525 SC 400 Hour Service

[Kid Cumberland]

Hello All,
Have a 1995 Fountain 27 Fever with a 525SC. The clock shows 400 ours and I am doing my winterizing now and was wondering if there was anything else I needed to do to the Engine other than drain and change the fluids and plugs? I think I headr somewhere along the way to check the valve clearance at 400 hours but not sure where or if it was a credible source. The motor starts, idles and runs strong. 76mph on the GPS so no indications of any problems. Thanks in advance!

[glassdave]

yep, look at the valve springs and maybe do a leakdown,(i would consider swapping springs with those hrs). I have a pair in a 38 Donzi and they have been very trouble free with 260hrs. You mentioned drain the blocks i assume you are also topping them off with a marine storage antifreeze? The corrosion protection is very important. Keep an eye on the blower snout bearings and seals, i had heard with the Weiand they can have some minor issues.

[Griff]

Have a leak down test done. For the most accurate results, have it done on a warm engine. With 400hrs, it needs to be checked. Probably time for a valve job, springs and head gaskets. The springs are not a huge issue on 525SC's since they use a relatively low lift flat tappet cam.
Also, it might be time to have the supercharger gone through and replace the bearings. How often do you change the SC lube???? Change the fuel pump lube as well. It tends to get dilluted with fuel.

[Young Performance]

I think it is time for a top end rebuild....ie. springs, seals, valve job, etc. I'm sure the springs have lost some of their pressure. The last 525 sc that I did had lost over 30 psi of spring pressure and it had just under 300 hours. It is cheap insurance against an expensive failure.
Eddie

[BadDog]

Agreed on the head maintenance. I was right at my service interval, last trip out for the year and .5 miles from ramp it dropped #7 exhaust valve. Busted wrist pin out of piston, rod flopped around an beat the lower area of cylinder to death. Metal all over inside of engine. Time for a sleeve and full rebuild as a result. Dang thing of it is the cross hatch pattern is stil on all the bores! One less hour and head service would have save me thousands.

[Kid Cumberland]

Thanks Guys. Griff. You mentioned the springs are not a huge issue. Did you mean to change or to be concerned with? Also, the service manual (with no schedule) says the motor has a Hydraulic cam. If correct there is no valve adjustment. Correct? Guess I will replace the Springs. Head Gaskets?? Really??? Moor is just running so strong I hate to pick at it. I will admit I am a rookie when it comes to Blue Motors though.

[Griff]

I meant that the springs don't break and cause major issues and engine failures like they do on the 500HP's. They are probably just weak and losing spring pressure. You do have an adjustable valve train with Crane Gold roller rockers.

[Young Performance]

Originally Posted by Kid Cumberland

Thanks Guys. Also, the service manual (with no schedule) says the motor has a Hydraulic cam. If correct there is no valve adjustment. Correct? Guess I will replace the Springs. Head Gaskets?? R

It has a hydraulic flat tappet cam. Although they are adjustable, you should not need to set them after the initial preload. You preload the lifter upon initial installation and that should be it. There shouldn't be a need to go back and adjust them. But yes, it is an adjustable valvetrain, unlike the 502 mags that were non-adjustable.
The gaskets they used back then were not the greatest. If you are just going to change springs, you could do them with the heads on. Maybe do a leakdown first and see if the valves are leaking any. This will give you a good idea if they need a valve job. However, it is a really good idea to pull the heads and check everything out. You will have to change the head gaskets at that point anyway. Give me a shout if I can help.
Eddie