The first boat I've been on was a 1986 Liberator that my dad and uncle restored in the early 2000's. My whole childhood was on that boat! Me and my dad even rebuilt the Chevy 350 engine that was inside, I remember hammering the pistons in! So Liberators have always had a special place in my heart. ❤
Need to clean fuel tank ,rebuild carb an change impeller in outdrive an so long as plugs are good should be runing out at 65 mph no problem I've owned 4 first gen liberators if y want some knowlage if your in FL I'd help ya out no problem an fix it all up very fast
i took the time to read the comments, the repairs needed to bring back that boat to its glory are minor, at worse, lifting the heads and have the valves reseated so I can't agree with you about selling a boat if not used for more than 2 years, buying another used boat does not insure you that it will be better than the one you,re selling and you have to start from the beginning, the only exception is if you buy a new or almost new boat. To me, a boat needs to be reliable and safe, no regards to the age of the boat. good video
Agree with "Running Ragged Ranch". I had a similar project my selves. Want to add; change the thermostat + change the plug wire (and perhaps other wires also). 10 years + other years of use before that ... I think its time to change them. The engine respond very slow when you gave full trotle. 350 is quicker than that.
I used to have a 16ft open bow boat as a kid in the late 80s/early 90s. It had a big Mercury and would spank these all day. However it was a wild chine walking ride, but these Liberator owners had a puzzled look on their face.
I like the key thing, had a 84 Chevy cavalier, nothing like a boat but I could start it and shut it off without keys in the ignition, I could open the door without keys as well, best car I ever owned!
I think we’re brothers. I thought I was only one who didn’t need keys and take tools with you and kill switch was disconnect fuel line and don’t forget a paddle. 😆 we should fix boats together.
That actually doesn't make much sense because I am working on a boat, this one! And what's a better boat to get my hands dirty than this one? Thanks for the comment!
Well first off any boat sitting 10years will need the carburetor cleaned and rebuilt. 2nd make sure the ignition switch and gear selector works before putting in water Lol Amauter hour 😂 But we all gotta start some where lol
Points and condenser need replaced. Then when carb issues are taken care of, idle can be turned down to 600-650 in gear. If shift assist is working, you shouldn't have trouble getting it out of gear.
😂I was in that water two weeks ago. My fast idle control thing broke and I was turtling back to the ramp. This was at 11pm. Still working on her. Got it for $700 and currently rebuilding carbs. I live in Northfield. When are you normally at the ramp?
Rebuilding carb, changing plugs, distributor cap, ESA switches, and possibly ESA module you should be fine. They’re pretty easy to work on. You didn’t come out of gear because the ESA isn’t working. You’ve probably already done this though lol
Glad to see you're optimism but you have some work and a little cash to spend before that boat is ready for the water. Don't give up get it done and then have fun!
You broke cardinal rule #1 to boating ... Never untie from the dock until the engine is running !! Rebuild the carb, empty and refill the fuel tank, change the gear oil in the drive, complete tune up
Just have the carb cleaned / tuned and i bet it would be a whole different animal. It did have some blow-by out of what looked like the PCV in the last video but still a healthy enough sounding motor. Dont try to perfect it. Detail, sort some mechanicals and take it out!
It's amazing that thing even ran at all.. throw that carb away and buy a new Holley mechanical secondary carb.. but it's definitely not a 70mph boat tho.
So get it to turn over, replace plugs, put it in water and hope? What could possibly go wrong? 🤦♂️ Happy you made it back to the dock. Sad you’re not doing anything else with it.
Ya you should because it will resale for close to what is was new.& you add on your costs of replacement parts list in the bill of sale. That's if you don't keep for yourself to use all of the time.
Resale value will never, ever even come close to what these were new. They're currently selling for $15k in elite condition. They were something like $70k brand new considering inflation.
We have a boat four winns 205 sundowner we havnt used it for like 4 years but we winterize it when we use it and we start it up every so often and it starts up just fine mostly because we lost the car we towed it with
I do marine repair for a living and you hit on some good topics if you cannot do the work yourself on these older boats the repair will out strip the value of the boat. That needs a new control box and cables the carb rebuilt major tune up oil and filter and change out the water pump they will go out with out warning. Also change the gear lube . Pump and flush out the fuel tank and new fuel filters and a deep clean after that you will have a kick ass boat. The reason the engine back fired it the carb is plugged up and is running lean. The Holy has a diaphragm for the secondary's either its blown or the secondary's are rusted shut they will no open up nice boat I hope you got a good deal on it can I ask you how much you paid yes get it going don't let it rot
I like the boat, it would look great with a really good cut and buff and bring the fibreglass back to life. And a couple other adjustments to the motor, and clean some other things up it will be a beautiful boat. If you want to sell it let me know.
An if linkage is greased an carb is rebuilt there is a gear cable kill switch that interups motor for split second to slow it to share ft in an out of gear if not working won't shift I can fix that boat nice I've fixed um up from sitting way longer if buy it if price is right an I'd restore it can show you many boats I restored from liberators to huge cabin flybridge boats don't drive the boat till the impeller in outdrive is new an carb rebuilt at least if you run it the way I seen the cooling system acting from first vid with temp gun. That system is not moveing enough water at all you will blow the motor I've been building boats 30 years so need good info hit me up
5:25 - uh, better turn back to the launch. You had to know there was a problem with the ignition switch. At 3:10 you turned it off briefly and the boat didn't shut down.
Yo man I just got a boat for free three years out in the pine land of New Jersey lol would you be interested in coming to help me get it started ? We can get some good footage also
Bro...get rid of it before you blow that junk outdrive. I left a comment on your first video. Liberators are great boats but you want a mercruiser 350 with an Alpha 1 outdrive. The OMC version is shit. I'm trying to save you a whole lot of headaches.
Is that one of the reasons why OMC went out of business? I’ve been looking at buying a Liberator (I live in Michigan, so these are easy to find) but everyone keeps telling me to avoid any with the King Cobra engines. Which from what I’ve noticed…is most of them lol
@@tehsnipatres208 I'm not sure why they went out of business. Liberators are a great small boat and there are plenty of them out there with the small block Alpha 1 combo. Most of the big block boats have the Ford 460 Kink Cobra combo. Avoid any boat that has anything OMC. Even if someone tries to give you the boat for free...don’t take it. ✌
@@bigmeaney555 is it more expensive to do an engine swap? Can you go that route at least? I mean shit if I’m offered a Liberator for free…& the bitch ain’t running, I’ll yank that King Cobra bullshit out & throw a MerCruiser in there.
@@tehsnipatres208 engine wise there isn't any difference with the long block of omc, vp, or merc. Change the outdrive and some bolt ons and you will be good to go. No point in buying a dressed long block if you don't have to.
Hey there, it's actually not my boat. I was just given a few bucks to get it going but the owner didn't want to fully restore it. Honestly I wouldn't either, it's just not worth it in the end.
It is a potentially a fun fast boat but, I'm seeing someone who is unfamiliar with this boat type. The boat needed a lot more prep before it was ever tested out on the water. He may have caused more issues with the boat.
Listen, this isn't complicated. The boat is pretty much worthless. It was either I take it to the junkyard, or I make a cool video out of it for you guys with a very small budget. So stop whining and enjoy the video.
@@ENFEbbnFlow Hi Ebbn. you are right. I guess it would have been too complicated to actually spend a bit more time to fix the minor issues with the boat. About a day I guess is what it would have taken to sort out some of the engine issues. The boat could have been a nice project for the right person. I believe the video would have been better once the boat was sorted and showing how you went about it.
I look at it this way... it was fun to watch. Maybe not the best way to do it, but no one got hurt, the boat didn’t sink, and he got it back to shore onto the trailer...barely. Pretty sure he wouldn’t do this with an airplane!
I used to ride like that in my glory days. I would ride with like 3 girls on my boat. All topless. Man I miss those days
Weird flex but uh ok cool bruh sure
@IC 680 Nothing about this flex is weird. Lol You must be on testosterone blockers. 🤣
I was flinching for the sterndrive every time he put it in gear at that high rpm.. ouch lol
The first boat I've been on was a 1986 Liberator that my dad and uncle restored in the early 2000's. My whole childhood was on that boat! Me and my dad even rebuilt the Chevy 350 engine that was inside, I remember hammering the pistons in! So Liberators have always had a special place in my heart. ❤
This boat deserves a supercharger 💪💪💪 but check your coil and distributor for that miss fire. This boats pretty cool 👍👍
You need to trim the outdrive down when getting up on plane
Need to clean fuel tank ,rebuild carb an change impeller in outdrive an so long as plugs are good should be runing out at 65 mph no problem I've owned 4 first gen liberators if y want some knowlage if your in FL I'd help ya out no problem an fix it all up very fast
Thank you! I wish it didn't have the computer ignition crap but it is what it is. Thanks for the advice!!!
I just bought a 201 liberator and its a nice boat so far. However I've been having some overheating problems which I'm trying to diagnose now
Is there any wood in these boats?
@@lawrencefranck9417 Yes
Definitely would love to see her resurrected back to her glory days. Love the channel and videos.
Thank you John! More on the way!
If you spend a day and do a tune up it will fly. I love the boat!
Please create some more boat videos. Thanks for sharing this boat. Watching from Los Angeles, CA Steve Miller.
Will do!!!
i took the time to read the comments, the repairs needed to bring back that boat to its glory are minor, at worse, lifting the heads and have the valves reseated so I can't agree with you about selling a boat if not used for more than 2 years, buying another used boat does not insure you that it will be better than the one you,re selling and you have to start from the beginning, the only exception is if you buy a new or almost new boat.
To me, a boat needs to be reliable and safe, no regards to the age of the boat.
good video
Clean carb plugs and wires call me in the morning !
Deal!
Agree with "Running Ragged Ranch". I had a similar project my selves. Want to add; change the thermostat + change the plug wire (and perhaps other wires also). 10 years + other years of use before that ... I think its time to change them. The engine respond very slow when you gave full trotle. 350 is quicker than that.
Very nice project, would only like to take such boats with Volvo penta V8
I used to have a 16ft open bow boat as a kid in the late 80s/early 90s. It had a big Mercury and would spank these all day. However it was a wild chine walking ride, but these Liberator owners had a puzzled look on their face.
We have a red 201 liberator . We love it. Has been a great boat.
I like the key thing, had a 84 Chevy cavalier, nothing like a boat but I could start it and shut it off without keys in the ignition, I could open the door without keys as well, best car I ever owned!
ADJUST YOUR TRIM!!!!!
Thats what I was thinking that boats trimmed way to high to get on plane
Max speed is trimm up a few degrees
I had a 1992 special edition red liberator 201 , 4 bucket seats with a 454 that boat moved great boat .
Oh wow!!!
Check your timing with a light...my boat ran like crap at WOT. When I timed it to spec it all cleared up
Even when running perfectly. Witch it's not lol. It will only do 50mph on gps.
Yep I had the same boat back in the early 90's best ever ran was 53 with me and 1/4 tank of fuel
Carb is definitely plugged up from sitting 10 years
In vidio your ay full power doing maybe 25 just up on plane she moves way faster then that promiss
Ya sound like ya only got 2 barrel out of the 4 on the carb work n an sounds like bad plugs too
I think we’re brothers. I thought I was only one who didn’t need keys and take tools with you and kill switch was disconnect fuel line and don’t forget a paddle. 😆 we should fix boats together.
Trim the stern drive down, clean the gas tank, rebuild carb, full tube up, oil change and you have a bad ass boat
Any new videos coming? Would love to see it cleaned up more and tuned up as much as possible.
Unfortunately it's not worth it 😕
@@ENFEbbnFlow it is worth it and would hardly cost anything at all lol
😮
Gives me confidence in mine. It sat for 5 years,
As long as it's winterized right, you should be fine!
nice boat.... restore it.....would e fun to watch...
Have you considered working on the boat first ?!?!
That actually doesn't make much sense because I am working on a boat, this one! And what's a better boat to get my hands dirty than this one? Thanks for the comment!
Well first off any boat sitting 10years will need the carburetor cleaned and rebuilt.
2nd make sure the ignition switch and gear selector works before putting in water
Lol
Amauter hour 😂
But we all gotta start some where lol
That carb has had wayyyy better days 🤦🏼♂️
Right you are!
Where you at with the Four Winns? Any update? Enjoyed the videos. This is my kinda thing. Well done!
Points and condenser need replaced. Then when carb issues are taken care of, idle can be turned down to 600-650 in gear. If shift assist is working, you shouldn't have trouble getting it out of gear.
Time chain cause the no stop when key off my friend? My regal does that v6
Thanks!
Can't wait for part 3! Would love full restoration!
I know but unfortunately I do not own this boat, I can only do what I can with the budget given to me!
Wonderful boat. It deserved a new engine and new upholstery.
its just not adjusted correctly... the carb and probably distributor need a tune up most likely is all.
Did u trim it down ? Lil button on Handel of throttle
😂I was in that water two weeks ago. My fast idle control thing broke and I was turtling back to the ramp. This was at 11pm. Still working on her. Got it for $700 and currently rebuilding carbs. I live in Northfield. When are you normally at the ramp?
Weekends in the morning on any nice day with low wind!!!
Your boat is awesome, I would love to have a twin to it. I would like to see progress made on your boat.
Thank you!!!!
Awesome input, thanks for sharing.
Rebuilding carb, changing plugs, distributor cap, ESA switches, and possibly ESA module you should be fine. They’re pretty easy to work on. You didn’t come out of gear because the ESA isn’t working. You’ve probably already done this though lol
Glad to see you're optimism but you have some work and a little cash to spend before that boat is ready for the water. Don't give up get it done and then have fun!
yup!
awesome video!!! you had me laughing "Come on baby!! Im turning her around" hahaha
of course we want to be restored like new!!, nice boat!!! take care of here please!!
You broke cardinal rule #1 to boating ... Never untie from the dock until the engine is running !!
Rebuild the carb, empty and refill the fuel tank, change the gear oil in the drive, complete tune up
It was running! Just shut off!
I love boats,I can no longer afford one,could do a project boat.
Did you do a comp test.sounds like no comp in a jug or two.cuz when you turn it over it has flat spots.the cam is prob wore out
That boat would look better in my garage love that thing.
Just have the carb cleaned / tuned and i bet it would be a whole different animal. It did have some blow-by out of what looked like the PCV in the last video but still a healthy enough sounding motor. Dont try to perfect it. Detail, sort some mechanicals and take it out!
It's amazing that thing even ran at all.. throw that carb away and buy a new Holley mechanical secondary carb.. but it's definitely not a 70mph boat tho.
I was thinking the same thing. 60mph seems more realistic
Anyone who has bought an old tired boat has experienced this before lol
Boat should never have been in the water and tia service everything on it
I wouldn't went around 2.
If it floats, it boats!
Putting it into gear like that at high idle is a sure fire way to destroy the gears in the drive
So get it to turn over, replace plugs, put it in water and hope? What could possibly go wrong? 🤦♂️
Happy you made it back to the dock. Sad you’re not doing anything else with it.
your port side didnt look like it was pushing any water or not much just a bunch of steam when underway.
Sounds like bad gas.or it’s vapor locking from not venting the tank? Maybe change the points and plugs.
I have a Four Winns 220 Horizon. Same exact interior. I have the 5.8L 351.
Sweet!
I have a 21' Slickcraft bowrider with 233 HP Mercruiser 351W 5.8L pumped up to 425 HP...
Ya you should because it will resale for close to what is was new.& you add on your costs of replacement parts list in the bill of sale. That's if you don't keep for yourself to use all of the time.
Resale value will never, ever even come close to what these were new. They're currently selling for $15k in elite condition. They were something like $70k brand new considering inflation.
I can imagine a LS1 swap in that 😎😎😎
Excellent video 👍
70mph lol yeah right
Maybe in its prime who knows!
Take A can of WD-40.,or some PB BLASTER in spray can for your key switch.& cables on open waters use.
Had that boat had Ethanol gas, sitting in the carburetor, she'd never started
We have a boat four winns 205 sundowner we havnt used it for like 4 years but we winterize it when we use it and we start it up every so often and it starts up just fine mostly because we lost the car we towed it with
Keep using it!
I do marine repair for a living and you hit on some good topics if you cannot do the work yourself on these older boats the repair will out strip the value of the boat. That needs a new control box and cables the carb rebuilt major tune up oil and filter and change out the water pump they will go out with out warning. Also change the gear lube . Pump and flush out the fuel tank and new fuel filters and a deep clean after that you will have a kick ass boat. The reason the engine back fired it the carb is plugged up and is running lean. The Holy has a diaphragm for the secondary's either its blown or the secondary's are rusted shut they will no open up nice boat I hope you got a good deal on it can I ask you how much you paid yes get it going don't let it rot
Its all in how you store it. Leaving them outside uncovered is the worst.
I like the boat, it would look great with a really good cut and buff and bring the fibreglass back to life. And a couple other adjustments to the motor, and clean some other things up it will be a beautiful boat. If you want to sell it let me know.
Cool idea
u should of cleaned out the carb and filters plugs and carb before taking that out u got lucky as Hell
YEEEEHAAA!!!!
The best thing you could do is throw away that holly carburetor and get a Eddelbroc performer, they are a lot more reliable!
My old boat backfired like that and found out the motor was junk in it.
An if linkage is greased an carb is rebuilt there is a gear cable kill switch that interups motor for split second to slow it to share ft in an out of gear if not working won't shift I can fix that boat nice I've fixed um up from sitting way longer if buy it if price is right an I'd restore it can show you many boats I restored from liberators to huge cabin flybridge boats don't drive the boat till the impeller in outdrive is new an carb rebuilt at least if you run it the way I seen the cooling system acting from first vid with temp gun. That system is not moveing enough water at all you will blow the motor I've been building boats 30 years so need good info hit me up
wow thanks for the advice!!! Very good information. We've winterized it, but I think I might take it back to the water next year.
@@ENFEbbnFlow we'll hook up with me an I'll get it right for ya
Bring it back to life old is cool I have the same boat if you sell it I'm a buyer just saying 🤗
Sounds good!!!
U need to clean the carbrator and service throttle cables
is it misfiring?
Maybe just donate it to charity and call it a day?
Is there a part 3?
Oh Baby !!!!!!
your prop is still up!
5:25 - uh, better turn back to the launch.
You had to know there was a problem with the ignition switch. At 3:10 you turned it off briefly and the boat didn't shut down.
engines both done and redo interior my way
Nice boat, needs some work still... Or sold it now?
I might get it running again and make another video! Stay tuned!
Yo man I just got a boat for free three years out in the pine land of New Jersey lol would you be interested in coming to help me get it started ? We can get some good footage also
Bro...get rid of it before you blow that junk outdrive. I left a comment on your first video. Liberators are great boats but you want a mercruiser 350 with an Alpha 1 outdrive. The OMC version is shit. I'm trying to save you a whole lot of headaches.
Is that one of the reasons why OMC went out of business? I’ve been looking at buying a Liberator (I live in Michigan, so these are easy to find) but everyone keeps telling me to avoid any with the King Cobra engines. Which from what I’ve noticed…is most of them lol
@@tehsnipatres208 I'm not sure why they went out of business. Liberators are a great small boat and there are plenty of them out there with the small block Alpha 1 combo. Most of the big block boats have the Ford 460 Kink Cobra combo. Avoid any boat that has anything OMC. Even if someone tries to give you the boat for free...don’t take it. ✌
@@bigmeaney555 is it more expensive to do an engine swap? Can you go that route at least? I mean shit if I’m offered a Liberator for free…& the bitch ain’t running, I’ll yank that King Cobra bullshit out & throw a MerCruiser in there.
@@tehsnipatres208 engine wise there isn't any difference with the long block of omc, vp, or merc. Change the outdrive and some bolt ons and you will be good to go. No point in buying a dressed long block if you don't have to.
Can confirm. I had a 241 with a 460 omc and it was near impossible to find anyone who would work on it. Best thing I ever did was sell it.
You figure out why it was stuck in gear?
The 2 boat videos were great. Will there be another video?
Yes! Currently filming more videos for a Vespa scooter, and another boat! Stay tuned!
dude that motor is only running on 4 to 5 cylinders you really have to put plugs and wirers on it don't sound like the timing is out
sounds like it needs the carbs cleaned out lol
Resurrect this boat please!
It's not my boat but hopefully see it again soon!
worth fixing
You gotta put your tilt and trim down
Timing is slightly off thats why its sluggish getting on plane..... that and your idle is waaaay too high
Get a new Edelbrock 4 barrel for that and it will run way better
Then sell it asap,it has an OMC drive in it!
you need to find yourself an old daycruiser.
Yes I do!
I think I know that boat yard
Where is it now?
Obviously cannot disclose that!
Carb needs to be rebuilt and cleaned
Like how my two stroke boat motor picks up faster then that
Just so ya know them hatches are 1000 bucks each.. be nice to it lol.
What happened to this? 😕
Hopefully you're not just paying storage.
Hey there, it's actually not my boat. I was just given a few bucks to get it going but the owner didn't want to fully restore it. Honestly I wouldn't either, it's just not worth it in the end.
Update on that 350 sbc
💪👍👍👍👍
I'll buy that boat there getting hard to find
Maybe!
Btw it popping ln the Intake like that is not good
GG
It is a potentially a fun fast boat but, I'm seeing someone who is unfamiliar with this boat type. The boat needed a lot more prep before it was ever tested out on the water. He may have caused more issues with the boat.
Listen, this isn't complicated. The boat is pretty much worthless. It was either I take it to the junkyard, or I make a cool video out of it for you guys with a very small budget. So stop whining and enjoy the video.
@@ENFEbbnFlow Hi Ebbn. you are right. I guess it would have been too complicated to actually spend a bit more time to fix the minor issues with the boat. About a day I guess is what it would have taken to sort out some of the engine issues. The boat could have been a nice project for the right person. I believe the video would have been better once the boat was sorted and showing how you went about it.
@@BaronVonEvil1 right and some guy with no videos named Carlos on UA-cam with a Southpark picture is the noble being to give me advice.
I look at it this way... it was fun to watch. Maybe not the best way to do it, but no one got hurt, the boat didn’t sink, and he got it back to shore onto the trailer...barely. Pretty sure he wouldn’t do this with an airplane!