Got me a boat !

So I came across a boat. Was told it was put away running and then sat for ten years.
Step one -Get battery not siezed.
Step two -throw either in carb cross fingers , nothing.
Step three-new coil , nothing
Step four-new points and condenser,learn gaping,sucsess runs with either !
Step five - notice no gear oil or screws,fill up.Hard without pump.took as much as I could squeeze then hopfully filled the rest from top. Took at least a full liter!
Step six - Gas ! Tried syphoning out tank ,that old sh*t tastes awful! Need new plan !
Step seven - take an old gas line put it in jerry can of high test fresh gas.With alot of cranking and a battery boost it started ! Ideled for 20 min. or so ! Pet in gear Works !

So thats the project so far.
Needed to share with someone,getting excited !

1974 120 Mercuser Cutter hull. I think ! LOL

Re: Got me a boat !

So input and advice would be appreciated !
How much gear oil do they take ?
What is the trick for a container to take old engine oil out ? It's tight in that bilge ! Margerine container way too many times !
Maybe a list of stuff to look out for before I think I can try a maiden voyage !

Dave
A New Captain in the Works ! LOL

Re: Got me a boat !

Welcome to the forum.... Go to the "adults Only" sticky at the top of this forum for great tips and advice to get you going and keep you going. Outdrive holds a little over a quart of gear oil..

From reading in order, you did step four and started the engine before step five, filling the outdrive with oil????:facepalm: bad Juju... The outdrive gears are all turning when the engine is turning. Hopefully they are alright and hopefully you didnt run for long. Did you have water to the outdrive (muffs). If not, then you've trashed your impeller...needed changing anyway after all that time sitting without running. Time to pull the outdrive off, separate the top and bottom, do a lot of preventive (and now corrective) maintenance. Lubing, oiling, checking bellows, seals, pressure testing the outdrive, etc, etc, etc. Up for that? Oh, and not good at all to run on ether. If you cant get it to run good on good gas, then time to start troubleshooting.
As for draining oil.... After you get to the point where you can properly run the engine and warm up the oil, get a oil drain/pump kit that sucks oil out of the dipstick.
Before you do all of this....(and after reading the stickies mentioned above), get a "good" engine and outdrive manual (you can get access to those on line here in the Adults Only sticky.
I'm sure others are chomping at the bit to chime in, so I will turn it over to them. meanwhile best of luck and happy boating (once you can get 'er in the water safely).

Edit: Just looked at the pics again..looks like you were on muffs, so good going there, but still recommend pulling apart the drive and doing the impeller changeout, inspections, lubing, pressure testing, etc. How did the water temp look on the 20 minute run?

Oh, and you also should do an alignment check of the outdrive to the engine coupler, as well as checking condition of the gimbal bearing.

here's the link to the adults only section:

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=288430

KTB

Re: Got me a boat !

Do not, repeat do not start it until you get a pump and fill the outdrive properly. It should take nearly 2 quarts, and is nearly impossible to fill from the top. If you start it the top gears turn, in gear or in neutral and there is a chance you could trash the top gears. So buy a pump and fill it properly from the bottom till it runs out of the top vent hole.

Re: Got me a boat !

On second thought, forget the oil. You need to pull the outdrive and change the impeller and impeller housing before you start it again. KT is right you have a LOT of work to do before you even think of putting it in the water. Have fun

Re: Got me a boat !

Also get the either out of the boat. If you need to prime it use some gas.

Re: Got me a boat !

Here is a link to an owners manual for a 71 model. Back then there was little if any difference between the 71 and your 74 (which could easily be a 73 engine and drive package.) http://www.4shared.com/office/ZBRbh8I5/1971_Mercruiser_Owners_Manual1.html?

Then, here is the service manual you can read for even more info (assuming it's actually a 74 and not a 73 engine and drive) http://www.4shared.com/office/WwMmi_rD/02__Eng__Drives_74-77.html?

I noticed in your pictures, there is no plug in the top of the drive. Was that missing when you got the boat? If so, I sure hope you never put it in the water with that plug out, or started it for that matter. It's the vent plug for filling the drive with gear lube.



The drive takes just over 1 quart of gear lube. (36 ounces)

Re: Got me a boat !

He indicated in first post that (step four) he started the engine....then in step five, he put the oil in the drive. Doesn't sound too good to me:facepalm: (amongst other things).

Re: Got me a boat !

Well
Hope It wasnt to bad !
When I said I started boat It was about four shots of Quick Start just to let me know I had spark.

So today I syphoned as much of gas out I could and poured in 5 gallons of fresh 91 octane gas,can't find 93 !

Now I seem to have flooding issues.One little cough and never seemed to spark again.
Thinking it's time for a carb kit.

Got to get me a grease gun. Lots of nipples.

Re: Got me a boat !

Octane Resurch 93 is that an Americain term.I'm up in Canada and High Test here is listed as 91

Im going to say it IS a 74 ,Thank you for the Manual links

My manual is a little more in depth and didn't have the revision 69 on it.

That 74 manual has alot of great stuff that mine does not have.

The Marina I went to was able to cross part numbers for me.
Got me a fuel filter now.Installed

I got a carb kit now as well.

Thank goodness weekend is here now.2 hours a night sucks !

Re: Got me a boat !

Get an impeller kit and check the alignment too. This is a start.

Re: Got me a boat !

Looks like a nice little boat! I'm sure you are just itching to get that thing in the water while the weather is still nice. But listen to these guys about the impeller first. It can't be that hard when so many people do their own. Even if it seems to be pumping water now, as soon as you get up to speed (DON'T try that on a hose & muffs) that impeller could go to pieces and ruin the engine. Just a bit more work and it's fishing time!

John

Re: Got me a boat !

After 10 years, without a new impeller, the only reason it didnt fry in that 20 minute idle was because of the hose! Hope the drive is ok!

Re: Got me a boat !

The Painter 777 said:

Octane Resurch 93 is that an Americain term.I'm up in Canada and High Test here is listed as 91

Click to expand...

US, Canada, Brazil and a very few others all use the R+M/2 method for octane (anti-knock) measurement. US and Canada are the same. Europe, Australia and most of the rest display the RON measurement. The different methods mean that the same fuel that would show a a 95 octane rating in Europe would show a 90 or 91 in the US or Canada.

Re: Got me a boat !

So got the old fuel out !
Blew out a meter it seems but Ive lost my spark.
Gong to go to Canadian tire getteing a new meter tester, however , getting a light meter !
Found out when Im at the key . I cant test nothing !

I guess Im getting a new distubiter cap and rotor.

As far as the impellor issues are concerned , If I dont have a working engine whats the point.

but when I get the motor idling with muffs on ,all these links will be looked at .

Still kinda wondering where my spark went to,Oh changed the engine oil and filter.

Re: Got me a boat !

As far as the impellor issues are concerned , If I dont have a working engine whats the point.

Thought i would add my 2 cents on this!

The point is your impleller is made of rubber and it gets brittle without water on it.... 10 yrs with out water and its dry rotted......
The peices are now lodge in your cooling system and could cause cooling issues..... Creating another problem....Hope for the best!

Just pull the drive off and you can run the boat as long as you want.....providing you hook up water to your inlet hose in the transom assembly.

Alot of these people on here.....have been there and done that and learned from there mistakes......along with myself.

Take it for what its worth....

As far as no spark......did ya use new points or clean the old.....Try new points,cap and rotor

Good Luck!

Re: Got me a boat !

I wouldn't even have any ideas how to hook water up to the motor with the drive off. I've thought it through before with no luck myself anyways. You had the motor running once. I would suspect it would be safe to say it will run again without too much grief. With that thing sitting so long I would certainly separate the lower unit from the upper and do the impeller (cheap) so you don't get yourself in trouble. Also another recommendation for points, condenser, cap, and rotor. And adjusting timing of course while doing the points. Make sure ya got yourself a distributor wrench and a dwell meter would be a plus too. I'm sure all these items could use replacing. Maybe just check to make sure you've got juice on the positive side of the coil with the key in the run position before you do anything. If so, I would hook a test light up to the primary side (the two small posts on the coil) and watch for it to blink rapidly as you crank the engine. If nothing there, move on to replacing all the goodies mentioned on the distributor. And definitely fill the drive from the bottom up with a purpose made pump. Have good time now :0)

Re: Got me a boat !

Listen to the whiskers here. They have made all the mistakes you are going to make if you don't listen. Since you don't have a running engine yet just remove the outdrive. Six nuts on the housing and two in the tilt rams. You can hook up a water hose to the inlet side of the thermostat housing for cooling. You need to change the impeller on the lower unit and check your u-joints and gimble bearing and engine alignment. This is just a few things you need to do FIRST before you ever float your boat in addition to everything it takes to get the engine running.

Carb = ten years = VARNISH. You said it ran for 20 minutes. That just enough time for the new fuel to dislodge the crap in the carb. Do a complete rebuild with good parts dip on the carb then blow out all the orifices before re-assembly.

Prop needs to be rebuilt and get rid of the whale tail.

Re: Got me a boat !

Get rid of Whale Tail ! Why?
Trying to read up on changing impellor,but seems complcated.
I think I have a MC-1
If there a step by step manual for checking impellor and upper stern assembly ?

Re: Got me a boat !

The Painter 777 said:

Get rid of Whale Tail ! Why?

Click to expand...

If they worked so great don't you thing merc would include them? Look back at all the broken cav plate threads as to why. They don't help they hurt performance.