OB 15

[CraigLam]

Update. After worn fingers and sore back, I finally finished gapping the valves. This type of setup is probably different than most other engines. There is no rocker arm and no adjustment screw. The cam sits on top of the valve spring covered by a slip tube with a shim disc underneath. To change the gap, you change the shim. That means all the cam bearings come off and the shim is measured. Depending on the existing gap, the shim is replaced with a thicker or thinner one. Sounds easy? NOT! If your off just a little, the whole process starts over agin...and again....and..well, you get the idea. Now to reassemble the rest of the motor, start her up and slide her to the back of the garage, then start my trailer.

Notice the setup on the intake and exhaust ports. 4 cyl. should have 8 ports, 4 in 4 ex. This one doesn't. The second port from the left, supplies two cyls. not one. Thats' why these engines use very little gas and have good power due to the dual carbs.

[gstanfield]

The shim and bucket valve adjustment method is very common with certain motorcycle engines, I know the "fun" of adjusting them

Keep up the good work, this is going to be a sweet boat

[CraigLam]

As you can see, I made my own flywheel puller. I bought a 6"x6"x1/2" plate steel and drilled and tapped a 1/2' threaded hole. About 2 bucks for bolts and 7 bucks for the metal and popped off the flywheel. Yes, I marked where the rotor goes. I bought a sand blasting gun and will get the media from Surface prep Solutions. Contains no silica. The block is so convoluted with nooks and crannys, I can't get in there to clean it. Once it's clean, I'll spray it with etching primer, then off white. The pixlr program from photobucket is new and I'm still learning how to use it.

[CraigLam]

It finally came today.


Seems my cat wants to inspect everything. I'm in the middle of cleaning my garage. Then I'll take it out and start the trailer. I'm really glad I decided to spring for the industrial model. Next month I'll have enough to get the tank.

[CraigLam]

Since people were mentioning 4 stroke outboards, I thought it would be a good time to update my post. My Bearcat is ready for re-assembly. The problem was, either to mount it back on the unit or find a motor mount that would accomodate an outboard. I couldn't find any. So, I made my own. It swivels 360 degrees, so, I can work on it at any angle. All I have to do now, is to paint it and then start to rewire. I'm gonna break the hoist down for more room. Someone posted about oil for a 4 stroke. Bearcats use 10w-30 marine 4 stroke motor oil, nothing special. Castrol is great, but, it doesn't mix well with other oils. Amsoil synthetic 4 stroke is really good, from what I hear, but, I don't use it. I think it's for larger engines-it doesn't break down that easy. I use Mobile 1. I do not use Penzoil. I don't know what anybody else has heard or experienced, but, Penzoil tends to cake -up the inside of the motor block. I don't know why my photos do this, but, the right side of my photos get cut off. This is the only forum that does that.

Here, you can see how it's mounted.

[CraigLam]

Hey guys. I got an e-mail from gstanfield asking and wanted to let everyone know that the motor is on hold for about a week. After I get paid next week, I'm gonna order some parts for the motor and start up again. I really appreciate the e-mail.

[AtTheBrink]

Have you made any progress? This is an interesting build. Like George, I would like to see it through to completion. Your doing some really nice work.

[tobolamr]

CraigLam - we understand that life can get hectic! Just let us know when you click along on this again! It's been fascinating to see you work on this project!

[CraigLam]

Hey, guys! It's been a while since I've posted. After I started to finish the outboard, I realized that I was running out of room. The paint that I used on the outboard was chipping off. I decided to bite the bullet and go for marine paint. So, I pretty much have to remove all that crappy paint off my outboard and start over. That's what happens when you try to cut corners. So, I kinda put that project on hold for a while. Anyway, the OB 15 I should have started, is going to have some railing. I asked around and I already know how to weld. To have tubing bent is costly. To make one 90 deg. bend is 5 bucks. That's just one bend. If yo want a rail bent it's way more if it's not a true circle. I thought I could bend tube myself. Right. After some feeble attempts, it wasn't working. I Googled tube benders and looked at some mandrel and hydraulic benders. The best one overall was the Takas Bender. I bought the rights to make one bender. Mr. Frank Takas owns the intellectual property on this type of bender. That's pretty much what Iv'e been doing for the past few months. I've lined up some work with some boat owners down at the marina, so, this was a good choice.


As soon as I bend some boat rail, I'll post some photos. This bender was not easy to make.

[CraigLam]

Wasup, guys? It's been awhile. I was side tracked on a different project. I'm starting up on the outboard this week. I have to re-paint it. The paint I originally used was junk. I googled marine paint and Rustoleum came up with good results. I ordered 4 quarts and will be in by the 10th which gives me enough time to sand. The good thing about this Rustoleum paint, is that it can be thinned with acetone. The expensive marine paint can only be thinned with their product. High grade marine paint for 1 gallon is about 200 bucks not including hardener. Rustoleum, 60 bucks a gallon. Not too bad. I'll take some photos next week and post.