New to the site. Just bought an 87 Crusader Tunnel hull

[hotrodllsc]

Long story short. Just bought this, what was supposed to be a bad ass boat last week.
Found out the guy wasn't honest about a few things. It's not a 572. It's not supposed to even be this way
Plans are to pull the engine and outdrive and sell them. Patch the hole in the transom. Rig an outboard.
This brings us to why I'm here. If this boat doesn't go away soon, I'm going to be leaning on you all for some assistance!
I'm fairly good at doing stuff and figuring things out.
I will likely be asking questions about fiberglass and hull repair. Rigging. And I'll be looking for an outboard to stick on this.
Totally excited to be here though!
On a fun note, I think I found an old owner on here from 2005 when the boat was in CA and an outboard.
I included a pic of that too.

[Frank Molé]

welcome aboard,good luck have fun with it.....lots of help here.....

[XstreamVking]

From the looks of the giant whale tail the IO didn't work well anyhoo.....Lot of guys to help here....Just post pics as you go and ask....

[hotrodllsc]

Yeah, I'm betting really sucks to drive. I'm curious how this boat will do with a good outboard set up right. How stable it's going to be. How fast it will be. And how dry it will be in rough water lol.


From the looks of the giant whale tail the IO didn't work well anyhoo.....Lot of guys to help here....Just post pics as you go and ask....

[David - WI]

https://www.screamandfly.com/showthread.php?95502-1988-18-Crusader-tunnel

[rock]

Welcome to the site and sorry about the bad luck. People that lie about what they are selling make me want to go postal. Looks like a nice boat and maybe a candidate for a nice 3.0. Good luck.

Rock

[David - WI]

If it was originally a jet drive... those O/B conversions don't seem to workout, do they? I thought the jet boat bottoms were different and the transoms were like potato chips?

[hotrodllsc]

It was originally an outboard. I found the holes in the transom where the jackplate was mounted and a picture of the boat when it had a Mariner on it. :)
If I fix it, I plan on reinforcing the transom and adding struts to the jackplate to the stringers. I have access to a CNC machine so we can do some pretty trick stuff.


If it was originally a jet drive... those O/B conversions don't seem to workout, do they? I thought the jet boat bottoms were different and the transoms were like potato chips?

[Bodhi]

Welcome aboard. That's definitely the most interesting "transom job" I've ever seen. Boat looks like a great project and it shouldn't take much to pull that makeshift transom apart and get it back to outboard power. Keep us posted on the resto

[mrichartz]

Looks like it has potential...but yea that transom..think your going to want to do more than just patch the holes, definitely would like to see more pics..

[hotrodllsc]

Looks like it has potential...but yea that transom..think your going to want to do more than just patch the holes, definitely would like to see more pics..

Yeah it's kind of a disaster. When I pull the engine and outdrive I'll get a better idea what I'm up against. I have access to a CNC machine. We discussed building an aluminum plate setup to fill the hole, epoxy and glass it in, then build up a support brace setup to hold the outboard in case the structure of the transom is still weak after the repair.

[CUDA]

Deepest sympathy:cheers:

[perfmarine1]

Heck drop a blower on the motor and see how long the outdrive last

[hotrodllsc]

But if there's anybody who has the means to put a blower on this engine, that would be me. (I own House of Boost. We make fast stuff faster)


Heck drop a blower on the motor and see how long the outdrive last

[hotrodllsc]

We picked up a parts boat yesterday. An 86 Omega with an Evinrude 225. Guy just had the VRO replaced along with the stator and power pack just to find the stringers were toast and the hull busted really bad and the transom is soft. These parts will find their way into the crusader!

[mrichartz]

We picked up a parts boat yesterday. An 86 Omega with an Evinrude 225. Guy just had the VRO replaced along with the stator and power pack just to find the stringers were toast and the hull busted really bad and the transom is soft. These parts will find their way into the crusader!

Always good to have parts around!
What year is the motor?

[hotrodllsc]

1986 I believe. I don't know where the year tag is on it.


Always good to have parts around!
What year is the motor?

[mrichartz]

1986 I believe. I don't know where the year tag is on it.


Tag Should be on Port side of swivel or if you look at heads the casting # will give you an an idea if 2.7 or 3.0..if it hasn't been modded..(2.7 heads on 3.0).pics of powerhead someone will be able to tell you
20" mid?
If it's still on it.

[hotrodllsc]

It should be a 20". I don't know what to measure. A 15 would be the bee's knees for this boat but that's kind of unrealistic.

[mrichartz]

It should be a 20". I don't know what to measure. A 15 would be the bee's knees for this boat but that's kind of unrealistic.

'91 225 20"..

I'm looking on my phone and hard time seeing but 99% of sure of year ..will look when again later if someone doesn't tell you before...thought it was an 88-92

Easy way to tell 20-25" is looking at front bottom of mid .
Right where the pin strip tape is..
You can see the 5" difference there

25" mid
447029

[hotrodllsc]

Good to know it is in fact a 20! The model number is W225TLEIC Serial number is 2983744? I can't tell either from my phone pic lol.
So now what does this all mean? Is this a decent motor? Will it haul ass on a 17 foot mini-cat?

[mrichartz]

Good to know it is in fact a 20! The model number is W225TLEIC Serial number is 2983744? I can't tell either from my phone pic lol.
So now what does this all mean? Is this a decent motor? Will it haul ass on a 17 foot mini-cat?

225 Loopers are great motors..
Depends on what condition it's in..check comp etc those years Looper motors had 90-95 new but even 85
Just look to see they are all even..
But in good condition yes..
those are what I had on my boat for 14 years and ran great were modded a little...
On a 17' tunnel should ran damn good.

Would still have them on mine but I built new powerheads after one of the older ones ate a read stop and trashed a cylinder

[hotrodllsc]

That's some good stuff. It looks like there's a bit of things that can be done to spruce it up if need be. First thing's first, remove the 454 from the tunnel and rebuild the transom. Then mount this engine and rig it and make it all right and test it. After that I'll see where things stand. I'm curious if I'll need a nose cone with a low water pickup? And what are my prop options?

[mrichartz]

That's some good stuff. It looks like there's a bit of things that can be done to spruce it up if need be. First thing's first, remove the 454 from the tunnel and rebuild the transom. Then mount this engine and rig it and make it all right and test it. After that I'll see where things stand. I'm curious if I'll need a nose cone with a low water pickup? And what are my prop options?

Yes to low water pickup so you can raise motor high enough and not lose water pressure
And cleaver prop..as for size couldn't say

[hotrodllsc]

Where do I go about getting the low water pickup? Bob's nosecones?

[mrichartz]

Yes Bob's sells them
Not hard to install or can spend the money have them install

[dondenney]

I also have a 1988 Crusader Tunnel hull. Mine is an outboard. I purchased it about 5 years ago and the previous owner had a 150 HP Mercury and he said it did not have enough power. I mounted a Yamaha Pro V-150 and the boat did about 65 MPH. It has a 10 inch set back transom jack. The transom jack is required because there is no motor well. When the motor is tilted up for storage or transport it would hit the top of the stern deck. Mine did not have a plate stating the maximum horse power so 200 to 250 HP may make it ride higher and trapping air to generate more lift.

How is your project coming along.

Don Denney