FBRONCO

iTrader: (1)

I would like to be able to start my 454 gen VI motor on a stand in my garage. I've seen videos of people doing this. I wanted to get the motor in the boat before the winter, but that's not going to happen. The boat has to go in storage for the winter, so I would like to start the motor in the garage at home. I know I can build a cradle for the motor using some 2x lumber for stringers and fabricating something to mount the bell housing to in the rear. The motor is a 454 ho 425 crate motor, dual plane 750 holley with a thunderbolt V ignition. I'd like to make sure it runs (supposed to have 8 hrs on it), set the timing and adjust the carb. I'd also like to run a gas mixture through it with some 2 cycle oil (coat the valves) and stabilizer. I have some questions:

- How do you hook up the water to it? Can I just hook up my garden hose to raw water pump hose? Will this be too much pressure from my faucet? I plan to just shoot the exhaust out my garage door.
- What are the electrical hook-ups I need? How do I hook up an ignition switch? I have a normal merc wire harness.
- Can I wire any gauges to it or hook up mechanical gauges to it?
- Would it be a good idea to run antifreeze through it when I'm finished for corrosion protection?

Any help would be appreciated.

B_Schutz

I have hooked up to a water hose with an adapter down to 3/4". I dont like to do it, bc any rpm over idle is more likely to suck the hose shut. I prefer to fill a tank and run my big line to the motor to suck out of directly, with my garden hose running in the top of my tank/drum.
All you need is a wire to give power to the dist, your power wires going to the starter, and a remote starter switch. You can hookup generic gauges, or something you can buy at orielys to watch your vitals. Your motor should have regular ol senders on it for oil psi and temp.

I would be sure to get some antifreeze in your motor for temp and corrosion protection. dont forget to pull your stat to b sure you get antifreeze all through the motor.
Starting on the stand is not the ideal way to run a motor, be sure you have a safe engine cradle. The rotational force can rock a truck or boat while reving, so be sure you dont loose that motor on its side. Good luck

Trash

Assemble the engine just like it was going in the boat. Carb, alternator, exhaust, ignition, circulation pump, raw water pump etc. The only accessory I didn't use was power steering. It was mounted but I kept the belt off.

Let the raw water pump draw water out of a reservoir. I used one of those concrete mixing tubs with the garden hose supplying water to the tub while the intake hose from the raw water pump drew water at its own rate. Keep the garden hose flowing vigorously as even idle speeds will move a lot of water.

Find a wiring diagram for the standard Merc 10 pin hook up. The dirt simple way is to jumper pin 5 & 6 (makes ignition hot) and momentarily activate pin 7 for the starter. Pull the jumper between 5&6 to kill the motor.

I found an old boat dash panel on e-bay for $20 with wiring and an ignition switch. I wired it into the 10 pin harness while on the stand. This allowed me to start and stop using a key, monitor the tach, temp and oil pressure. I had the engine on a crude stand (blocks of wood) on top of plywood on rollers so I could wheel the entire assembly to the edge of the garage for running purposes. I tuned and tested the motor for about a week before I stuck it in the boat. It allowed me to get base timing set, check for leaks and do some idle EFI tuning. It worked like a champ.


It's a lot easier to trouble shoot and fix things on the test stand than in the boat.

PM me for pictures and details.