Doing my first reed replacement

[Hank W]

I know some of you are tired of answering the same questions over and....but I am curious. I've heard it is critical to torque the reeds to the right tightness so I went and bought a fairly cheap small value S-K wrench and I can't get the reed screws to 20 in. lbs. let alone 25 w/o almost stripping the phillips heads on them. What do you guys do? I'm thinking just tighten them as tight as I can w/o messing up the screw heads. Also, do you use blue locktite? Does the rev plate tend to bend down around the screw head when tightened properly? If it is critical, what type wrench do you use? Sorry for all the questions, but I don't want my motor to ingest anything that is not good for it's health!

[Liqui-Fly]

Get the right wrench and save yourself the headaches. Too tight can mess up the way the reeds seat...so can too loose. I think you need 5000 hours of wrenching time before your elbow officially becomes a torque wrench.
David

[Rickracer]

See if you can borrow a Snap-On inch lb torque wrench. If not, maybe you should try exchanging the SK, sounds like it isn't calibrated right. :cool:

BTW:You probably know this, but make sure it's an inch pounds , not foot pounds wrench

[Hank W]

Thanks,
Rick, it is an inch pounds wrench, but it is not a high dollar one w/ the click indicator. I paid $65 and Mac wants $189 for theirs! It has the arm type indicator. It is seemingly very tight at 20 inch lbs. and has dimpled the rev plate at the screwhead. It may be right but it does not feel right to me.
David, I figured I knew the answer, just needed to hear it from someone else. The one block that I did put together looks to be sealing right, but.......

What about the grade of locktite?

[Liqui-Fly]

I think it's Loctite 271 but am not absolutely positive.
David

[Rickracer]

You probably want the blue medium strength.
Check it out....
Loctite (http://www.loctite.com/catalog/category1.html?ProductLine=10)
That should either help ya or confuse ya one of the two. :cool:

[Rickracer]

Works on already assembled threads. I've used this stuff before, and it works great. Loctite Wicking Threadlocker (http://www.loctite.com/catalog/product.html?ProductLine=290+++++++++++++++++)

[MTCM]

Hank,

The reed attaching screws should be torqued with a Torque Screw Driver, not a wrench. With a wrench it is hard to ensure you have a good bite on the head of the screw. I use a Cal 36 roto torque screwdriver. Not necessary to Loctite the reed attaching screws. The manual does not call for it, 2.5 or 2.4 However it does call for Loctite 271 for attaching the reed cages to the reed plate (2.5 EFI) or reed block housing (2.5Carb) and for attaching the plate/housing to the front half (2.5) The 2.4 manual does not call for Loctite on any of the aforementioned components. Not to say you couldn't use it, just it don't call for it on the 2.4

Wayne

[Liqui-Fly]

I've always used a philips bit in a 1/4 socket. Didn't know they actually made a torque screwdriver. How many grand is that?
David

[MTCM]

Soon as I get it back. That screwdriver and the JSRE Flywheel Puller get borrowed quite frequently around here and I always have to go looking for them. For some reason nobody wants to bring them back. I think Snap-On has one, and they ain't as expensive as you might think. Take care

[Hank W]

I have a screwdriver torque wrench ordered from the Mac tool man as we sit here. I have the blue locktite. Heck my manual for my Promax doesn't say anything about installing the reeds, just states the torque values. Thanks for all the help!

[Superdave]

They make a purple Locktite made exclusivly for small fasteners. The self wicking works great too

[Hank W]

The screwdriver torque wrench is the way to go and purple is probably the best although I may use the blue242 that I already have. Thanks for the hyperlink Rick - By the way, I got the gaskets and these are the right ones. By the way if you have $300 laying around, Mountz makes a killer screwdriver torque wrench that goes into a slip mode when you get to the right value. I chose the click type from Mac tools at $130ish. I hope I use it more than once! Thanks for all the answers.
By the way Wayne, you are right on when you say that you can't properly torque, IMOP, with a conventional socket type tor. wrench especially when you combine that w/ socket adapters.

[ShipBear]

How's it going..
I have some Boyesen Power Reeds for my motor..

And they say to use...
A minimum-strength Loc-Tite( 242 Blue )
and torqued to 10 -12 in-lb.
If you need a copy of the whole Instructions sheet. Let me know and will email it to you..

OMCviper@aol.com

Later Larry

You ever come up to Tensaw..?? :D

[Talon2.5]

when i do my reeds i use the click type inch lb torque wrench

first i lightly tighten each screw from the middle out in a clockwise pattern by hand then torque to specs in the same pattern being carfull to have them seat correctly

myself i hate the old "murphys law" and use red locktite on the screws so they wont end up somewhere i thought they couldnt inside my motor

for those with no manual i thought i'd post some torque specs from the book for them

[Hank W]

Read the instructions. Larry, thanks I have the instructions. I knew there was some reason I picked up the 242 Blue from my local parts house. But then I went braindead and was using the Merc instructions which it turns out are for those factory steel reeds. As you said, Boyeson's insructions state clearly to torque their reeds to 10-12 inch lbs. I tried to tighten the 1st set I installed to 25 in. lbs. which as Skip correctly said Merc specifies. I knew immediately that this had to be too tight because it started to distort the steel rev plate. So I stopped and did the only smart thing to do and that was to ask you guys on this forum. I don't think I hurt the one I installed and as soon as my torquedriver arrives I'll install them all.
Larry, I've never been on the Tensaw. What's it like there? I've noticed you have a Viper & that you too boat in Bama. Been meaning to give you a shout. We need to get together sometime this year. I've got a new neighbor that just picked up a '73 Viper in the last month. He has got a lot of work to do & I'm sure I'll be giving him a hand. Another guy that lives closeby has a Vector w/ a big OMC and he goes down on the Chatahoochee River.

[jmr112]

Perhaps ShipBeap is right,the shop manuel call 25 lb.in.but i think it's for steel reed,Boyesen say 10 to 12 for plastic.

Talon 2.5 i agree whit you for the tighten method,plastic certenly extend.:cool:

[Hank W]

Here is a piece of Boyeson's instructions for installing their reeds