[STIHLBOLTS]

Ya think? :lol:

 

[Quint4]

Thanks Chris....my gimbal housing has the "plastic" plugs already so perhaps it has been done before?

 

[mrsrobinson]

Damn, this thread could go on for years...any chance you folks can post a specific message and direct it to Chris, perhaps in the title/subject?

 

[ImpulseIII]

Why ?? It may apply to others.

 

[STIHLBOLTS]

How about we let Chris decide. Chris if you see the thread getting to deep or off base just start another one and post the header showing what area you are helping with and post a link in this thread to show the jump over.

Thanks :grin:

 

[Against The Wind]

Chris, where u from in upstate n.y ? No need to mention the dealer or anything, just curios if youre in the buffalo area?

 

[SR Tech]

If the plugs are there allready then yes, chances are it has been done before.

Remove the plugs, you will then be able to loosen the nut/bolt that connects the steering arm to the swivel shaft, then chisel the nut off (be careful not to lose the washer below it). Pop the shaft out, new seals, pop it back in.

The new nut that would be put on actually has slits in each corner to fit a chisel making it much easier to put on.

And of course there is a "torque spec" In the swivel pin which connects the gimbal ring to the gimbal housing on the lower part of the ring. The spec is .005"-.010" between the washer on top of the ring and the upper mount on the housing, as your tightening the nut on top of the shaft.

Oh yeah, theres about 4 special tools needed to complete this job, which probably cost more than the job total.:huh:



I'm here to help, how its done doesn't really matter to me. I guess it really the admins choice.

I'm located in Albany by the way

 

[First Born]

I guess it really the admins choice.

Help as you see fit.:thumbsup:

 

[Quint4]

Thanks very much Chris ! My Wife is from upstate NY.



"Damn, this thread could go on for years...any chance you folks can post a specific message and direct it to Chris, perhaps in the title/subject?"

I have already posted this question and got some responses...I just thought while I had his "attention" I would ask it again for another perspective/advice.

 

[AndersonAcres]

Chris, congrats on your promotion. And, thanks for helping out answering questions.

 

[mrsrobinson]

Why ?? It may apply to others.

I agree, however for searching and for seeing if a Title interests me this will become a mess. It's like having one thread "Need engine help" and everyone posts there engine questions there.

I am not complaining. I am just sharing my opinion from a listserv management point of view. Remember, I work in the IT industry so I am thinking about searches and keeping a Post on topic.

 

[Nehalennia]

Good stuff Chris. We're all fortunate....more so than the guy in Albany waiting for you to ditch us freeloaders and fix his boat.

But Seriously good stuff.

 

[hmonarch]

Chris,

Thanks for your help and sharing your knowledge.

I'm tryng to find some good information on winterizing my 5.0. I've always done the winterization myself but this boat is new to me and I'm not familiar with this MPI powerplant. I have the MerCruiser 5.0 #31 service manual and the #14 Sterndrive manual but they are not very good on this point.

Does MerCruizer have a manual or set of instructions that detail winterizing? I'm comfortable with draining the powerplant and the sterndrive and refilling the sterndrive. I'm looking for instructions on fogging the engine and adding antifreeze.

Thanks

 

[SR Tech]

As for a manual itself, i've never seen one. Its been done the same way for the 4years i've been here.

We fog MPI's through the fuel filter. Come winterizing if the motor is an MPI and has the quart mounted filter we change it and fill the new one with a mixture of gas/stor n start/engine fog/and a tad of 2cycle.

You could just get away with 3/4gas and 1/4fog.

Then we run up the motor to temp, turn it off, drain the block/manifold, put the plugs back in.

We have a set up that has the set of muffs that goes over the water pick-up on the drive attached to a funnel. Based on the size of the motor we pour x amount of gallons of anti-freeze in the funnel while running the motor, chopping the throttle a few times every so often to get the fuel mix moving through the filter into the injectors.

When a good flow of antifreeze comes out the exhaust and the smoke from the burnt fog, your done.

Amount of antifreeze needed.
4Cyl- 3Gallons
6Cyl- 4Gallons
8Cyl- 5Gallons
Big Block- Between 6 and 8 Gallons

 

[SR Tech]

Sorry for the double post

 

[mrsrobinson]

Please, no more talk about winterizing, it's depressing me.......

 

[hmonarch]

Chris,

Thanks.

Elaine,

It depresses me, too.
A frozen engine block would depress me more.
I won't bring the subject up any more.

Huston

 

[mrsrobinson]

OK, I will go against my own post here......

Chris, our port engine thru hull exhaust collects black smoot on the fiberglass. I think I see blue "puffs" on a cold start. She fires right up, runs strong. Rochester 4 BBL Carbs were rebuilt 2 seasons ago. At idle, when in gear, I'll get some knocking from the V-Drive. She idles around 650 in gear. I adjust the chokes semin-annualy for cold/warm weather.

Folks are telling me she is running too rich. After the engine was warm, I fiddled with the air mixture screws this weekend, marking where they were when I started so I could se them back if needed. I grounded the purple/white ignition wire to that engines battery and I disconnected the throttle cable first. It's unclear to me though what do I do next. I turned the screws in/out trying to get rid of the fumey smell. I think it's better but the V drive is still knocking at idle, which I am told is because of the engine not being tuned correctly.

Thoughts/Opinion/Suggestions?

 

[SR Tech]

Blue smoke-Oil
Black smoke-Gas

Sounds to me like you have a lot of crankcase pressure and its feeding a good amount of oil into the fuel/air mixture. Pull the breather off and look for any debris in that line that could be a cause of excess pressure.

Have you seen your oil level go down lately?

If you look at it the right way there is only 4 ways for oil to get into the combustion chamber.
-Excess Crankcase pressure
-Leaking Valve Seals
-Leaking Piston rings
-Oil added to the gas tank.

That knocking may be your engine due to a lack of circulating oil.

Check that and let me know what you find, and we'll go from there.

 

[mrsrobinson]

Blue smoke-Oil
Black smoke-Gas

Sounds to me like you have a lot of crankcase pressure and its feeding a good amount of oil into the fuel/air mixture. Pull the breather off and look for any debris in that line that could be a cause of excess pressure.

Have you seen your oil level go down lately?

If you look at it the right way there is only 4 ways for oil to get into the combustion chamber.
-Excess Crankcase pressure
-Leaking Valve Seals
-Leaking Piston rings
-Oil added to the gas tank.

That knocking may be your engine due to a lack of circulating oil.

Check that and let me know what you find, and we'll go from there.

"Pull the breather off "

This would be the lines from the flame arrestor to the oil valve covers? I replaced the plastic fittings (where the hose goes into the valve cover) on both engines a few months ago as I was noticing some oil drips from the holes down to the valve cover bolt heads.

The knocking is definitely the V-Drive as I have jumped in the Engine Compartment to confirm. If we bump the throttle up to 800+ while in gear it goes away. The oil is clean and the level has not changed since the last change November 2007, about 30-40 hours ago.

It smells like gas near the exhaust at idle, not oil and I guess the smoke could be black. I'll double check this weekend.

BTW, the smoke is very 'faint' in color and only puffs a little on a cold start. After that all is well. I have been told that's just how these 7.4 big blocks are especially when they sit for a week or so.