72 Thunderbird Formula w/twin 165hp Mercs

[archbuilder]

Mark those shirts aren't ruined....just well seasoned! I have a couple that have crunchy filberglassed sections in the right now

 

[Woodonglass]

Yeah, I had a B.I.L. That was my Go To Guy for Mek-A-Nek work but...He up and moved on me to Norfolk. He forgot more about motors than I will ever know. He could rebuild ANYTHING that was internal combustion. He bled motor oil!!! Sooo now I'm LOST!!! I fumble finger around and Try to fix stuff but I just end up gettin' greasy, sweaty, and messing things up worse it seems. I'm pretty good at tearing down and putting back but it's the fixin' part that baffles me!!!:doh::wacko::loco::crazy:

I had a good friend about 20 years ago that was a cousin of Merle Haggard. Kinda Looked like him too!!! But...He couldn't sing a lick!!!!!

 

[Mark72233]

Arch, I do reuse the shirts its when I forget I have a nice shirt on and start working on the engines that gets me in hot water. As far as reusing those fiberglass shirts, they suck. You forget that you wore it last time you were grinding away on fiberglass but it reminds you quick enough that it still has glass fibers in it. :doh::wacko:

 

[WOEISMEIGOTTA470]

Making good progress as usual, nice Mek-A-Nek work as wood put it.
Question on the heads...did you get hardened exhaust seats pressed in? I ask because the owner who sold my engine stated that mine still had the soft seats and because of that I should be mixing in lead additive substitute in the fuel. I recommend you have that service performed now while it's all apart if you haven't already to save you the trouble and risk of valve recession.

 

[Mark72233]

Woe, I don't know, he didn't mention anything about hardened exhaust seats. I will ask him when I take the next head to him next week. Too late on this one already rebuilt it.

 

[kcassells]

Mark...wish I could help. I've been watching but certainly do not know enough about innerd outboards much less outboard mechanics. As of yet.
Your posts are great for everyone.

 

[Mark72233]

Well I got a little bit of work done Friday night and some Saturday morning. Got home from work at 5pm and immediately started back on the engine. I rebuilt the distributor which was a little nasty down in the counter weights area but got it clean and working good. I have extra distributors from the donor boat I bought in Alabama and the engine I got in Jacksonville and the old engines out of the boat. One of the distributors had this in it.
So I guess I have at least one Pertronix system if it is working. I will install the standard points system that I already have new and get the engine running good and work out any issues before I reinstall the Pertronix system. If I like it I will buy a second one for the other engine.
I did manage to get the rebuilt head on the engine along with rocker arms, lifters and such. The rest of the time I just worked on cleaning manifolds, oil pan, timing gear cover and lifter covers. You forget how many little bits and pieces make up an engine and that all of them are nasty dirty and need cleaned up and or painted before I put them back on.
And for Wood here is proof that I got dirty.

The rest of the weekend was spent with my son who turned 13 and had some friends stay the day and night on Saturday then off to a local water park on Sunday. I will get back at it this week and next week I took off from work for a stay at home and work on the boat all week vacation. Maybe I can get a few things done.

 

[archbuilder]

Mark, I was wondering if the cam was gear driven, looks like it is from your photos.

 

[Woodonglass]

And for Wood here is proof that I got dirty.

The rest of the weekend was spent with my son who turned 13 and had some friends stay the day and night on Saturday then off to a local water park on Sunday. I will get back at it this week and next week I took off from work for a stay at home and work on the boat all week vacation. Maybe I can get a few things done.

It looks like the Mek-A-Nek Rapture has happened!!!!

 

[Mark72233]

Arch, all the engines I have are gear driven. Is that a good thing or a bad thing. Wood, that was funny. The truth is a had to come inside and get cleaned up quick and forgot to take a picture of me and my ugly mug wearing the greasy clothes covered in grease so next best thing is what you got.

 

[archbuilder]

Its a good thing for this application, no timing chains or belts to slip or break. They are usually a little noisier, but it looks like the gears are helical cut (as apposed to having strait cut teeth, cut at a 90 degree angle to the gear). The strait cut teeth are more efficient, but usually make a whining noise.

 

[Corjen1]

Mark, finished reading your thread finally...Great story, great boat and great work!!! I really like these cradle to splash builds!!! Cant wait to see this one get there!!

 

[Mark72233]

Thanks Corjen, besides me no one will be happier than my wife when I get done with this boat. She is real tired of my mistress who gets to spend more time with me then she does. I don't have the heart to tell her that with boats you are never really done with it :bolt:

 

[ahmincha]

Don't underestimate yourself your dad taught you well. Keep up the great work

 

[Woodonglass]

Hey, if you're really considering buying a Sewing Machine, I HIGHLY recommend the Old Singer 15-91's. They are a beast of a machine. I also started on the Morse 4300 and it's a good machine but... the Singer 15-91 beats it hands down!!! Much stronger machine and easier to use and more dependable. You can fine em on CL for around $100 bucks and I can help you refurbish it if it needs it. They usually need a good cleaning and oiling. I have all the links to the manuals and documentation so no worries there. Where are you located and I'll start keeping an eye out on CL for you and let you know if I find a good deal on one.

 

[Mark72233]

Thanks Wood, I live in Panama City,Florida. I will keep an eye out. Thanks for the advise. Corjen and these other guys that do their own upholstery have me wanting to give it a try at least. If I could make it look half as nice as Cor's I will be happy with it.

 

[Mark72233]

Question for any motor heads out there. I have several of these Chevy 250 in line six engines. The one I am presently rebuilding I did not take any pics of it during tear down but now that I am putting it back together I noticed something different between 2 parts that I thought should have been the same. The timing gear covers are different from each other in as far as the placement of the metal tab that is used for the timing light to gauge distributor timing. I apologize I didn't take a pic of the actual ones I have but I did find 2 examples on the web if these pictures come out right. The first one tab is above the crank shaft seal. The second one the tab is to the right and lower down. How would I be able to tell which one I should be using on the engine I have. I hope this makes sense.

 

[archbuilder]

Just a thought, have you turned the engine to top dead center, then looked at where the mark is on the pulley? That should tell which set up you need, maybe?

 

[Corjen1]

Thanks Wood, I live in Panama City,Florida. I will keep an eye out. Thanks for the advise. Corjen and these other guys that do their own upholstery have me wanting to give it a try at least. If I could make it look half as nice as Cor's I will be happy with it.

Thanks for the boost, but WoG and the interweb taught me everything....he also found and rebuilt my 15-91

 

[Mark72233]

Thanks Arch that worked. As soon as I read your post I said duh.