throws-money-in-water
Cadet
- Joined
- Sep 21, 2009
- Messages
- 6
Hi All,
First post here but I have spent a substantial amount of time reading on this forum and thanks for all of the great information that you share. I am new to boating as i recently picked up a 1987 19' Chaparral with a 3.0L OMC. This was a CL freebie and normally I would have passed it by but decided to give it a shot. The previous owner told me it had been winterized 3 yrs ago and that he had taken the cover off the boat to do some work and didn't replace it so she sat uncovered and exposed in his backyard. This already sounds like posts I have read...
Anyway, after I got the leaves and debris out of the bilge I found some bad signs. First, a crack in the exhaust manifold along with a missing freeze plug. Second, a freeze plug that had come out of the block. It does get to freezing here in LI NY so this is a real bad sign. I probably should have stopped there and put it right back on CL but, being an optimist (pronounced moron) I decided to keep going.
I ground out and JB welded the exhaust manifold as a temporary fix. Pulled the plugs and sprayed penetrating oil into the cylinders and let it sit for a few days. I replaced the freeze plugs hooked up a battery and jumped the starter. She turned over so I knew she was was not frozen. The starter seemed to be hit or miss in terms of engaging the flywheel so I pulled it and bench tested it and found that it was on its way out. Bought a replacement and she turned over fine. At this point I also replaced the exhaust manifold.
I managed to get it started and had it running on muffs. After the initial run I changed the oil and found milk- or "coffee with milk". It was not very thick but didn't look like oil should. I changed the oil and filter, ran it again on muffs and pulled off a quart and again "coffee with milk"
I checked the posts here and the vast majority point to a cracked block. Here is where the contradictory signs come in. Compression test is good with all cylinders right around 120. I capped the water intake from the out-drive and the outlet to the exhaust manifold hooked up an air hose with a pressure gauge and pressurized it to 20PSI and it held. I did hear air coming from the thermostat housing but it was not enough to register a drop in pressure on the gauge for over a minute or so. Like a jerk, I tried to tighten down the top of the thermostat housing and sheared off a bolt so now that need to be resolved but otherwise I think she holds pressure.
So the questions are-
What is the source of the "milk and coffee" ? Is this just a result of her sitting so long or have i missed something?
Does the pressure test I did on the block also confirm that the head is intact?
Is it possible that the exhaust manifold gasket didn't seat correctly and I am getting water in that way?
I am trying to determine if its worth continuing to invest in this boat or if its too far gone for me ( low to medium mechanical ability) The boat itself needs work (deck replacement) and I don't want to let this become a "runaway train" of a project.
Your advice and guidance are appreciated.
Thanks,
Tom
First post here but I have spent a substantial amount of time reading on this forum and thanks for all of the great information that you share. I am new to boating as i recently picked up a 1987 19' Chaparral with a 3.0L OMC. This was a CL freebie and normally I would have passed it by but decided to give it a shot. The previous owner told me it had been winterized 3 yrs ago and that he had taken the cover off the boat to do some work and didn't replace it so she sat uncovered and exposed in his backyard. This already sounds like posts I have read...
Anyway, after I got the leaves and debris out of the bilge I found some bad signs. First, a crack in the exhaust manifold along with a missing freeze plug. Second, a freeze plug that had come out of the block. It does get to freezing here in LI NY so this is a real bad sign.
I probably should have stopped there and put it right back on CL but, being an optimist (pronounced moron) I decided to keep going.I ground out and JB welded the exhaust manifold as a temporary fix. Pulled the plugs and sprayed penetrating oil into the cylinders and let it sit for a few days. I replaced the freeze plugs hooked up a battery and jumped the starter. She turned over so I knew she was was not frozen. The starter seemed to be hit or miss in terms of engaging the flywheel so I pulled it and bench tested it and found that it was on its way out. Bought a replacement and she turned over fine. At this point I also replaced the exhaust manifold.
I managed to get it started and had it running on muffs. After the initial run I changed the oil and found milk- or "coffee with milk". It was not very thick but didn't look like oil should. I changed the oil and filter, ran it again on muffs and pulled off a quart and again "coffee with milk"
I checked the posts here and the vast majority point to a cracked block. Here is where the contradictory signs come in. Compression test is good with all cylinders right around 120. I capped the water intake from the out-drive and the outlet to the exhaust manifold hooked up an air hose with a pressure gauge and pressurized it to 20PSI and it held. I did hear air coming from the thermostat housing but it was not enough to register a drop in pressure on the gauge for over a minute or so. Like a jerk, I tried to tighten down the top of the thermostat housing and sheared off a bolt so now that need to be resolved but otherwise I think she holds pressure.
So the questions are-
What is the source of the "milk and coffee" ? Is this just a result of her sitting so long or have i missed something?
Does the pressure test I did on the block also confirm that the head is intact?
Is it possible that the exhaust manifold gasket didn't seat correctly and I am getting water in that way?
I am trying to determine if its worth continuing to invest in this boat or if its too far gone for me ( low to medium mechanical ability) The boat itself needs work (deck replacement) and I don't want to let this become a "runaway train" of a project.
Your advice and guidance are appreciated.
Thanks,
Tom
