Is the AD21 obsolete? Any ideas on repower costs?

[Robdog.1]

New to the forum but I've been looking for a nice A25 for a while. Lifelong boater, I've owned many boats from Chapparals to Sea Ray, to my current Whaler. I'm getting more interested in trailerable cruising due to my Dallas area landlocked status!
I've found several nice A25s, prices seem to run $10-$15 thousand. I was planning on a Yanmar or Beta repower but prices seem to be coming in around $15000 for the total package. Am I talking to the wrong shops or is this average?
I have two complete AD21s available to me, one with a blown head gasket and the other is fresh rebuild short block at the shop. Both include transmission.
Should I totally rebuild the AD21 or repower??? Price for a total reman of AD21???
Help!
Rob

[Desertboater]

I'm in the process of planning the repower of a 1971 A-25 with a Beta Marine 25 (possibly a 28). The main reason is a lack of confidence in the AD-21 since the boat has been stored in a barn for the last 3 to 4 years. All the research I've done indicates that a raw water cooled engine that has been in salt water for most of it's 40 + year life will have significant corrosion in the cooling water passages that will impact heat transfer. In addition, the photos of the engine (my son has visited the boat but I'm buying it long distance) do not give me confidence that this is the engine to trust doing week long trips in Puget Sound.

The web site for Albin AD=21 parts is:
http://www.albinmotor.com/AlbinMotor/en ... -ad21.html
The company is called Fors Marin and they are in Sweden.

With respect to prices - I've talked to Beta Marine NC (east coast distributor), Sound Marine Diesel in Connecticut (look up their web page as they have repowered an Albin 25), Sailcraft Services in Oriental, SC, BetaMarine NW near Seattle, and BetaMarine W (west coast distributor). The engine price is about the same for all locations with the main difference being shipping costs. Note that a 20% reduction off of list is possible. (The BetaMarine W web page has list pricing for the engines - you have to hunt to find it).

Since I have kids on the east coast & work on the west coast with the boat located near St. Louis, MO, and want to travel on both costs, all opportunities are being explored, including doing it myself.

Engine cost is $7,500 to $7,800 with an estimated 30 hours (several yards came up with this estimate) to do the work. Shop labor is running $72 per hour for the rural yards to $90 per hour for the Seattle yard. In all likelyhood a new propeller shaft may be needed depending on the length of the engine & where is mounts. If a new prop shaft is required, it will be not be a metric size, which would probably mean a new cutless bearing & shaft packing/seal. Since the Beta is a clockwise rotation (looking from the stern), this will also mean changing the prop to a right hand version. The 30 hour estimate did not include replacement of the prop or the cutless bearing. The engine price is for the engine alone.

Your price of $15K seems in the ballpark for a yard doing all of the above.. I am expecting to do most of the work so the ~$2500 in labor would not apply, although some $$ for consultation & checkout of the final installation will be part of the plan. All of the seacocks will be replaced at the same time since they are still the old original gate valves.

Of course, the Yanmar 3YM30 is a left hand rotation engine so the existing prop would not need to be changed just due to rotation direction. I've not investigated whether the existing prop could be used or if the additional horsepower of either engine would require a different prop for best efficiency since I've got to change the prop anyway. The best prices on the Yanmar have been higher than the Beta, and, of course, the Yanmar consumables such as filters, etc are higher than off-the-shelf Kubota consumables.

[Robdog.1]

Thanks, I'm coming up with some pretty high numbers for the repower. If the boat can be had for nothing, it's doable.
I love the boats, but $15k for a repower at 9 kts is hard to swallow.
Any Albin 25s for sale with a new engine???

[marko]

FYI: There's one for sale in the March "All At Sea" Southeast magazine. It says 25' Albin Diesel Cruiser, 60hp Yanmar + specs. Listing is $15,500 contact Bill at 252.331.1559. Doesn't say anything about engine age, hrs, condition, etc. Don't know anything about it or 25's or 27's.

[Robdog.1]

Thanks!
Found one in FL with a new (2008) Yanmar 40 hp and trailer.

[PeteSharp]

9 knots?! I may hit 9 with a 3 knot current with my volvo md3. I can't imagine any albin 25s cruising over 7. Your 15k provides reliability and refinement. Unfortunately cost is not proportionate with speed.