Engine bleed screws

[Mark Maulden]

So, I have to do, basically, a full engine bleed on my new Beta. The engine is a bit above the tank and Beta specs the mexhanical lift pump at ~9 inches. Engine has been running great except sometimes it dies after 30 sec of starting. Hit the starter again and fires right up and is fine for the whole day. 35 hrs on engine. Tank is 4yrs old and rest of fuel system is new. Racor 500 is 5 yrs old (new element)..T-handle seal on lid needed some attention and is done. I am in the process of installing an electric lift pump as the mechanical one may have issues as the tank level decreases. The 35hrs has been on a full tank. So the crux of my question..has anyone made or seen a petcock with a hose barb to replace bleed screws? Turn on the electeic pump and let it go until solid fuel comes out in a container. In my case, there can be pockets of air since I have to cut fuel lines. Sure would be cleaner than using pads etc..and I’m not sure if “electric fuel” will make it past the mechanical pump...1.5-4psi...Hmm

 

[FastOlson]

I have just finished up an install of a new Beta 25. Since our former engine was a Universal, we kept the Facet lift pump but did upgrade to a Racor 500. The electric pump pulls from the Racor and sends the fuel to the engine spin-on filter. We were trying to avoid having to depend on the lever-operated mechanical pump on the engine.
Our initial start was after using a hand pump to pull fuel all the way thru the hoses to the last connection at the high pressure pump (we figured that the hi pressure pump should still be full from the test-run at the factory).
We got an immediate start, but did then have to chase down a vacuum leak from the gasket not quite sealing on the lid of the Racor. Tightened up all the hose clamps one more time and (so far for a couple of hours run time) all is well.
Have you posted your question(s) on the blog at the Betamarine(US) site? I find that the owner or other factory guys check in regularly and sometimes an answer comes back within hours. Nice folks.
Hope your engine is as amazingly quiet as ours.... technology has come quite a ways since the 80's.

 

[Mark Maulden]

Beta (both Sausilito and North Carolina) knows me quite well. My new saildrive puked ATF out the breather down the sides. This a long story but short is the initial ATF was full of grease when I sucked it out. Replaced and it is well. I have the CW keyless waterproof panel. The temp gauge filled with water. They said if it still worked, it was not covered by warranty. Hmm..ok..Let’s see..since it is full of water, I cannot read it so it does not work. I won that one..The CW panel has no key switch. So there is no elegant way to pick switched power to power a fuel gauge or whatever. They should have put power/gnd to terminals on the backside. I had to double stake on a light. When I pilled the wire off, the light disintegrated. LEDs have been around for a long time now.. They did send me one out of a demo unit..So, yes, they are very responsive. Sausilito sometimes doesnt answer the phone. Farron in NC is very accomodating..So, some issues, but engine runs great and is very much quieter than the old green machine. Would like to find a cleaner way to bleed....

 

[kloudie1]

Sounds like a very small air leak, Mark.. I had exact "no start" symptoms and found a bad banjo washer on the pump suction side.. Petcock; I've never seen one but it could be made .. I'd be worried that it might not have a perfect seal and would begin to cause another "no-start" issue..
Frustrating.. good luck finding the problem..

 

[FastOlson]

Interesting Thread.
Joining Dates: 2011, 2010, 2006.....
Hmmm


The newer posters here might (sometimes, perhaps, maybe) think that we Old Salts know lots of useful "stuff"...
turns out that the more experience we accumulate, the less we are sure of !!

Have a good day.

 

[Mark Maulden]

So, I installed the Facet electric pump and bled the engine. WOW! How much easier could it be? I think I used less than 1/4 sheet of an absorbent pad. Totally different from the sixties design green machine. Acid test is tomorrow..