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Dan
As you know, the Walter V-drive is seawater cooled. They typically last about 25 years or so before they rust out. There are other failure modes, but corrosion is the most common. The cooling jacket will rust with age, restricting water flow through the cooling jacket. Every two or three years, it is suggested that you open the cooling jacket and scrape the rust out. Eventually, the jacket will weep seawater into the case. You can see this happen by examining the color of the case oil. It should be clear or gray. If it turns milky brown in color, you have water intrusion. Sadly, Walter no longer stocks replacement cases. When yours fails, you have three choices.
1 – replace it with an RV-26 (expensive)
2 – patch it with marine-tex (tedious)
3 – run it without cooling water (risky)If you chose the third option, ask the group about their experiences with no cooling water. Walter flatly rejects the idea, but some owners have had success.
Something to consider when the time comes. For a variety of reasons, most new engines run faster than the old W60 (approx 2200 RPM). A 2:1 gear reduction is not optimal for the 424 and most modern diesel engines. If you swap out the old V-drive, consider changing the gear reduction.
Regards
Rich – BlackSheep #47Quote:<.. snip>Post generated from Pearson424 Forum using Mail2Forum
2500 hours isn’t much for a diesel. There are a number of things in the power train that are more related to age than hours of use however. The fuel tank and V-drive may be near the end of their expected life. Engine accessories such as starter, alternator, and transmission may need service. Injectors may need to be rebuilt. The main thing is how expensive are replacement parts for this particular engine. I understand that the engine is still in production in one form or another so parts must still be available.
Rich – BlackSheep
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Rick
From your description, I can’t tell how you have your batteries connected. I use a separate starter battery that does nothing but start the engine. It doesn’t run anything else. This insures that no matter how much I run the house batteries down, I can start the engine. The boat didn’t come this way. It came with a pair of 8D deep-cycle batteries in the starboard locker. I found that these batteries weren’t very good for starting the engine. They don’t have enough cold-cranking capacity and they can get run down. What you really want is a starter battery for starting the engine and deep cycle batteries for house batteries. I use a generic truck starter battery. The largest starting battery that Sams Club sells. Hooking an isolated battery up like this can be expensive or complicated but there is at least one simple way to do this using a solenoid switch.It sounds as if you have an electrical problem somewhere; perhaps a loose connection somewhere in your starter circuit. Try cleaning the terminals off with sandpaper and tightening them back up. The next time the engine fails to crank, try shorting out the starter solenoid. You may have an issue there.
Regards
Rich – BlackSheepQuote:<.. snip>Post generated from Pearson424 Forum using Mail2Forum
Tor,
Really nice looking job! I wish I had seen these photos a couple of months
back. I just replaced my dodger and would have preferred your solution.
Where did you get the grab rails mounted on the top?Rich – BlackSheep
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I assume that you have a stock packing gland and not a dripless retrofit. Adjusting the packing nuts and replacing the packing material is normally considered a maintenance project that the owner should be able to handle. You can purchase a pair of short adjustable pipe wrenches that fit the packing nut on the 424. Sorry, I don’t have a link handy. If you have questions about how to do this, I’m sure the group will help out.
Regards
RichQuote:<.. snip>Post generated from Pearson424 Forum using Mail2Forum
Patrick
At one point in time, I refurbished my original hatches. I replaced the gaskets and painted them. The hinge in one broke for no apparent reason shortly after I did this. I suspect that corrosion ate the aluminum. I wouldn’t recommend spending a lot of time fixing these old hatches. The adjustment arms are awkward and the hinges are suspect. I replaced the two large opening hatches with Bowmar low-profile replacements.Rich – BlackSheep
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Jim
Bowmar is still in business. I bought drop-in replacements that use a more modern design. The size is the same, but the screw holes don’t align.Rich
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Aaron
I suggest disassembly and cleaning with PB-Blaster. You may find that it needs new brushes and possibly bearings and seals. You can’t tell until you disassemble it however.Rich
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Alan
Both settees are available. The v-berth may be occupied by my daughter—
Rich Carter
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Alan
I’ll have room. Please call to confirm. I’d like to know for sure if you need the bunk and you never know, if I have problems on the way down I may not get there in time.—
Rich Carter (603) 493-3330 (cell)
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Rodd
Well, the Champlain ferry is in NY, at least at one end. The other end is in VT, another expensive state. The one hour trip is $17.50 for car and driver. I’ve taken it many times.My wife and daughter are negotiating when and where they will meet me. I think they might take two cars to New London and leave one there. Is there parking at the ferry dock? The reason they may take two cars is that my wife wants to leave on Saturday and drive to her summer camp in the Adirondacks. My daughter wants to stay with me and go home on Sunday afternoon or Monday morning. If things work out this way, will anyone be able to give her a ride to Orient Point or is there a bus?
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Rich Carter
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I’m shocked to see that the fee for a car and driver is $51.20 one way. Each passenger is an additional $15.58. This sounds steep compared to what we are used to seeing for ferry service across lake Champlain.
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Rich Carter
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Having spent a lot of time fixing the area around the main cabin companionway, I’d be very cautious of anything mounted on the deck. Unless it were done properly, water is bound to get into the deck. To do the right, you’d have to overdrill the holes and then dig out the balsa around each hole, then fill with epoxy and drill again. Then you’d need a backing plate. Even then, you may have problems with the track since the deck was never made to handle the load. Take a close look at the deck around the fasteners. If you have crazing, you have a problem.
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Rich Carter
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Chuck
As I remember, my old W60 came with an injection elbow that was wrapped with insulation; possibly asbestos. I replaced that many years ago with a riser that fit the engine. The injection elbows last about 5 years. A riser is slightly different. It provides better protection to back-flow. It also lasts longer. I didn’t bother to wrap it and don’t see why it would need it. I don’t think the injection elbow needs it either. If the wrap on your injection elbow is falling apart, it is almost certainly because water is getting into it. It is probably rusted through.Replacing it can be a bitch. You need a large pipe-wrench to unscrew the black pipe from the exhaust manifold. You’ll need to replace the pipe and riser. Use pipe-joint compound when you reassemble. Regular hose clamps won’t work on exhaust hose. There’s a special clamp made for exhaust hose.
I suggest that you avoid Westerbeke and go directly to a prop-shop for the parts.
My new Yanmar engine comes with a bronze riser rather than cast-iron. It was a $700 option.
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Rich Carter
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