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View Poll Results: How old is your Atomic 4 engine block?
1945 - 1950 0 0%
1951 - 1955 0 0%
1956 - 1960 6 1.53%
1961 - 1965 24 6.11%
1966 - 1970 61 15.52%
1971 - 1975 147 37.40%
1976 - 1980 134 34.10%
1981 - 1985 13 3.31%
1986 - present 4 1.02%
Don't know 4 1.02%
Voters: 393. You may not vote on this poll

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  #26   IP: 68.173.38.216
Old 08-10-2011, 02:41 PM
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TS,
I've used the RJ12C plugs for a number of years. Always seemed to have fouling issues with them though. Less so with the Autolite 437s so far. I have found the Autolite plugs for under $2 per plug.
I hope the mellifluous Ken talked you into getting the new Moyer water pump without the grease cap fitting?
I'd love to check out windy SF Bay sometime. We mostly race up the Hudson above the Tappan Zee bridge. Quite a few T30s where we are.
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  #27   IP: 68.126.199.192
Old 08-24-2011, 09:41 PM
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Rust, The pictures you posted look like my engine. Two things are different...flame arrest, breather tube, and glass fuel bowl. Outside of that it is the same engine. My boat is a 1968.
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  #28   IP: 24.136.67.99
Old 08-25-2011, 10:18 PM
Dave Neptune Dave Neptune is offline
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Thumbs up Plugs

Tartan, your plugs look good on the porcelin and that indicates that your jetting is about right. The bit of dark on the ground and edges of the plug look as if the idle is a bit rich and turning the screw out a 1/4 turn or so should be fine. Note that if your idle is about right on an updraft carb it should be a bit hard to start, that is why the choke is so very important on the A-4. There is also no acceleration pump to give a few squirts to make starting cold easy. If you need to use the choke a "bit" for a minute or two after a cold start your about spot on!!!!

I am still running the J8's in my 42 year old beastie and it runs great. From the look of your plugs I wouldn't go any hotter, perhaps a few more thousandths of gap will also make them act warmer at idle. Just the nature of a "load duty" low compression motor.

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  #29   IP: 68.126.199.192
Old 08-28-2011, 08:21 PM
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I talked to Dick Valdez this past year.(He was Columbia Yachts.) Dick told me about a trip they took to Mexico, and their A4 sucked in some junk, so rather than spend money having the company clean it out, they just replaced it with a new A4. Their cost of the engines at the time was only $500.
Dick also said, he has never heard of a fire problem with the A4. Columbia built 30,000 boats.
A diesels the same size as the A4 has less HP...and I don't know any owner who can repair, or rebuild a diesel.
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  #30   IP: 69.208.92.38
Old 08-28-2011, 09:37 PM
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I have a 1964 drop in spare, a 1969 in tough shape (needs new bearings, crankshaft, etc but castings and some other parts are all in excellent shape) and a 1977. The '69 and the '77 both have excellent compression so I am good to go for a while!
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  #31   IP: 96.233.116.164
Old 09-10-2011, 09:34 PM
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Ours is No. 204286, cast on May 20, 1979. As Weetamoe is a 1969 Pearson, our A4 is obviously not her original engine. I seem to remember the PO saying that it was rebuilt by Old Lyme (or somebody with some such name) in Connecticut and he installed it in the mid 90's, but I have no documentation of that. It looks like hell, rusty and peeling paint, but it runs great.
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  #32   IP: 173.166.26.241
Old 09-20-2011, 08:21 PM
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Talking

I think these pictures show my engine is a "cobble-job". But this is how I acquired it. I do like the cast flywheel cover, not sure when the sheet steel modification came on stream.

Last edited by hanleyclifford; 07-13-2016 at 08:33 PM.
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  #33   IP: 68.126.199.192
Old 09-21-2011, 11:32 PM
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Rusty, the pictures you posted of the old A4 has a hand sump pump. (oil pump.) Any idea where we can get those?
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  #34   IP: 148.170.241.1
Old 09-22-2011, 08:17 AM
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Funny, I had to go back and look for what you were talking about. I hadn't really looked that closely at that pic before, so I hadn't noticed that.

I have no idea. I would have to do some Googling, which is how I find nearly everything these days.
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  #35   IP: 209.162.202.34
Old 09-23-2011, 08:12 PM
Esgbradford Esgbradford is offline
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Caleb,

I hope you don't mind a suggestion on the Poll. It might be more telling to list the time periods by A4 engine model changes. For example, my engine is 1975, which puts it in the 1971-75 group, but really, it is more similar to a 1976 engine than a 1974 engine. This is because in 1975, as I understand it, the fly wheel cover was change to a flat piece of metal. Carb differences, fuel pump differences, etc -- that'd be interesting to find out how many engines of which models are owned by members here.

Eric
Aries Newport 27
Portland, OR
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  #36   IP: 68.173.38.216
Old 09-24-2011, 12:54 AM
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Thanks Eric.

Your suggestion brings up a good point. I know that I have an early model engine with some late model components on it (5 bolt Zenith carb for example) from 1967. I wonder who made the upgrades on my engine but I'm pretty sure the PO of our boat did. Our boat came with a pile of folders, one of which was a collection of early MMI newsletters to subscribers.
The point I am not making very well is that some owners added upgrades and some engines came with upgrades from the factory. Examples of this kind of upgrade might be: adding Fresh Water Cooling, a HX and an extra water pump, new carburetor, thermostat, electronic ignition or fuel pump, water/fuel separator filters, oil filter, you name it and it has been done.
I was really only going for a very narrow slice of the information pie with this poll and did not ask about late vs. early model types of engines as there are so many hybrid engines out there and I can't think of all the varieties that may exist.
Some of the information that Universal printed tells a bit about each engine block as it came out of the factory may exist out there but I bet that Don Moyer knows that you have to assess each engine and find out what components may have been added or modified before they make any suggestions.
I was not up to the level of detail the poll you suggested required, so have at it.
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  #37   IP: 184.153.188.151
Old 10-13-2011, 07:53 PM
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Hi everyone!

My A-4 is a 1968, fresh water cooled and still running great! I love this little beast. She's one sweet running motor. It's in a Morgan 24, (new to me this year) and the only trouble I've had so far is the fuel pump. I had bought a parts engine, which had a very good pump on it, so it was no big deal to deal with. Now I just have to rebuild the old pump sometime this winter.
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  #38   IP: 148.170.241.1
Old 03-16-2012, 08:36 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Charlie B View Post
Hi everyone!

My A-4 is a 1968, fresh water cooled and still running great! I love this little beast. She's one sweet running motor. It's in a Morgan 24, (new to me this year) and the only trouble I've had so far is the fuel pump. I had bought a parts engine, which had a very good pump on it, so it was no big deal to deal with. Now I just have to rebuild the old pump sometime this winter.
Welcome to the forum! You'll like it here, I'm sure. Great bunch of guys who know a lot about this engine and are willing to share that knowledge freely - and overanalyze to death any little question about any aspect of its function, operation or maintenance.

We're all really a bit A.R. in our own special ways...
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  #39   IP: 74.15.99.250
Old 03-16-2012, 05:22 PM
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Wiki is not quite right on that... Universal did stop in 1980 but had lots of stock and thus continued to sell their stock pile until 1984.

I added this list by serial # some time ago....

http://www.moyermarine.com//forums/s...atomic4+serial
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  #40   IP: 72.92.236.118
Old 03-18-2012, 09:33 AM
Newenglandah Newenglandah is offline
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10/8/1968 and never looked or ran so good
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  #41   IP: 75.48.78.31
Old 09-11-2012, 05:16 PM
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[QUOTE=ILikeRust;40233]I don't know if this is the "original" style, but it definitely is an older style:



[/QUOTE
Rust... that is my enge! My Columbia 28 isw a 1968
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  #42   IP: 71.90.55.166
Old 09-13-2012, 07:21 AM
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I had the venerable old style too tombstone tranny cover and all , in my 1966 built Columbia. It had practically no compression in the rear cylinders , so now I have a "new" (mid 70's) style A4. The guy who gave me the newer engine still has my original one in his garage. I should pay him a call ...
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  #43   IP: 174.58.92.14
Old 09-15-2012, 06:25 PM
S1lverfox S1lverfox is offline
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Smile Age

My Tartan 27 is a 1969 Model so I assume the A4 was build in the 1966-1970 period. It's not an early model A4. Bob P.

Last edited by S1lverfox; 09-15-2012 at 06:25 PM. Reason: Typo
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  #44   IP: 75.243.98.253
Old 02-20-2013, 08:21 PM
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Anyone seen one of these, listed on Ebay now, http://r.ebay.com/Xh8IvH
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  #45   IP: 173.53.22.120
Old 02-20-2013, 08:33 PM
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I've read about them and seen drawings, but I've never actually seen one. Very cool.
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  #46   IP: 216.81.94.71
Old 05-17-2013, 11:06 AM
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Where to look up production dates from model/sn plate?

Fun discussion demonstrating how strong the A4 is.

I have a 1975 ODay and would assume the A4 is from same or earlier year, but perhaps a replacement? Where can one look up the production years?
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  #47   IP: 206.125.176.5
Old 05-17-2013, 12:47 PM
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JQ, that serial # seems too high to be a '75...so I think you are right..likely a replacement.

The date the block was cast is stamped in the block just under the valve cover..The flame arrestor does a good job of blocking it, but you can see it..6digit number in MMDDYY format.

Don't confuse the fancy embossed number there too..I think that must be a casting number of some sort..

in this old picture you can make out my casting date above the arrestor 041976 - my serial is 17xxxx something..which on engines like mine where the flywheel is obscured, they also stamp the serial number on the flat area just under the oil fill.

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Last edited by sastanley; 05-17-2013 at 12:50 PM.
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  #48   IP: 69.250.44.209
Old 05-17-2013, 02:57 PM
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new pump

I may have entered incorrect data. My C&C was built in 1981 so i assumed A4 was too (serial number 204381), but way possible that C&C had a stock pile from 1980. I will go searching the block to get the truth and enter correct data.

Last edited by Whippet; 05-17-2013 at 03:15 PM.
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  #49   IP: 128.183.140.38
Old 05-17-2013, 03:13 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JonnyQuest View Post
Where can one look up the production years?

If you look back at Post #20 of this thread, you can see two examples of the date stamp on an early model (upper pic) and a late model (lower pic) block.

Note that this is just the casting date of the block. The engine could have been assembled some time later than this, from a block stored in inventory. At it's peak, Universal was really cranking out these puppies.
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  #50   IP: 24.44.94.83
Old 05-31-2013, 09:16 PM
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How old is your Atomic 4 engine

Bristol 27 built and purchased in 1975. A4 serial #194169.
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