Built in 1976, she had spent the bulk of the life on Lake Michigan and had only recently been to Florida. She was an incredibly good shape. Her original paint was still bright, and her pair of 454 gas engines had accumulated only 498 hours. Her deck house was laid out with a convertible sofa and galley, and below, accommodations included four berths and a large head with a stall shower. She was ideal for Burkard's family of four.

Burkard knew that even though Julie B, as she would be called, was in good condition for her age, she would need attention. "Originally I intended to cruise Julie B for a year or so and then repower her with diesels, " says Burkard. A trip to the Florida Keys from his Stuart, Fla., home was a real eye opener. "Slogging along at 18 knots, I was burning 32 gallons per hour," he says. Three fuel stops later and $1000 fuel proved to be the final straw. Burkard went on the prowl for pair of diesels.

In 1976, the 36' Convertible was offered with a pair of naturally aspirated Caterpillar 3160s (210 hp.), and she was capable of a steady and efficient 16-knot cruise. Burkard wanted at least a 20-knot cruise and estimated that a pair of modern lightweight turbocharged diesels of about 300hp. would do the trick, and the Cummins 6BTAs caught his eye. These 1,300 lb. engines develop 300 hp. at 2800 rpm. Perfect. The fit would be snug, but with ZF 10-degree down-angle gears the geometry worked. It was Burkard's good fortune that dropping the reduction gears from 2:1 to 1.5:1 made it possible to use Julie B's existing running gear. The forward end of each engine was dropped one degree to accommodate the existing 9 degree shaft angle. The only alteration required was trimming the shaft 3".   John Sharpe, the boat builder in charge of the project, took this opportunity to recondition the shafts and cut fresh tapers and keyways. Strut bearings were also replaced and the couplings refaced.

The next step was a complete redesign of Julie B's engine space and systems. Extracting the old engines was accomplished without incident. Sharpe gutted the engineroom and after a thorough cleaning, applied Hatteras gray paint to the bilges and bulkheads. He installed new bilge blowers but left the original air intakes untouched because they were big enough for the new engines. This, too, was the case of the exhaust system. Although Sharpe installed new hose and clamps, he figured that the original mufflers and 6" transom ports would not generate excessive back pressure. To save space, Sharpe eliminated the internal raw-water strainers relying solely on the external strangers. I have seen this arrangement before, but I am not wild about. Time will tell.

Inspection of the two 20-year-old, 150-gal. fiberglass tanks confirmed that they were as good as new. Sharpe redesigned the fuel system, replacing that one quarter inch diameter copper piping with one half inch hose and fabricating a new manifold. Six ball valves controlling intake and return lines allow fuel from either tank to serve either engine. Julie B's original Onan 6. 5-kw gas generator was replaced with a 6-kw Onan diesel unit with a sound shield. The original electrical panels were tidied up and new engine wiring and instruments added.

With systems complete, Sharpe maneuvered the new diesels into position with a sliding come-along. "We were fortunate", says Sharpe." Only a pipe or two had to be removed to fit them through the saloon door." New engine foundations were fitted and new exhaust rises installed.

Was it worth the price? Julie B is a jewel, and her performance with the new diesel power is better than expected. Adding cup to her original 20" x 20" 4-blade wheels gave Julie B a cruising speed of 24 knots at 2600 rpm, and she burns only 15 gallons an hour. Although her static waterline (at rest) has changed little, she needs no tab at all to run at a comfortable 3-5 degrees under way. Top speed with their gas engines had been 25 knots at 4200 rpm. She now tops out at more than 28 knots at 2800 rpm. Sweet success.

Although Burkard refuses to divulge the level of his investment in the project, 40 - 60 man hours is a good rule of thumb for repowering.

"Worth it?" Burkard says with a dreamy stare, "You should see the old 46' Hat we took in trade last week. "