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  1. J

    Choice of Fuel Pump brand merc 862077A 1 replacement

    I had the 2 bbl mercruiser carburetor on my 1987 4.3L mercruiser with 380 hours rebuilt and the rebuilder said it had a lot of corrosion and I need to replace or clean everything upstream. I need to replace the Carter mechanical fuel pump (Merc 862077A 1) fuel lines, and somehow clean the tank...
  2. J

    Repairing Nicks below waterline

    These photos show two of about 15 similar nicks in my boat's hull. These are the largest. The first one is 3/8" and the second one is 1/2" long before I grind the edges. How do I repair these? Can I just do a Gel coat repair or do I know to put some epoxy or even glass and epoxy in their...
  3. J

    2018 Searay SPX 230 OB Bowrider vs. 2018 Searay SDX 250 OB

    My brother is deciding between these two choices of new boats for use in Great Egg Harbor Bay, New Jersey, for fishing, skiing, and tubing. This would be his first boat. What do you think of these choices for a family of 5? He likes the space on the deck boat but we're not sure it's the better...
  4. J

    What is the hole in my Alpha One Lower Unit?

    I know that this hole i the back of my 87 Alpha One (pre-gen 2) gear housing lower unit has always been there but I can't find anything in my manual that tells me why it's there. I notice that it's dripping water recently sometimes but I don't know where the water is coming from and I'm...
  5. J

    Replacing brake lines - Question 1: Remove Brake drum with Bearing Buddies

    Hi, I have a 1998 Karavan single axle trailer that I bought about 3 years ago. It has drum brakes with bearing buddies (and an Atwood drum brake actuator). (See photo of drum.) The brake line rusted through and broke near the right wheel. Most of the visible line is rusted throughout the...
  6. J

    Question on Drive Shaft Housing Installation

    I'm re-installing my drive shaft housing on my 1987 alpha one, pre-Gen2 drive. Somewhere I read that if the splines don't line up, I can turn the prop counter-clockwise which should turn the spline so that it meshes correctly. When I turn the prop counter-clockwise, the u-joint assembly does...
  7. J

    Installing O-Rings on AlphaOne Stern Drive

    I've got a Sierra Gasket set for my 1987 Alpha One Outdrive (18-2619-1D)4 small O-rings, the rubber bell housing gasket, and the large fiber housing gasket. I don't see where one of the 4 O-Rings goes. One is the Water Passage O-Ring, 2 go onto the U-Joint shaft but I don't see a place the...
  8. J

    Why Exhaust Bellows Adhesive? Newbie question.

    I've been reading the posts about exhaust bellows. Some say if there are small holes leave it alone. More commonly, there's the possibility of replacing the bellows with a tube although I agreed with the post that said if Merc went back to bellows from tube, it's a good idea to avoid the tube...
  9. J

    U-Joint Bellows Installation - Doing It Right the Second Time

    I read the posts about using Power Tune fluid or a hair dryer so the bellows would go on easily and bought the power tune. But since, the videos I watched on Youtube didn't use either, I tried it without either too -- the bellows wouldn't go on all the way no matter how hard I tried until I...
  10. J

    Lubricating Gimbal Bearing

    I have my outdrive and bell housing off to replace the bellows. I want to make sure that the gimbal bearing is getting greased and I'm not sure where to insert the grease. I saw two postings that mentioned it. "With the drive off you can clean out any old grease from the bellows and pump in...
  11. J

    Laying FG Cloth - how to handle floor-hull joint?

    I'm about to lay 10 oz. cloth on my floor with epoxy resin. I've looked at the sea ray 220 videos and other books and videos but I'm not sure how wide to cut the cloth. Should it just cover the floor, then later tie it into the hull with cloth? Is there any reason that I should not cut the...
  12. J

    What is the best way to protect against water intrusion when screwing things to deck?

    I'm installing a new wooden floor using marine plywood, epoxy resin, and 10 oz cloth. I've got to reattach pumps, battery, seats, and a few other things. What options do I have to prevent water seeping into my deck around the screws? I read one thing that says to make a larger hole, put...
  13. J

    Boat Leans left at rest and especially on left turns

    Last time out, after a heavy storm, I ran over a floating telephone pole or a tree about the same size at 25 mph. I had a 2 inch chip in my gel coat that I repaired. Worse though, is the boat now leans left. It's not too noticeable when docked but it loaded crooked on the trailer and it's a...
  14. J

    What fluid do I use in my alpha 1 trim pump?

    I have an 87 mercruiser with an alpha 1 gen 2 drive ob587... I have water in the fluid. The shop manual describes 3 pumps, 1 prestolite and 2 oildynes. The name on the pump is warn off so I can't tell the brand or which of the pumps it is. The prestolite calls for motor oil and the oildynes...
  15. J

    Floor and Stringer Replacement too

    In the posting, Floor and Stringer Replacement, some replies said that it's not a good idea to replace the floor and stringer while the boat is sitting on a trailer, especially a trailer with rollers. I am replacing the rear section of floor on my 17' Cobalt bowrider and repairing the stringers...
  16. J

    Replacing Damaged Core

    My deck has rotted in a few places as has a bulkhead and they have to be replaced. I'm starting with a 20" x 30" section of the deck shown in the pictures. The deck is 20" wide from the stringer to the gunwales and according to my moisture meter (picked up on ebay for $50) it's rotted up to 3...
  17. J

    New Prop - MW vs. Quicksilver?

    I saw a post on prop brand from 2009 with no response but I'll try it. My question has to do with Quicksilver Diamond4 aluminum 4 blade vs. MW Vortex Aluminum 4 blade. I have a 1987 Cobalt 17BR, 4.3L, V6, 175hp 2500 pounds dry weight, 340 hours, 31 gal tank. I haven't had the boat in the...
  18. J

    avoiding hard spots - flexibility of tabbing and filleting

    There are several things I haven't understood about replacing a bulkhead and the use of foam cushioning or fillet joints or both, and tabbing, having never done this or seen it done before. I thought the purpose of the foam or whatever (do you mean real peanut butter?) would be to place a...
  19. J

    Antifreeze. -50F or -100F degree?

    1. What are the arguments for using -100 antifreeze instead of -50? Last year, my first winterizing experience, I used -100 probably because I saw a posting that said to. I can't find anything now. -50 RV-Marine is $4 at Walmart. -100 is $10 at West marine. Is it a waste to use the -100 in...
  20. J

    Re-Installing Vinyl Seats - need adhesive?

    I have an 88 Cobalt 17BR I/O with vinyl seats on either end of the engine compartment cover. I removed them during the winter to clean them and now I want to re-install them. The engine compartment cover is covered with the same vinyl as the seats and when I removed the seats the two vinyls...
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