wrote:
On Wed, 28 Jun 2006 22:12:45 -0500, "seeray28\(steve\)"
wrote:

mmmmmmm the manufacturer. gee I would have never thought about it. I guess
looking at about a dozen other alpha 1 sterndrives and not seeing a screen
at the intake ports would not be enough. Unless of course there was a lot of
screwups at the manufacturer that day. SO just for the giggles I called up
Merc today. Guess what, There is no screen on the alpha 1 2nd gen..

The fact that the manufacturer merely replied that they didn't put
them on doesn't mean much..... I wonder if the factory service reps
have ever heard of this problem before.... if so, could there be a
fix?


Ok so now I have contacted the manufacturer , any other ideas....

Assuming that you don't have a handful of these rocks already inside
of and moving around in the engine....

.... then you are picking them up each time you get in shallow
water.....

Only things left are (1) Make your own screen or (2) Stop in 5 feet of
water and pole your way in to shore and then out again.

I don't see any other options. But I am still mystified by WHAT is
bringing these particles off the bottom to be sucked into the intake.
There's just something about that, that doesn't make sense.
-- Grady-White Gulfstream, out of Southport, NC. http://myworkshop.idleplay.net/ Homepage http://www.thebayguide.com/rec.boats Rec.boats at Lee Yeaton's Bayguide

I wonder if he has polled other users of the same beaching spot to see
if they are having similar problems.