Am I too paranoid... or not enough

[skipdow]

I have a 24' Zeta that I got recently with a volvo 280 leg. I bought it knowing the engine was toast(boat filled with water).The 280 leg has about 50hrs on a complete rebuild. I picked up a good vortec engine and dropped it in with all the correct marine equipment. It runs great(in my driveway) but I can hear a very faint rattle or something similar down by the bell housing. Its very faint. Since this boat is new to me I don't know what normal sounds like for this boat. I reused the existing flexplate because the springs were tight no movement and no wear marks I could see but now I'm worried it could be bad or a bolt is somehow loose.Since I dropped the motor in it has about 2 min max of run time.I don't want to rip the motor out again if I don't have to but also don't want something big to break.
Any suggestions?

 

[PiratePast40]

Re: Am I too paranoid... or not enough

A noise is just about impossible to diagnose on a forum but if I was to guess, I'd be wondering about the condition of the bearings in the flywheel cover. If there was a problem with the outdrive that warranted rebuilding it, then I'd be concerned about the rest of the drivetrain. On some of these, the bearings come out forward so you may need to pull the engine.

If that bearing seizes up, it can break the flywheel cover as well as cause all sorts of damage. If the damage is significant enough, could cause an uncontrolled leak.

I know this sounds like doom and gloom but this is one of the things you should really be sure about. Paying an expert to have a look at it may be worthwhile. It's also possible that it's the u-joints. And of course, if you don't know for sure, everything is a guess!

 

[skipdow]

Re: Am I too paranoid... or not enough

I know the history of the boat . The leg was rebuilt by an insurance company because of damage and after rebuild it had lots of trouble free hours.
I just don't want to pull the engine, find no problems and after putting it back the "noise" is still there.
As far as "experts" they are harder to come by. There's lots of merc guys, but the only one I know of everyone has said "stay away from that guy!!!" I'm not a stranger to mechanics its just I don't know if its a normal sound or not.
I guess what I was hoping for was suggestions on how to test for typical problems.

 

[Vadimk]

Re: Am I too paranoid... or not enough

Never tried it (because I always forgot to) but you can try using a cheep stethoscope to find out where the noise is coming from, I'm shire it would help the experts on this forum.

My nabour has a pair that he pulls out from time to time, it just has a tube on the end of the hose so he can get at any part of the engine.

 

[skipdow]

Re: Am I too paranoid... or not enough

Ive resigned myself to pulling the engine to recheck the flywheel, flexplate and bearings.
I've seen a bad flexplate before with loose and sloppy springs but what else can make them bad?
Can the bearings be pulled , checked and reinstalled or if pulled they get replaced?
How do the bearings come out?

 

[captmello]

Re: Am I too paranoid... or not enough

I'd pull the upper gear box and check the bearings from the outdrive side. Just try moving the drveshaft that the ujoint yoke slips over. If there is any play, the bearings need replacing. You can also run the boat with the upper off if you want to try to isolate the sound between the outdrive and the engine.

 

[skipdow]

Re: Am I too paranoid... or not enough

I still have my lifting frame set up over the boat and the chain hoist ready to go. I figured pulling the engine I can check the torque on the flywheel,flexplate and look at the bearing on the engine side.

 

[captmello]

Re: Am I too paranoid... or not enough

I still have my lifting frame set up over the boat and the chain hoist ready to go. I figured pulling the engine I can check the torque on the flywheel,flexplate and look at the bearing on the engine side.

suit yourself.

Let us know what you find.