Oil pan repair

[Quadruplecccc]

Among the worst of mechanical things to happen last year was my oil pan developed two pin holes side by side. Luckily I discovered this before I went far from home to do some fishing. After letting all the oil drain from my 351 windsor I cleaned up bottom of motor. Then, I sanded all the scale off and cleaned it again. I used a putty that bonds to metal and gets solid enough that you can drill and tap this stuff. Sorry, I can't remember what this stuff is called but it seemed to bond well. Since then I was running the boat in a local lake to make sure the patch holds. This happened back in june and I've found no sign of any leak since. I know this only a matter of opinion but a few of my friends seem to think that this patch willnot hold and that I should pull the motor to replace the pan. What do you think?? Thanks!

[Hotrod]

If your talking about permatex that stuff is rock solid.  depending how big the hole's were..  You saying pin, I wouldn't worry too much about it failing..

But..  What I would worry about is the fact that you are developing holes in your pan.  I would say your pan in general if failing.  I'd really check other locations of the Pan and make sure it's not like paper thin.  you may tap it with a screw driver and find yourself punching holes in it..

I'd do a good inspection..  to me I think it's failing and it's only a matter of time.

[Duffman]

  Dont rely on it.  Trust me.  Pull the block and put a new pan on it.  If 2 holes popped up, there is a ton of rust just waiting to cause a few more holes.  And when it lets loose, it will be 20 miles offshore....not a good thing.

[ped579]

Simply put...Pull the Pan.

[IrishAyes]

I would have to agree with the others.  Once there is a leak, the rest is not far behind.

[PeggyLee]

The pan failed for a reason; the quick fix was the marine tex, or the bonding you used. Its only temporary however. Could be the pan is in water in the bildge, or building up condensation somehow.
It happened to me years ago on  Merc Cruiser Chevy block where the pan was under the motor close enough to the splash from the bildge water.Always wet and damp.Metal,salt water and rust. Eventually pulled the motor, changed the oil pump,gaskets,and pan.

[Quadruplecccc]

This is what happens when you buy someone else's junk because it's what we can afford. The first year I had the boat , I noticed water collecting in the bilge . Changed out the drain plug first then went to the local lake to play around to  see if that fixed it.Seemed ok so I made a trip for fluke. By end of day bilge pump started to run now and then. Came home and looked a little harder finding two bad freezeout plugs. Thought that was it, nope! This is when I found that the exhuast belllows were leaking. It's hard to say how long the neglect was going on from the previous owner, but this is what I'm now faced with. I've done all the work to itso far and am not afraid to tackle this next job. What bothers me is how to rig something high enough to pull the motor out far  enough to get to the pan?! bngh bngh bngh

[Duffman]

Head to a tool rental place.  There are cherry pickers specifically made to pull boat engines. They have taller arms and a longer boom to reach and up and over the transom.
  Rent it for one day and it should be enough for you to get the job done.

[Quadruplecccc]

I have more farm equipment type rental places than I do marine repair shops within a 25 mi radius of my house. Do you think I would score on such a cherry picker at one of these places. The places i've been in seem to have all kinds of things to rent but I honstly never looked for this only because there was no need to before.

[Hotrod]

Large tree branch and a come-a-long ( properly rated of coarse .

But yea..  they all rent engine hoists and chain hoists

[fishinsurfer]

Agree with what others have said herein-change the pan! Did this job not too long ago on my old boat. While you have the engine out, its a good time to hit any rust you may have, and also if I were you I would change out the transmission damper plate as well. We made our own A-Frame to hoist the engine out using 2 come alongs. I will try to attach some pictures which may be of interest to you.

Good Luck
Capt Rick

[fishinsurfer]

Oops, Tried to post a few pics, only one came up on the previous post. Let me try again.
Some pics of the A-Frame and tools.

[fishinsurfer]

OK, Figured out how to post multiple pics.
Here is a few more, the last shot show the
engine going back in, all painted up with the new transmission damper installed.

[fishinsurfer]

Found some more pics - sorry they are not in the correct order. Here you go. That transmission is a heavy mother - definitely a 2 man operation. If you have any questions
please get back.
Capt. Rick

[wb]

While you're changing the pan make sure you look around good while it's up and attend to anything else you will not be able to reach without lifting the engine again. Remind yourself what a pain in the a$$ it is to do this. Be extremely careful the front and especially the rear main seal are new and properly installed... Spend extra time to do this right so you don't have to do it over...

Not that I would know firsthand or anything  bngh

[Quadruplecccc]

I'll do some checking on that engine hoist, hopefully I wont have to rig something. If I do , thanks Capt. Rick, you gave me some good pics to help get it done.
 I have an I.O.  Will that come out of the boat in the same fashion or will it be even more of a pain in the ar$$$. I understand that the rear motor mounts could give lots of greef. Good gravey, I hope this doesn't turn into a never ending nightmare!

[Duffman]

You'll need to pull the drive then do an engine alignment once you drop the motor back in.
  A little tricky if this is your first time aligning it.
  Rear mounts have never been a PIA for me. Unless you have some heavy corrosion on the bolts, it shouldnt be problematic for you either.
  Is it a merc w/ an alpha 1?  I have the alignment tool, your welcome to use it. That would save ya $65  or so instead of buying it.

[Quadruplecccc]

There are no legible markings on the outdrive to tell me what it is, but the research I did tells me it is a Merc #1. 1976 model. I didn't know you had to align the motor. I thought it was a fixed position type of set up.  Hope I'm not overlooking anything else . Thanks for the offer on the alignment tool. I may take you up on that if my buddy doesn't already have one. He once was  a mecchanic for a boat dealer but I don't know what kind of tools he has or even if he will allow me to borrow from him.

[Quadruplecccc]

Patch didn't hold! Oil is beginning to seep around patch. Preparing to pull motor and put new pan on. Sometimes you gotta wonder if all this is worth it. I guess it beats buying a new boat, money wise anyway!

[Hotrod]

How did this " Pan Out"