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Bruce in Alaska wrote in news:bruceg-
:

Actually if one would adapt the Mrs's electric hair dryer, to the intake
manifold of that diesel engine, and turn it on 30 seconds before
cranking the engine, no block heater or anything else will be required
to get it to start on the first or second compression stroke. Works

That's about what the Perkins 4-108 intake heater does. It preheats the
intake air to give the compression heat a boost before it's sucked into the
cylinders. After the block warms, it has a thermostat that shuts it down
until the next time you crank it cold.

Too bad they don't use pre-combustion chambers with glow plugs in them on
marine engines. Anyone know why? The series-connected 2V glow plugs in my
old '73 Mercedes 220Diesel are the size of #12 solid wire. They draw 50A
for about a minute before you pull the start knob all the way out. There's
one mounted in the dash in a ceramic heat case that is in series with all
the rest in the engine. It glows blood red and she cranks on the first
cylinder it comes to....(c;