The Switch

The old engine sitting in cockpit

A dirty bilge and engine mounts 

A clean painted bilge with new engine mounts

 This weekend the job was to pull out the old engine and fit the new one in the boat.  It began by trying to get the 4 engine mounts to release their rusted grip.  Next it was the four rusted coupling bolts.  The engine mounts released easily after soaking in PB blaster for two weeks.  The coupling bolts were very difficult to get a grip on and were proving more stubborn.  I used heat, PB Blaster and hammering.  Unfortunately they were not able to take a socket being too close to the shoulder of the coupling.  I had some open ended wrenches in metric which allowed me to release two of the four. The next was just slipping and rounding over the edges of the bolt head.  I went for the Vice Grips and was able to secure enough grip to break it loose.  The fourth and last refused the wrenches, vice grips and anything else I had.  By the end of Friday night I had 7 out of 8 bolts off and no closer to removing the engine.  The final bolt succumbed to the cutting wheel in the morning.  I was free to lift out the motor.  I had already disconnected all the plumbing and wiring to make the bolt access easier.  I attached a 4:1 purchase tackle to the boom over the companion way and lifted it up off the mounts and slid it forward halfway out the doors.  I then disassembled the tackle and put it on the other side of the engine compartment and lifted up and forward.  With help I had it up and out of the companionway sitting in the cockpit in a couple of minutes.  Phase One complete.  I removed the old engine mounts and scrubbed everything down in the engine compartment and bilge.  I painted all the areas I could reach with new Bilgekote.  While that was drying I began to disassemble the old motor in the cockpit.  The transmission came off easily and I struggled with the clutch plate a while but it too released and I could pull the flywheel.  I removed the starter and alternator and I was then able to lift all the pieces safely off the boat.

Half way in

New Motor in the door

Lower down

During this time the paint had dried and I installed the new engine mounts close to the same elevations as the old ones.  I figured this would be a good starting place.  Phase Two complete.  Now I reversed the process and carried the new engine, broken apart, onto the boat.  I put it down into the cabin and reassembled it on the floor.  From here, after torquing everything up to spec, I attached the same tackle and lifted it through the door, switched the tackle and lifted it into the compartment and onto the new mounts.  It went easier than I thought it would.  I spent the next hour leveling and getting the gap correct on the coupler.  When I had the coupler level to a .20mm gap all the way around I tightened everything up.  Another hour putting all the plumbing back in place and re-connecting all the wires.  I consulted the pictures I took before removing to be sure they were going back in the right place.

Late that night after priming and bleeding the fuel system I turned the key and pressed the starter.  Damn if it didn't just start right up.  Phase Three complete.  I used the morning to clean up and put everything away.  A friend came with me on a test motor/sail.  Everything went well.  Motor performed above expectations.  Easily a knot faster for the same RPM as the old motor and a lot more cooling water discharge.  I checked all the connections and found nothing loose or leaking.  My only issue is we still have no audible alarm when the key is on.  It works on the old panel but not the one in the boat.   I will start swapping out parts until I get this working.  I am forever leaving the power on.

We came back in and tied up in the slip.  The bilge came on and I out of habit looked at the discharge. Water and diesel were coming out.  I shut of bilge pump and opened the engine compartment to find diesel fuel everywhere.  WTF?  I wiped everything down looking for the source.  I could see a gallon or more in the bilge but no source.  I had my friend fire up the motor again and immediately saw fuel squirting out of the back side of a fuel line.  Shutting off the engine I wiped it all down.  I spent the next two hours cleaning out the bilge and replacing the blown fuel line with one off the old motor.  Primed and bled, she started right back up and ran fine.