Bravo raw pump, Old style to new?

[PARADOX]

Can an old style, 2-3 peace raw water pump assembly be changed to the new style one peace unit?

1994 Bravo with 454 Mag. The impeller housing is the old style and I want to change it over to the one peace unit. It will fit, so can it be just changed? or there is something I need to be aware of.?

Thx

P

[Ted]

Yes, that is the standard upgrade, IIRC some of the 3 piece parts are no longer available and you simply bolt on the one piece kit, it even comes with bolts. No fuss, no muss.

[PARADOX]

THanks. just double checking. I think the impellers are the same.

[ROGUE]

Be aware that the one piece housings are notorious for cracking and then sucking air and overheating engines. The regular bodies used to be available but harder to assemble on the engine. I usually pull the whole pump out and do it on the bench. I havent bought any parts for mine in a year, I hope they didnt do away with them all together.

[Ted]

What Rogue said is true, you have to be careful with the one piece body, best to swap on the bench if possible.

[Wobble]

I went back to the old style. The new plastic one piece are not worth a dam around sand.

[insanity]

CP sells the old two piece style. As well as a nice billet upgrade if you want to go that route.

[PARADOX]

I went back to the old style. The new plastic one piece are not worth a dam around sand.

That's not good. :( I have the "new style" on my 525's.. Now you guys are scaring me. :confused:

[TMS1155]

That's not good. :( I have the "new style" on my 525's.. Now you guys are scaring me. :confused:

Why? Theres no sandy areas by tampa bay. (Once you get about 5 miles out)

[Madpoodle]

We can still get the old style kits from Merc, and looking at their inventory I would say they are not going away anytime soon..

[PARADOX]

Why? Theres no sandy areas by tampa bay. (Once you get about 5 miles out)

Yeah.. :) but that first few mile is a bummer. I can see the bottom for half an hour before I get to some open seas.

[TMS1155]

Yeah.. :) but that first few mile is a bummer. I can see the bottom for half an hour before I get to some open seas.

And thats at 60 MPH!
I changed 2 of them today for sombody on LBK and there was no sand damage at all, only old impellers.

[Wobble]

And thats at 60 MPH!
I changed 2 of them today for sombody on LBK and there was no sand damage at all, only old impellers.

What I saw on several boats was that the wear strip that bisects the ports wears out prematurely and will eventually part allowing the sharp ends to destroy the impeller

[txriverrat2001]

Mark - stay out of the sand ... LOL!!

I shy away from the "aftermarket" one peice kits - but have plenty of luck with the factory Merc ones.

A lot of my "older" clients request the button be installed on the impeller shaft - not sure if this really helps - but many of the older guys swear by them. I can't tell the difference - we change most of them yearly whether they need them or not.... cheap insurance.

[Wobble]

Mark - stay out of the sand ... LOL!!

.

I try,easier said than done as you well know.

Unfortunately I have the room and the tools, so one way or another I get to work on 3 or 4 boats. I have noticed that the ones that have the old style pumps seem to keep their impeller's in much better shape, but since all of us beach our boats regularly we may see a lot more sand than most.

[Griff]

Both the 1 piece and 2 piece are available at Boatfix. They are Merc parts and priced well.
http://boatfix.com/bykeywordmerc.asp?textfield=impeller+kit&texttype=2