses with a dry paper towel to find out..

 

[Cheapie408]

Look what I found locally. 42 bucks plus tax for a gallon.

 

[Andy]

Look what I found locally. 42 bucks plus tax for a gallon. View attachment 28166

You are one lucky dude! That would be $112.00 if it were SeaStar....

 

[Cheapie408]

In spun the wheel probably 500 times combined by now. The rear tube oil is clear but I still get oil on the tube that goes up the bottle. Mainly micro bubble, are both supposed to be clear?