Recent content by bashr52

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    Alpha 1 gear oil leak out drive shaft

    Yep..had all the tools from when I did the R&R, and had the cover nut stamped with dots when tightened correctly so it was easy to torque and verify it was back where it started from.
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    Alpha 1 gear oil leak out drive shaft

    Just wanted to circle back on this with an update. I ordered a new drive bearing oil seal and o-ring in anticipation of something being bad once I removed it. I pulled the drive today and sure enough the entire seal was broken out of the housing allowing oil to fill the bellows. Quick and...
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    Alpha 1 gear oil leak out drive shaft

    Hello All. I recently did a full service on my Alpha 1 Gen 2 (new u-joints, water pump, bellows, etc) and first time out on the water the reservoir kept getting low so I would top it off. I figured I may not have gotten it quite full after I refilled it and it was just seeking it's happy level...
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    Sources of bellows water

    I started up the boat for the first time this season and noticed an audible knock. It sounded like rocks inside the crank case, but the engine ran smooth. Trimming up the drive quieted the noise so I figured it was a U-joint going bad. I noticed a slight tick starting late last season, but it...
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    Volvo style raw water pump on a 4.3

    Hello All, Is it possible to convert a 4.3 with an Alpha 1 gen 2 to use a crank driven Volvo style raw water pump? I've seen some conversion kits for V8 equipped boats, but I've yet to come across anything for the V6's.
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    Engine code/casting numbers for Vortec vs non?

    My boat originally had a 1994 2 barrel non-vortec engine installed. A few years ago the previous owner sucked some seaweed around the water intake and overheated/ruined the engine. They had a Jasper rebuild installed, which I believe they bought as a short block and installed the original...
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    Roller Trailer conversion

    The rollers on the trailer for my 21" center console is in bad shape. Most of them are rusted/cracked and some are falling apart already. There are 64 rollers on they two tilting sections. To replace all the rollers and get the trailer back into prime condition, it's going to be over $500. Has...
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    overheating while trolling

    Issue is on a 1994 2 barrel 4.3L. I was out on the water last weekend and on the way back in decided to troll an umbrella rig just for kicks. After about 5 minutes at 2.8-3 mph and engine just off idle, I noticed the temp gauge was creeping toward the hot end, about 3/4 up the gauge. Pushing in...
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    self-learning EFI conversion

    There have been some interesting advances in self-learning, self-tuning, return-less EFI systems for the street car market lately. I saw Holley has a 2 barrel version that will support up to 300 HP, and 4 barrel that will do 6-650. It would be ridiculously expensive and a waste of $$, but...
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    Alpha shift cable adjustment issue

    I pinched my lower unit shift cable installing my drive after I had the engine out to replace the Y pipe. I replaced it with a new one yesterday, and today when trying to adjust it per the book, I can get forward with no issue but reverse just hits the shift dogs and clicks. If I leave...
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    Engine alignment changed after engine pull

    I had to pull my 4.3 Mercruiser due to a leaky Y pipe. It turns out the shop that installed the rebuilt engine before I bought the boat did not use the right transom hardware setup, specifically the washers between engine and transom mount. That let the bolts run to far through the mounting nuts...
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    Tilt/trim gasket bilge leak?

    I pulled my engine and Y pipe today to diagnose what I thought was a cracked Y pipe which was letting water into the boat up to the level of the bottom of the pipe. The pipe looks perfect, still nicely painted black, no signs of corrosion, cracks, holes, etc. The O ring was still intact and the...
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    Time to winterize again...

    I got my boat all winterized again last weekend, and I got to thinking. The block drain on the port side is a HUGE pain to get to with the alternator, power steering pump, exhaust manifold, etc right in the way. The starboard one is a piece of cake. I usually pull the circulation hose off the...
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    filling test bore holes

    I have a number of holes in my transom I drilled to test for wet wood. The largest ones are from a 1/4" drill bit. The good news is I only found discoloration/wet wood around where the drain hole was, as it appears the copper insert has split at one point and was never repaired. I was able to...
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    ALpha 1 gen 2 adjusting shift cable at controls

    My control handle has 3 dents for neutral/forward/reverse positions. The handle drops in and locks firmly into these grooves which allows for the boat to be shifted into gear before engine RPM is affected. I replaced all of my bellows, gimbal bearing, and lower shift cable on my alpha 1 gen 2...
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