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hi all

Freedom 39 Pilothouse with Yanmar 4JHE engine

bought the boat last fall, but it's been sitting under a pile of snow in NH until basically last week

finally back at work on the engine (among other things)

history:

- boat sat for 3 years without running

- PO *did* motor around a bit in 2012
survey from June '12 said motor running well

- talked to local diesel guy who did a little work on her
said she needed a starter, and the wiring was a nightmare (definitely true on both counts)
he said she was stuck from sitting, but he was able to free her up with some penetrating oil and cursing
that might have been a year ago or so

without further ado, here's the beast, as of this AM (warning: not for the faint of heart):



first thing I did was pull off a couple of those alternators, so I could see the back of the engine:



Question #1:

how do I turn over the engine by hand? crank bolt is *not* accessible

there is an extended pulley on it that drove the extra alts, and that pulley does not have a central bolt (4 peripheral)

plus, it is about an inch from the bulkhead - I don't know how he even got it on there:



I tried yanking on the top belt, which is old and dry - not much grip

I *think* the engine may have moved a tiny bit - maybe a 1/16" - before the belt slipped, but it could have been my imagination

so: monkey wrench on the dry belt? crank on the alternator bolt? (that bolt is better)

fresh belt/wrench combo on the crank pulley? god forbid, remove the extended pulley so I can access the main crank bolt?

thanks for any thoughts

Rolf in MA

If your goal is just to turn the motor over, why not just put it in gear and turn the prop? What is the end goal here?

-- Geoff

I agree with Geoff. With the transmission in gear turn the prop. In the pictures I do not see any cylinder decompression levers, but it would be a good idea to open them if you have them.

happy sailing
Jim D

Good Morning;

Now is a good time to practice restraint. If the engine is stuck due to just time (and not major stuff like water intrusion) care should be taken not to cause damage.

I would suggest pulling the injectors. It is a simple job on this engine (I have one in a 39 Express) and they will have to be rebuilt anyway after that much time because the springs will be degraded. It will also eliminate compression in the cylinders and ease rolling the engine.

Next I would get lubricant to the piston tops so it can start working its way down the cylinder walls to the rings. My biggest concern at this point is to get it rolling over without cracking a ring or scratching the cylinder wall.

Next. Go do something else until tomorrow to let the lubricant do its job.

As for how to turn the engine my best suggestion would be a strap wrench around the crank pulley. If there is room then a significant amount of controlled torque can be applied.

Good Luck

that was my thought too - put it in gear and turn the prop
but I am not sure how the tranny works
seems to be a simple cable, but I can only move the lever arm about 1/2" with finger pressure (from vertical to aft maybe 5°)

right now, prop can be easily turned - clearly not in gear
(good news is, it turns nicely - fair, true, lubed
I think they did some work on the prop/shaft)
thoughts about how to get in gear?
(nothing is electrically powered right now - on the hard, all batteries flat, got to deal with that next)

as for not damaging rings/cylinder walls, that may be out of my hands
PO had a diesel mechanic free 'er up
I talked to him, seemed knowledgeable, did use some kind of penetrating lubricant, of course, but crank pulley extension clearly shows signs of pipe wrench teeth
(and that's a big enough wrench to get around a 6"+ crank pulley)
so...

anyway, freed up one of the starter bolts
untangling the wire spaghetti
still optimistic she's startable

thanks for all the feedback, peeps
(a guy called me 'Cap'n' today - not ironically)

best penetrating oil for a diesel?

good news
engine turned over easily with El Cheapo strap wrench from Home Depot
was not frozen at all
I just had been unable to apply any significant torque with existing belt



clearing out all extra alternators, wires, etc
new starter, alt, and battery coming
bypassing entire existing electrical system

more info from another tech who worked on the engine:
the IP is new, but it has not been timed properly
the engine was running well enough to winterize a couple seasons ago, but rough
will need to be timed
any resources on that?

thanks, all
looking up

more good news:
both alternator and starter tested good
they look like hell (vintage 1984), but they still work to spec
pretty impressive, actually

(and if anyone needs electrical work done in the Boston area, check out A-1 Battery, in Quincy, MA
Tom is a monster)

Glad to hear that it's not seized. I would suggest that you purchase the Yanmar service manual for your engine. It's a wealth of information and will serve you well over many years, especially if you wish to perform the maintenance on your own.

-- Geoff