Building a '93 Caravelle 1750 Classic Bowrider

[Reserector_]

Still more to get caught up on, but that's enough for tonight.

 

[tpenfield]

Wouldn't it be easier/better to get a new long block after all the work you've put into the boat itself? What about the possibility of internal cracks that cannot be seen/mended from the outside of the engine block?

 

[chevymaher]

Wouldn't it be easier/better to get a new long block after all the work you've put into the boat itself? What about the possibility of internal cracks that cannot be seen/mended from the outside of the engine block?

That was my boat. Did all that work and it was leaking water into the cylinders from the cylinders and the heads. It had clearly been froze before I got it.

 

[kcassells]

Best of luck for the repairs. Fingfers crossed.

 

[Reserector_]

I plan to run it before I put it in the boat. Going to mount it to some 2x4s and run it in the driveway. It's worth a shot. Replacements are around $2,500 from what I saw on a quick search.

Hey! Maybe I can pressurize the water jacket before I put the pan on. If there are internal cracks they should show up by dripping water out of the bottom of the engine. Right?

 

[Scott Danforth]

you pressurize the water jacket dry, it should hold 15psi all day long.

 

[Reserector_]

you pressurize the water jacket dry, it should hold 15psi all day long.

Oh, yeah. I guess I am used to pressure testing cars that have coolant in them. But you make a good point. Might as well test it dry. Thanks for that.

 

[Scott Danforth]

technically with cars, you should also drain the cooling system to test however not many people do. normally water will block small cracks, etc. where air can get thru them.

 

[Reserector_]

More catching up:
It's an '82 engine, so it has the big ports on the head. Too bad it has a 90s manifold.

Since my plan was to replace the old crank seals, i took that opportunity to check clearances. Everything looked good. Within service limits.

I took most everything apart and freshened it all up. Painted. Replaced freeze plugs. That sort of stuff.

 

[Reserector_]

I pressure tested the block and head. It held 15 psi for hours, so I'm happy about that. Hopefully that means there are no cracks in the cylinders.

Starting to button it back up. I got the wrong plugs. (Long base)
Re placed the distributor module. Came with pigtails. The old parts are probably good, so I'll keep them for spares.

Had trouble finding an affordable replacement for the original OMC fuel pump, so I went with a Mercruiser type that has the built in filter. I'm still going to use the OMC spin-on filter as a primary.
It is getting treated to all new hard lines.

 

[PC on the Bayou]

Nice job so far. I'm your neighbor just to the south (Slidell, LA) and am currently working repair and mod of my '90 Maxum. I'm really just getting going good; so, it's encouraging to see your project progressing nicely.

 

[Reserector_]

Nice job so far. I'm your neighbor just to the south (Slidell, LA) and am currently working repair and mod of my '90 Maxum. I'm really just getting going good; so, it's encouraging to see your project progressing nicely.

Did the tropical storm cause you any problems? I saw some surge flooding around Mobile on Monday. Some road closures.

Do you have a build thread for your Maxum project?

 

[chevymaher]

I got the mercruiser version with that pump. I still got the spin on water filter to.

 

[PC on the Bayou]

Did the tropical storm cause you any problems? I saw some surge flooding around Mobile on Monday. Some road closures.

Do you have a build thread for your Maxum project?

No issues at my house from the storm. There were some local road closures from flooding, but I'm not aware of houses or businesses affected.

I do have a thread linked here.

 

[Reserector_]

I started this project at the beginning of August last year. I estimated that I would be done in less than a year, and just under $5K in parts and materials.
I'm still within budget as long as the engine doesn't have any hidden surprises for me. However, due to family needing more of my time lately, I have slowed the pace. Priorities, and all that.
I still might splash it it less than the year, but I still have an engine shroud and full inferior to fab from scratch. Not going to get in a rush and regret it later.

That said, here's an update:
The engine is buttoned up with fresh crank seals and gaskets.
New thermostat kit.
New drain petcocks.
New marine alternator.
New custom aluminum hard lines with double flare ends.
Holley carb rebuilt.
I repurposed and repainted my '79 Chevy van air cleaner, and hunted down a flame arrester to fit inside and make it legal.
New ignition module, blue steak cap and rotor, quicksilver wires, and NOS AC plugs.

Now I have moved on to refurbishing the engine wiring harness.

 

[archbuilder]

Looks good, coming along nicely!

 

[kcassells]

Budget, time schedule.... all just part of the game. The engine rebuild and your abilities are awesome. Really enjoy watching this thread. Thanks!

 

[Reserector_]

I found that the air cleaner from my '79 Chevy van fits great on this engine with the Holley carb. I figure a filter designed for a v8 should allow ample flow while keeping the intake quiet.
I read up on flame arresters and learned that it is a Coast Guard requirement. So in the interest of doing things right, I went on eBay and found an arrester that will fit inside the cleaner. Best of both worlds!

Second problem was that it needed a makeover to go with my theme. It was time to get creative.

Here you can see the flame arrester and the breather filter. The air filter fits around the arrester, but is not shown in this view.
The breather filter lines up great as well

This weekend, I finished refurbishing the engine harness. It was beyond tedious, but well within my skill set, and something I could do in the house to avoid the summer heat.
Once the wiring was repaired, I loosely reinstalled it while I loomed it. I always add the loom during the day because nobody likes me looming in the darkness.

My final achievement was to crane it off of the stand, reinstall the stuff on the back, and set it on a dolly.

I plan to finish wiring the instrument cluster and finish restoring the main harness so that I can start, run and test ALL of it before installing it in the boat.

 

[archbuilder]

Looking good!

 

[Reserector_]

Since my last post, I've been refurbishing my wiring harnesses, and learning how it all integrates with the boat. Just more pieces of the puzzle.

With that done, I was able to connect it all together and test run the engine with full instrumentation.

There were a couple of errors in my wiring, but mostly, it went well.

Here is my YouTube link of it running with the gauges on a shelf in my garage, operating.
https://youtu.be/hex2y2v8zkw

I plan to tune it and do more testing before installing it. That should save me a bunch of trips in and out of the boat.