Frozen

sounds to me like you better take your wallet to the marina with you, you know how many guys say they winterized something and they actually dont,he has those manifolds off for a reason and i dont think it was to paint them, good luck on this one.people tend to paint a great picture when they are trying to sell something. i do not know anyone who pulls spark plugs out and puts mystery oil in them, anyone else ever hear of this? the only time i do hear of someone doing this is when they are trying to unstick a stuck engine

Eric and Jimbo,

Thanks for the thoughts. I may very well be wrong, but I don't think this guy tried to unload it bad.

He did a total restore: new stringers, floor, carpet, seats, vinyl, gages, cover, bimini, shaft, and prop.

I will try the PB Blaster. If not, I'll bring my wallet to the marina. Great deal on the boat may just be an OK deal...

Thanks,
Brent

Remanufactured Long block 351w Reverse Rotation

get a long block is a much better route to go. All you have to do is mount the intake, alt, starter, RWP, WP, dist, fuel pump and valve covers. the hardest part is the dist and if your handy with tools it's really not that hard to do your self. Where are you located?

Hey, glad it busted loose for you. And the pistons seem to be able to run through their range... but hold the champagne, dancing girls and propeller-topped Fezes... There may be some othere things going on. But at this point, you don't have much to loose so fire it up and see what happens.
Since you asked: l'd suggest changing the oil and filter, transmission fuild, impeller, spark pluges, cap, rotor, throw the points in the river and put in an Electronic Ignition Module, new plug wires, new coil, new belts and hoses, new thermostat, hell, new battery, new fuel filter and a can of Sea Foam in the gas tank -- and a new tow rope! -->That's if you are a boy scout and want to be prepared.
And wow enter the Sean Connery voice:
Otherwise, I'd charge up the battery, dump a can of sea foam in the tank, squirt some mystry oil in the chambers (not PB this time). If the plugs look ok, tighten them down.
Connect a garden hose to the water intake and give it a crack. Ohh, but leave the engine cover open and pump the throttle 3X first.

If it starts, let it run! At mid idle or high idle if needed. Let it get up to temp (160 or so). Look for hose leaks and leaks at gaskets. Check the oil pressure, temperature. Listen for crazy sounds. After it's warm, give it ->a little ga$$<- and check things again. Shut it down after about 30 minutes. Check the oil and trany fluid.
The oil should look nice and golden maple syrup and the transmission fluid like boysenberry syrup. If you have a mud slide or a strawberry shake, water is is geeting in some where. Some times easy to fix, sometimes not so easy to fix...post results!
If none of this makes since, I'll try again in the morning.

Hey bwill, 79Nautique and jimbo know what they are talking about. They have both been helpful to me. I agree don't invest much in a tune up untill you know what kind of shape the motor is in.
From a fellow Newbie.

Brent run the oil the way it is for awhile but change it out after you get some hours on the motor if it comes back to life and it's ready for that tune-up. Get the model number off of the dist. and get a converstion kit to ditch the points once everything is freed up and ready to run.

either run it in the drive for awhile or have another running boat along side if you take it out so you don't get stranded and can get a tow back to the dock.

No not normal, its bad either manifolds or head gasket/ crack in the block type issues. But based on your situation and the PO having them off you probably just have manifold leaks. Good luck
-Joe.

sorry to hear, it's winter and this stuff pops up everywear, dont make any quick decisions. keep watching e bay, marine stuff goes real cheap from here on out to spring. watch this site and put a wanted add up, time is on your side. I personally stay away from high volume engine rebuilders such as budget, jasper etc. because there is no way you can put an engine together with qaulity parts and charge so little. do some investigating if you decide to have it done locally and dont be afraid to pay a little more at the more reputable shop and make sure they are familier with marine engines. make sure that they have an iron clad warranty in case something happens including r and r labor

there must be some heavy pitting in the cylinders or some damage to the rings, when you get wierd compression across the board they should squirt some heavier oil in the cylinders then check again if the compression comes up then you know the problem is the rings, either hung in the grooves from rust or pitting etc...

Your same problem stuck motor happened to me, I ended up having it rebuilt $$$$$$ 1700.00 later but well worth it. its like a new boat