[TheHotrodHandyman]

I'm speaking from facts, not what I heard , or was told, or etc, etc.
he (brother) has done more install, fabrications, custom boats on the west
coast than almost all the rest combined.
he is still in business, unlike most others,
and probably forgot more than you ever know.
but I'm forgetting...............

you are the "know it all"

There you go again with the name calling.

It appears you are basing your alleged facts on what you "HEARD" from your brother. YOU did NOT personally experience this so you CAN NOT quote it as "FACT"!

I guess the members of the Correct Craft site don't know what they are talking about either.

Read some of the links if you know how, You may be able to learn something.

It is a FACT, I DID personally rebuild a single inboard REVERSE rotation engine in a 63 Correct Craft ski boat.

 

[TheHotrodHandyman]

My brother owns a custom boat business, that has been around for over 50 yrs, and when I asked him , his reply was no manufacture will sell you a reverse rotation engine for a single engine application, someone may have screwed it up after it was made, but they WILL NOT sell one by itself,
He has done everything from "Gray Marine" ( Continental) to the current fly by night engine builders.
I told him you had (allegedly) rebuilt a RR engine, he laughed, said liability insurance being what it is, that it is doubtful it was original.

he also said the only reason RR engines were made was to counter act the torque in DUAL ENGINE applications.

Here is some more reading material for you and your "expert" brother about SINGLE inboard reverse rotation ski boats manufactiured by Correct Craft. There are also a few more links to other material indicating a reverse rotation engine factory installed in Correct Craft ski boats.

"Purchasing a Ski Nautique" A Buyers Guide Published by appleshoppe June 21, 2006
This guide is specifically for people looking to buy an 1982 - 1989 Ski Nautique by Correct Craft.

If you are looking for an 82-89 Ski Nautique, I am going to make the assumption you are buying it for a budget wakeboard boat. All ski nautiques from this era were referred to as "2001", designating that the boat was 20 feet and 1 inch from bow to the back of the teak deck. These boats are getting harder to find and you are going to pay more than nada, because of the demand.

The reason for the demand is these boats produce an awesome steep wake with very minimal weight and they are very well built. However when buying this era of a boat, you must realize they used a wood floor and wood stringers. If rotten, they can be replaced, but it is a very time consuming task. Here are some good ways to tell the condition of the stringers and floor.

1. Does the floor sink in when you stand on it. It can be very solid in one area and mushy in another.

2. Open engine cover and try to tighten the main lag boats that go in the stringers. If they don't tighten or spin freely,you could have a problem.

3. Pop up the floor behind the engine cover, it is one piece of plywood that covers the drive shaft. There you can examine the stringers as they run to the back. They should be fiberglassed, but sometimes the fiberglasses has chipped off and you can see the raw stringers.

4. Also you can run the boat over a scale and then compare with the weight published in the ski nautique manual. Water in the foam and stringers will add quite a bit of weight to the boat.

5. Get to a stringer and use a hydrometer to measure the level of humidity in the wood.

If they are rotten, they can be replaced, but realize that it takes a lot of time. However, once you do get them replace you will have a very solid boat for a long time.

The places that rot the first are behind the drivers seat and in front of the observers seat.



The Hull is identical from 82-89, there is subtle changes in the front scoop in 1985 and the interior does change quite a bit with 88 and 89 being the best years.



The hour meter does not mean much, because a lot of people disconnect them and reconnect them later. It is better to look at the condition of the boat. Realize gel coat job is expensive, so try to find a boat with good fiberglass. The stripe was actually painted on, so it can be easily redone. The interior can be redone at most ulphostery shops for reasonable money.

There are 2 engines offered, a ford and a chevy. The ford has the distributor in front and the chevy has it in the back. The chevy has more horsepower, but ford has more torque. The chevy is pretty rare with about 1 out of 10 boats being built with that engine. Do a compression check on the engine. Should be anywhere at 140-160 for a new engine, anything over 100 is decent, just make the variance between cylinders is close. Please note the engine is reverse rotation, so these engines are little more expensive to replace and parts are a little more expensive. The boat backs to the left in reverse. This was done so when you had just a driver and a skier in the water, the reverse rotation would counteract the weight of the driver and make the boat ride more even.



These are really nice boats, there ski wake is nothing to write home about, but there wakeboard wake is world class. If you want a pure ski boat, look at the early 90s Mastercraft 190s, they are awesome ski boats, but don't do well as wakeboard boats.



Hope this helps with your ski nautique purchase.



http://www.planetnautique.com/vb3/s.../showthread.php?9049-what-year-did-correct-craft-go-to-standard-rotation-motors

http://www.correctcraftfan.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=19135&title=engine-rotation

http://www.correctcraftfan.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=851&title=revese-rotation

 

[hotrodg726]

OK guy's let's keep it peaceful and on topic for the OP. I think he has an understanding now of what to look for and probably would appreciate no more squabling in his post.. you guy's are both really help full people so let's call this one a draw before someone closes it

 

[55 Tony]

Be carefull, Some marine engines are reverse rotation. Also if it is a used engine I would be very leary of one that spent its time in salt water.

I knew a guy who rebuild a fairly large boat with 2 ... I forget the size engines, I think they were BBC. He tried for weeks to start the first motor then finally figured out he had the starters swapped and was trying to start it backwards!