87Mirage,

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...f864b999a.jpeg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...5c5f03b86.jpeg

I can’t tell you if this segment was between the elbow and the diverter or between the diverter and the tip, or whether it was on the upstream or downstream end, but I do remember seeing it on the port side only, which we all know runs a bit warmer than the starboard. I think I’ve since pitched it, but it seems like I had another segment with even more obvious extrusion of nylon on the end of the hose.

With what we found with the rubber seal disks on the ends of the heat exchanger, and the increasingly warmer running temps prior to the piston failure, a shortage of flow may have been the culprit. I do know the seawater impeller was is near perfect shape when I recently replaced it, so that wasn’t it.

Thanks. Brad.

Swollen heat exchanger end gaskets cause them to run hot so that is a good theory.

87Mirage,

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...ed6276797.jpeg

Is this what you’d call “swollen”? :rolleyes:

I didn’t even know these were a thing prior to the disassembly of the heat exchanger. I’ll be having a look at these every spring from here on out.

Thanks. Brad.

Guys,

While we're on the subject, what's y'all's recommendations for exhaust hose? I see lots of options.

Thanks. Brad.

These work fine

That actually isn't that bad... Thats pretty normal for those heat exhanger rubber seals.. Not saying its good, but I've seen way worse. To be honest, I'm actually shocked nobody has come up with a more resilient solution for this yet as its so common... I wonder if you could make like a waterjet cut piece of silicone?? Might last longer?

On a side note, haven't visited your thread in a while, but I apologize for insighting a catch can riot lol..

AShipShow,

Oh, I'm sure. I'd guess a lot of people don't even realize they are a maintenance item. I didn't.

The one in the pic appears to be just a sheet of neoprene rubber, with no reinforcement. The ones I ordered and installed are nylon (I think) reinforced. I have to think they will last longer. Still gonna check them every spring. It's a pretty easy check, now that I know.

I might check with a seal and packing supplier here in Dayton and see if they've got an option that will be better than what I bought.

Thanks. Brad.

For 10 bucks.. these might be worth trying.. just pop the center hole in it and run it...
Would be interesting to try one on one end and the OEM on the other end and compare after a year.

https://www.mcmaster.com/1084N14/

EDIT: Just saw youre previous post... mind letting me know where you got reinforced gaskets?

AShipShow,

Kevlar reinforced. That's intriguing. I'll see what the local shop has along those lines.

​​​​​​​Thanks. Brad.

AShipShow,

https://a.co/d/1A6q0Kx

Thanks. Brad.

Guys,

We’re going to salvage the entire wiring harness for the PCM555. It will eventually go to the swap shop along with the 555 itself.

Finalizing wiring for the new harness for the Holley HP….
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...966da0f40.jpeg
New engine harness connector.

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...b9d0ab07d.jpeg
Ignition coil connectors.

Interestingly enough, the new engine harness has a slightly different bolt pattern than the original, so I had to slot the holes in the bracket, so I made a washer plate nut plate for it.
​​​​​​​
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...cf5c659dd.jpeg

While sorting out the rerouting of the cooling plumbing, I made another somewhat grim discovery….

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...19740ad6b.jpeg
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...3e377b33b.jpeg

OEM oil cooler. Probably a healthy contributor to the heat issues we were seeing in the months leading up to the failure, even if not really a significant contributor to the failure itself. Yes…. This is why I’m asking about sea strainers in the wanted section.

For the record, those impeller chunks have apparently been there since before we bought the boat. Every impeller we’ve taken out since buying it had all its bits.

Thanks. Brad.

boating mechanic 101 when having heat problems,,back flush everything.you supercharged that engine w/ that small cooler,bad idea from the start.

Sutphen,

We didn't add the ProCharger. We bought the boat as-is. This is one of the many faults of the ProCharger kits: It doesn't address this issue at all. We are swapping the OEM cooler for a 600SCI cooler and repurposing the OEM oil cooler as the PS cooler.

Thanks. Brad.

This is exactly the reason I decided to buy a sea strainer for my new-to-me 496.. mine is completely stock but why allow all that junk to make it into your heat exchangers when you can stop it before the motor and easily clean it... I didn't love the price, but I think it will be a worthwhile investment considering how difficult it is to get to my oil cooler when in the boat.

Guys,

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...5aac9e886.jpeg
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...60d96a175.jpeg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...2140a77fd.jpeg
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...6061e3208.jpeg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...27b4ad091.jpeg

Fitting the new 600SCI oil cooler where the old PS cooler was mounted. This will also direct the water from the seawater pump to the oil cooler first, instead of the PS cooler.

Thanks. Brad.

What kind of water pickup allowed those pieces of wood to get in there??!!

Helmwurst,

We've just got the low pickup BravoOne lower. The debris isn't very big, but obviously big enough to not fit through the tubes in the cooler.

Thanks. Brad.

I am always amazed what can get through the Bravo water pickups. I even had a little fish in my sea strainer,,,,,,,, and it was alive!

Brad,
I'd run your steering through its full range and make sure it doesn't hit... that looks awefully close..
That aside, sweet setup, I like it! Might also want to put a foam pad between the HE and the angle bracket too to avoid any vibration from wearing through the shell.

AShipShow,

It's only close right next to the pivot, where it doesn't actually move, respective to the cooler.

I thought about that. I might get some neoprene sheet and wrap it between the bracket and the cooler. We'll see. I really don't see it moving much if we lock it down well enough with the hose clamps that will be holding it in place. Not a bad idea, though.

Thanks. Brad.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...45c650524.jpeg
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...868616dc0.jpeg
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...6bc0794a9.jpeg
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...4bcbd75f1.jpeg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...a1acf1e8f.jpegGot some peel-n-stick neoprene rubber, measured it, measured the cooler, did the math, turned and bored a tube, parted off two rings, split them, had the welding done, painted, applied the rubber, and clamped it all together. We’ll sort out orientation and hose clamps at assembly. For right now, I’m allowing the adhesive backing fully bond.

Thanks. Brad.

Any new progress. Have you had a chance to fire up the engine yet.

Topshelf,

Was just up to the dealership last night. Builder has had some eye issues (metal in the eye from grinding on his run stand), so he's recruited some help for rewiring the HP harness. Turns out, the harness was originally for a distributor engine, so it had no pin-outs for the ignition coils, in addition to the LS connections that had to be grafted. As of this morning, the harness is complete, short of wrapping it in cable webbing. He is going to double check all the connections for routing verifications and continuity and get it wrapped. We still need to finalize the raw water plumbing, since we replaced the oil cooler with a much larger unit, elimination of the CoolFuel module and we repurposed the old oil cooler as the PS cooler. I will also have to have a new PS line fabbed to reach the new location of the cooler. Pretty much the same raw water hose path, it's just that the connections have moved. At that point, it should be ready to drop it into the boat. It's looking like the run stand is going to take longer than he anticipated, so we are likely forgoing a test fire on the stand; just dropping it in the boat and going for it. After that, I will need to finalize fuel and oil plumbing, which should be pretty easy. I will also have to fab the rest of the exhaust, with the removal of the SilentChoice, extension of the elbows and the addition of the angled elbow risers. It's looking like initial fire up won't be for another couple weeks, as my on-call welder is only available Fridays and weekends. Once that is done, I've got a batch of PennGrade break in oil to go in it and we should be ready to fire it up.

Thanks. Brad.

I havent kept up with this whole thread at all but one quick piece of advice-

Spend the $1000ish bucks and bring it to a dyno. You'll get your base cal done and most importantly you wont have to take it out of the boat for something simple. **** happens sometimes. Rear main leak? Way easier to drop the pan on an engine stand than take the motor back out of the boat. I understand its easy for me to say this having our dyno in house, but ive never ever ever regretted running something before an install. We even dyno valve jobs. All it takes is one small hiccup (again, **** happens) and you're pulling the engine back out. A lifter galley plug could have a hairline crack in it, invisible to the eye, but when oil starts leaking out of the bell housing (been there), you'll be glad it happened on the dyno. Etc, etc, etc. Relying on closed loop tuning is not the hot ticket. Its a great tool to get you close, but that's about it. It will not do idle tuning worth a damn either. Ittl be way worth it getting the idle tuning done on the dyno. The first time it stalls and you whack the dock you'll be gutted my friend.
Your time is valuable. $1000 bucks in the big scheme of things with these boats isn't much. The 12 hours you'll spend (if there's an issue, and I hope there isnt) taking the engine back out and putting it back in has to be worth more than $1000.

Especially the way everything is mounted in there. Looks super clean but going to be a pain to get out.

I will have to agree with Saris on this one. It's not liked you pulled the motor and did some minor stuff.

Johnny,

Heard. 100%. And it's been on my mind for various reasons. The shop that did the machine work gets $850 (I think) for a dyno session. While I struggle with that cost, I also struggle with the idea of finding an issue the hard way. If nothing else, the prospect of tuning it on the water seems cumbersome, to say the least. Near as I can guess, with scheduling and such, we'll be all summer getting it dialed in, and that holds absolutely zero appeal to me (or the CFO). I'm going to see the builder again today, and we'll discuss. He wasn't opposed to the idea when we talked about it several moons ago. I'm sure he won't mind being, for the most part, "off the hook" once it's in the boat. The idea of having a full 360° line of sight of the entire engine, top and bottom, for running inspection doesn't suck, either.

My only real question is in regard to the break-in process. I would assume one would do the vast majority of this before bringing the engine to the dyno. Or would you do the break-n on the dyno, under load? I can see reasoning in both directions. I'm reading/hearing of break-in taking as much as 10hrs of run time or more. This doesn't sound compatible with dyno tuning a fresh rebuild. Just wanting to have my head around it.

Thanks. Brad.

MadFlavors,

The engine should be WAY easier to get back in (and back out, should the need arise) than it was getting it out initially. The main obstruction we encountered was the SilentChoice wye pipe. Not that it's gone, we should have considerably more room to work.

Thanks. Brad.

Johnny, others,

Something else... What to do with the PS pump.... It's currently high and dry. Do we just leave it that way? Connect the two hose and just let it circulate fluid?

Thanks. Brad.

Break in on the dyno under load. Its a 30 min process at best unless you're using some really funky ring. The engine will still break in a little bit after that, but in 30min the rings will be more than seated, blow by should be minimal. She'll be as broken in as shes gonna get with 1-2 hours of real run time. Another plus to the dyno- some people re-torque heads after a heat cycle. Discuss with your builder. WAY easier not in the boat.
You will still need to touch up the cal in the boat...but you'll be 80% there with what you do on the dyno.

yes. we do it all the time on dyno stuff with a serp belt

Johnny,

Yes..." Which? I mentioned two options. (Sorry, Bad habit)

Thanks. Brad.

If you can not run it at all thats the easiest. With your serpentine belt setup, that is a little difficult. Looping the pump in a circle (preferably through the cooler, but ok if not) is a great option when taking the belt off isnt.

Johnny,

So, if we are headed to the dyno, I need to sort out how to connect the rack ends of the two hoses..... :faint2:

I have to ask.... I guess we can't just let it run empty? I'm guessing it uses the fluid to lubricate and cool the seals and such...?

Thanks. Brad.

Guys,

Anybody have any idea what the high pressure hydraulic port size is on the steering rack? The low pressure port is M16X1.5. The high pressure port is slightly smaller and appears to have a little finer threads. I can get an M14X1.25 tap to start, but it tightens up, and I'm not willing to push it (I don't want to bugger the threads up or introduce chips into the hydraulic system). Minor diameter of the threads is right at Ø.500, measured with calipers, which lines up with the M14 theory. I'm not in a position to measure the actual hose end fitting, but I'm trying to sort out the details for new hoses and such. Looking to convert to 6AN connections, as that is what the OEM oil cooler has that we are repurposing for the PS cooler. This will also make closing the loop for a dyno session REALLY easy.

Thanks. Brad.

We always loop it around. The other plus is with it, alternator, sea water pump and circ pump on as well as the exhaust you will be using, you get a true Dyno number. Not the hero numbers a lot like to post.

Guys,

So, some updates on the project….

Engine is 99% done. All that left is the raw water, fuel, oil and PS plumbing that will remain attacked to the engine. Harness is complete. I will likely have to order a set of harness extensions to reach where I located the ECM. NBD. I’ll hopefully get some pics tonight.

Spoke with the builder, and he agrees. Dyno time. Spoke with the machine shop with the dyno. Cost is not prohibitive. They can’t facilitate the wet exhaust, but they can plumb the raw water supply from and drain to a holding tank. So, we will have everything for the finish build involved in the dyno session except the exhaust risers and extended elbows.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...145ad0d18.jpeg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...bed5847b1.jpeg
Made a union adapter for the PS line for to be looped together during the dyno session. I’ve since machined a hex on it for a wrench. The threads are M14X1.25 for anybody interested.

Couple updates with the boat…

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...00904ee06.jpeg
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...86ff68b83.jpeg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...736ff9feb.jpeg
Picked up a used sea strainer. I had to modify/re-fabricate the mounting bracket to get it to fit in about the only space I had for it. Pretty sure it’s plenty big enough. FYI…. I significantly overestimated the amount of suction side hose I’d need. I’ll probably go ahead and replace all my like-sized hoses since I’ve got it, but I’ll undoubtedly have a fair bit left over if anybody might be in need of some. It’s the good, non-collapsible stuff; 1-1/4” ID.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...8ef008508.jpeg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...1cdcda8ab.jpeg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...2750d434e.jpeg
Found a cool M16X1.5 to 6AN adapter for the PS return line that has to be remade as a result of repurposing the OEM oil cooler as the PS cooler. I had intended to remake the high pressure side, but have since decided it’s not worth the effort. It seems the connections on both ends are more work than they are worth. The hose is intact and looks to be in pretty good shape. I’m just gonna leave the unbroken unbroken.

Hopefully, I’ll have some REAL updates sooner than later. The weather is starting to break in SW Ohio. Time to get the PQ back in proper working order.

Thanks. Brad.

Will you be able to use your exhaust just not with water? Most I have done have been dry so that never came up.

Wildman,

Shop headers. I wouldn't think it would be a good idea to run the stock manifolds and elbows dry. I know this will change the tune a bit, but, as Johnny said, we'll only be "mostly" there on the dyno anyhow.

Thanks. Brad.

theres a brass coupler that connects the 2 ends of the oem hoses together.I think its a merc part.