Posted: 8/30/2009 5:35:11 PM EDT
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We sold a house during the buying frenzy in Phoenix in 2004 and made a killing. We celebrated our good fortune by paying off all our debts and we paid cash for a nice little boat.
We were living in KY at the time, and the fall muskie were really biting. I stupidly tried to get 'one more' fishing trip in before winterizing the boat. 
Well, we got an unexpected cold snap, and everything froze....the ice cracked my intake manifold, exhaust manifolds and the engine block. We got stationed at Shaw AFB about 2 weeks after this happened, and I spent the majority of my 3 years there either TDY, deployed, playing war games or working 12 hr shifts––I didn't have the time or the energy to fix the boat. I retired last September––found work easily enough, but didn't find anything that allowed us to improve our living situation for 8 months––-I had the time, but I didn't have the money. I've had my new job for about 6 months now, and decided it was time. This is how a redneck replaces a boat motor––-and also why you NEVER-EVER-EVER let your block freeze 
$30: logging chain from Harbor Freight $100: 3 ton chain hoist from Harbor Freight $1550: short block 4.3L V6 Marine engine from Carolina Machine Engine $425: new manifolds $200: assorted hardware, paint and parts $Priceless: having a mechanically inclined little brother willing to drive 6 hrs to help out 16 hrs to remove the bad engine and clean the bilge. 6 hrs to assemble and paint the new engine. 12+ hrs to install the new engine. Let this be a lesson kids.....don't forget to winterize your boat
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Cool story bro? just passing on some info so some other dipshit doesn't forget or put it off like I did. If my "Cool Story" helps a new boat owner remember (or reminds an old boat owner) to winterize properly, then it's all good. I'm all about helping out.....and I really wish I had read a post like this when I bought the boat because I didn't truly understood how much damage can occur by simply neglecting to open a few drain valves. |
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Better story:
Guy buys a boat from my former employer. Boat is in perfect shape, stout 454, runs like a top, etc.. Guy takes it out ONCE, trial run before he decided to buy it. He buys it, takes it home, completely winterizes the thing and stores it in his heated garage. Guy does everything right. Springtime rolls around and he decided to go ahead and get the oil changed and the lower unit serviced. The asshats he took it to drained it, and then apparently fired it up and ran it. Totally fucked the motor. The main caps and the mains in the block were bright blue from all the heat. 
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Are marine engines cooled with water from the lake/river/whatever you're in instead of a radiator and antifreeze? Yep––most small boats are cooled with lake/river/whatever water instead of having closed system like a car. That's partly why boat ramps are so much fun. You get to watch new boaters idling their engines waiting to be picked up and the whole time the engine temp keeps creeping up until it seizes. You got to put it into neutral every once in a while and increase the RPMs to get a greater volume of water flowing through. Either that or turn off the engine until the truck is backing down the ramp. |
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good thread, i have a boat with the same drivetrain. So what were the major "gotchas" or "aha's" that you had while doing the project? Was it hard to do? I bought my boat from a rental place and while it's running well, I'll eventually mess it up I guarantee so will probably have to do this same thing some day .
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good thread, i have a boat with the same drivetrain. So what were the major "gotchas" or "aha's" that you had while doing the project? Was it hard to do? I bought my boat from a rental place and while it's running well, I'll eventually mess it up I guarantee so will probably have to do this same thing some day . Crankshaft position sensors are delicate. Remove it before you have the motor swinging around. The motor mounts on the right side are 5/8" 12 point bolt heads––everything else is a standard 8 side, but since you can't see the right side motor mount, everything is done by feel.....it's a bit challenging to fit a regular socket onto a 12 point. Don't forget to take the right side dipstick plug off your old block––the Mercruiser 4.3 has the dipstick on the left. (I just tapped the hole and threaded a bolt into it with some RTV to seal everything up.) Get the surgery to install an extra elbow into each forearm now.....hopefully you'll heal up before you need to try to remove the inaccessible 6 bolts from the bell housing. Invest in some good ratchet dogbone wrenches. You're gonna need 'em in the tight places where the regular ratchet won't fit. Other than that, it was about the same as replacing a car motor––-just more cramped and a lot more fiberglass under the skin. ETA: I spent 20 years working on fighter aircraft that were designed by MIT engineers and manufactured by the lowest bidder. I also have a rather extensive shop set up. (I think I put the Snap-On guy's kid through dentistry school) What's easy for me might not be something the average Joe would want to undertake.....it wasn't terribly difficult, but I'm not volunteering to do it again anytime soon. |