Recent content by fishingdan

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    1957 Johnson 7.5 - It awakens!

    Hi All, I thought you might appreciate this. My grandfather left me his 1957 Johnson 7.5hp outboard. When I moved to New England, I put it in my shed and it has sat for nearly 20yrs. My grandfather was meticulous with record keeping. In an old box, I found an original service manual, the...
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    how to confirm a head gasket failure?

    Hi, I have been through all of the cooling system diagnostics and I'm down to, what I believe is now a head gasket failure. Can I confirm this with a simple compression test? 1991 4.3LX Mercruiser. Thanks, Dan
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    1991 4.3lx alpha overheat

    I'm tracking down a blockage on an overheating 1991 4.3LX Alpha. Everything is good up to the circulating pump. I'm still looking for the "aha! that's IT moment". I have had the boat one year. It was previously a freshwater only boat. A rebuilt engine was installed in 2001 and it is a good...
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    Want to confirm waterflow direction...

    1991 4.3LX alpha with check ball style thermostat housing... I want to confirm that I'm reading the cooling system flow diagram correctly. Is it true that warm water will only flow from the top of the t-stat housing to the bottom of the exhaust manifolds if/when the t-stat opens? Cold water...
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    Overheating: Water coming from outdrive

    I have been troubleshooting an overheating problem. Occurs at idle as well as running (naturally). Murphy's law has jumped into this a couple of times. For example, while running on muffs recently, I realized that water stopped (or nearly stopped) coming from my hose while I was running the...
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    Water circulating pump - how do you know when it is bad?

    1991 4.3LX I'm continuing to learn about the open cooling system on these sterndrive systems. I haven't seen anything in the manual or on the site to explain how to understand if one's water circulating pump is working properly. I know on my older cars, if the water pump wasn't leaking, it...
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    check ball style t-stat housing -what are the balls for?

    I have a 1991 4.3lx mercruiser. I'm troubleshooting an overheat problem. While poking around, I see I have the t-stat housing type that has the check-balls on the lines that are connected to the exhaust elbow. What is the purpose/function of those check balls? With the t-stat housing off...
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    Rust stain on upholstery/vinyl

    I forgot that I had left a small tool box on the rear bench seat of our boat. Naturally, the upholstery is off-white. After some rain, I see that my boat cover needs a new waterproofing treatment. The cockpit of the boat got wet and moisture got between the tool box and the cushion. The...
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    Mercruiser exhaust manifolds and risers: How do you know?

    See explanation below, but how do you know that the exhaust manifold/riser is clogged enough to replace??? 1991 4.3lx Alpha One outdrive (rebuilt engine installed in 2000 and relatively low hours since). Boat is a Cobia 19' bowrider and is new to me 1 year ago. Boat has only previously been...
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    4.3lx - Bad temp sensor or temp gauge?

    1991 era 4.3lx Mercruiser Alpha One (boat history shows a rebuilt engine installed in 2000 with only about 50 hours since). Boat is a 1991 Cobia Monte Carlo 198ES. Bought the boat spring 2008. In general, the boat is in great condition and runs well. I have only had the boat out once this...
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    12v trolling motor on 19' bowrider???

    I have a 19' bowrider that I'm looking to put a bow mount trolling motor on. I have been looking at 70 pd thrust 24v models, but then a friend approached me about selling me his for next to nothing (he took it off a boat that he no longer has). He has a 2 year old 54lb thrust 12v minn kota...
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    Minn Kota Trolling motor variable speed vs 5/3 speed?

    To us humans, is there a real measurable difference between a Minn Kota 24v SM series motor with variable speed vs the same model with 5/3 speed? The difference seems to be an extra 10lbs of thrust and an extra $200 for the variable speed model. Thanks
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    Alpha 1 outdrive won't trim up

    1991 4.3LX with Alpha 1 outdrive. Everything was fine in November. Today, I checked everything out, topped the charge on the batteries and put the hose on the drive. I found that the outdrive tilts down fine, but won't go up. I hear clicking from the solenoid when I hit the up switches...
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    Which oil for a 1991 Mercruiser 4.3LX?

    Anyone know what weight oil should be used in one of these engines? Thanks, Dan
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    preventing mold over the winter

    Each spring, I uncover the boat and find surface mold one the various surfaces of the boat interior. I want to try to prevent that this time around. Last year, I thought I had the problem licked when I covered the boat an opening on the transom end. I was thinking that this would allow air...
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