I'm back with a 1994 Islander 221V!

[Gibbles]

Well today the plan is to yank the old engine out, then i can start making plans.

I also received the new short block.
Some slight disappointment afterwards.
I'm planning to tear it completely apart since i question how well it was assembled...

After i got it on the engine stand, i noticed a rattle when rotating it.
Cause was an old freeze plug left in the cooling jacket... lol

Then i can't really turn the engine over by hand, i don't have a bolt in the crank yet so it might loosen up.

But the engine was also filthy.
Cam bearings have a nice dirt film, so I'm going with the tear down, inspect, clean, verify clearances, and re assemble.

The seller might earn himself his first negative ebay feedback on this one.

All depending on how he handles it.
A few hundered bucks back and I'll probably forget it happened... lol

 

[Gibbles]

Also, the hull anode.
That should be against bare metal or over paint is ok?

It looks like it's over the paint right now.

 

[Gibbles]

Engine is out!

The lifting setup worked great.
But it was about 4 to 6in shy of clearing the back of the boat.

We ended up disconnecting it from the truck, jacking it to the highest position, deflated the trailer tires, and then i used the winch on the jeep to pull the trailer forward to clear the engine.

To reinstall it will be a bit more complex, unless i want to install a winching ring at the back of the garage some how... lol

I'm thinking the bell housing and the oil pan will be installed while it's above the boat and clear of the transom.

 

[Gibbles]

Here soon i need to start tearing into the old and new engine.

I want to do some compare of them as well.

Some concerns i have with the new engine are the orientation of the connecting rods.

It almost looks like the left and right banks have them in different directions.

Looking through my mercruiser manual i didn't see a direction reference, so it's probably fine...

I'm leaning towards picking up a second engine stand to make this easier.

Looking at harborfreight, they don't seem to have the $50 stand any longer, now they seem to start at $100.

Over the weekend, my father-in-law and i got the engine pulled, put the tools on my work bench, and the wives took us to a local brewery for beer and dinner.

This week as time allows will be me cleaning up my work bench and start using my ultrasonic cleaner on the new lifters and pushrods.

Once organized, I'm tearing apart the new engine.
Partly to ensure it's put together correctly, but mostly because i need to clean it.

I decided the crank needs to be removed so i can wipe the cam bearings down, check oiling hole orientation, and camshaft install is easier if i can guide it in from inside of the block.

Then i can verify what crank and rod bearings they used and the clearance.

I'll probably replace them for good measure.

I also didn't see the paint marker on each bolt, normally i expect to see a series of marks as the builder verifies his/her work, so good to verify everything.

 

[Gibbles]

Well, I took some pictures of wiring and crap before I start the disassembly of the old engine.
I found something on the port side, an even bigger crack!!



this one is much longer and goes up under the cylinder head.

I don't know how I would have missed that if it was there before.
so, I pulled the drain plug, I didn't get anything but a few drops of boat and rv antifreeze.

Makes me think I didn't fully drain the engine, exp with the red antifreeze gummed up on there.

Oh well, but this means I'm probably replacing the cylinder heads too.

 

[Gibbles]

Also a no so nice little surprise from the engine builder.
I kept hearing rattling when rotating the new engine on the stand, then I found it.
a fkn freeze plug was left inside of the engine!!




I messaged the seller, I didn't get much from him.
I also expressed my feelings that I don't trust how this thing was assembled if this little detail was missed.

I got assurances and ****, i don't trust the builder now.
it would be a massive pita to send it back, so I'm just going to deal with it.
If the seller doesn't return some of my $$ he will get his first negative review.

 

[Gibbles]

and a nice image of my hoist setup.
Worked out pretty well if I say so myself.

 

[Gibbles]

The adventure with the new engine is happening here.

Assembling a 4.3 MerCruiser v6 - Parts check needed

Well long story short, Last fall I bought a 1994 StarCraft Islander 221V with a cracked engine block! I'm just now getting ready to get that fixed, and I have a rebuilt marine spec short block on order. With that, it comes with the balance shaft, no heads, and no valve train. For engine...

forums.iboats.com

 

[Gibbles]

Well the adventure continues.

Looking at the old block with a flashlight, hoping to see a crack clearly showing me where water was getting int he oil.

I noticed a ton of dirt, crud, etc at the bottom of the block.
Plus, I noticed that even though I thought i had the block fully drained.
When flipping it over during disassembly lots of that red antifreeze came out of it.

The skeg also suggests that it might have been on a beach or ran through some ground at some point in it's life.

So my thoughts are now that the prior seller did the exact same thing I did, drained, poked, looked good and called it a winter.
but the block wasn't fully drained because of that **** in the block.
(insert scary music)

I'm thinking that me adding a drain that's easier to open like a ball valve would make it a little easier to get water flowing while the boat is on a hose or before I pull it from the lake.
In theory it might help prevent sediments from building up...