1958 Atomic4 Overhaul .5
 

Due partialy to rising moorage rates, I have sold my 78 Balboa 23'
....sad, but have to do whats best for us

having 1956 home build plywood motorboat softened the blow of seeing VeryBeary go.....
Now I am concentrating on going trough Atomic4, to make sure that it will be a reliable power plant.for our little VeryBeary II :)

The boat is pretty much an "open slate" as far as interior goes....not much there.....

I will try to document my progress , to motivate myself to press on......

So far after trying to start the motor, I found out that one of the valves was stuck, so there was no compression......
I have decided to go trough the whole motor and do a partial rebuild....
Exhaust manifold is off.....everything seems to be in order there.
Head is off, and also looks good.
.......next will be taking valves out for check out and maybe dusting it off on grinder

Wow, what a cool little boat! Having the A-4 is the icing on the cake as I'm sure once you get it going it will be a trusty friend. Don't we all wish we had access to the engine like you do. As far as the interior goes, bare can be beautiful. Perfect for fishing. A couple lawn chairs and a cooler - what more could one want? (now there's a can of worms!) By the way, what's under those dog houses port and starboard?

thank you JB :)
Boat was home build by gentleman from Olympia WA.......
Dog houses are gas tanks ...still not sure if to keep them, as they will have to be taken out and cleaned. Taking them out will give more room in the cockpit, but new plastic tanks will have to be placed somewhere.....

I am just using a outboard tank in mine.
Full cruise Gallon a hour use= 6hrs per tank, 10+ mph 60+ miles to a tank.
Just fishing, trolling, cruising many more hours per tank.
I don't travel far enough to need more.:)

taking out valve keepers with valve spring compressing tool and magnet....

if you take out the old tanks and build a simple bench captain's seat, the tankage could go underneath. I like the simplicity of a regular outboard tank - good idea - especially for layup. plus you can always carry a spare.

by the way, how long is the boat? It looks like maybe it's a semi-displacement hull? do you know who designed her?

boat was build in 1956....don't know any details about the build...
It's 18' long and 6' in widest spot.
....I am leaning toward taking the tanks out and using single outboard 6 gal tank....6 hrs cruising time would be plenty for me....and I need room for 2 single swivel seats

took 1st cylinder valves out....both stems were very tight in guides.....maybe have to get a reamer and clean the guides...check the valves stems with a micrometer for a wear...lots of black grime on it too

ALL valves are in various stages of sticking in their guides...none of them moving freely....as are the valve tappets !!

http://www.moyermarine.com/forums/at...1&d=1359230738

I would clean it up and paint it, but otherwise leave it mostly as-is. I love that old open "workboat" - type look.

That is a very sweet boat. Very cool.

Thank you Bill :D

......but.....I need to put two comfortable seats in it.....that's why I went with Ball Racing reasoning and took the old gas tanks out, to free some room ....
Both tanks had lots of gas (varnish) in it.....
...so now I have more room , and another question is coming to mind......since the cabin has pretty low roof on it, and is not easy to get to the front steering wheel....I would like to get rid of it and use the side one....would like to move the two motor gages from there too..... not sure how, and where to install it yet

Have all the valves out of the motor....I will have to clean it and grind it....the bigger ones are from exhaust??
Cleaning the carburator is next

2dogs...I am a little tight on time, but this is a comment is related to earlier up in the thread where you talked about tanks.

Moeller makes plastic tanks of all shapes and sizes...you could put some long skinny tank(s) that would not intrude into the usable deck space.

They have 'top side tanks', which have their own cap & fill, and they have permanent tanks, which you could add a deck fill.

http://www.moellermarine.com/afterma..._storage_tanks

thanks Shawn...I will definitelly look into Moyers gas tanks selection!!

....dusting off valves today during my breake :-)

Large valve is intake.

Aaaaaaaa......intake!!
thanks Daniel :D

looking at Cabela's boat seats......going to the store this coming weekend to check them out.

carburetor cleaned....probably will have to take it apart...but really, there is not much there...may have to get a gasket..

2dogs...this is where you start your "Moyer list"...carb gasket, other gaskets you come across (head, manifold, etc.), and then get them all at once. It is amazing what Stephen and the crew can pack into a small box. My $170 worth of parts fit something about the size of a shoebox! :p :cool:

:)
Shawn....according to helpful Moyer Marine Associate, it will be prudent to get "gasket set" that has ALL Atomic gaskets...price is $80- So I am leaning this way at the moment. Since shipping is not cheap...I better think what else I need
Started marking wires and took off an alternator while "watering" bolts on starter and water jacket side plate with ATF.......unfortunately broke one bolt on water side plate already...so decided to take a break till tomorrow and resume after getting penetrating oil :(

As to the water jacket cover plate, I strongly recommend going to studs (into the block) and nuts (to secure the [new stainless?] cover plate). The perennial leak from that area will be gone! The last engine I did, I bought a 12" length of brass 5/16 all-thread at the hardware store & made the 8 studs from that. Secured into the block with JB Weld. Used stainless nuts - washers optional (not used).

Al,
I was thinking that in that location, bolts must be prone to rust....so I am with you on replacing it with studs...wander if Home Depot will have brass threaded rod:(
Thank you for this idea!
Going to Home Depot tomorrow:D

Looking on line, Home depot has only Zinc plated or stainless threaded rods......can stainless steel rod be used??

As long as you're building an order . . . .
http://www.moyermarine.com/cgi-bin/s...ey=OVWJ_14_557

The studs are actually stainless set screws with allen sockets in their ends. A big advantage to this kit is the ability to stabilize the studs with the allen wrench eliminating any future twisting of the threads in the block during tightening or loosening. Two of the studs are 1/4" longer to accommodate the alternator adjustment arm bracket for engines so equipped.

While you're at it, if your engine has the single hole alternator adjusting arm bracket there's an improved version that eliminates the levering action by spreading the load over two studs:
http://www.moyermarine.com/cgi-bin/s...ey=OVEL_13_558

Neil,
definitelly great ideas for improvement in that area, wander if I can build a list on Moyers website and save for future use....have to look into that.....I like use of Loctite over JBW....
Al's approach is for sure con$ervative in $$ area......and that is very important too :)
I was very bummed-out last night ( especially that I am pretty sure that more bolt brakage in that area will fallow)....so your ideas are very much appreciated ..Thank you both!!