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  1. nola mike

    470 head repair ?

    trying to put my head back together (i had some rusted exhaust valves over the winter/bent pushrods). I put in 2 new valves. They are the same overall dimensions as the old ones, but I noticed that the keeper groove is slightly (2mm or so) lower on the stem than the old ones. The only...
  2. nola mike

    470 Lifter Compressor Tool?

    Re: 470 Lifter Compressor Tool? Right, wanted to clarify before everyone jumped in with the Chevy adjustment procedure. And that's why I need to check the clearance; the new rods are still within spec as being "uncolored", as are the old ones, but they are slightly different lengths.
  3. nola mike

    470 Lifter Compressor Tool?

    Getting ready to (hopefully) put the head back together and get the boat running next weekend . I got new pushrods and valves for the #3 and 4 exhaust. The new pushrods are slightly (maybe 1/32") longer than the old, but still within spec for stock length. Given that, I'd like to measure my...
  4. nola mike

    Riser brands? GLM, Osco, etc...

    Looking to replace my exhaust reservoir/riser on my 3.7L/470. Looks like the brands available are GLM, Osco, Mallory, and Sierra. I've seen some not-so-flattering things about the GLM products (though they're the cheapest and have a 3 yr warranty). Osco/Mallory are middle of the road...
  5. nola mike

    470 head repair/Ford interchangeable?

    Need to R&R the head on my 470 (see here for details), and finally removed my 2 stuck exhaust valves. Both were difficult to remove, but looked ok on removal. They wouldn't slide in and out easily though, whereas another valve moved easily in both bores. This valve had a TINY bit of play in...
  6. nola mike

    470 bent pushrod, what next?

    Trying to start, and it wouldn't turn over. Pulled the valve cover and found a bent #4 exhaust pushrod. I imagine it's from an exhaust mani/gasket leak. I thought I had pulled the plugs and turned over prior to starting, but maybe I only did that after it wouldn't start. Can't remember...
  7. nola mike

    Homemade 470 alternator bracket?

    Intermittent charging issues last season with the 470; figure I might as well upgrade to an alternator system before it becomes a "must do" item mid-season (btw, that's 25 years on the original "unreliable" stator system, for those keeping track at home). The fall back is the breezeworks setup...
  8. nola mike

    How to measure float drop/level? Mercarb 2bbl

    Been having trouble with both of my carbs; one I purchased rebuilt, one I rebuilt myself. On one of them, I had fuel leaking, resulting in hard starts/poor idling. On the other, I had hesitation on acceleration. I took both apart this past week and rechecked the float drop/level, and all seem...
  9. nola mike

    sorry for the oil thread!

    Decided to go with Rotella. I've seen the merc recs, and my manual calls for straight SAE 40. Can't find either straight 40 or 25w-40. Am I better off with SAE 30 or 15w-40? Seems like the 30 may be too thin when warm, but the 15w is too thin cold, and is multi-visc.
  10. nola mike

    Anybody else procrastinating winterizing?

    Last year, the boat told me when the end of the season was by grenading the outdrive. This year, it's still working, and I'm having a hard time pulling the plug on the season. We've had nice weather, the fishies are out (though not biting much for me), and...well, I don't want to be done yet...
  11. nola mike

    Towing with FWD?

    Just had a new kid, and the seat won't mount in the extended cab of my truck. So in order to go to the river, we need to either take my wife's Mazda6 wagon only, or drive the truck separately. I have towed the boat out with the mazda before (last year before getting the truck), but it isn't...
  12. nola mike

    fishin' forum?

    getting a bit cool for skiing, boat's running ok...seems like i should be spending my time fishing..we should have a dedicated forum, no?.
  13. nola mike

    Rebuilt carb, same problem

    my boat was bogging on acceleration. bought an ebay rebuilt carb so that i could take my time rebuilding the old. new carb was leaking fuel @ idle, so i finally rebuilt the old one and put it in. same problem now. if i hit the gas hard, it sputters and dies. on muffs i had an impressive...
  14. nola mike

    How does the fuel gauge work?

    Having intermittent problems with my fuel gauge--it likes to read full all the time. I'm trying to troubleshoot the problem, but am not sure how exactly the system works. 1. I assume that the sender acts as a resistor. So an ohm meter between the sender post and ground should vary depending...
  15. nola mike

    Rich @ idle = slow WOT?

    Took the boat out today, noticed it was smoking at idle, maybe running a bit rougher than usual. Opened it up and noticed it was slow, maybe 38 or so instead of 48. Rpms were 4300 with 2 aboard, usually 4500 with just me. In fact, speed was down over the entire rpm range. At idle, I noticed...
  16. nola mike

    Need an OB that will fit in the ski locker

    Looking for an emergency kicker motor for my boat. It has no perm place to mount one, nor do I want to make one; if I lower the wakeboard tower, that will provide a stable surface. Currently I have a 40# electric in my ski locker, but a) it would take me forever to get home if i needed it, and...
  17. nola mike

    Correct operating temp for a 470?

    Just curious. Saw a thread a month or so back looking for solutions for running at low temps. Someone suggested a coolant res cap thermometer. My gauge has always (2 years) showed temp at 140-150'. Anyway, I got the cap and it looks like my actual running temp is 175-185'. Seems kind of...
  18. nola mike

    Dwell reading with electronic ign conversion?

    using a pertronix-type electronic ignition conversion, i'm curious as to what the dwell reading should be; i'm getting 20'. when i briefly swapped the points back on, the dwell was 36' and the engine speed was increased. i know that there isn't really "dwell" in the electronic, but i would...
  19. nola mike

    Fixing a TPS/alpha 1?

    Trying to fix my trim position switch on an alpha 1. I'm not sure whether it's "old" or "new" style. Looks like there are 2 wire wound metal bars that provide variable resistance. 1 of these bars is FUBAR'd. While I think I know the answer to this, is there anywhere to get just a replacement...
  20. nola mike

    Melted wires, anything else to replace?--UPDATE

    So I've been chasing electrical gremlins for a bit, lately limited to a sometimes erratic tach. Driving yesterday, lost power, boat shut down. Started up, ran for a minute, shut down. Tried to restart, saw smoke from back of engine. But it restarted, seemed to idle fine for maybe 5 min, then...
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