water in the cylinders
Printed From: CorrectCraftFan.com
Category: Repairs and Maintenance
Forum Name: Engine Repair
Forum Discription: Engine problems and solutions
URL: http://www.CorrectCraftFan.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=34198
Printed Date: September-29-2024 at 2:22pm
Topic: water in the cylinders
Posted By: sailor58
Subject: water in the cylinders
Date Posted: July-20-2014 at 6:32pm
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New guy here, not new to boat motors. Well, a bit new to Ford small blocks... I took in a '78 Ski Tique with what appeared to be blown head gaskets. The motor is I believe a 302 Commander(Marine Power). The owner says it has about 400 hours on this engine, and it's the second engine the boat has had. Upon dis-assembly of the top end, I found evidence of water in all cylinders. The bores cleaned up well. I cleaned the heads and lapped the valves. Checked the heads and block for flatness, all was good. Put it back together with Fel-Pro gaskets, new thermostat, new head bolts, and torqued everything to specs. Went to start it today. After spinning it over with the starter it locked up. Pulled all the spark plugs, damn! water in all eight cylinders! A lot, too! It has the original aluminum Commander manifolds and risers. I pressurized the water jackets of both manifolds, not leaking there. What'd I miss? Larry |
Replies:
Posted By: SNobsessed
Date Posted: July-20-2014 at 7:01pm
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Check the intake manifold gasket joints 1st before pulling the heads back off. ------------- “Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” Ben Franklin |
Posted By: SNobsessed
Date Posted: July-20-2014 at 7:02pm
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Check the intake manifold gasket joints 1st before pulling the heads back off. Are you sure it is spinning the right direction? ------------- “Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” Ben Franklin |
Posted By: sailor58
Date Posted: July-21-2014 at 9:05am
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Yes, I checked the intake manifold gaskets before I took the heads off. They are okay. Yes, the motor spinning in the correct direction. It's an opposite rotation engine. I also checked the intake manifold itself to see if water was leaking from the water passages to the intake passages. It's okay. The head gaskets appear to be okay, too. The water seems to be coming in through the exhaust ports. What do the little holes in the exhaust ports next to the valve guides do? Tonight I'm going to disassemble the heads and fill them up with water to see if water is leaking from the water jacket to the exhaust ports. Larry |
Posted By: Rob-Man
Date Posted: July-30-2014 at 7:35pm
| Did you check the exhaust riser gaskets? |
Posted By: MrMcD
Date Posted: August-02-2014 at 2:00am
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Water in all 8 is a clue. A crack normally will affect one or two cyl but not all. To get water in all 8 I suspect it is coming in from the manifold or through the exhaust risers. Did you install a big camshaft that could cause water inversion? Wrong head gaskets completely maybe? |
Posted By: Chevy350
Date Posted: August-02-2014 at 3:08am
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Is it the correct starter? I don't know much but, we got the wrong starter and it sucked water through the exhaust pipes into the engine until it wouldn't crank over anymore. We pulled the spark plugs out and a ton of water came out and we cranked the rest out. Just my input, but probably not the problem. ------------- 1972 Mustang |
Posted By: sailor58
Date Posted: August-04-2014 at 9:51pm
Bingo! We have a winner! I spun the motor over and sure as, well you know what, it turned conventional rotation. Looking at the prop, the motor has to be opposite rotation. Yesterday I learned from the owner, as Paul Harvey used to say, The Rest Of The Story. I had noticed the new looking starter, but didn't think anything of it. I asked the owner this weekend, when had he installed the starter. He told me that a "mechanic buddy" of his was helping him get the boat running this spring. The motor was turning over slowly so the "buddy" suggested a new starter. Off they went to AutoZone... Now the question remains, where can I buy a starter for an opposite rotation 302? Larry |
Chevy350 wrote:Posted By: MrMcD
Date Posted: August-05-2014 at 5:47am
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See if there is a local Starter rebuilder in your area, let them fix one up for you. It has always worked for me. The Autozone type supplier will give you a starter that does not meet Marine standards. You need spark shielding in your starter in addition to reverse rotation, cars don't need that. The shielding helps boats avoid blowing up, kind of important in a center engine mounted boat. A local rebuilder can turn one around in one day normally or might have one on the shelf in exchange. I had one in Sacramento take mine and rebuild it while I watched, about 2 hours total. |
Posted By: Dadof8
Date Posted: August-10-2014 at 1:52am
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Sounds a lot like my problem. 302 with 351 heads. Intake manifold rust in bottom under carb. Rust in the last cylinder of each side of motor. Rust on top of valve rods and tap-it at front cylinder on each head. The stranger thing in the water mess is the Engine valley below the intake head was super clean...Like not even oil was there. Both water and gas are in the oil. I hope I even make sense. ------------- Make each day on the water last as long as possible. Unless it's because the boat died. 77 Ski Tique 302 Ford |
Posted By: sailor58
Date Posted: September-02-2014 at 10:39am
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Success! I was able to find the correct starter at my local NAPA store. New manufacture marine starter, made by Wright. Hooked everything up, still no start. Distributor was two teeth off, and two plug wires switched. Those darn "mechanic buddies"! Runs nice, now! On to the next phase. Now that she runs, the owner wants to sell her. What is a nice, totally original, sound hull, on the original trailer, '78 Skitique worth? TIA Larry |
Posted By: Morfoot
Date Posted: September-02-2014 at 10:55am
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Larry, glad you found the problem and got her fixed. Yep, common mistakes made when it comes to inboards. A lot of newbies to inboards think that Ohhhhh it's just like a car motor I'll run down to 'The Zone' to get a new starte/alternator.. Seen it happen many times here. To answer your question...look at the diaries at 77-79 Ski Tiques to get a general idea of what she might be worth. Check out the CCF Faq thread on what to look for when inspecting an old boat. Condition of the stringers is the next important thing to look at other than the motor. Gelcoat condition is third followed by the rest. Take some pics and post them here if you can and the inspectors here will give you more feedback on "Whatcha Got"!...The more you educate yourself about these classics the more power you have to talk the guy down if you find and see stuff that is going to need repair (if at all) Keep us informed....Welcome to CCFan!  ------------- "Morfoot; He can ski. He can wakeboard.He can cook chicken.He can create his own self-named beverage, & can also apparently fly. A man of many talents."72 Mustang "Kermit",88 SN Miss Scarlett, 99 SN "Sherman" |