The Four-stroke Story
I used to be a fan of the two-stroke engine. The raw power and torque it could deliver was ever so exhilarating. That was until I put the engine at idle. The unpleasant aroma that was the engine's exhaust diminished the excitement of the ride. I just couldn't put up with the smokey nature of a two stroke anymore. So, this year (2020) I decided to re-power the boat from its original Mercury two-stroke to a newer Mercury four-stroke. However, this was not the start of my "four-stroke" story; that would begin one entire summer ago.
The summer of 2019, I had just picked up a cheap eight horsepower Honda Marine outboard engine off of Craigslist that I thought would be a quick fix. Upon taking it apart, I found out that a connecting rod inside the engine cylinder had snapped. Right then and there I decided that I would pull off the tremendous task of rebuilding the engine, even though I had no prior experience with an internal combustion engine. It was hard work climbing a steep learning curve. The project took a lot of time and effort but eventually I was able to fix it. The process was like riding a rollercoaster with wild ups and dangerous downs. Hair-raising highs are the moments I got an idea to fix a problem and it worked. Adrenaline-draining lows are the moments an idea failed, or I made a costly mistake. One of the most unique skills I learned during this project was how to hone a cylinder sleeve. The thrill of the ride and the eventual product are my favorite parts. Despite great pains, I enjoyed every minute of it, and it also helped me develop various hands-on skills as well as some hard-earned patience.
The summer of 2019, I had just picked up a cheap eight horsepower Honda Marine outboard engine off of Craigslist that I thought would be a quick fix. Upon taking it apart, I found out that a connecting rod inside the engine cylinder had snapped. Right then and there I decided that I would pull off the tremendous task of rebuilding the engine, even though I had no prior experience with an internal combustion engine. It was hard work climbing a steep learning curve. The project took a lot of time and effort but eventually I was able to fix it. The process was like riding a rollercoaster with wild ups and dangerous downs. Hair-raising highs are the moments I got an idea to fix a problem and it worked. Adrenaline-draining lows are the moments an idea failed, or I made a costly mistake. One of the most unique skills I learned during this project was how to hone a cylinder sleeve. The thrill of the ride and the eventual product are my favorite parts. Despite great pains, I enjoyed every minute of it, and it also helped me develop various hands-on skills as well as some hard-earned patience.
