New Project Boat Rebuild

Today I fixed the leak and at the same time found out that the original fuel line from the pump to the carb was a metal line with swaged fittings. Somewhere along the line someone changed it to hose with barbed fittings. Eventually I will switch it back. I ran the engine for about ten minutes, and set the dwell and timing. It runs a little rough when cold (typical 1960's 70's engine) but when warmed up runs pretty smooth for an engine that hasn't been run in years.

But one thing leads to another. The morse throttle control is frozen. It was working when I got the boat but now it is stuck. So I will have to disassemble it and free it up, and the trim tilt only goes down. It worked fine two weeks ago?? Another remove, clean , and reinstall job.

 

Launch Day!





I fixed the throttle controller. I was reading a thread on another forum where a man said that he had the same problem with the same controller. But he also said one part can be put in backwards. I tried that but it made no difference. He laso talked about adjusting the cable length, so I tried adjusting the length of the cables and that worked. The problem was the switch that shifts it to neutral rotates slightly but it was not at the right angle to slip (left and right) into the neutral position. After adjusting the shift cable length slightly it was in the right position and now it works.

I put it in the water today. Ran it around slowly for about 15 minutes. Tried it in reverse. Shift to reverse is a real jolt. But it works. Tried to accelerate but at 1100 rpm it stops cold like someone turned off the switch. Also it is leaking at the stern drive. But the bilge pump works. (LOL)

So I need to keep working on it.

 

I installed a throttle control off another 72 Sea Ray, with a good neutral safety switch. It worked fine. But I still have the problem with the sterndrive leaking. I don't work on sterndrives.

I took the boat to the local Sea Ray dealer to have the sterndrive repaired. They said the sterndrive was too old for them to work on, they had no one who was trained or qualified. They gave me the name of Commencement Bay Marine in Tacoma, so I took the boat there. The hardest part was ordering the parts. It took well over a week. But once they had the parts they completed the work in one day. They replaced the gaskets, bellows, and the shift cable. It took almost two weeks.

But when they tried to start the engine there was no power to the starter.

After I got it home I discovered that the wires to the neutral safety switch had come off. Probably happened when they were re-installing the throttle control. After I hooked them up everything worked fine.

Tomorrow is launch day!

 

You should look into outdrive repairs, as they're not especially difficult. Putting a "transom kit" on, like you just paid for, isn't very hard. I'm not sure of your drive but it looks like it might be an old Mercrusier type 1 or a MC-1, which aren't much trouble, once you get your head around the setup and systems.

 

PAR, Let me quote myself from the BoatUS forum,

Sure I could do it. But I have made up my mind. I don't do transmissions, and I don't do sterndrives. Let one of these young guys do it! LOL

Think of it as creating jobs.

 

Good news, and bad news.

Launched boat. Engine fired right up. It ran smooth after warming up. Shift cable is no longer stiff but shifts hard. Shift needs adjustment. Motored around slowly for about 15 minutes and then the temp went through the roof. I immediately shut it down and used my kicker motor to get back to the ramp. I think I lost the impeller. Of course it is probably 40 years old. I'll pull it and see. It may also need a new circulating pump on the engine.

There is still a leak somewhere. It had maybe 1-2 gallons of water in the bilge. After I sort out the engine problems I'll look for the leak.

So back to the tool bin.

 

The boat looks great and I am sure you will iron out the wrinkles.

 

Started on the lower unit today. Didn't do much, removed the anode, drained the lube. Really gross stuff.



I also pulled the top off the thermostat housing. Also disgusting.

 

I went and bought a new thermostat and gasket. Yesterday I started cleaning up the thermostat housing. It was full of rust! I cleaned it up fairly well, not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. So now I am ready to put it back together, but, ,,,,,

I have searched through the service manual and cannot find a torque setting for the Thermostat housing bolts for the 165. They list it for the V 8 engines by not the inline engines. For the V8 it is 20 ft lb.

I'mm thinking I will go with that because it sounds reasonable. Any one know what it is supposed to be?

 

20 pounds is right. Take a shop vac to the cooling system to suck out any debris that may have dropped in as you broke things down. You might get lucky and suck out little bits of impeller rubber, left over from the last one that died a horrible death.

 

I did that. I sucked out a lot of rust. Didn't see any impeller bits but they are probably in there. I have a lot to do yet. I am going out of town to the Wooden Boat Festival in Port Townsend. I will be gone until the 11th so I am putting everything on hold until I get back. But I want to close up that thermostat housing before I go.

 

Stuff a rag in it, she'll wait for 'ya.

 

I put it back together yesterday. Where I live the mice or crows would probably eat the rag! LOL

 

It gets worse. The more stuff I took off the worse it looks. I found a broken spring in the hose from the water pump to the thermostat block. The water passages in the manifold are all clogged with rust and, the water pump is trashed. So I pulled it all off the engine and will just replace it all. Lots of pics for you.

Where the exhaust hose from the rear of the riser connects to the exhaust, is there supposed to be some sort of valve? If so it's not there. There is a metal bar across the top of the exhaust tube, but it doesn't seem to have any function.

 

The more I see of this engine, the more inclined I'd be to just pull it apart, toss some new bearings and seal in it and get it right. This would permit you to boil the block clean and access it's real condition. I'm not talking about a full up rebuild, unless the valves are shot and the cylinders need to be punched out, just just a "freshening up" with new gaskets, rings and bearings. Assuming the block is still straight enough and the bores tight enough. Or you could run it until it breaks something. Bring a paddle.