Boat saga--The $500.00 Carburetor screw!!

Well, you have been wondering what I had found wrong with my boat engine. After much investigation and scratching of heads, here is what I found. First, let me rewind just a tad….

My last post I wrote that I suspected detonation as the problem, eating away the #2 piston. That was a pretty good call except for the fact that the 5 metal “chunks” that I found in said cylinder were steel (as demonstrated by holding a magnet near them) pistons are aluminum and not attracted to a magnets. There was a possibility of the “chunks” being parts of the top compression ring in the piston, but disassembly of the block revealed the piston rings intact. These steel chunks were not more that ¼” long, and sort of round-ish. I thought the worst….I thought that I had dropped something down the intake when I built the engine despite being very meticulous about it.

After consulting with many of my mechanic customers and a wild dream, I went to the garage to inspect the carburetor- a Rochester Quadra-Jet. I picked it up, turned it over and was amazed at what I saw. One baseplate screw was missing!!! I realized then that I was at the machine shop’s mercy—they had nothing to do with the problem therefore they didn’t have to warranty their work. I was kinda sick. I mean, who would have ever checked to see if those screws are tight—outta sight, outta mind, right?

Well, after calling Jay at Custom Motors and revealing the truth (after a little objections from others) he said that he would treat me right and was glad to know the cause. Well the head took a lot of work and the block had to be re-bored and the one cylinder sleeved but it’s finally ready! I am going to pick it up at lunch today!! The total bill? $497.00!!! Well below what they could have charged me! If you need an engine, take it to Custom Motors!!!