Search results

  1. Lou C

    Restoring a trailer vs replacing a trailer

    Four Winns said my boat weighed about 2800 lbs. Well I weighed it after I upgraded the axle: 4650 on the axle 420 on the tongue total about 5050 lbs weighed trailer with boat in the water trailer is 850 So boat is about 4200 lbs So much for manufacturer's estimates. When we redid the deck and...
  2. Lou C

    This is one reason you lower the out drive...

    When I have a shallow mooring spot and have to keep the drive up, my habit has been to tap the trim down about 6 secs to lower it about 1/2 down. Here's a tip for old tech guys with old tech boats: Time how long it takes your drive to go from full up to full down. Mine takes 12 Mississippis...
  3. Lou C

    Restoring a trailer vs replacing a trailer

    I did something similar to my old Load Rite which I call the "Franken-Trailer" Way to short for my boat. New trailer the right size is about the same price as a nice long block. So what I did was go through the Load Rite factory catalog. Installed a much longer tongue, and longer roller bars and...
  4. Lou C

    Time for Riser & Manifold > VP or Barr?

    Agreed I’d at least replace the elbows. You can test the manifolds off the engine on a bench by filling with Acetone (careful, flammable) and see if any wet spots appear at the exhaust ports that mate up to the cyl head. If you see a lot of flaking in the water passages in the manifolds probable...
  5. Lou C

    Failed exhaust flappers

    There is a grommet that holds the pin in place maybe that melted from an overheat or just rotted out. I’d just keep using the OEM style ones. I’ve never had a water up the exhaust problem with mine using 2 different exhaust styles (OEM batwings & then the later 2 piece style).
  6. Lou C

    88 OMC 4.3L V6 - Sitting for about 10 Months - Question

    Those are the best muffs I have found….
  7. Lou C

    88 OMC 4.3L V6 - Sitting for about 10 Months - Question

  8. Lou C

    Been an interesting start to the boating season!

    Titanic
  9. Lou C

    Lower Unit Gear Oil Change while on lift

    Better to do it all at once, in a place where you have everything you need. I am lucky I have a local ramp and can pull the boat by myself.
  10. Lou C

    1996 Four Winns Sundowner with 5.0 Cobra engine and drive

    You could have done that, a normal 5.0 Ford V8 out of a Mustang or F-150 pick up is basically what you have. About adding closed cooling, you can if the internal cooling passages are clean and not rusted, but not if it has been run in salt or brackish water, because of the way cast iron rusts...
  11. Lou C

    1996 Four Winns Sundowner with 5.0 Cobra engine and drive

    On the ignition switch: terminals: B=battery, red wire should show battery voltage when battery switch is on I=ignition, purple wire should show battery voltage when key is turned to ignition on (1st notch from off) S=start, yellow red wire, this should get battery voltage when you turn it to...
  12. Lou C

    1996 Four Winns Sundowner with 5.0 Cobra engine and drive

    here's the missing attachment # 60 is the auto choke for the Holley carb BTW a little OMC trivia that might not apply to yours: I learned this when I replaced my OEM alt with an ARCO On some OMC harnesses, there was excessive resistance in the Sense circuit. What can happen then is that the alt...
  13. Lou C

    1996 Four Winns Sundowner with 5.0 Cobra engine and drive

    Well the raw water cooled system is simpler for sure. Less to go wrong. However, over time what happens especially in brackish or salt water, you get leaks around the head gaskets (corrosion) water in the oil and eventually have to do a top end engine overhaul. I wound up doing this on mine in...
  14. Lou C

    NEED A VP PROS OPPINION!

    In the first post you said it wasn't used in fresh water then you said 400 hrs fresh water which is it? If used in brackish or salt, for sure you should be inspecting the exhaust elbows and manifolds, in salt water they require replacement about every 5-7 years. So where the boat was used, does...
  15. Lou C

    1996 Four Winns Sundowner with 5.0 Cobra engine and drive

    2 Reasons: when water is hotter than approx 160*F, the minerals can precipitate out of suspension and clog the cooling system, especially calcium. This is a bigger problem in salt water or even fresh water with a lot of dissolved minerals. The other reason is that these open cooling systems...
  16. Lou C

    1996 Four Winns Sundowner with 5.0 Cobra engine and drive

    part # 60 is the auto electric choke if you have one. Only the Holley carbs used them as far as I know....
  17. Lou C

    1996 Four Winns Sundowner with 5.0 Cobra engine and drive

    That part for the thermostat housing, is an adapter that was used on the Ford engines, not used on the GM engines. Sometimes you can find them on a site called NLA Marine or try Ebay When replacing OMC thermostats, I always used a coating of OMC gasket sealer (or Permatex Aviation) on the...
  18. Lou C

    1996 Four Winns Sundowner with 5.0 Cobra engine and drive

    here are the connections on both the OEM Prestolite and the newer style Mando alternators. If you have a carb with an electric choke it gets powered off the AC tap terminal. The output B+ is connected with a heavy gauge wire to the B+ terminal on the starter solenoid (same one that the battery...
  19. Lou C

    1996 Four Winns Sundowner with 5.0 Cobra engine and drive

    That’s how the flappers are, not a perfect fit, if the old ones aren’t melted from a past overheat leave ‘em be. If so change em. The alternator you have is probably the top left one in the diagram above. Same as mine.
  20. Lou C

    5.7 vortec motor starts ,then bogs and dies

    When my OMC Cobra interrupt switch started sticking it did exactly that. Other things to check…is the auto choke getting pulled open slightly by the pull off or vacuum break? Does it close fully for a cold start? Does it open fully? Another long shot I recall reading about was that on some...
Top