Repowering with a Tractor Motor

"You have to admire someone with that much ingenuity. I loved it.


The economical Brits have "striking" bow sprits that take but seconds to run in.

Janice, you might find something useful in this discussion on Cruiser's Forum for background and reference sources:


http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/f55/marinized-kubota-engine-what-are-the-differences-71116.html


-Chris

Thanks Chris... I did see a Hayes bell-housing (like mine) and it is an interesting thread. In comparing what's said against my Beta shop manual, everything seems to be lining up.

I ordered a boroscope from China to see what exactly is inside the manifold -- curiosity, don't 'cha know. It has not yet arrived. Amazon provided the seller with an incomplete address (it showed complete on my end)

The mechanic is due back in town this week so I should get some decent information next week. I am top on his list so that's a good thing.

Mechanic said he'd be here on the 25th however since he flies in late on the 24th, I'm looking for a well-rested and Ready to Work fellow on Monday. He's been off his boat for a month (his mom has cancer and started chemotherapy) so in Florida? With all the humidity? I'm guessing he'll be scrubbing mildew for at least a day or two before he gets here.

We shall see.

And thank you again for the link to that thread. I'm making notes.

Today (well, yesterday) the mechanic was aboard. The stainless box has been removed from the system. It seems redundant in that the heat exchanger will cool the engine water. Too, it was one more potential point of failure.

It's a beautiful planter now or will be.

Next comes hoses.
The original alternator is back on the engine. I've got a 55A spare to install, but not now. Currently I want the motor to work -- nothing more, nothing less.

Tweaking (the bigger/better alternator) will come once I'm mobile.

There has been a lot of concern about the stainless box. And those weighed heavily in the decision too. More than you can realize, your (collective) advice has been mulled over, studied, and has been Very Useful.

I've learned a lot more about a cooling system than I ever intended to. Today I (okay, mechanic Steve) showed me where the pencil zinc goes in my heat exchanger.

More to come. It's late, however before I hit the bunk I had to send "thanks" to those who have offered advice, input and information regarding this endeavor.

Sincere thanks to all from Seaweed.

"Tweaking (the bigger/better alternator) will come once I'm mobile."

If your alt is shaped like a Delco that is in cars , and has been the std for "ever"
an upgrade is cheap and easy.

Go to the parts guy (NAPA , Autozone whatever) and ask for a Caddy or other big car unit from the 60's.

These are 65-70 amps , and MOST important have external Voltage regulators.

The better brained marine V regulator will give 3 or 4 times faster charging than the car V regulator .

The V regulator is the key to short batt charging , frequently not just the alt size.

If you had 600lbs of House batts it would require the big alt.

FF said:

"Tweaking (the bigger/better alternator) will come once I'm mobile."

If your alt is shaped like a Delco that is in cars , and has been the std for "ever"
an upgrade is cheap and easy.

Go to the parts guy (NAPA , Autozone whatever) and ask for a Caddy or other big car unit from the 60's.

These are 65-70 amps , and MOST important have external Voltage regulators.

The better brained marine V regulator will give 3 or 4 times faster charging than the car V regulator .

The V regulator is the key to short batt charging , frequently not just the alt size.

If you had 600lbs of House batts it would require the big alt.

Click to expand...

Actually Rich gave me his Herth (sp?) that had been mounted to a Yanmar. He did send paperwork indicating it had been tweaked. He's an EE and understands this. I do not.

And he's in Melbourne which relatively speaking isn't that far once Seaweed is again mobile.

Life is definitely looking up. It was a longggg month waiting for the mechanic to get back from Pennsylvania. Thankfully, his mom is doing better and began treatment a few days ago.

And today I meet Larry and his Better Half. I'm looking forward to that. Life is indeed good.

Catching up: The mechanic again flew back to Pennsylvania. His mom's doctor called and he left. He's kept in touch. That said, I want a motor that runs, yesterday.

This week a neighbor boat has had a mechanic at his working on it. The mechanic (Sunrize in St. Pete) has not only shown up when he said, he's also returned phone calls and ... drumroll please: did the job to completion without issue. Even when stuff morphed.

Very impressive, for certain. Mechanic's name is Paul (owns company)

Of course Paul is busy. Today he stepped aboard Seaweed and took a look see at what I've got.

In the meantime, I'd taken that stainless box to a local welder and had it removed. The inside, well, that's a riser boys and girls. Yeah! A stainless one at that. The welder did a nice job and I'll have an article about that upcoming.

Picture of welder and what was inside that box. Also, he marked on the outside where the pipe (raw water) ends.


I am aware that ideally the riser would be one continuous piece of metal. For the record, the welds on the inside of the box were as good as those that showed outside. And yes, thanks to Stu (hi Stu) I have purchased 50' of the wrap for the pipe. The mechanic asked about that and I showed him the box.

Paul (Sunrize) believes he has the standard bolt-on heat exchanger that these Kubotas use. If so, we'll do a swap. If not, he'll have the hoses done in a day.

Paul has other jobs before me (including the boat right next to me) but I'm in his queue. And hopeful again.

And Off Duty, honest to Betsy, we will get together. I'd love to show your bride my home. Seaweed's not fancy and I like her just that way. You'll even get to take a gander at the newest solar panels. I tell you, my home is getting spiffier all the time.

Except for the gelcoat that looks 30+ years old. Seaweed's a boat, not a Yacht.

What a journey. Hang in there.

What fun! Keep us informed? ^What he said^

cardude01 said:

What a journey. Hang in there.

Click to expand...

Amen to that. That sweet wee boat needs to be back out there, motorin'...

IIRC, your riser is sch40, 316SS. You may ask him or a weld shop to clean, pickle, and passivate the riser. This would not only make it shiny again, but it would enhance the corrosion resistance of it, particularly the heat tint on the welds. Shouldn't take much time or cost much. Material is available at most weld shops, usually 20% nitric acid in a spray or gel, but citric acid is also commonly used.