1973 Mercruiser 165 questions

[Weirdnerd]

I got a boat a month ago ( Sea ray 190 SRV) and I have been doing lots of research over here, the boat has not been run in ten years, it has been covered and winterized before put on "the pasture", upon inspection I found the thermostat housing was corroded, engine recirculating water pump corroded, spark plugs had surface rust but not pitted or corroded, I replaced the thermostat housing and the thermostat, the water circulation pump, the impeller on the lower unit, points and condenser, I am removing the fuel tank for a flush inspect and possible repair, I have been reading horror stories about water manifolds and risers on those engines and I will have to open and inspect there. carburetor had some dust on the arrestor but otherwise it looks pristine inside, wiring is going to have a spruce up, as well as I will have to inspect the instruments ( some look out of calibration like oil press and temp, RPM indicator and speed indicator).

My Question is : this engine has been outside for ten years without operation, It has been stored in very dry high desert, Colorado western slope, not much in the realm of snow, but sometimes it rains a lot. what do I need to inspect, fix or replace to make it fun ready? I have tools, but I am more used to gas turbines and aircraft reciprocating engines, this is my first time on a boat engine and I am trying to learn as fast as I can.

PS: I bought the SELOC manual for this engine and I have read it from cover to back a couple of times, but it does not give a spec of how often to replace items, ( similar to a scheduled inspection or "50 hour, 100 hour, annual inspections" etc)

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,.... Welcome Aboard,.... Is this the 165 hp, I-6, or the I-4,..??

Does it turn over,..??
Might wanta do a compression test,...

 

[southkogs]

165 is the inline 6 GM 250 ... that's what my old OMC was. LOVED that engine! Start with Bondo's questions ...

What kinda' shape is the hull in?

:welcome:

 

[shaw520]

First thing to do is spray some marvel mystery oil, (or equivilent), in each cylinder and let soak before attempting to turn over,.. Would also be a good to remove carb and clean as to not suck debris into orifices while turning over.

 

[Weirdnerd]

Thanks for the responses, the Hull is in decent shape other than a little surface oxidation that I will have to polish again, the keel looks a little scuffed but reworkable as it is superficial, the stringers have some life left, but I have to retouch some fiberglass on the floor ( looks like they dragged something heavy on it, it is dry tough) transom looks dry. even the seats look in "OK shape" and they are still soft. The engine is an inline 6 cylinder, and it looks like it was protected from the weather, clean other than some dust on the surface.

The lower unit and the upper unit? have some paint peeled and scuffs, but I will repaint it soon, I am planning on removing the gimbal and touch up the transom plate;I will feather it, alodine , prime with epoxy aluminum primer ( MIL PRF 23377 epoxy primer similar to bromochromate) and top coat with epoxy paint.

all zerks will be cleaned and replaced, bellows will be replaced. I am trying to find the zink anodes to inspect and or replace. no need to do so much work without making it right. I have had bad experiences with shoddy workmanship in the past and I want to be able to return the family safely home after each trip.

 

[shaw520]

A compression test would first in order after getting it turning over. You'd want to get the engine running and make sure it's viable before doing all the other mentioned work....unless of course you have considered a complete rebuild on the engine. Not knowing the condition of a motor that been sitting for ten year's has many uncertanties.

 

[Weirdnerd]

I will have to do a compression test, that is for sure, today I removed the fuel tank ( it was on the bow, slightly ahead of the dashboard), it is a 35 gallon size, the hoses were kaput, hard as a rock and brittle, I had to remove the fuel filler port, and the vent hose fitting to be able to slide it out, under the dashboard, it has about one or two gallons of turpentine. will take it to work to clean it and pressure test it.

But before I did that, I replaced the water hoses on the engine, fuel filter, spark plugs, and accessory belt, degreased the bilge, recovered a dozen washers that the previous owner "lost" during maintenance, found a couple of wires ( I believe they are for the trim sensor) that the sheathing is crumbling...so they will be changed soon. All in all, the day was fun ( wife is supportive of my new hobby)

 

[shaw520]

.....so great to have a new hobby!

 

[Weirdnerd]

My "normal hobby" includes Coleman lanterns, and a Teardrop camper I made six years ago, the camper generated me lots of money savings while working as a contractor out of town ( instead of going to hotels, I slept in it for almost four years, saving around 1000 bucks a month), Now the boat will be more for exploration and camping on remote areas, I recently learned I am three hours away from lake Powell, which is the reason we got the boat. In October we rented a house boat for a couple of days and the wife liked it a lot, specially the little speed boat we got in the bundle.

One of my plans is to have a boarding plank for the wife, she has had lots of health problems and can not easily negotiate climbing from the sides, I am thinking to get a fiberglass ladder and modify it with a retractable banister, it would also work for the dogs.

 

[wrench 3]

.....so great to have a new hobby!

Even better to have a supportive wife.

If your looking for the anodes they should be built into the heads of the two lower bolts in the gimbal housing that go through the transom. The only other one on the #1 drives is the trim tab.

 

[Weirdnerd]

Great to know that ( the anodes location.) I have been busy today at work, but got to see there were some interesting things on the equipment on the transom area, there were two control cables that are supposed to have captive nuts, four total, but two were missing, so I replaced them with two AN4- size stainless steel nylocks. I am surprised aviation hardware fits on this boats.

 

[NHGuy]

Most of the hardware is stainless or brass and the drive nuts are nylock sae. I have had an 88 and a 97. When I got my first one I was surprised at the high quality of the metals used. I believe it is due to the corrosion that can occur in salt water and especially in flowing water like rivers and estuaries.

 

[wrench 3]

In case you were looking for a place to buy the anodes. The zinc trim tab is Sierra part #18-6012 which is available on this website. Just put the part # into the parts search.
However I didn't have any luck with the bolt anodes for the gimbal housing. Maybe they could be changed up to a newer style but I've never tried it.

 

[GA_Boater]

If you're looking for a source, anode kits for Alpha 1's are in the iBOATS store, including the bolt or button anodes - http://www.iboats.com/Mercruiser-Gim...iew_id.1585175

 

[wrench 3]

If you're looking for a source, anode kits for Alpha 1's are in the iBOATS store, including the bolt or button anodes - http://www.iboats.com/Mercruiser-Gim...iew_id.1585175

However the 165 was a 1R drive, not an Alpha 1.

 

[Weirdnerd]

Good news, I removed the fuel tank last week, and today I got to empty 2 gallons of turpentine, the fuel level float gasket was shot ( dried up) but the tank inside looks beautiful, no rust present, I will strip the paint out of it as somebody rattle canned it a while ago and the paint looks horrendous.

The bad news.. fuel lines were dry rotted and I will have to buy new fuel lines, also I found out that the fuel cap gasket is an O ring, so I will replace it with a new one, that saves me time and money .

It was "interesting" to have to remove all the fittings and some home depot lag screws to remove the fuel tank from below the dashboard, my daughter said the "boat was groaning" ( it was me), I will install proper cinching bands to put it back in place when the time comes. In the mean time I will be replacing some wiring the right way. there were multiple splices of different colors on some and I really don't like that, one wire has to have a maximum of one splice, not three.

 

[Benny67]

I woudn't wast time with doing a compression test/leakdown test till you hear it run.

Dump some mystery oil down each plug and let it sit for a day before even cranking the motor. Then give it a go.

There's no sense in collecting data unless you know it runs and runs the way you want it to before sinking excess time and money into it?

10 years of sitting is a long time...anything or everything OR nothing could have happened in that time.

The compression test will tell you a lot about the engine of course but if I was you, i'd stick to the basics until it roars to life and you don't hear any knocking,smoking or any other symptoms that point to the direction of big money.

my .02$

 

[Weirdnerd]

That is for sure, I am borrowing a timing light and a compression test gauge, II poured some mouse milk last week in there, and this weekend I will drop some proper engine oil in the cylinders, last weekend I was too busy and low on cash to do anything on the boat. Currently it needs gas lines and a battery.

 

[Weirdnerd]

I have been busy, seven months?..yay, well, in that time I removed the fuel tank, cleaned, pressure tested it, Primed it with etching primer, and painted it with white epoxy paint ( it is galvanized steel and it shows no corrosion) replaced all fuel lines, fuel filter, spark plugs, oil ( I am using cheap valvoline with zink additive to run it and dislodge any sediment it may have had in the last 13 years of being not used) replaced coil, points, and condenser, (new) rebuilt the fuel filler cap that was precariously held with the edges of the screws, and there was no edge distance, replaced bellows ( what a chore...not easy) repaired the skeg, replaced impeller and all gaskets on the upper and lower unit, I'm also fabricating new seat bases for the aft seats, and doing away with the rotten coolers that were used as bases, new console between front seats as the old one sucks ( not useful to store anything), but last weekend I started the engine for the first time (this time it worked properly) and I have no leaks, 650 rpm, no water in the oil and no vibration.....

I have no clue on how to upload videos here, so I am linking it to my FB video page.


https://www.facebook.com/Rudolf109/v...5343756480179/

 

[harleyman1975]

Only thing I didn't see was the two words "on muffs". but I'm sure you did as you sound like you must be an A & P... otherwise bravo!