Crusader Big Block problems

gregga

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Jun 4, 2012
Messages
44
Hey guys,

I have a 50' gibson houseboat with twin Crusader 454's. When I first purchased the boat (sat for about 3 years) I ran her down to my slip about 40 miles away and she ran ok the only problems I had was when the port engine reached 2600RPM it wouldn't rev any higher. The starboard engine ran flawless and will rev up to 4800-5000rpm so I initially thought I had a fuel problem on the port side so I shipped the carburetor to national carburetor in Jacksonville Florida and they rebuilt the carb, I put it back on and replaced the fuel/water separators and did both oil changes. I recently went back out to run the boat and now whats happening is whether its under a load or not as soon as I rev the engine up it hesitates significantly and then powers up and a few times I reved it up and it hesitated then stalled out. its worse off now than before I built the carburetor. Am I tackling the wrong diagnosis with the carburetor? I don't believe so because my timing is setup exactly the same as the starboard engine (which runs perfect) and the engine is setup exactly the same. Any thoughts? I was thinking maybe just some tuning issues with the new carb? but its the same exact carb that came off just rebuilt? Any input would be greatly appreciated. been tackling this problem for too many weeks now!!! Thank you guys.
 

salty87

Commander
Joined
Aug 12, 2003
Messages
2,327
Re: Crusader Big Block problems

what kind of carbs? points or electronic ignition? how old is the fuel?

when was the last time you did a tune up...cap, rotor, etc?
 

hottoddie

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Feb 26, 2011
Messages
40
Re: Crusader Big Block problems

To eliminate the carb as the culprit you can swap the over and see if the problem follows the carb. Sounds like they are older crusaders with mechanical advance distributors. The old mechanical advance systems are famous for broken springs or rusty frozen counter weights. If any of those things are malfunctioning you will not get them to run at their peak. If you are not familiar with these system find a good independent mechanic that knows his stuff. I have Crusader big blocks in my 1986 39 ft Sea Ray and they are great motors when treated right.
 
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