Re: oh no,help
I have done similar things to this before. There is one way that i used. Get a wrench and rotate the engine slowly until the piston that you dropped the tube into reaches TDC (top dead center). At this point you should be able to see the red tube.. I hope! and maybe you can grab it with some needle nose pliers.
that would be my only suggestion.
Good luck, let us know what happens in the end.
Dean
Ps It is about time to be "unfogging" that motor, not fogging it.(-: Hope to get mine out in the next 2 months...(eh, it is Michigan)
I think I agree with Dean. Let me share an experience I had with a Mercruiser 4.3 185 HP
Let me tell you what happened to me. I had a miss last year (2007) at idle so I decided to change the plugs that were only three years old. All looked good until I got to Cylinder #5 . When I pulled the plug the tip the Electrode had Burnt/broken off and was in the cylinder because I could hear it tinkling or so I thought. I bought magnets and tried for hours to fish the tip out and had volunteers help too. Then as suggested I left the plug out and tried to blow the Teeny tip out the plug hole as several Mechanics and friends suggested. That didn't work. Finally we pulled a compression check and there was no compression in the #5 cylinder. So I took the Boat to a Marina and they wanted $3,000 to replace engine Block. They stated internal damage. I then took it to a friend and neighbor who runs an Engine shop and he said. He would tear it down and do a complete valve job, Replace any bad valves for $250 a head. Of course if the cylinder wall was damaged it would be a lot more. That was the biggest fear a scored cylinder wall. I had him tear it down and there was no damage done to the cylinder wall. PTL! The Spark Plug Tip. THE ELECTRODE had gotten caught in the Intake valve and damaged the Intake valve. The valve lost it's seet. So he replaced both the intake and exhaust valves #5 cylinder and milled both heads and ground the valves on both heads. Done a Compression test and FOUND ALL CYLINDERS EVEN AND IN SPECS.Total $550 .
He stated though this scenario is rare.it is not unheard of and he showed me about four he had kept that he had worked on off Automobile engines. Why it happened we do not know? It had the correct plugs according to my Engine Owners manual. The manual stated I could use either Ac or Champion plugs.
Well I have came to a Three conclusions.
(ONE)I think the reason the tip burnt/ broke off was because the plug reached a hair farther Champion than the AC Spark Plugs do into the cylinder wall even though owners manual says both will work. I think the plug tip got too hot and that caused it to Burn/Break off.
(TW0) Spark plugs cost $2.00 each. That's a whole lot cheaper than a valve job. So I'm going to change them every other year no matter what they look like from now on.
(THREE) The engine is a 4.3 Leader GM Block. Champion is Ford. I will never run Champion or any Ford product in a GM Engine again regardless of what any book says I may do.
Now I suppose I've opened a can of worms but still $12-$15 for plugs is a whole lot cheaper and less stressful than a top half engine overhaul. By the way the plugs only had about Lets see 35 hours the first year, 50 hours the second and 80 hours this last year. A total of 165 hours on them. NEXT YEAR IT"s ALL NEW PLUGS FOR ME! You BET Cha!
We (several Mechanics) didn't think the engine could be rotated with a wrench since there wasn't anything we could see to put a wrench on and the fact it was hooked to an outdrive. Even if it could have been possible. It wouldn't have solved my problem. Point is the little plastic cap is big enough not to get caught. we Hope! and second it's too big to pass through the exhaust so even if he can undo Coil wire SO ENGINE CANNOT START and bump the cyclinder to the top. I think he can get the plastic out. DO NOT START THIS ENGINE until you get the plastic out.
By the way the tinkling sound apparently was just the water passing through the manifold because it is still tinkling. The Mechanic said he checked the manifolds and they were clear and clean.
For all that work, Tune up and pull lower unit and replace impeller. That's a pretty fair price.
__________________
Chuck
"OWN-IT"
