engine seized?
 

here we go again. i have a crusader classic 5.7 liter with a holley 600 carb. got her in a few weeks ago and was running a lil crappy in the driveway and so so when i ran her down to the dock last week. drained 85 gallons of old fuel from her new filter/separator cleaned carb and ran seafoam thru it for a lil while. still running like crap, surging on idle and low idle stalls. went to rewire trim tabs this morning and figured id turn it over to see if how it was running. went to turn it over and backfire out of the carb then nothing. tried turning it over real quick once more and now seized, the starter engages but engine wont turn. yes i do believe im screwed. had to walk away before i did bodily harm to myself. any ideas before i spend a ton of money i dont have? ill try turning it gently with a bar later but it doesnt look good.

Re: engine seized?
 

If you can reach all sparkplugs, pull them out and try engaging the starter.
Mark all plug wires first so you can put them back correctly.

Re: engine seized?
 

I dont know a whole lot. But i would check the risers. They could be rusted out causing water to leak down into the cylinders, could be hydro lock. Pull the spark plugs out and bump the motor, water should come out if thats the problem. if the plugs are black change them, mark the wires so you dont mess them up like i did:rolleyes:.... a side tip check anti freeze level and if there is any antifreeze down in the cylinders change the motor oil quickly.

Re: engine seized?
 

yES.. Yank the p;ugs as suggested. Make sure starter is not hung up. The Bendix drive did not disengage from the engine's flywheel.

This sticky starter will look exactly the same as a seized engine.

Bang HARD on the starter with a hammer. Then crank it. Doing so sends a shock into the starter and the Bendix drive spring will pull it away from the engine's flywheel. Then know your starter is the cause... REPLACE! Hope this works for you?

Re: engine seized?
 

prettiest sight i've ever seen. water squirting out of the plug holes. pulled the plugs no great amount of water. only the 7 and 8 cylinders had water enough to spill out after plugs where pulled. 2 oz. of marvels in each and ill place new plugs tomorrow and turn it over. nothing in crank case, oil clean and clear. might have just lucked out.

Re: engine seized?
 

Got in thru top of motor and open valves? Or bad head seal.

Re: engine seized?
 

Sounds to me like what someone mentioned above... Your risers are likely shot allowing water to leak down and through the exhaust valves into your cylinders causing hydra lock.

If this is the case you are lucky you caught in time since in many cases this could lead to a catastrophic engine failure and you have to replace the whole engine.

First thing I would do if I were you is to get that water out of the cylinders by cranking the engine with the spark plugs out, especially if its saltwater. Next thing is to squirt some oil into the cylinder heads and continue to crank the engine to coat and protect them from rusting and then put the plugs back in . After doing this I'd take the risers off, have them inspected and if they are shot have them replaced. Risers are usually good for 5 to 7 years in salt water, even if you have a fresh water cooling system. Most people replace them every 5 to 7 years as preventative maintenance because if they fail while you are underway, you could ruin your engine.

Once you are done with everything you now want to make sure and change your oil before you start it up since there could be water in it. In fact, just to be on the safe side, I might change the oil a 2nd time if I see any traces of water in the oil after the first change.

Hope you dodged a bullet here and all it is is the risers.