EricM
Well-known member
Today was the day! I hustled over to James' house to pick up the rebuilt Johnson 150 and we took it out for its first dip in the lake. We put in at Chester Frost and had a terrible time trying to get my center console bay boat off of the trailer, which sits a bit higher than my old bassboat's trailer did. Turns out that you can't back in too far because the ramp drops off at the end. With lots of bouncing and jerks and unpleasantness we finally got her launched. I had James take the helm and run her so that I wouldn't do anything stupid (know by many as an "Eric") to the engine. I am also not familiar with Chester Frost and we had watched a boat run aground this morning on the flat, which must have been under about an inch of water. We couldn't help him because of too little rope and we couldn't give the engine enough throttle to pull with the engine not yet broken in. I hated to not try but there was no way we dared help. Sorry!!! Looked like a Bullet was on its way over to help.
The boat starts beautifully and purrs. Well, those old Johnsons tend to kind of gag, choke and hiccup at idle, but this one shocked me!!! James did a magnificent job once again. We gently ran up the river (upriver is always a smarter direction until trust is earned) and would stop and chat while the engine cooled and then we'd run some more. We put the first 45 minutes or so on the break-in all total, and it was a BEAUTIFUL day to do it!!
James had lowered the engine because of porpoise problems and it seems to have made a tremendous difference from what we could tell. The hydrofoil that I put on is now running just a hair below the surface and seems able to control the bow. The final verdict will have to wait until she can be run at full throttle after break-in. I've got my fingers crossed!
Just like many others who have had work done or information given by James Perry (wrechin2) here on the forum, I have to sing his praises and spread the word about his wonderful work and amazing knowledge. He has taken care of any number of our members, and in my case has gone WAY BEYOND the normal bounds to take care of me. I cannot thank him enough!!!
Of course, I'll take it all back if the engine blows up.............................................. emoBigsmile
The boat starts beautifully and purrs. Well, those old Johnsons tend to kind of gag, choke and hiccup at idle, but this one shocked me!!! James did a magnificent job once again. We gently ran up the river (upriver is always a smarter direction until trust is earned) and would stop and chat while the engine cooled and then we'd run some more. We put the first 45 minutes or so on the break-in all total, and it was a BEAUTIFUL day to do it!!
James had lowered the engine because of porpoise problems and it seems to have made a tremendous difference from what we could tell. The hydrofoil that I put on is now running just a hair below the surface and seems able to control the bow. The final verdict will have to wait until she can be run at full throttle after break-in. I've got my fingers crossed!
Just like many others who have had work done or information given by James Perry (wrechin2) here on the forum, I have to sing his praises and spread the word about his wonderful work and amazing knowledge. He has taken care of any number of our members, and in my case has gone WAY BEYOND the normal bounds to take care of me. I cannot thank him enough!!!
Of course, I'll take it all back if the engine blows up.............................................. emoBigsmile
