83 mercruser 140hp cracked block help?

[thrillsea-ker]

Re: 83 mercruser 140hp cracked block help?

I agree.. The epoxy is far better then welding. My boat, with a 165 .. as Bond-o put it, the "big sister" to the 140.. Cracked in almost the same location as yours. The PO of my boat did a poor job of applying the epoxy. I am in the process of repairing the crack..the correct way. What I found that works the best, is to take a die grinder with a 3m roloc abrasive disc to remove all the paint from around the area of the crack, taking it down to bare metal. This will allow you to see where the crack begins and ends. Take a small grinder, a dremel tool works great, and grind a "V" shaped groove where the crack is. This will give the epoxy more surface area to adhere to. You may even want to stop-drill the ends of the crack. Fill the groove with the epoxy and let it set up. Apply a 2nd layer of epoxy if necessary, sand it flush with the block. after you have ran the engine and verified the leak has been stopped, paint the repair to match and you're done.

 

[Sugo]

Re: 83 mercruser 140hp cracked block help?

You should check the compression of your motor and have the leg checked out to help you decide your maximum investment into this project. My 140 block cracked, I was able to pick up a long block and swap everything over. (my manifold was not cracked) The 140 block is quite common, used by volvo, merc and omc. or keep your eye open for an affordable pod and outboard. You could probably offset the cost by parting out your motor, leg, steering and trim. Just some ideas, I know it does not make it less frustrating.

 

[oops!]

Re: 83 mercruser 140hp cracked block help?

just a couple of things here......

most of the motor concerns have been adressed .....but there is some other things....

again......the motor MIGHT be able to be jb welded....(i did it to mine and it worked great) but .....that is a freeze break.....if the interior of the motor is bad....nothing will fix it....(this was allready stated.....the jb type weld is a tryal to see it there is water in the oil). i wish you good luck.

the manifold most likely cannot be fixed that way.....if you get really lucky and just the outside is cracked.....then yes....but in my exp...the interior of the maniflod is toast. pressure test to see if the exhaust/intake sides of the manifold are able to hold 5 pounds psi....understand that if the block is good...and you have the slightest water leak in that manifold...your motor will work....and then not...work....and then not....it will be really frustrating....so check it now.

the other thing is a restoration type responce........if the deck is soft.....the stringers are shot and so is (most likely) the transom what you are actually taking about is a TOTAL RE-FIT of the vessel.
just make sure you weigh the cost before you dive in....once you get in....its tough to stop as that is a lot of money to just ...throw away, if you dont complete the 6 month project.

what ever you choose....the guys and i are standing by in the restoration section to assist with any questions you may have.

cheers
opps

 

[DrWiffel]

Re: 83 mercruser 140hp cracked block help?

You should check the compression of your motor and have the leg checked out to help you decide your maximum investment into this project. My 140 block cracked, I was able to pick up a long block and swap everything over. (my manifold was not cracked) The 140 block is quite common, used by volvo, merc and omc. or keep your eye open for an affordable pod and outboard. You could probably offset the cost by parting out your motor, leg, steering and trim. Just some ideas, I know it does not make it less frustrating.

Yep I was planning on doing a compression check, but I?m unsure what you mean by leg? I was looking to invest as little as possible to see if the engine will work.

the manifold most likely cannot be fixed that way.....if you get really lucky and just the outside is cracked.....then yes....but in my exp...the interior of the maniflod is toast. pressure test to see if the exhaust/intake sides of the manifold are able to hold 5 pounds psi....understand that if the block is good...and you have the slightest water leak in that manifold...your motor will work....and then not...work....and then not....it will be really frustrating....so check it now.

the other thing is a restoration type responce........if the deck is soft.....the stringers are shot and so is (most likely) the transom what you are actually taking about is a TOTAL RE-FIT of the vessel.
just make sure you weigh the cost before you dive in....once you get in....its tough to stop as that is a lot of money to just ...throw away, if you dont complete the 6 month project.

what ever you choose....the guys and i are standing by in the restoration section to assist with any questions you may have.

Is there link to how to do a psi test on a manifold?

I was planning on already doing the floor and some upholstery on the boat, but I wasn?t planning on a complete engine rebuild? Ah well, what?s a guy to do.

I was planning on starting the work this weekend, and again I appreciate all the input that you guys have given me. You?ve all been very helpful!

I did contact a lawyer today to see what he had to say on the issue, and it seems that I may have a pretty good case. I absolutely do not want to go to court (I?m not the suing type of person, and don?t like being in the hot seat), but it seems that I?m going to end up short of having to rebuild the motor anyways, and because the guy doesn?t want to work with me, I may really have no other option.

If that fails, I?m going to start the work on boat to see where I can get. Being 1300 down I really may have no other choice. I could sell it for 300, but that would still be a big disappointment to me.

Thanks,
Jon

 

[DrWiffel]

Re: 83 mercruser 140hp cracked block help?

First I want to thank all you guys for your inputs. I received the results to the civil court case this weekend and I had lost my case. I lost due to the guy ?not knowing the blocked was cracked?, which I didn?t understand how that could be the reason but such is life sometimes. After all that I?m glad that I at least had a decision that was made before the 90day deadline that the judge had which would have put me to about the beginning of August, and I kind of figured that the guy wouldn?t have paid me anyways even if I had won.

So yesterday I decided to get to work. I went to the local auto parts store and picked up this kind of marine JB Weld putty stuff that you smash together with your fingers until you get a uniform color and you have 2 min to work with it. Also picked up some high temp paint to prevent rust. I fist started with a wire brush drill bit to remove the paint and rust around the area, I then used a dremel to widen the crack a bit and put 2 holes on the ends of the crack. Took the JB Weld and smushed it in there the best I could. I repeated the process on the manifold also because that too was cracked. Waited about an hour to hook water to it and fire her up. She actually fired right up, and ran pretty good. I was really impressed. So we ended up running it to temp (for about a half hour) to make sure the welds were holding, and they did. So today after work the first thing I?m going to do is get the darn thing out on the water and see how she works. I also found out through the whole process that one of the bellows are cracked too. So that?s also going to be replaced. But I?ll plan to do that at a later date, but soon, and I may need some suggestions on that.

Thanks again for all you input. After I get everything sanded down and painted I?ll post some pictures of the final product.

 

[DrWiffel]

Re: 83 mercruser 140hp cracked block help?

Looks like rain for us tonight here. So I may not be getting that chance I was hoping for. Looks like their might be enough of a break to finish up the clean up work, but I don?t want to chance the motor from rusting over at the unprotected spots on the block. Tomorrow so far is looking good. So if I can?t finish it out tonight, I?ll do it tomorrow. Thanks again for all your help.

 

[jmfrost]

Re: 83 mercruser 140hp cracked block help?

At the risk of being booed I think I would try to repair the crack with JB Weld. (Prep the surface properly) If it works your good to go, if it doesn't you've lost $3 and then have to decide if you want to part the boat out, scaveng for a new block, etc.

I got ripped off by a mechanic who did this. He was supposed to drop in a used engine and later discovered he used JB weld. Surprisingly it lasted at least one season. Ended up junking the boat after the outdrive went belly up.

 

[Bondo]

Re: 83 mercruser 140hp cracked block help?

I also found out through the whole process that one of the bellows are cracked too. So that?s also going to be replaced. But I?ll plan to do that at a later date, but soon,

Ayuh,... Depending which 1 it Is,.... It can sink your barge....
The exhaust(bottom 1) will be OK,...
The other 2 Will sink yer barge....