Search results

  1. Lou C

    Trailer bleeding brakes. Part 2

    Agreed on the benefits of disc brakes, while I still have drums on my boat trailer it goes in the salt water only 2x per year. If I were a trailer boater and had to dunk the trailer every time I used the boat I'd have converted to discs years ago. I grew up with both self adjusting and non self...
  2. Lou C

    Shift cable resistance, best lube point to possibly help?

    What I'd do (and have done) is disconnect the cable at both ends and measure the drag with a fish scale. I don't know Merc's spec but I know that on the OMC I have had all these years the spec is no more than 2.5 lbs, full travel in both directions. I bought a NOS cable as a spare and it had 4...
  3. Lou C

    88 Capri Restoration (Splashed 08/2022)

    Lol My garage kinda looks like that, but I have only one spare drive and one spare transom assembly. I already used the innards of the spare trim cyls to rebuild the old ones on the boat. My issue is salt water use eventually things just will not come apart. My original drive is working great...
  4. Lou C

    Trailer bleeding brakes. Part 2

    You really want to make sure that as the suspension cycles up & down the brake line won’t get snagged. I have bled brakes with the very simple Lisle one man brake bleeder kit with no problems and while my trailer has drum brakes I have also used this on disc brake vehicles as well. I’m wondering...
  5. Lou C

    Exhaust Manifold Question

    https://www.american-hi-tek.com/hi-tek-replacement-exhaust-manifolds/ Looks like the design got picked up by this company Price wise they are about double the OEM cast iron price but to me the concern is will they last 2x as long? They do give a 10 year warranty but you have to check the terms...
  6. Lou C

    Exhaust Manifold Question

    There was a company in Australia selling one piece welded stainless manifolds; these look great but I have heard of some failures (burn thru on the exhaust ports). The idea was to eliminate the elbow/manifold joint and stainless to reduce corrosion. I think the company is Hy Tec marine. As far...
  7. Lou C

    Exhaust Manifold Question

    I’ve had good luck with Barr. I have 5 seasons on my present set and I scoped them with a bore scope and they look fine inside, no sign of leaks or rust in the bottom of the manifold…Since I got the scope I added checking the manifolds to my end of season maintenance (compression test, oil...
  8. Lou C

    half closed cooling system for a 1989 4.3 liter cobra.

    Good to know, I guess that's why they are on the expensive side....
  9. Lou C

    half closed cooling system for a 1989 4.3 liter cobra.

    https://monitorpro.com/products/conversion-kits/freshwater-cooling-kit-for-a-1999-earlier-v6-v8-volvo-penta-omc-chevy-based-gm-engines-block-only-p-n-mfv-5241/
  10. Lou C

    What happened now?

    Agreed on the crank bolt. Only safe way to do it might be to remove all the plugs so there’s no compression to provide resistance….
  11. Lou C

    What happened now?

    Why I say this….so my engine had an overheat in 2013, and the head gaskets started leaking noticeably in Aug of ‘16. But at the first start up in April ‘16, it backfired thru the carb, never did that before…a harbinger of things to come….
  12. Lou C

    Crownline gas tank

    Unless you get real lucky like with my ‘88 Four Winns which has a full length hatch cover over the tank.
  13. Lou C

    What happened now?

    A ‘96 would have those batwing exhaust manifolds, they can be prone to leaking water back into a cylinder & you could have water in a cylinder causing a hydrolock. In addition if water has been leaking into a cyl it can cause valves to stick and in this case a sticking intake valve can cause a...
  14. Lou C

    half closed cooling system for a 1989 4.3 liter cobra.

    The issue with using a Merc system is that the OMC uses a high mounted alter on the port side and the H/E mounting for the Merc may not fit. However Volvos from 94 up used the same high mounted alternator as OMC, so I think a system for a Volvo V6 or V8 will work on the OMC, they use a...
  15. Lou C

    mercruiser 4.3 overhauling

    I'm thinking of all the possible mis-matches, if the rollers are not in the same cylinders, I don't think that will cause a problem with roller lifters.
  16. Lou C

    mercruiser 4.3 overhauling

    that's what I thought as well, could it be they gave advice for the older style flat tappet but used the pic from the newer style roller lifter?
  17. Lou C

    mercruiser 4.3 overhauling

    It is more complex than what meets the eye, many subtle changes. When I did the heads on mine I was tempted to upgrade to the Vortec heads but because I myself don't have the experience/knowledge to know all the pitfalls I decided to stick with the way GM built it and kept the same casting #...
  18. Lou C

    Lexus Oil Leaks and Mechanic (Woes)

    Another thought for the shop Put dye in the motor oil and use an black light to find source of the leaks
  19. Lou C

    What could cause this

    Looks like that calcium build up might be causing a hot spot?
  20. Lou C

    1996 Four Winns Sundowner with 5.0 Cobra engine and drive

    The best way to figure the drain plug question is look in a OMC parts catalog (see Marineengine.com) and a Volvo Penta parts catalog & see if they are the same. VP must have a European parts catalog you can find. For the cover (canvas?) try a product called Tear-Aid. 2 versions one for canvas...
Top