18 replies to this topic

[Claudio]

Hello all. First time poster..

A week ago i got a 97 challenger 1800 for $1000. The boat needs a lot of work but I think with a little bit of luck it can be done.

Here are some pictures. The boat is been seating for over 2 years. The owner told me that one of the engines was bad for sure and the other one used to work.

The bad. One of the engines is completely rusted inside. I am going to get a rebuild from SBT. The neutral shifter cable also needs to be replace. It broke when I tried to move it. The weedless system is also stuck.

The ugly. All seats need to be replaced or reupholster. No even the foam has survived in some of them. Radio is gone and speakers need to be replaced.

The Good. The remaining engine looks to be ok. It cranks and has 140 and 150 PSI on each cylinder. Not how I like to be but not bad. Hull is in great shape. Both impellers look good. Trailer is also in great shape with brand new tires.



To be continue.

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[Claudio]

Forgot to mention a few details.

I got lucky and found both captain seats in good shape for $100 each. I had to drive over 500 miles round trip in a day to get them but it was worth it. Here are some pictures.


I also got the rear bench that will need some work but is definitely better than mine, and both rear arm rest in good shape. All I need now is the rear seat back and reupholster the front cushions.

Any one has any tips for cleaning and a good vinyl conditioner for the seats.

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[Kevin Leclair]

Sounds like a great project, keep us posted how things come along!

3M makes some great vinyl products, you should be able to pick them up from West Marine.

[Claudio]

The last few days I have started to take all the seats out of the boat. Hopefully I will be able to give it a good wash this weekend and then spend next week waxing it inside and out and installing the new seats. I must say that that rear seat is a real pain to take out. Even with the engine cover off and out of the boat it took a real effort to get to the four screws that hold the seat.

I also cover the rear part of the boat with a mat to try to guard it against scratches wile working on the engines. Here are some pictures.

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[Claudio]

How to clean mold out of vinyl.

One word for you.. Clorox

[gunsrunner]

G,day Claudio,
Saw a rear seat from a 1997 challenger 1800 on eBay yesterday biddng still had a couple of days to go.
I also own the same boat and hope you have good luck sorting it out, also bought 2 motors from SBT they are great to deal with.
Once you get it going, you will have heaps of fun, these boats are great!!!!
If you find a good place for the gear shift cable i would like to know as mine needs replacing too.

Good luck and enjoy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Claudio]

G,day Claudio,
Saw a rear seat from a 1997 challenger 1800 on eBay yesterday biddng still had a couple of days to go.
I also own the same boat and hope you have good luck sorting it out, also bought 2 motors from SBT they are great to deal with.
Once you get it going, you will have heaps of fun, these boats are great!!!!
If you find a good place for the gear shift cable i would like to know as mine needs replacing too.

Good luck and enjoy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes i saw it too.. I think. Was it the back rest and one of the green covers needed some work? But looks like it was sold outside of Ebay because is no longer available. Thanks for looking out. I have some other leads but they are more expensive.

[Claudio]

Engine Blower...

If your engine blower goes bad like mine is just Google "ATTWOOD Turbo 4000". That’s the blowers make and model. Turns out you can find the exact same blower on the internet for fewer than 30 dollars. Seadoo wants $100.

[Kevin Leclair]

Very nice find, thanks for the heads up!

[Claudio]

If you find a good place for the gear shift cable i would like to know as mine needs replacing too.

Working on matching the gear shift cable. There are a lot of options out there for under $50 that might work. Over the weekend I am going to try to see if the original cable has any markings that will suggest that the cable was made by somebody else and also try to get a measuring of how long is it. Ill post the results..

[Claudio]

I found something that looks the same. The bad news is that they want $80 for it. Seadoo wants $123 for the original cable. Here are the details. Please note that I have not confirmed that this cable will work. I will continue to looks for a less expensive alternative and then see if i can get it with the condition that if it does not works I can return it and get my money back.





13' Teleflex Morse TFXtreme 43BC Control Cable

43BC series cables are primarily used for jet pump control & throttle / shifting applications
They have a clamp type connection on one end of the jacket and a threaded bulkhead with nuts on the opposite end for mounting the cable jacket

• Direct replacement for Morse 43BC Red-Jacket type cables
• Direct replacement for Hardin 43BC Maxflex type cables
• 8" minimum bend radius
• Corrosion resistant ends, rods, and core
• 1/4-28 male threads on both ends
• Cable measurement is taken overall length (end to end)

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[Claudio]

Well a lot of things have happened since the last time I posted here. I found another boat just like this one that only needed the interior done and since I already had the interior on my possession I bought that one and sold this one. Ill post pictures soon. To make the story short yesterday I took it out for a test run and it was great. I could not play with it to much because of an exhaust water leak on one of the motors no big deal.

On another note. My research on the gear shift cable is leaning more and more towards the company I posted before. Teleflex Marinw. Looks like that company was the one that provided the steering system for the SD jeboats part number SH5089.
Here is an EBay auction #230300885769 of some one selling cable that looks a lot like what the Seadoo used for the shift cable. Unfortunately I no longer have that cable (at least not a disassembled one) so I can compare it to the pictures. The phone number for Teleflex Marine is 610-495-7011 if anyone interested want to contact them see if they can help and let us know the outcome.

cj

[Claudio]

Ski floor storage lock latch...

Seadoo wants $60 for this part. I found one at Bass Pro Shop that is exactly the same for $24. The only difference is that the Seadoo part can be locked with a key and the Bass Pro cant.

[Claudio]

Took the boat out again.. Had a blast. I still need to replace the wear ring on both pumps and also got the exhaust pipe for the other engine because it also started to leak. ;-)

[Kevin Leclair]

Sorry to hear about the leak but glad to hear the update!

[Claudio]

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No big deal. I found the entire exhaust system on ebay for both engines for under $150. I am probably going to try to sell the rest later on.

I attached a picture so people can see what I am talking about. It happens a lot. The weld plugs are not of the same material and thickness than the rest of the pipe so water accumulates there and eventually rust the plug out. You can also weld a new plug in but the pipe was actually breaking apart due to the corrosion so I decided to get a used one instead.

[Claudio]

boat pics

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[pango]

Ski floor storage lock latch...

Seadoo wants $60 for this part. I found one at Bass Pro Shop that is exactly the same for $24. The only difference is that the Seadoo part can be locked with a key and the Bass Pro cant.

Hey Claudio, I know I'm a few years after the fact but do happen to have a part number for theat Bass Pro Shop replacement part for the ski compartment latch? NOW they want 80 bucks for the OEM part and I can't find anything close (at least online) at Bass Pro Shop.

[jimd]

southco.com has most of the latches you might need.

Hey Claudio, I know I'm a few years after the fact but do happen to have a part number for theat Bass Pro Shop replacement part for the ski compartment latch? NOW they want 80 bucks for the OEM part and I can't find anything close (at least online) at Bass Pro Shop.