79MERC1150
Seaman Apprentice
- Joined
- Aug 10, 2008
- Messages
- 43
I finally broke down and took the old 79 Merc 115 to the local Mercury dealer for a new water pump. It had been 13 years and the pump still worked well, however I figured that I had borrowed enough time on this thing over and over again. Sure the old boat only has about 300 hours on it since new, and it is has always been used in a clear mountain lake, but 13 years is 13 years. Things don't always wear out, they can also rot from old age.
And I do keep up with the items I can handle myself. The lower unit gets new grease at the first of each season, and again for winter storage. We always run the carbs dry after each run, and keep Stable in the tank year round. And to top it off the boat is stored in a heated garage when not in use. The dealer calls it a time capsule
.
The dealer laughed when I told him that the last time the boat had been shopped was in 1998. Funny thing though, when the old pump was removed, it looked new. The mechanic saved it for me, and remarked that the pump looked perfect. He accused me of having a senior moment, and maybe having the pump changed last year and forgeting about it. I assured him that it had been 13 years. He said that is one for the books. I told him it was probably dumb luck.
I paid the bill, and picked up the boat last week. Towed the old rig straight to the lake to check her out. All of the grandchildren are coming to visit in a few weeks, and I want to make every effort to ensure that the boat runs well and does not mess up the weekend. The old girl fired right up and ran as good as new. About 1/4 mile out into the lake, it stalled. After a few minutes, I managed to get it started. Six stalls, and restarts later, we finally got back to the boat ramp.
The next morning I was back at the dealer. The mechanic pulled up, and said I don't like the looks of this. It just left, and now it's back. Well the fuel pump is bad, the antibackflow valve is bad, and the fuel pick-up tube was cracked. When the mechanic got all of those items fixed, he found that the lower 1/3 of the fuel tank was full of water. Apparently the fuel pick up tube had been cracked for a while, and water had slowly built up in the bottom of the tank. When he installed the new fuel pick up tube, for the first time in years, it was pulling fuel from the bottom of the tank.
The mechanic was a little red faced about the whole thing. I told him that when a boat is 31 years old, every day is a new adventure, and anything can happen. What does all of this mean? Who knows? Murphy's law? Maybe the old Merc is ready for 13 more years....
And I do keep up with the items I can handle myself. The lower unit gets new grease at the first of each season, and again for winter storage. We always run the carbs dry after each run, and keep Stable in the tank year round. And to top it off the boat is stored in a heated garage when not in use. The dealer calls it a time capsule
. The dealer laughed when I told him that the last time the boat had been shopped was in 1998. Funny thing though, when the old pump was removed, it looked new. The mechanic saved it for me, and remarked that the pump looked perfect. He accused me of having a senior moment, and maybe having the pump changed last year and forgeting about it. I assured him that it had been 13 years. He said that is one for the books. I told him it was probably dumb luck
. I paid the bill, and picked up the boat last week. Towed the old rig straight to the lake to check her out. All of the grandchildren are coming to visit in a few weeks, and I want to make every effort to ensure that the boat runs well and does not mess up the weekend. The old girl fired right up and ran as good as new. About 1/4 mile out into the lake, it stalled. After a few minutes, I managed to get it started. Six stalls, and restarts later, we finally got back to the boat ramp
. The next morning I was back at the dealer. The mechanic pulled up, and said I don't like the looks of this. It just left, and now it's back
. Well the fuel pump is bad, the antibackflow valve is bad, and the fuel pick-up tube was cracked. When the mechanic got all of those items fixed, he found that the lower 1/3 of the fuel tank was full of water. Apparently the fuel pick up tube had been cracked for a while, and water had slowly built up in the bottom of the tank. When he installed the new fuel pick up tube, for the first time in years, it was pulling fuel from the bottom of the tank. The mechanic was a little red faced about the whole thing. I told him that when a boat is 31 years old, every day is a new adventure, and anything can happen. What does all of this mean? Who knows? Murphy's law? Maybe the old Merc is ready for 13 more years...
.