Mike on Sea Hustler

Tracy D'arth I like that idea, less little bits to drop into the bilge. Thanks. Tony Everything for economy and ease of function, I think the conversion kit may be the best way to go for the reasons given of less stuff to drop into the bilges. Thanks both

Tony Thanks again, the engine was rebuilt in 2000 (sales blurb said so anyway) but don't know if the bores were lined or not. I havent run the engine since last year because I also had to replace a core plug that had started weeping and she has been stood up pretty much since I did that. I intend to run the engine up this week end whilst clenching the butttocks very tightly. John. K Honestly whoever designed the engine bay on this boat (Mr C Burnard Son of A Burnard of Fairy Fisher fame) spent about 15 seconds considering how the owner was supposed to service the engine. Even getting to the oil filter requires the flexibility of a snake and if I should drop anything while I do it and it falls in the bilge, it is impossible to retrieve it. so far, my best screwdriver, two sockets and countless nuts, bolts and washers are all lying beneath the engine and despite magnet fishing for hours, I still can't get y of them back. So oil filters come off as very last resort Im afraid. Following picture taken before starting any work on it last year, looks a whole heap better now. To fit the new core plug I had to create a small screw jack and brace it against the side bulkhead to force the plug in because there was no room to move a hammer let alone hit anything.

Tracy D'Arth, Thanks for the reply, I left it until the following morning, discovered the mistake I had made and fitted the correct O ring, replaced the oil turned it by hand a turn or two, and then cranked it over, it complained a little while on the starter. Mr Starter was not very happy for a few seconds, there was some brief squealing while the oil ran up, as soon as the oil hit the bores it took off and fired up and ran without any knocking or other identifiable evil noises. There was a little blue smoke for about 10/20 seconds then nothing. I can't tell what revs I was at because the rev counter didnt/doesnt work (hope i've fixed that problem now) I have an oil pressure gauge and on a touch of throttle it holds at 35 PSI. I tootled round to the fuel bert at a slow tick over with no adverse signs of anything amiss which gave me the hope that "I had gotten away with it". As in everything in life, there is always the doom merchant and this guy the other day got me worried that I may have done some serious damage that is going to come back and bite me on the stern when I least expect it. Tony, You have helped me in the past with a water pump issue and if you say so, I think I will breath easier, you being the Master and all. Thanks John. K Perhaps I should have done that when I replaced the oil, if my paranoia gets bad enough, I will stick my head down the bilges and do that (you would not believe how tight the engine space is on my boat) MtB I have heard this expression before "picked up a bearing" I honestly do not know what is meant by it, Im thinking you are describing an end shell welding itself to the crank shaft but Im only guessing. Given the somewhat gentle way the engine stopped and the subsequent stiffness and squealing from the piston rings before the oil pressure got up, Im thinking and hoping that it was a piston sticking and not something lower down. I also hope that the absence of any discernible knocking from the engine does mean the Grindy Metal Gods were smiling on me that day and I did in fact "get away with it". John. K Again. Sadly the nearest she would ever get to being blue water is if I spilt some paint in the dock while refreshing her hull. She is a 24ft shoal drafted bilge keel Motor sailer and whilst I thank you for you input, I also envy your ability to "took the Gardner out of my boat and replaced it with a Detroit ,simply because the Gardner was too old", I do not have that option. Thanks anyway. I accept that I must almost inevitably have done some damage to the liners and/or rings. Engines are supposed to run with that slippery stuff keeping those metaly grindy pieces apart but I am hoping that because the engine is of the FBH generation, it will forgive the ignominy of my abuse and begrudgingly accept we all make mistakes. As it is 54 years old and I have just turned 70, Im hoping that it will show a little respect for its elders and continue to give me many more years of faithful service before we both finally swim off to Davy Jones's locker.

Last year I ran my 1500 BMC for the first time in 5 years. I had just bought the boat and she had sat in the marina being used as an apartment by the previous owners all that time . I did all the necessary new belts, hoses, oil, impeller, spill rail, coolant the lot. Filters everything, I now readily accept that I made a mistake in fitting the wrong O ring into the oil filter canister and dumped all the oil in the bilge. Ran the engine at very low revs for about 45 minutes but Didn’t notice what was happening and the engine seized. It was a gentle siege because of the very low Revs and the engine has run well since for about an hour. I thought I had ‘got away with it’ until yesterday when someone told me I wouldn’t be able to tell until it unless it goes wrong on me. Would appreciate it if someone could check how long that piece of string is in their pocket and give me their opinion

Not sure I fancy putting any part of my anatomy near those spinning pulleys, my friend who owns a boat yard and has been around these engines for years (can never answer those difficult questions though) has lost both his thumbs from doing something like that and I quite like my thumbs where they are methinks. I think I will check the connections on this blue wire to see if there may be an issue there otherwise, I will leave it for now as there are many other jobs associated with making way that need my attention and although not quite the same, I have been around automotical travelating devices most of my life and know when an engine is stressed so will just keep the revs within 'nice' and not worry too much about numbers.

I fear that because she was sitting for such a long time, the pulleys are not in that good condition, quite rusted up apart from the water pump which of course is aluminium. I have fitted new belts and Im keeping a close eye on them every time I run the engine to see how badly they are wearing. I can hit things with hammers, twist things with spanners even loosen things with heat and WD40 but when it comes to something I cannot see like electrictrickery, Im stumped. should that blue wire have power to it if so I can stick a dc tester on it if not its throw hands up in the air time and add it to the list of 'when I can afford it' jobs

That light blue wire with the white plastic connecter is the one with the label on which says Rev counter repair, if you look closely you can see it is fed into the back of the alternator through one of the slots in the black cover separate from the rest of the loom.

These are the best two images I have of the alternator, they were taken before I began work on the engine. Everything is a lot cleaner now and not so cluttered with random cables running everywhere.

So back from the boat.. Successfully tackled a number of jobs, all of which bar a couple bring me to about time to start painting. Still need to finish two small jobs on the engine and we are ready to go - I think- the banjo bolt on top of the fuel filter has a slight leak so need to tackle that which I'm hoping is just a case of replacing the copper washer. I have taken the measurement of the two lines to and from the filter to the injection pump and they look like 6mm. Checked the gearbox oil and it was full and nice and clean - it has etched on the dip stick "use type A fluid" whatever that is. I tried to get the cover off the back of the alternator but it wouldn't budge, however, I found a wire with a faint label wrapped round it which said 'Rev counter repair' and its clear it has been wired in at some later stage, tracing it to the back of the control panel, its the same wire (well same colour anyway) I cant find a fuse anywhere and I don't have a multimeter so I'm guessing I need to get someone in to look at that. I do have a DC tester which I can use to see if there is any current getting to it, otherwise, I will just have to be kind to the engine and keep the revs in a happy place.

Off to the boat again tomorrow, as you can imagine, my mind is forever in the bilges thinking of what task I need to tackle next. Before I move away from the engine, there is something I think I should address. When working on it a while ago, I was removing the old fuel filter when the plastic return hose connecting the filter and the first injector just crumbled in my hand. On inspection all four of them were in similar condition so I replaced all four. I noted that the hose from the filter to the injector pump appeared to be of a similar material (cant really tell as its been painted over) and logic tells me if the four injector return lines were knackered, it stands to reason that this line is also, in the same state it should also be replaced. do you know what diameter this line is so that I can order new replacement lines. I think there may be a second line as well. another quick question, I won't be putting the thing in gear as she is still high and dry but I have been told the Borg Warner Velvet drive uses the same 30 grade oil as the engine, is that correct? Will also pull the cover from the back of the alternator and take a pic

So................ Arrived at the boat yesterday lunchtime and set about the first job ordered by the skipper, "get the coal burning stove working please", spent all afternoon on that job only to be met with problems meaning it was not safe to light last night, (yes she loves the smell of burning houses, even in June) Then this morning set about the engine. As directed, lifted the cockpit sole and gave the beast a very steely stare, muttered incantation as instructed by Fuel Angel of the Deep and informed said assortment of nuts, bolts pistons, chains pumps and injectors that I came armed with knowledge and copious quantities of electrickery with which to claim it's soul. Fitted new batteries, and set about bleeding the fuel system. In the hope that I had managed to bleed it as least as far as the pump in my previous efforts, I cracked open two injectors and turned it over on the key, as hoped, fuel spurted from the two injectors I had loosened confirming that the many hours labour and ripped knuckles I had endure trying to change the lift pump had all been unnecessary because it was working fine. But more to my amazement, after about 10 seconds or so, it tried to fire up. I rushed off to get as much water as I could carry (30 litres) and sorted the sea strainer. Cranked it over on full throttle and bingo, it fired, however, it only ran for about 5 seconds or so before stopping again. It continued to do this for about 4/5 tries before I sat back and scratched my head. Thinking that if it was so ready to start after 5 years lying dormant, it would seem everything was ready to go EXCEPT I had fiddled with the throttle body adjustment which as you know I had mistaken for the bleed valve. So I loosened the lock nut and backed it off a turn and BINGO it started first time. Unfortunately, the Rev Counter does not work so I have no idea what revs its doing on tick over so that is something I need to sort. After making suitable offerings to the deity and mentally thanking you all for your assistance, I let it sit for a while and gave it another go, it starts on the first throw of the starter and settles down with no hunting or lumpy running at all. I would have assumed on an engine of this era, the rev counter would be a direct drive from somewhere (not a new fangled electricaltronical one) but my memory seems to tell me that when I checked out the back of the gauge, there was no old fashioned cable type arrangement so Im guessing it is powered by electicwizardry after all. That being the case, I will need to delve into why its not working with a multi meter I guess. Anyway, again, thank you to all of you for your help especially Tony and no doubt you will all hear a plaintive cry "heeeeelp" carried on the breeze sometime soon, it will be me in difficulty again. Thanks Mike

Thanks Tracy, In truth, Im not sure about the pump, when I operate the pump by hand, there appears to be little resistance, I did get a gurgling sound when moving the pump body around while it was unbolted from the block suggesting something was going on in the 'pumping world'. I managed to get some bubbles at the filter outlet followed by what I took to be steady fuel flow. The same at the bleed screw on top of the injector pump but zero at the screw on the side and nothing at the injectors, honestly, Im not sure if the pump is working properly or not. Tomorrow I attack the job again with a new starter battery, improved knowledge and a special incantation woven for me by the Fuel Angel of the Deep, she assures me that her magic is more powerful than any technical issues so I have complete confidence that the engine will fire by me just looking at it with a meaningful stare but we shall see.

Thanks Alex and Tony, I intend to stay mainly costal cruising but will run up the rivers from time to time, there are some really beautiful spots to be reached upstream and the Skipper may say she has had enough of waves for a while and wants the water to stop moving so much. I understand the studs now, I need to replace a nut and washer for the one I sacrificed to the Great Bilge Gods before I try turning the engine over tomorrow, I think its a 3/8th isn't it

Thanks for that info Tony, Note to self, leave glow plugs alone On the BSS, I have a friend who you may well know, name of Bev and his brother Chris, they have also been quite helpful but I'm often met with a "Im not sure" from them if I pose too technical questions. Bev keeps telling me "it must be BSS Compliant" so I assumed it did, Sea Hustler is a bilge keel Motor Sailer with a very shallow draft, only 2'6" and I was intending to do a bit of inland water ways exploration at some time and although my insurance company did not ask for a Certificate, I guess I will need a one in the future.

LOL, thought I had, so many posts I've lost track, still it gave me a chance to edit it and thank the others that have offered assistance. S

Hi Gents, Tony, Many thanks for the info, I couldn't find those instruction in the pdf manual that I have but your description was pretty clear and I was fairly sure I could do the job armed with that, having those instruction will make it even easier so thanks again. Just one question, (sorry you've been so helpful already) you mentioned in an earlier post on adjusting the idle speed "near the disc thing" I'm trying to picture the injection pump from 78 mile away and I'm not really sure what you meant by that, could you explain please. And to All three of you, Alec and David included, On the lift pump - I think I have pretty much exhausted every possibility and reading what you all say I was able to tick off just about everything I have done thus far. I think your posts enable me to decide that if the pump may possibly be faulty my best option is to leave it in situ, fit a low pressure electric pump and simply take the manual pump offline. Just to confirm, Im fairly convinced from your descriptions that I have the hooked type of pump (that's the one Calcutt boats sent me anyway) and not only can I not pull the original far enough off the studs to lever it out, nor can I get a second nut onto the studs to remove them either as they are not long enough, Its interesting that you say the nuts do not need to be tightened too much as I was surprised they seem pretty loose when I took them off, now I know why. Removing the studs would work using half nuts I guess and is an option should I need to, it will be a toss up between that and fitting an electric pump, I keep hearing mention a BSS Certificate and having done some research I would need to ensure any pump I fitted complied. I have seen some inexpensive metal ones floating around on eBay, would they do? or do I need something more sophisticated. I doubt very much if I could fit the new lift pump with any confidence that I would get the arm the correct side of the cam given the lack of wiggle room I have down there either ,so at the moment, the electric option is ahead by a short neck.. Starter battery arrived today so I will fit a new starter battery and leisure battery at the weekend, see if I cant finish bleeding the fuel system and give it a go. As I said earlier, I reckon three things could stop it firing, Fuel supply - but I should be able to confirm that by bleeding it up to the injectors before I try starting it. Glow Plugs, they will be my first item to check and if they are good its down to the injectors themselves. So fingers crossed and I shall pray to the Diesel Gods to bestow their bounteous blessing upon me - or better still, on the engine. Thought I had posted this last night but guess I didn't meanwhile thanks again for all your help, a newbie like me would be sat here scratching my head otherwise.

Hi Tony, Many thanks for the info, I couldn't find those instruction in the pdf manual that I have but your description was pretty clear and I was fairly sure I could do the job armed with that, having those instruction will make it even easier so thanks again. Just one question, (sorry you've been so helpful already) you mentioned in an earlier post on adjusting the idle speed "near the disc thing" I'm trying to picture the injection pump from 78 mile away and I'm not really sure what you meant by that, could you explain please. On the lift pump - I think I have pretty much exhausted every possibility and reading what you say I was able to tick off just about everything I have done thus far. I think your post enables me to decide that if the pump may possibly be faulty my best option is to leave it in situ, fit a low pressure electric pump and simply take the manual pump offline. Just to confirm, Im fairly convinced from your description that I have the hooked type of pump (that's the one Calcutt boats sent me anyway) and not only can I not pull the original far enough off the studs to lever it out, nor can I get a second nut onto the studs to remove them either as they are not long enough, I doubt very much if I could fit the new one with any confidence that I would get the arm the correct side of the cam given the lack of wiggle room I have down there either. Starter battery arrived today so I will fit a new starter battery and leisure battery at the weekend, see if I cant finish bleeding the fuel system and give it a go. As I said earlier, I reckon three things could stop it firing, Fuel supply - but I should be able to confirm that by bleeding it up to the injectors before I try starting it. Glow Plugs, they will be my first item to check and if they are good its down to the injectors themselves. So fingers crossed and I shall pray to the Diesel Gods to bestow their bounteous blessing upon me - or better still, on the engine.

Makes you wonder what benefits there are in diluting diesel with cabbage water, after all, nature (cows) produces more green house gases in one day than all the internal combustion engines ever built.

Hi Tony, Thanks for that, The bleed screw and its accompanying nuts and screws was painter over with blue Hammarite, I took it to pieces and wire brushed the threads before reassembling it. Im pretty sure that I only screwed it back together to about the same settings. I will try what you have said and report back on my glorious success - or otherwise. Hi MtB No its diesel, I have added 10 litres of new fuel so Im hoping that whatever was still in the tank will be combustible. I have checked the water trap, lift pump gauze and replaced the fuel filter so Im hoping that will be enough on the fuel quality side. As my other comments demonstrate, I have messed up the anti-stall not realising what it was while trying to bleed the system. Tony have given me some good pointers and I will certainly try what he suggests when I next stand looking down on the engine and wondering why I did this to myself.

Not sure how much fuel was left in the tank but I have added 10 litres of fresh fuel myself and checked the brass gauze in the lift pump which was fine, new Fuel filter as well. Although there was not much resistance when I operated the lift pump, I did get bubbles followed by neat fuel at the spare outlet on the fuel filter and from the top bleed screw on the injector pump though nothing from the bleed screw on the side. I havent reached the 'will it start' stage yet because I am waiting on a new set of batteries as the originals are knackered and only 20ah each so I wanted to replace them anyway.

Yeah thanks I found it, I have posted what I hope is a reasonable clear reply which I hope its not to convoluted.

HI Again, Starting from the tank, I cracked the union at the inlet on the fuel filter, managed to get fuel up to the point (I think - not exactly gushing out) moved on to the spare outlet and did the same, undid the bleed screw on the side of the injector pump and set to on sorting the bleed screw on top of the pump, here is where I messed up. I didn't realise that the anti-stall was what it is and wrongly assumed it was the bleed screw. I removed the entire thing and while I had it off I disassembled it completely and cleaned all the parts up, Spring, needle etc. There is a badly perished O ring that sits under the locking nut which I will have to replace next time I'm at the boat. I reassembled the three pieces and screwed it back onto the top of the Injector pump. Using the lift pump, I got free flowing fuel out of the bleed screw but nothing from the one on the side. I did crack a union at one of the injectors but got nothing, Im told I would need to crank the engine on the starter to achieve this which I cant do until my new batteries arrive in the next few days. In summary, I have prepared the engine as best I can to fire up (not been started since 2018 but does turn freely,) Im told that these engines whilst old, are pretty robust and there should be few reasons it would not start even after such a long time. My issues before this were, (1) are the pre-heaters working and (2) are the injectors doing likewise. Now I have to add a third question, (3) is the anti stall going to stop it firing. Is there a way I can adjust the anti stall just to fire it up that would allow it to start and which I could then adjust to get the right tick over speed. Hope all that makes sense.

Many thanks, I have a magnet on a string with which I have already retrieved a number of dropped items but my view is very restricted a little like a blind man fly fishing in the English Channel. I will be taking a long stick with me next time I go to the boat but there is so little room and I'm working though a small trapdoor at the front of the engine with little or no sight of what Im looking for. I did consider removing the heat exchanger to give me better access but in all honesty, simply fitting an electric pump would be a lot easier I think. Thanks for your advice, got to remember how to find my other thread now LOl Can you recall what title I gave that other post because I cant remember

Thanks everyone for your advise, so I have wriggled, pulled, twisted, heaved, pushed, lifted, (as far as I am able) shaken my fist at, sworn quite a bit and wondered why I didn't buy a sports car but nothing worked. Knowing my limitations, I vowed I would not do a Jeremy Clarkson on this boat and replace steady and sure with "power and speed". The last thing I want or can afford is to do serious damage to something I cannot repair myself. Nothing I did would make this pump come off so in desperation I refitted it and started the whole process again trying to bleed the system, deciding that if I cant get it to work and I cant remove it, I would simply take it offline and replace it with a 12v electric pump which I'm confident I can do. It is also worth noting that to reach the lift pump I have to lay on the cockpit sole with my feet in the aft cabin and reach at arms length down to the pump while resting my forehead on the cross member above the engine. Adding the diesel which is now soaking my hands, making all my tools super slippery, I have so far lost my best screwdriver, a 12 and 13mm spanner and one retaining nut into the bilges. Which, given the total lack of space around and under the engine are now lost to the Great Bilge God of the Sea until one day I decide to lift the engine completely (should have done it when I had the funds ) From another post made today, you may see I have hit another snag with the anti stall thingy, mistaking it for a bleed screw and loosening it (oh and why not disassemble the entire thing and clean it up while you have it off) only to discover that the bleed screw was just the little bolt on top and not the entire thing. A boat yard has advised me to remove the entire pump and send it away to be reset at the factory, that seems excessive because there is an O ring under the locking nut and if every time that had to be replaced you had to remove the pump and send it away, that would be stupid. Looking at the enclosed pic, that metal thing on the right is the fuel tank, comparing the width of the air filter you can see that there is not a lot of room so the ships cat is perfectly safe as I couldn't swing it if I tried. Any advice will be thankfully received and faithfully applied. Mike

So, I'm new to boating having just bought a 24ft Motor Sailer but more especially to BMC 1500 Captain engines, so please be kind. I have a little knowledge of engines being of an age when we could hit things with hammers when they didn't work, but I am by no means an expert so would welcome any help I can get. My boat has been used as a live aboard since 2018, one of the many jobs is to get the engine running again as it has not been fired up in anger since then. So I have overhauled the water pump, replace many of the cooling hoses before moving on to the fuel supply, tried to replace the lift pump - cant get the old one off because Mr. Boat Designer imagined I had the dexterity of a snake and would be able to slither down between the fuel tank and the engine into that tiny space where I can hardly fit my hand let alone work. so bleeding the fuel lines seemed iffy, there is little resistance when I manually operate the lift pump, however I did get bubbles followed by free flowing diesel at the filter outlet before moving on to the injection pump, here is where I hit problems. The instructions say to crack two bleed screws, one on top of the pump and one on the side. So having cracked the one on the side of the pump, my mistake was in thinking that the bleed screw on top of the pump was the entire thing which I now discover is the anti-stall adjuster and not just the very small bolt on the top which is actually the bleed screw . Despite pumping for 3 1/2 years -seemed like it anyway - nothing came out of the screw on the side, but it was flowing freely from the top screw. Checking in line from the fuel tank, there is fuel in the water trap and lift pump,(brass gauze is clean) Although I can t tell if the pump is knackered I got bubbles at the filter outlet then free flowing diesel so I assume it is doing something at least. Then at the injection pump I got fuel from the top bleed screw but nothing from the one on the side. Advise I have had from a boat yard is to remove the entire pump and send it off to be factory set, I find that a bit strange because under the locking nut is a rubber O ring which will perish and need replacing on a fairly regular basis and to have to remove the pump and send it away in order to replace a rubber O ring seems excessive to me. Somewhere down the line the engine has been painted with blue Hammarite and I did disassemble the anti-stall thingy to clean it up before putting it back together and refitting it. I don't know if I have by chance reset it to the correct setting but surely there has to be a way to adjust this without removing the pump and sending it away at a cost of lots of shiny pennies. Any advise would be very welcome