Questions about 888 mercruiser drive. Where to start?

[jjj_85]

I believe I have what is a MC-1 mercruiser stern drive. It is an 888 mercruiser in a 1975 mark Twain 170v from what I've gathered. The hull is in amazing shape and I am reupholstering the interior. All the electronics work except the up trim. I can run it up when bypassing the solenoid so that is a non issue to me. I have never owned a boat and would like to go through the lower unit such as replacing bellows and the impeller and greasing everything. I can't seem to find any literature on this model or any specific parts catolagues. Anyone have any pointers on where to start? I am not at all opposed to buying a good book, just not sure where to go. Also I have no idea what is really the common maintenance items. I've read through most of the mercruiser info here but beings I am new to boats there is still a lot I am overlooking I'm sure. I am a mechanic by day so all the work will be done by me. I have very little in the boat so far so I have no problem doing this the right way now.

So in short, where do I buy a good book, what should I look for, what should I replace, and where do I buy parts? Any help is much appreciated!

Thanks

 

[johnzonh]

There are links to merc manuals under the stickys I believe. Including the 888 and the mc1

 

[muskyfins]

I had an 888 recently. If you are a mechanic, this will be a piece of cake. The manuals are available per the sticky and this is like a old school small block chevy or ford engine. Once you start taking it all apart it's kind of common sens how it goes. It's basically just a gear box. Make sure to replace all seals with new ones. One caveat-make sure it's in forward gear before removing drive.

 

[jjj_85]

Yeah that's why I have no worries about the motor. It's a small block Ford, I have more spare parts than I can count. Are you guys talking about the boatinfo.no 1974-1977 mercruiser manual? Tons of good info but it's like 800 pages to thumb through. Are parts still easy to come by on this?

 

[Eric 3.7LX Alpha 1]

They stopped using Fords probably in the late '70's so marine parts for them will be tougher to find.

The fuel and ignition engine parts have to be marine rated... fuel pump, carb, distributor, starter.... the engine internals will be all Ford. The engine water pump would probably have to be marine also since it would have sea water and not antifreeze so it doesn't rust internally.

The MC 1 drive parts are readily available.

 

[muskyfins]

Yes, that's the one. It takes a while to load, so go some where with a really good internet connection and you can skim through it pretty quick. Print the pages you really need.

I only had to buy seal kits, which I found at my local marine supply. Gear oil-anywhere. Water pump kit-iboats. If you've got hard stuff like bearings or gears, I actually think most of that stuff is available too.

 

[jjj_85]

I guess I'll just tear her down and see where I end up then. That defiantly gives me a direction to head then.

 

[jjj_85]

I was replacing the oil pump tonight since the boat say for awhile and I wanted to inspect the engine internals anyway. All was going smooth until out of the corner of my eye I found JB weld smeared all over the back of the square part of the exhaust manifold....So I crawled to the other side and found a crack in the back of that one that had no repairs done to it. I immediately stopped what I was doing and inspected EVERYTHING. Good note I found no other damage and from what you can see the bellows even look fine and are soft, I still plan on replacing them though. The motor internals even look very clean. There was no was inside the engine. I am guessing I could have a welding shop braze these up for me? Is there anything else I should look for? The boat parts for the engine do not seem to be very plentiful in the Ford department...\

Forgot to ask, should I be able to spin the prop both directions in either gear?

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,..... Welcome Aboard,..... Merc dropped the Ford motors in the '70s,.... OMC, 'n Volvo ran 'em til the mid-90s,.....

The prop should lock one way, 'n ratchet the other, In gear,....

 

[DALOW]

I have a 1973 888 also and have used it every summer for 22 years. It's on a Century Raven. I love the boat and the engine runs smooth and quiet.

I had one of the exhaust manifolds welded or brazed not sure which about 15 years ago. no problem since as long as you winterize correctly.

Use to have a problem with the points wearing out fast due to corrosion on the dist cam. I replaced points with Pertronix electronic ignition. Easy and cheap. That was at least 10 years ago. Zero problems since. I Love Pertronix.

Used to have shifting problems due to the stupid Mercrusier interupter switch. You will need to get familiar with this. If all the shift mechanisms are not perfect it will stall your engine when you need it most. Very stupid design. It cuts the engine for short time in order to release the tension on the gears so they will separate. I don't know if they still use this method but it is a stupid design and an embarrassment for Mercrusier. Every old Mercruiser has this problem. I had the lower unit and lower shift cable replaced, still not satisfactory. Finally replaced the mechanical interupter with an electronic version. Works fine.

Every year I detect water in the stern drive oil, even after I replace the lower unit. Be sure to replace the o ring on the drain plug every time you use it. To check for water in the oil do a crackle test http://wp.me/p674Dk-2l. I don't know what to do about this problem except make sure you change the stern drive oil often and don't wait until spring do it as soon as you take the boat out of the water in the fall. I have a post on this forum about it. No response so far.

I tried to replace the bellows myself. It is a bear. I gave up and took it to a marina.

Be sure to replace the raw water impeller every couple of years. It is located in the lower unit.

Other than that it has been an outstanding ride for 22 years.