Mine engine is “bronze” colored but some parts on my engine where paint was chipped or worn show through blue gray.
Is there another way to tell XP “A” from “B” based upon serial number?
Noah,
The under color is Kubota industrial division (vs the typical orange Agricultural division.) Universal merely over-coated what arrived from across the pond. These engines were
NOT simply pulled off the tractor (agricultural) engine assembly line -- they were specifically configured for Universal.
There is a VAST difference between the pre-B series and the B series -- they are
completely different engines [not so for the 25, XP, XPA, XPA(C).]
Some telltales to hone in on which model (there are other differences more difficult to explain):
Seawater pump located center of the gear cover; within the v-belt = Westerbeke B series engine (eg, M-25XPB, XPB(C), M-35B.)
Seawater pump located on stbd side of the gear cover, outside the v-belt = Universal Medalist pre-B series engine (eg, M-25, XP, XPA, XPA(C).)
* 855 cc (displacement) embossed onto the block, stb side = M-25
* 927 cc (displacement) embossed onto the block. stb side = M-25XP (xtra power) or XPA or XPA(C).
* Oil switch located just aft of the fwd port engine mount = "A" series (Westerbeke) (eg, M-25XPA, XPA(C), -35A.)
You can tell the series from the Universal serial number (on the modal tag) or from the Kb serial number (engraved into the block and difficult to locate.)
-k
** There will be a pop quiz on this.