install electronic ignition kit in a Mercruiser 120 engine?

[Rich_V174SS]

With a decent set of box wrenches you should be able to get the elbow off. You don't need to pull the engine out. A screw driver is needed to loosen the hose clamps that connect the elbow to the rubber boot behind the engine. I try to get only Mercury parts when available. Sometimes the aftermarket parts are inferior. If you are going to pull the elbow off you should drain the manifold and elbow first so water or antifreeze doesn't flow into the exhaust chamber of the manifold and flood into the engine cylinders when you break the gasket seal.

[Neutron68]

With a decent set of box wrenches you should be able to get the elbow off. You don't need to pull the engine out. A screw driver is needed to loosen the hose clamps that connect the elbow to the rubber boot behind the engine. I try to get only Mercury parts when available. Sometimes the aftermarket parts are inferior. If you are going to pull the elbow off you should drain the manifold and elbow first so water or antifreeze doesn't flow into the exhaust chamber of the manifold and flood into the engine cylinders when you break the gasket seal.

Understood, on draining the antifreeze from the exhaust manifold, before elbow removal. 

What do you think of putting a petcock in the exhaust manifold drain hole, for ease of use?  Will it clog up?

[Rich_V174SS]

They drain better and are easier to unclog when it's just a brass plug screwed in there.

[Rosscoe]

If the elbow is not too bad, I've seen Muriatic acid work wonders on cleaning out the gunk.

[Rich_V174SS]

I found my replacement 120 elbow in storage. I bought it used from ebay cheap a number of years ago and intended to replace the one on my 120 engine but never got around to it because I ended up replacing the whole engine with the 3.7 liter I now have in my boat. In the pic you can see the 3 water outlet holes as they should be - clean, defined, and unobstructed.

[Neutron68]

I found my replacement 120 elbow in storage. I bought it used from ebay cheap a number of years ago and intended to replace the one on my 120 engine but never got around to it because I ended up replacing the whole engine with the 3.7 liter I now have in my boat. In the pic you can see the 3 water outlet holes as they should be - clean, defined, and unobstructed.

Thanks for the photo.  I was wondering how a Mercruiser 120 elbow should look on the inside.

On the amount of water coming out of the boat rear end, there was more coming out of the lower end than the upper part of the drive unit.  I didn't have the cabin's faucet at 100%, but then again, even at 100%, the cabin's water never gushes like city water pressure does!  So, the input volume may not be up to city water pressure standards!
I guess I'm not going to be sure about the water output until I take the elbow apart and look in the output section, or run the engine again in the spring and evaluate the amount of water coming out the upper part of the outboard unit.

Eric

[Neutron68]

I looked at the distributor assembly bolt again this weekend.

I could NOT get either end of the wrench on the bolt head.  I tried several sizes and it seemed like 9/16 was the closest.
The open end 9/16 was too thick to go between the bolt and the pole the distributor is on.  The 9/16 boxed end ALMOST fit over the bolt head, but it was also too thick to go between the bolt and the pole the distributor is on.  My boxed end wrench is one of the ratcheting kind.

I'm guessing some special wrench is needed for this?
Can someone quote a model number and maker of a known-compatible wrench?

[Neutron68]

I went to try removing the bolts of the exhaust elbow to check it for rust plugs of the water passages.

I could NOT get a wrench on the 2 recessed bolts!  I tried a socket for a socket wrench and I could not even get the socket (without wrench handle) to go into that recess!!

What kind of special wrench does this bolt need?
Model number and maker, if you know of a compatible wrench.

[Rich_V174SS]

No special tools are required. Simple 'quality' 12-point box-end or slender open-end wrenches are all that is needed. No Chinese cheapies with poor metallurgy or fancy ratcheting gear wrenches. See pic below.

On another note: I installed a Pertronix for one of my customers today and ran into the same problem you had with the rotor not fitting with the magnetic wheel installed. I had to dig into my box-o-stuff and find a "shorty" rotor that worked in it's place.

[Jerry]

Offset Distributor wrench, offset box wrench, crow's foot, waterpump wrench. flex-socket works too.

[Jason]

Did you try going between the block and fuel pump? It does kind of sound like you have "heavy" wrenches. Seems like a lot of time the cheaper wrenches are sloppier and don't you grab the hex as well too. I use craftsman and have done my timing plenty of times with them.

[Neutron68]

Did you try going between the block and fuel pump? It does kind of sound like you have "heavy" wrenches. Seems like a lot of time the cheaper wrenches are sloppier and don't you grab the hex as well too. I use craftsman and have done my timing plenty of times with them.

No, I didn't.

How about this wrench set?  Does the bolt end look thin enough?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/5-PC-S-SHAPED-BOX-END-TYPE-WRENCH-TOOL-SET-SAE-STANDARD-SIZED-ANGLE-ANGLED-BENT-/290878823661

[Jason]

A standard Craftsman 1/2 or 9/16 (can't remember) will do the trick. Even Kmart sells those now.

[75starflight]

A standard Craftsman 1/2 or 9/16 (can't remember) will do the trick. Even Kmart sells those now.

9/16" I just removed the distributor on the 140 I am pretty sure that is the size