Call from meck.Flatten a pushrod on new motor

[fasttrucker]

Well my mech. called me tonight.Its seems his test drive on my upgraded motor,Flattened a pushrod. :( He said this has never happened before to him.He thinks the pushrod was not hardend.Iam calling teaque marine monday morning in ca. :rolleyes: They should get me replacements...We dont trust the whole set so we want to replace them all.He put a stock 502 pushrod in so i can go out sunday.He told me not to go over 3600rpm.Before the rod flatten he told me he got the boat up from 71 to 76mph with a 3-blade 27inch prop.Another issue. frown

[fasttrucker]

I might as well post this.It seems my 28zx has a hook in the bottom thats pushing the bow down. :( With the new hp the boat is in nascar terms JUNK! :( Well he put a 3-blade on and that seems to push the bow up some.He said he got the boat up to 76mph...so i guess thats it with this hull. :mad: I quess i can live with that, we shall see.Hell might as well go out and have some fun. :cool: But it doesnt make much cents to spend anymore bucks to try and add more hp to a boat with a hooked hull. frown

[BillG]

How do you "flatten a pushrod"? I've seen them bend, but how do they flatten? If they were not hardened all they do is wear out against the pushrod guides if you have them.
Bill G

[fasttrucker]

Iam going down on monday to see the rod thats flattened. :( Since i ordered the parts from teague marine.I cant blame the faliure on my mech.,unless he installed them wrong?Is it possable to install them wrong???.. :confused: .Ive always known that the boat tends to run flat,that it loves a 1-2 ft chop..poodle what do you think i should try? :confused: Why does a 3-blade push the bow up..Iam running a 27inch pitch i see on another prop site they go up to a 29inch pitch.

[fasttrucker]

Ill get the specs on my hook when i go down to the shop on monday.I had the hull measured.Ill post the specs monday night.

[Zinger]

Fast, sound weird,3600rpm @72gpm that alot of speed for that rpm,sounds to me a possible loose push rod or a bad installation just my 2 cents. Jeff.

[BigGrizzly]

F trucker so far in this everything you have told us even when you made a mistake and corrected your self sounds like BULL from your tech. Righ now there is a 540 Bull Dog take out with 15 hours on it for $12,000 and is stock bet by the time your dun you will have spent this. Toes push rods are good units, sounde like the tech didn't check the geometry and assembled valve hight. Really sorry for your trouble.

[Rootsy]

yep, i'm with poodle and the others, get a new mechanic, and HURRY... this guy sounds pretty wishy washy to me... i have NEVER in 15 years done anything except bend a pushrod, and that was cause i had my lash too tight. so either A) you have a bad set of pushrods, OR B) LACK of lubrication on new parts trying to wear together OR C) he gaulled her and then RAN her hard or both at the same time and lost one.

we know you ordered these pushtubes from teague but what brand are they... he doen't "manufacture" them and neither do the folks he purchases em from but what is the name brand? Comp, Crane, PBM, etc etc???

i bet shopping at summit or jegs for the same parts of the same quality would have been cheaper!

let me see if i have this straight also... on a brand spankin newly assembled motor your mechanic is winding it out WOT? heck the motor isn't even broken in yet! you're REALLY lucky all he did was lose a pushrod....

and if he promised you a speed and cannot hit it now he is putting blame on the hull? pretty lame and cheesy if you ask me...

[Shanghied Again]

Bill, A hook in a 28ZX stepped hull would be a disaster, You would have been thrown out a long time ago. Stepped hulls are very sensitive to a 1" drop on a trim tab. If that boat had a hook you would not be able to get over 60 never mind 70. Damn Donzi had one cracked stringer and wasn't worth anything until she was repaired.

[fasttrucker]

Shanghied,He checked the trim tabs and they are up 1/2 inch from the bottom of the boat.I will post the specs on the bottom monday.Please check back.Ill check them again monday myself.Rootsy+ Big Grizz,thanks i will ask a lot of ?s on monday.Zinger he told me with the 27in pitch prop 3-blade at 5100rpm boat ran 76mph.He replaced the pushrod that ' flatten'with a 502 stock one so i could go out today,but he told me to take it easy.Not to go above 3600rpm till we replace the set of rods.

[BUIZILLA]

Has the mechanic been paid in full yet? Youu need an IMMEDIATE second opinion.

How close are you to Baltimore. I have a GOOD, and I mean GOOD engine friend there. He builds 1000 hp V-6's in his sleep.

J

[HyperDonzi]

I have to agree with everyone...Flattening a rod sounds really wrong. So does, here, put a stock BB one in your 540Bull Dog and go have fun this weekend.

I know you are not the fastest 28zx (no offense) which proves there isnt a hook in the hull. Plus, a hook in a stepped hull...Sounds like Cavitation Heaven.

[Bryan Tuvell 33ZX]

Truck, sounds not so good.
The speed bug bites us all, thank goodness Nancy slaps me around on a regular basis or we would be in over our head. When we repower it will be a turn key package like Griz mentioned ready to bolt in.

Good luck to you, and if you have technical questions, Big Griz, Rootsy and many more will give you free sound advice here.

Bryan ... 1000 Islands closing in! :)

[Rootsy]

hmmmm as another thought i reckon iw as thinking that "flattened" meant that he flattened the tip of a pushtube... maybe it was where it passes through the head or guideplate... clarification please?

guideplates = use hardened pushtubes...

[fasttrucker]

Ok,I went to the marina today and saw the damaged push rod.The damaged was the top where the pushrod goes into the rocker.I bought crane cam roller rockers from crane cams.It was like flattened and right below it was like worned.I took pictures of it but they wont be put on disk for another few days,then ill post them.I know ive gotten a lot of advice about going somewhere else for motor work,I just like to say that i trust this race shop alot.Things go wrong sometimes with parts/luck or simple mistakes.OK so iam not going to give up yet.I called and talked to Norm Teague at teague marine.Hes sending a new rocker and a new push rod.We will get credit for them once he gets the damaged parts back.

[fasttrucker]

Ok next subject...Just start calling me fasthooker :( The specs on the hook, port side'"right".1/8"..left side.3/16" the hook is from the stern toward the back step.Fiberglass shop says they can fix it..$1500 to $2000.Iam going to not fix it this season,maybe have it done over the winter. frown

[fasttrucker]

Rootsy.Yes this pushrod was not hardend is what we think went wrong.Maybe it was just missed by the factory?by the guide plate up in the rocker.

[fasttrucker]

Hyper..your talkin about cavitation HELL. :mad: Well the 3-blade works, but you have to take it easy getting the boat to plane out. :rolleyes: Ive put 2.1 hours on the motor sunday and 2.4 hours on today.Iam taking it slow up to 3500rpm till the manley pushrod and the new rocker gets put back in.Iam breaking in the motor,the mercury book says first 10hrs no more then 3/4 gas.Then the next 10 hrs i can open it up a little bit.Then change oil.So thats my plan. :rolleyes:

[MOP]

I like to change the oil at 5 no filter then at 15 and at 25 with filter, then both once a season or 50 hours each year. Reason my feeling is the slight bits and pieces get into the oil in the first few hours, I believe in a little overkill oil is cheap insurance. I don't change the filter at 5-15 hour. Its been told to me more than a few times that filters actually clean better after a few hours.

[HyperDonzi]

fasttrucker:
Hyper..your talkin about cavitation HELL. :mad: Well the 3-blade works, but you have to take it easy getting the boat to plane out. :rolleyes: Ive put 2.1 hours on the motor sunday and 2.4 hours on today.Iam taking it slow up to 3500rpm till the manley pushrod and the new rocker gets put back in.Iam breaking in the motor,the mercury book says first 10hrs no more then 3/4 gas.Then the next 10 hrs i can open it up a little bit.Then change oil.So thats my plan. :rolleyes: What prop? X Dim?

MOP That does make sense, as with a bit in the filter, the holes are smaller.

[fasttrucker]

Iam borrowing a 27in pitch.Mirage.Not sure about x-men didnt see the movie!...mop is right about filters they work better when a little dirty,thats true for your car/trucks air filter too.

[RickR]

I change oil and filter at 5 and 25 on a new or rebuilt. Assembly lube will clog a filter.

I would change oil in your engine NOW because the metal off the damaged pushrod might have your filter clogged already.

[Rootsy]

Break in camshaft and motor for a period of 1 hourinitially on engine stand or make one half pull on dyno and drop oil and filter...

after that i change at 5 , again at 10 and then every 30 or so cause i put not much more than that on in a year hourwise... always do a filter just for good measure.

unless i do some motor work then i change oil afterward.