You are SOOOO wrong!
Electrical items need to be 'spark suppressed', and fuel systems are designed quite differently to automotive.
Automotive starters have nothing in the design that stops sparks getting out, marine starters do.
Automotive carbs vent to open space, marine carbs vent internally.
You put an auto carb (which pours petrol vapours into the bilge) and auto starter together and you are GUARANTEED to be the first boat in orbit.
Marine ratings are there for a reason. STANDARDS ARE WRITTEN IN BLOOD! Ignore them, and you're a bloody idiot!
Chris......
you are funny as well.
You, obviously, along with some others, didn't read my posts. I did not say ignore them.
Marine carbs, electric parts, et al are the same parts that are on cars.
An alternator with a spark shield (which is just a screen), or a starter, with a spark shield, are the exact same alternators put on cars.
You can fantasize about how much better your $500.00 marine alternator is, but in reality it is absolutely no different than the one from wal mart.
GM designed the Q jet as a carb for ALL applications, and put it in ALL their cars and many boats, including mine. Like with all "one size fits all" applications, a Buick is different from a Chevy is different from a Mercruiser.
For the boat they changed the float and added a slant so it would not overflow but rather drain into the venturi. You can buy these for a couple of bucks to adapt your car Q jet to a Marine Q jet in a just a few minutes work. You will also have to re jet it.
Same with a Holley, All you have to do is buy the J spouts for a few dollars and slip them on the Holley so the overflow drains into the venturi, then re jet the carb.
Voila, marine carb.
In fact, there is another thread on this very forum where a moderator talks about modifying Carter and Edelbrock carbs to be marine carbs.
It was my thought that this forum was designed to discuss things like this in an intelligent manner. Not to just dismiss someone because they are trying to offer advice that does not comport with your preconceived notions.
Some of us actually WORK on ourr boats. They just don't go to West Marine and break out the plastic pay someone to put it on.
But C'est La Vie. The effete can tool around in their yachts while us proletariat bumble along our merry way.
Oh, and btw, showing pictures of boats on fire or explosions does nothing to support your argument without the reasons why it happened. A fuel related fire does not mean the owner was NOT using a "marine" alternator. There are many reasons a boat, or a car, can catch fire.
I will submit that if you are so incapable of checking your own boat that your bilge fills with gas, fumes and other noxious substances, then it is YOU who are the idiot boater.
But don't worry about me. I'm through here.
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