Took advantage of the very non-typical weather we're having here in Maine to get the "engine room" and deep bilge painted tonight. I'm hoping that with the above freezing temps for the next few days and a small space heater I'll be able to get it cured. I can finish the paint that can be seen at the back end of picture after the engine is in.
In finishing up the engine I've replaced the couple of coolant hoses that run from the raw water pump to the block and from the block to the thermostat housing and head. I opened the raw water pump and had a good look at it but the impeller was in perfect condition so I let it be. I've got an extra (thanks Mike!) and I'll keep it on board with the tools to change it. From here on I'll make it a yearly maintenance item. I also pulled the oil pan while I had it out of the boat just to get a look at the bottom end and see if there was any metallic chips or shavings in the pan. All was well in there with barely any sludge which surprised me given its age and the amount of non-run time all boat engines experience.
All that's left to do before dropping the engine back in is to make a catch pan for under the engine that slopes forward to catch drips and make them easy to clean up and perhaps a two new rear engine mounts (I had cut about .5" off the top of one to get the nut to unthread but they are actually still stiff and in goodish shape). They may wait though as boat funds are running particularly low.
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