Bearcat problem

[Super Sportster]

I've run this last engine all summer with almost no problems until recently when it began smoking and using oil. I had an idea this might happen so it wasn't a surprise. The good news is it gave me the opportunity to find out if the engine I bought last Sept was any good. So last Sunday I removed and replaced powerheads. Had a few things to fix on this latest one, the rectifier stud was broke off and the block drain hole was rotted out. Pulled the block cover, welded on a new stud, filled the drain hole, drilled and tapped a new hole, fixed. It also had some soft plug issues which I repaired. Monday I fired it up. It instantly started and settled into a nice 500 rpm slow idle. Minor adjustments to the carbs, it runs very nice. Had an oil leak at the fuel pump gasket, lower bolt was stripped and now has a heili-coil repair and new gasket. The only thing now left to do is a valve adjustment as it's a little noisy. Looks like it's never been done as the valve cover gasket has white paint on the edge. My gut feeling when I bought this told me it was a good one. The PO couldn't get it to turn over due to his wiring to the ignition switch. He thought it was the solenoid but I jumped it and it turned over. Just listening to it roll through the compression sounded good and even. I'm glad he didn't get it started. I'll find out this next week how good it runs.

[Helmar]

So.....The last engine just went to storage ?

Hell, listen to me, I still have a 50 Merc hanging on the back of a boat in Sandy that needs to be here.
I guess I was storing it

Sounds like it might be a runner so hope so.

The first one of those I tried to run, looked good. I had to swap carbs, and a bunch of other things and when I got it to fire, I thought a rod was going to come out of the side of the block or out the pan.

Which makes me wonder about Tim's Bearcat that blew up on him.
I think it had a problem from the time he got it as it always had a weird vibration to it.
Will never know as he unloaded all his Bearcat stuff.

[Super Sportster]

So.....The last engine just went to storage ?

Hell, listen to me, I still have a 50 Merc hanging on the back of a boat in Sandy that needs to be here.
I guess I was storing it

Sounds like it might be a runner so hope so.

The first one of those I tried to run, looked good. I had to swap carbs, and a bunch of other things and when I got it to fire, I thought a rod was going to come out of the side of the block or out the pan.

Which makes me wonder about Tim's Bearcat that blew up on him.
I think it had a problem from the time he got it as it always had a weird vibration to it.
Will never know as he unloaded all his Bearcat stuff.

It wasn't the last one I bought but the last possible runner I bought. I ran out of storage room and the only way to make room for it was to break it down into three pieces so I never got a chance to try it. I went through the lower unit last winter, the powerhead was just sitting in the garage. After running the other one for about an hour last Saturday with a cloud of smoke
and oil dripping from the lower unit drain holes I decided that was enough. I'm thinking the rings are not seating. I wanted to know if this powerhead was good and this seemed as good a time as any to try it.

So far I've had six of them up and running which includes the 85hp. Four of the 55's have been run on the boat for at least 25 hrs each. No broken distributor keys and no weird vibrations, each one runs like the others.

Yep, there had to be something wrong with Tim's engine from day one and I think I would have dumped it much sooner than put up with the problems as long as he did.

[Helmar]

I have to get into my carbs as the pumps are no longer working. The upper one seems to work most of the time but the lower one just won't pump.

Other than that, everything checks out pretty good, valves and such.

[Super Sportster]

Pull them out, oil them, push the leather out bigger than the bore then stuff'm back in which has worked fine for me. Also make sure the passages are clean and the check valve is working. My biggest problem is the rusted garter spring under the leather cup, haven't found a source for them yet.

[Helmar]

Pull them out, oil them, push the leather out bigger than the bore then stuff'm back in which has worked fine for me. Also make sure the passages are clean and the check valve is working. My biggest problem is the rusted garter spring under the leather cup, haven't found a source for them yet.

I would except, they or one at least is cracked

[Super Sportster]

If it's just the leather cup that's cracked and the spring is good I might be able to help you out.

[Super Sportster]

Problem solved for now

It runs great!:GoodJob: Fishing was good also, with a limit of trout in two hrs. Trolled @ 500 rpm, 1.5 mph and got a top speed of 28 mph @ 5400 rpm, the fastest of any of the 55's to date. Now just those damn valves to adjust..................