Motor mount and exhaust riser (with flix)

[Ron Hill]

Ed : Here's another idea.

I don't know how much distance there is between the engine mount bracket and the engine bed stringer, but see if this might work.  Take a piece of 1/2" aluminum and mount the K75 engine mount on it.  Then use the outer hole in the engine bracket on the engine for the mount.  Drill the 1/2" aluminum piece and lag-bolt it to the engine bed rails.  if necessary you can gouge out the bed rail fro the bolt head under on underside of the aluminum.

A thought 

[Noah]

Nice workaround, Ron!

[Ekutney]

I was thinking of filling the current hole with epoxy then using a shorter lag bolt but was concerned it might not be long enough to get a good bite.

Thanks for the idea of using a 90 deg drill or adapter.  I think I am gonna try a small hole saw to see if I can extract what is broken off in the hole.  If that works then I can use the original hole by filling it with epoxy then re drill for a new lag bolt.

If that does not work then the idea of the 1/2 in aluminum is the next option.  I can always use counter sunk Allen bolts so it will sit flush on the stringer without having to make holes for the hex heads.

Without pulling the engine there is just much room to work with.

I will keep everyone posted.

[KWKloeber]

Ed,

I'm not saying this is for your situation -- just passing along info.....

What some C-30 owners have done is drill out the stringer and sink/epoxy upside-down bolts (w/ add'l nuts/washers for bite) so there's a stud instead of a hole for a lag.  Alternately, sinking/epoxy in long coupling nuts in the stringer to accept a machine bolt, instead of a lag bolt.

Ken

[Ekutney]

I made some progress.

Plan A:   I bought the 90 deg drill adapter from Harbor Freight but it is too tight a fit to get a hole saw properly positioned to drill it out.

Next idea,

Plan B step 1:  I loosened the large nuts on the stud coming out the top of the motor mount and was able to rotate the base just enough to give me access to the hole where the broken lag bolt is in the stringer. (front mount, front hole starboard side)  I then took a Dremel and excavated the hole enough to see the top of the lag bolt, it is about 1 in below the top of the stringer. My plan is to use the Dremel and either grind it down or excavate enough to dig it out..  A long tedious process but I am determined.

Plan B step 2:  I then plan to insert a thick plastic straw in the center of the hole and fill around the outside of the straw with epoxy (the void left by the straw should act just like a pilot hole).

Any thoughts on my plan?

[Noah]

Might work; just make sure the straw is not too big in diameter and that you have enough clear area-- expoxy or not-- for new lag bolt to have pleanty of bite."bite". When you get all of this finally sorted out, make sure your alignment, etc. is good. Some issue caused your engine to "walk" on the mounts-- to cause the PO to resort to through bolting the aft bolts and all that other drama. Even the OEM mounts, with a properly aligned, well-maintained engine--should not cause it to rip out the bolts or elongate the holes--like you have been dealing with--broken lag bolt aside. Caveat: I am NOT a mechanic!

[Ekutney]

Sorry for having the same discussion on two threads...  Got a bit confusing..

I"m not sure why the issues with the engine walking.  The mechanic I had look at the engine said there was little maintenance done over the years.  He is going to do the alignment and adjust the valves showing me along the way.

My plan is to get the engine setup correctly and keep an eye out for any other issues.