Hi All!!!

[iankendray]

Hi there, i'm new to the forum.

Recently dragged my old 40+ out of the shed with the intention of working a little magic and bringing her back to life. Bought for spares 5 years ago and never touched apart from cleaning the carb, everything turned and moved as it should but no spark.

The problem i have now is that the engine seems completely seized, i'm no mechanic by any means but have managed to strip the head, cylinder and carb without breaking anything... I'm not really sure what to try to free her up, have read about removing the gearbox but not sure how to do this to be honest!! I've ordered a manual but can't stand to look at it just sitting there for another minute!!!!

Any help would be much appreciated!

Thanks
Ian

[Hugz]

Hi Ian,

Have a look at this thread.

Cheers Hugo.


http://www.saving-old-seagulls.co.uk/fo ... 9031#p9031

http://www.saving-old-seagulls.co.uk/fo ... f=5&t=1542

[iankendray]

Thanks Hugo!

Will give that a try tomorrow... thinking it may be the box though as the flywheel does rock a bit. Just seems odd that it should seize so badly in storage with plenty of oil in the box!! Always wanted to be an outboard engineer, now i'm not so sure!

Many thanks for your help!

[Hugz]

Hi Ian

Sounds like corrosion has set in. Should free up without too much drama. Have to say gearboxes are still my nemesis and others are better informed than me. Can you separate the top of the box (water pump housing, exhaust outlet) from the rest? Two screws.

[iankendray]

That shouldn't be a problem, will attack it with care tomorrow and see how it goes!

Many thanks

[RickUK]

Hi Ian - just wondering if you have gone in too deep too quick. Far and away the main reason an engine seizes from standing is just a bit of corrosion in the cylinder bore, which with a bit of oil and gentle persuasion can be got moving again.
Seems you have the engine end stripped - is the piston able to slide up and down in the cylinder? Depending on the state of dismantle (how far dismantled is it actually?), assess this first, and if you have taken the head off, determine if there is a rust film, and clean off with some 320 grit emery paper. Put the cylinder back on the crankcase, and with a spanner on the flwheel nut, see if the whole lot will rotate freely.
If the cylinder is still on and the piston not moving, you can whack the piston with a piece of wood and an 'ammer if the piston is high up (near the cylinder head) on its stroke, or keep nudging it by means of a good fitting ring spanner or socket wrench if at the bottom of its stroke, aided by copious amounts of WD40.
I've never known a gear end seized unless there was something terminally wrong with the gears.
Pursue your ambitions as an outboard twiddler - most people on this board are still relatively sane - simples !!

[iankendray]

Hi Rick
Looking at the state of the cylinder i'm now not sure there's any hope of saving the old girl! Removed it and was showered in bits of rust. This said, the inside of the cylinder itself seems nice and clean, it all came from the inside of the outer casing. It does make me wonder what the condition of the rest of the engine will be like!
Just about to make a coffee and settle down for the night with my tool kit so will post again later as to my progress.

Cheers
Ian

[iankendray]

Ok... I'm officially about to give up on this one!!

It's definately the box that's seized. I split the engine and removed the whole leg, flywheel turns fine but prop won't.

Looks like i'll need a new head, and the thin bar that goes from head into crank case (excuse the non tech talk!!) has snapped (done by previous owner i'm guessing). Not sure whether this comes as part of the head or crank case, guessing crank case as you can't get into the head?

Thinking of breaking it, selling for spares and putting the cash towards a working model if there's no easy solution esp as i'm yet to free the box!

[niander]

thin bar ?

does he mean conrod?

sounds goosed

show us a pic or 2 and well soon tell ya!

[iankendray]

yeah it's the conrod. will upload some pics over the weekend but i think it's pretty much dead!!!

Cheers
Ian

[RickUK]

Hi Ian - all sounds a bit terminal - all the bits you might need are available from John of this site, but doesn't sound like it's worth it for a 40+, unlsess you just want to do it for the fun and satisfaction (?)
Strange about the gearbox though - did you say it all moved when you first had the motor? Rick

[iankendray]

Hi Rick
Yes everything moved freely before it went into the shed. There does seem to be a lot of water in with the gearbox oil though so maybe that's not helped.
Not sure which way to go with it at the moment, i'd love to get it going eventually but haven't got the money to do so right now. What bothered me the most was the broken connecting rod, something's definately not right in there for that to happen! By the time i've fixed it i might as well just part with a bit more money and have a running engine.
So i guess it's time to have a look at the father in law's old johnson 4! Oh yeah... that's seized too!!! only the recoil though!

Thanks to everyone for your advice and help, it was much appreciated!

And in the words of that geezer wot wants to run America...

I'll be back!!!!

Cheers guys!

[timberman2004]

semtex ...
detonator ....
fill Seagull tank with fuel ...
light blue touch paper and stand well to the rear

won't fix the 'Gull ...but the pyrotechnics are wonderful
cheaper than trying to fix a real basket case

....'Spose I'm not being very helpful ??? ...but it's true