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  1. #1
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    Struck a large piece of wood today - need advice

    My local lake had a recent level increase and we had a lot of wood floating today. That combined with a nice chop from today’s wind made some of them very difficult to see and I busted a rather large log end first at 52 mph (at least that’s where my speedo pegged). There does not appear to be any structural damage to the lower or prop. My engine did not get warmer than 87 degrees the rest of the day so when I got home I cleaned both stats, the poppet, and the compressor strainer as well as flushed through the port next to the tell tale. Tomorrow I will pull the lower and check the water pump and clean the remainder of the wood pieces out of the nose pickups.

    Should I anticipate having to do this several times before everything is clear? Any tips on cleaning the speedo pitot? Is there anything else I should check?
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    #2
    Sorry there is no way to tell you that your only going to have to do this process once, or 20 times.......



  3. FOOTLONG MEMBER Ranger RT's Avatar
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    #3
    What lake was you on?
    2013 Pre-Johnny Ranger RT 178
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  4. Banned
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    #4
    Glad to read that you and your boat survived!

  5. Member 06 SB's Avatar
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    #5
    I would still have the lower unit checked. Have it pressure checked for leaks and the prop shaft for runout. It is better to find out now if insurance is going to get involved. Those thermostats could be damaged as well. They may not properly seal when closed.

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  6. Member
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    #6
    Quote Originally Posted by Ranger RT View Post
    What lake was you on?
    Wilson, turning into shoal creek running with the wind and never saw the log.

  7. Member
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    #7
    I can tell you if you don’t pull the lower unit and look under the water pump for more wood you will go through the stats and strainer drill two or three times. As far as the speedo pitot a small drill bit using only your fingers to power the bit. While you have the lower off use some compressed air and a blow gun to blow backward in the tube. Do the drill bit first.
    When I do mine I put muffs on it and flush water through that way and use the flushing port while I have everything out so water runs through everything just make sure you push the fuel rails back in before you do this.

  8. Member
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    #8
    Quote Originally Posted by grout-scout View Post
    Glad to read that you and your boat survived!
    Thanks grout! Feeling the impact definitely made me sick. Especially since the lower is literally brand new with only about 2 hours on it. The log was floating one end heavy and the light end wasn’t even really breaking the surface in the heavy chop. I just knew I was going to trim up and be sicker.

  9. Member
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    #9
    FYI someone else may find this helpful, but if you pull the lower a 1 1/4” shop vac hose fits exactly over the water tube and pulls an incredible amount of air through the cooling system with the thermostats out.

  10. Member
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    #10
    You definitly need to take the base plate off the water pump and clean everything out of the passages in the nose like Hooken203 said, those wood chips will move around and stop the holes up again if you don't.

  11. Member
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    #11
    Thanks guys. I definitely had to take water pump out if nothing else to make sure it wasn’t damaged. The hardest part was cleaning the giant splinters out of the nosecone. I swapped up between the air compressor nozzle, the shop vac, and the water hose on the lower unit with water pump housing removed. I also vacuumed and rinsed the water pump and housing. I backflushed the motor through the port by the tell tale, and then I hooked a shop vac to the water tube and removed, one at time to pull maximum air, the compressor strainer, each thermostat, and the poppet. I should run the boat a good bit this weekend. I will report back if my methods resulted in a one and done cleaning of the system.

  12. Member
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    #12
    Boat ran well. Still a little concerned about stats. Nothing in them but in 62 degree water motor would only warm to about 118. Wide open motor would cool to around 103. Coming off plane motor would reach 131 before quickly cooling to 118 again. I’m going to go ahead and change them out and keep the current ones as spares for quick on the water change without having to clean them.

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    #13
    Make sure the poppet is working smoothly and not sticking open.

  14. Member
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    #14
    I pulled the poppet twice now now and both times it appeared to shut (the poppet was all the way to the chamber wall through the grommet) and no debris was present. Is there anything else I should check or is that sufficient? I noticed the rebuild parts for the poppet are relatively inexpensive compared to the stats. I will rebuild it if I get the same results after the stat change. I imagine there are worse spares to have around.

  15. Member
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    #15
    Wait till you see how much Genuine Mercury thermostats cost.



  16. Member
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    #16
    Quote Originally Posted by Savage View Post
    Wait till you see how much Genuine Mercury thermostats cost.
    yes I thought the nearly $100 a piece price tag was a little steep but it’s certainly a critical part. I shopped around and every single one that I got excited about on price ended up being the Sierra or “Happie Mac” or “WSM” so I finally ponied up and paid the dealer for what I knew was the real thing. It’s worth it in the end to have a brick and mortar place to go instead of just an email address or a phone number if there’s an issue.

  17. Mercury 3L/4 Stroke/Verado Moderator EuropeanAM's Avatar
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    #17
    Definitely wise to go ahead and replace those thermostats.

    In the future- you can lookup (and even order) parts directly on our website, including BBC member discounted pricing on orders that meet the minimum requirements.

    See Rhonda's post (pinned at the top of this forum) for retails and contact info.


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