Get Your Motor Runnin'

The big test finally came.  The last big hurdle that could potentially impact my splash schedule.  Would the Yanmar 1GM10 run after sitting idle for 10 years?  Did I rewire everything correctly?  Did I re-plumb everything correctly?  Did all the seals dry out?

I began the day by constructing a water source for cooling.  I used a 5 gallon bucket that I installed a spigot in near the bottom.  I connected this bucket via a 1/2 hose to the secondary water filter with the expectation that a little head pressure and the action of the water pump impeller should pull through enough water for cooling should the motor actually start. 

I then went and rechecked every fuel line connection for tightness and unfroze every bleed screw in the fuel system.  I stopped at this point to attach the battery cables temporarily to make sure I could turn the motor over.  I cranked it a couple of times and the then nothing. Dead.  Not an auspicious start to the program.  I put a meter on the battery and it read 11.66v.  Not enough to turn over.  This was an old car battery that I was just using for testing so I plugged in the charger and tried again.  At 13v it turned over fine.

Back to the fueling.  I reinstalled the primary fuel filter (after cleaning) that is mounted on the motor after the fuel pump.  I poured in 1-1/2 gallons of diesel new diesel into the cleaned out tank.  I did not want too much fuel in case something went wrong.  Then I began the tedious job of bleeding the fuel system.  I started from the tank working towards the last high pressure injector.  The first place to bleed is at the new water separator/filter installed on the engine compartment wall.  Releasing the bleed screw allowed the fuel to pour in from the tank and fill up the reservoir.  Not too much spilled out the hole before I closed it off.  The next stop was the fuel pump which had no bleed but had a manual lever.  I released the first bleed screw at the primary fuel filter and began pumping.

After a couple hundred strokes I was getting worried as I saw nothing out of the small bleed hole.  A hundred more strokes and I did see some movement.  A hundred more and i had fuel squirting out.  Screwed that one in and loosened the other side.  A couple of strokes and that was all full.  Tightened that one up and then on to the injector intake side.  Loosened the bleed screw and continued to pump until she was bled.  I undid the high pressure side and tried to manually turn the motor to get the injector to work but was not having much luck.

The Reluctant First Mate (RFM) was employed to engage the starter button to get the motor to turn over enough to force the high pressure side open.  Two or three starter engagements of 10 seconds had the high pressure side flowing almost clear fuel.  At the end of the last attempt the motor coughed a couple of times.  This is getting exciting.  I open the high pressure side one half turn and RFM hit the starter again.  I closed it and she fired and ran for about 10 seconds then stopped.  I came out into the cockpit and set the throttle at a quarter and made sure the transmission was out of gear.  Hit the starter and she started up and ran for about a minute before I shut her down.  I had yet to see any water coming out the exhaust and wanted to double check all the plumbing before continuing.

All of the plumbing looked good so I started her up again.  Checked the exhaust and just nice clean smoke was coming out.  I watched the clear hose the water bucket was connected to and could see water movement.  20 seconds later I heard the first cough and splash of water out the exhaust pipe.  I let it run for 30 more seconds and then shut it down.  Everything worked perfectly.

Now I will change all the oil, oil filter, transmission oil, etc.  I have some more wiring to finish up on the final connections to batteries, fuses, etc. plus I need the actual batteries.  Most importantly I don't have major motor issues that could delay my planned splash date.  Now it is all ahead full on finalizing the multiple little projects and purchasing a lot of gear and stuff to finish the rigging, halyards, winches, clutches, etc.  I plan on rewarding myself with a trip to the coast to look at possible marinas to splash her at by the end of the year.