Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

[Bondo]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

Ayuh,....

1),.. That's the reverse lock,+ trim indicator...

2),.. That's your call,.. They're testable....

3),.. Probably...

4),.. You Pushed it IN,..?? Why did you do That,..?? Now it's floating around,+ will Plug something up.....
I'd just Replace the manifolds... They don't last forever, Especially on a boat that's been in Saltwater...

5),.. That's what Used impellers always look like... because it's Used...

6),.. There's a sticky thread at the top of this forum,... Read It....

7),.. Bolting a Blower on a 40 year old motor will create an Anchor in very short order....
If you want to Haul *****..... Buy a boat with a Bigger Motor....

 

[chiefalen]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

How you gonna fish out that plug you pushed into the manifold.

I'm not scolding you, but you have to think, think, think, before you do something like that.

Before you try what i suggest now wait till others chime in cause they might have a better idea ok.

I think you might have to pull the riser to fish out that plug, do not run the motor till you do.

It was the manifold you pushed the plug into?

Can you see the plug in the hole you pushed it thru and grab it with needle nose pliers.

And yes if the threads were messed up, you could have tapped it larger for a larger screw in plug, brass please.

 

[mh11]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

Ok, so I tapped the stripped drain plug on the exhaust manifold, and replaced the brass plug. That is fine now.

One question though. I had the outdrive trimmed up to keep it off the ground, hooked the flush kit up, and started the motor. Runs great after having the shop set everything with the ignition to stock. Purrs like a kitten. Watched the drive, water is coming out which is good, the temperature never even got above 110 degrees. Is this normal????

Also, I noticed water shooting from both sides of the gimbal housing through holes on either side. Is that correct as well?

And lastly, I noticed that the exhaust coming out of the drive looks whiteish, almost like steam. Is that normal??? Is it just running rich?

Tried to take it to lake today, but it started raining, so I drained all the water out, and put her back in storage.

Thanks again for all of your help!!!!

 

[mh11]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

Can anyone help me with the questions i posted above????

Also, I noticed that the coil I think is the original one, and the plug wires seem to be in poor condition.

Where can I get a new coil and wires???

Thanks

 

[chiefalen]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

Ok the water coming out the holes normal.

The steam is exhaust normal.

The temp never going over 110, maybe someone pulled the t-stat and there aint one?

How did you fish out the plug outta the manifold?

 

[chiefalen]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

The coil works if you started it.

The wires can be bent open or close at the end a little to tighten the connection if you want.

Pull the wire and see what the end in the rubber looks like.

 

[mh11]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

Well here goes, i looked for the plug in the manifold, but didn't see anything. Maybe the drilling out to tap it just annihalated it???

Anyhoo, took it to the lake today. After having the dwell, timing, and advance set, it definitely jumps out of the water much better!!!!

Also, the water temp got up around 140 under full throttle, idling around it drops to around 110 to 120. Seems perfect.

Found the smoke........the joint from the riser to the y pipe, the coupler has a nice crack in it, and that explains the steam/exhaust coming up from that side near my feet.....looks like should be an easy cheap fix I can do myself, correct??

The trim motor is leaking, where can I get a rebuild kit for it????

Now, a few more issues I need help with if possible.........thanks again for everyone's help by the way!!!

1) I am only getting 3900 to 4100 rmp at full throttle. I inspected the butterfly in the carb, and it seems like it's open about 95 percent of the way. Is this just an easy adjustment with the cable??

2) The shifting from forward to neutral, then reverse seems harder than it should be. Is this just a basic adjustment????

Also, to diagnose the smoke condition, i drove the boat with the engine cover open to be able to see in the engine compartment.

1) I noticed that there is slight smoke coming from the valve covers out of the hoses where they go in to the spark arrestor, is this normal???

2) Also, the engine sounds like it is popping, or backfiring when I am almost at full throttle....What could that be????

3) How do I get up around 4200-4600 which is where I should be???? Now that I have the ignition working much better, should I adjust the jetting???

4) Is it possible that the fuel pressure is not enough????

5) My fuel level gauges are obviously not working, are they just simple sender units that I can buy and replace??? If so, who would have something like that???

Thanks again!!!

 

[chiefalen]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

Slight smoke might be moisture, not uncommon.

Trim motor, hoses might need to be tighten.

Shifting problem, at what rpm are you idling at? Should shift at 650-700 rpm no more.

Fuel pressure easy to check with a cheap gauge no more than 7 psi, the book with a carb set-up says 4-6 psi.

I think the popping is the dizzy not set right.

And the carb setup the butterfly not opening all the way is a slight adjustment.

Not reaching 4200-4600 wot may be a dirty bottom, water in the bilge, or not the right prop.

But before you go out and buy a prop,what prop you have on it now, and get the motor running good first.

Fuel sender, clean the connections on the gas tank, and the ones on the gauge. Check the fuse.

Good luck keep us posted

 

[mh11]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

Thanks for the reply, I will tighten the hoses on the trim and see if that fixes the problem.

The boat idles around 6-700 rpm very smoothly, it just seems tough to get it from forward into neutral and then to reverse, just hard to find each gear.

I will check the fuel pressure.

Sorry for asking, but when you say the dizzy is not set right, what is the dizzy?? I have never heard that before.....

I can tell you, the bottom of the boat is perfectly clean, there is no water in the bilge except for the exhaust leak, and what little water that is letting in.

The prop is a 17 pitch, 3 blade mercury prop, down from the 5 blade 23 pitch stainless prop that came with the boat, and bogged it down.

Thanks again for all the help!!!!

 

[bolo78910]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

wow i think you need a manual for your boat , it will tells you a lot about your engine ect. also use the search option above you will get good result also. good luck on your new toy.

 

[mh11]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

Ok, about to get the boat winterized, gonna take her out for one last weekend.

Questions.

1) The boat has a mercruiser 260 with Chevy crate motor with quadrajet carb. What jets can any of you recommend for use at 3800-4600 feet altitude? I don't know what jets are in it, but I would like to get it close before putting it away for the winter.....

2) I am stuck at 3900 to 4100 rpm wot. Trim setting will get a few extra rpms but not much.......bottom is clean as a whistle.

3) What trim setting should I use? There is no gauge, just the buttons.

Thanks for all of your help, you all are the best!!!

 

[mh11]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

Help please! I didn't want to pay a dealer to winterized my boat.

Here is what I did.

Have stabil already in tanks, topped off tanks with fuel.

I started motor with flush kit, warmed up motor, sprayed fogging oil in carb, shut motor down, did not diesel at all.

Pulled the two drain plugs on block, and two plugs up on the exhaust manifolds, and pulled the big hose off of the oil cooler. Drained everything out, then put plugs back in.

Took the thermostat out, and poured about 3 gallons of rv/marine antifreeze in the housing. Started up motor for a few seconds, then poured a little more in.

Pulled all spark plugs and sprayed fogging oil in each cylinder and put plugs back in.

Have outdrive stored in down position.

Should I be ok?

Thanks!!!!

 

[Don S]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

You will get a lot more answers if you start posting each differnt project as a seperate thread. After a couple of replies to this it will be buried somewhere near the end of this thread. Then people will start answereing your original question again. Happens all the time.

 

[mh11]

Re: Help with 1978 galaxie 260 mercruiser

How do I do that again?

Do you think i am ok with the way I winterized my boat??

Thanks