Head Gasket

[repirts]

1988 175HP Merc OB.

Its been missing, coughing and stalling. Found water in #1 cylinder. I'm guessing head gasket is leaking. My big problem is getting a mechanic to work on it.

Has anyone replaced the head gasket. Is it a do it yourself job?

[TUGBOAT]

I'd say easier than a car,cause of the ease of getting to it.If the bolts are not froze/corroded etc.Hit them straight on with a nylon hammer, squirt some nut loose if You have too.Tighten a lil then back off,tighten, back off ,You got the rythem.Should be ok.Finding a Head Man if needed is the hardest part.Gotta good one if Ya wanna hit the Keys'
Scream'n Reels' [img]images/icons/cool.gif[/img]

[TUGBOAT]

Oh Yea being a '88 it's a 4 Beer Job ! [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[mako22]

I am not familiar with Mercs but can say OMC of that vintage it is a fairly simple job. Have you checked the compression to verify your assumption of the problem being a head gasket? Have you checked your wtaer seperator to make sure it isnt full?
Good luck

[repirts]

Pulled the head off last night. Came off easier than I expected. All cylinders and piston heads looked good, not much carbon and no scoring etc. But one of the cylinder heads had a few dings as if something was banging around in there. If it was a piece of ring wouldn't there be some scoring etc. When I bought the boat this past spring I was told that its rebulit two seasons ago. Hope what I'm seeing is old damage. I'll put it back together this weekend and check the compression. Wish me luck because I'm out of money.

[barnacle]

IF it was rebuilt then it could be old damage from when the engine went. You can get away with reusing a head that has pot marks in it to a certain degree. My guess is it falls in the ok list, otherwise the dealer would not have reused the head. He had to warry his job when he was done.