Replacing Engine zincs

hbishop3 said:
Guys, what is a Westerbeke? I have 3116s and am getting ready to find/replace my zincs, but have no manual and no clue on Westerbeke. Thanks...
Click to expand...

Westerbeke would be the OEM for your generator....
 
I have recived asets of engine anodes from BoatZincs, and have managed to fit 5 of the six supplied for each engine, (3116 TA Cats)

I am unable to locate the anode that is about 3/8 inch thick and 1 - 1 and 1/4 inches long that does not have a hex head on it, just a thread.

Can anybody tell me where this anode is located on the engine please.

Thanks

Graham
 
I'm pretty sure that you are describing the zinc in the exhaust elbow. The head is a four sided. I'll look for a pic.
 
Here's a pic.....the nut with the red top on the exhaust elbow just after the turbo...

P9210966.jpg


This is my 3126TA motor, but your's should be similar...
 
You're very welcome......hope they all came out easy for you....now go do the impellers.....:grin:
 
i've got one of those I cannot get out. Mine looks like its a steel nut coz its all rusty

Will it be safe to drill the thing out? I think the air flow would take any swarf down the exhaust. Am I right in thinking that
 
The 3100 series Cat engines have some plugs made of steel........be sure you are working on a zinc annode. The zincs are brass/bronze with tapered pipe threads and they usually back out easily. It would not be a good thing to dump 10 gallons of coolant in the engine room because you drilled into a plug instead of a zinc.
 
Now you've got me worried..............I'll take a pic when I'm down at the boat next and post it on here
 
Sorry its taken so long getting a pic of the bolt I'm having problems getting out..............Its siezed up pretty good. I'm sure its an anode what do you think.

Am I safe in trying to drill out ? Getting heat on it is difficult as I dont want to mess up all that insulation around it, I suppose I could try a small gas blowtorch

http://www.photobox.co.uk/my/photo?album_id=267900474&photo_id=715158520
 
I am wondering if anyone has had any recent experience obtaining any magnesium anodes for their CAT 3126 engines. I am in fresh water. Calls to a number of distributors has not been successful. Including Boatzincs.

Thanks very much,
 
Zincs are cheap insurance. Rather than try to stretch them out to get your money's worth on a $2 zinc, replace them at shorter intervals. When you pull out a 75% depleted zinc, you might think you have a 25% reserve, but the truth is that the remaining 25% is mostly oxidized and does not provide any significant protection. If your $2 zinc is 60% depleted, it has also swollen and will unthread itself from the head when you back it out. The worst situation is when the thing breaks off and you now have to either leave it there and cross your fingers or open things up to get it out. So, replace them when they are 40-50% depleted. They come out easier and still provide adequate protection. The job is less than an hour vs a half day's work when they get stuck in the component.
 
Chris1960 said:
Sorry its taken so long getting a pic of the bolt I'm having problems getting out..............Its siezed up pretty good. I'm sure its an anode what do you think.

Am I safe in trying to drill out ? Getting heat on it is difficult as I dont want to mess up all that insulation around it, I suppose I could try a small gas blowtorch

http://www.photobox.co.uk/my/photo?album_id=267900474&photo_id=715158520
Click to expand...
I pulled that one out of a friend's 3126 and it was a plug, not a zinc.
 
david_h said:
I am wondering if anyone has had any recent experience obtaining any magnesium anodes for their CAT 3126 engines. I am in fresh water. Calls to a number of distributors has not been successful. Including Boatzincs.

Thanks very much,
Click to expand...

David - I replaced all of mine with aluminum. I ordered them from Performance Metals. They also have hull and tab anodes in AL... I could not find engine anodes in magnesium...

Here's what I ordered:

http://www.performancemetals.com/anodes/Pencil.shtml
Per Engine: 3 – 6L2283 (AE-0A), 2 – 6L2281 (AE-1E), 6 – 6L3104 (AE-0C)
Westerbeke 1 – AE-0
877.612.5213X221
AE-0A – 3/8”Dia x 2 ½” long x 5/16-18 UNC
AE-0 – 3/8” Dia x 1 ¾” long x 5/16-18 UNC
AE-1E – ½” Dia x 1½” long x 3/8-16 UNC
A 6L3104 – 3/8” Dia x 1 ½” long x ¼-20 UNC
http://www.performancemetals.com/images/pdfs/PMI%20Catalog%2015.pdf
Hull Anode (Navalloy) HYAA
Tab Anodes (Navalloy) R3750A (1 Pair – Need 2)
 
I went through mine 2 weekends ago and have replaced all but 1 on each motor. The Cat 3116s have a total of 6, according to both the Cat manual and boatzincs.com, I have managed to find the 1 on the exhaust elbow, 2 on the oil cooler and 2 on the heat exchanger at the front of the motor. I have yet to find the 3rd one for the heat exchanger, I've traced all of the cooling lines but not been able to find it. Anyone able to clue me in to its' location?
 
Thanks Carter, I looked all along the HE path and didn't see it, I'll have to look again in case I missed it. Half of mine came out easily enough, but when I tried to unscrew the zinc rod from the cap, they snapped off at the base where it goes in to the cap, so I've had to order the full cap/anode set. I guess that's incentive to check them more frequently so they don't take a set in to the cap. If I read previous posts here correctly, I can soak them in muriatic acid to remove the rest of the zincs from the caps and then reuse the caps for future changes.

Kevin
 
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