305 cracked block...upgrade??

[boilerjunkie]

ahoy mates, obviously i'm new to the board(why else for the cheesey greeting) and after looking over many of the posts, i've found that there is alot of experienced folks here.<br /><br />i have a 1988 Chris Craft 22.5 Limited with a 305 engine and Alpha 1 outdrive. Now I am not mechanically inclined at all (that's why i'm a chemical engineer and not a mechanical), but I do know a few things. My "shadetree" mechanic took my boat last august to rebuild my starter and change out the trim oil. We made a deal for him to keep the boat over the winter in storage and he would work on it as he had time. I agreed as long as he would properly winterize the boat. Well, as you can guess, he didn't. Now I have a nice 3-4" crack in my block. We have discussed JB welding it temporarily, but ultimately I am going to put in a new block/engine.<br /><br />I want to upgrade to a 350 but he told me the parts would be about 2 grand(unfortunately he will be doing all the work, but for free). I have found some rebuilt marine type engines for less than 1 grand. My question is what other parts are needed for this upgrade besides an engine?? Also, will most of my bolt-on 305 parts, marine carb/flame arrestor, distributor, etc. work on the 350 engine(granted that I get the same bolt patterns).<br /><br />My "shadetree" mech. told me that I would need new waterjackets, flywheels, heads, etc, etc. I just wanted some feedback to get educated so that I won't have to let him blow smoke up my ass. Any and all help would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[flashback]

Re: 305 cracked block...upgrade??

boilerjunkie,, All the the parts from the 305 will bolt onto the 350, but the heads are different. although the vintage needs to be close, I believe that if the dipstick is on the left side of the engine, then it needs to be replaced with a like engine with the dipstick on the left.. for all the parts to fit. look at some of the other posts from the last few days, I believe Crabbait had a reply that gave a website for a new short block....................

 

[WaterLauger]

Re: 305 cracked block...upgrade??

Boilerjunkie,<br />Just an additional note which I experienced this year buying a boat from a guy who also didn't winterize - when you buy this used engine (from a marina I suppose) I would suggest buying all the trimming it has on it like alternator, water pump, manifolds, etc. When water isnt removed from the engine, it also isn't removed from the manifolds. Hence, you probably have additional cracks along the casting lines of each manifold. <br /><br />The package runs about $900 (engine only) and about $1400 (complete) up here. The complete package will save both time and money in the future when your water pump starts leaking (just happened to me) and they want to charge over a hundred for it. I won't even get into alternators.....<br /><br />Just a thought.