Oil Fill Capacity

" It's me again with the C

" It's me again with the Chris Craft Lincoln 431. This seems like a dumb question, but here goes.

The 1965 manual calls for 8 to 9 quarts of oil in the standard inboard mounting. I changed the oil and filter and drained about a gallon and a half (the oil was milky when drained, so I am not sure how much was water and how much was oil). I put in 5 quarts (in the ballpark of what was drained), and I get a full reading on the dipstick. Engine seems to run just fine, still with a full dipstick reading (no water in the oil at all now - I think it was just blow-by from the city water hook up when the boat was run on land).

Obviously, I do not want to overfill the crankcase, but this is perplexing. Am I missing something - is the manual wrong, or am I heading for a catastrophic engine failure? As far as I can tell, the dipstick seems to be seated normally, so I assume that is not the issue.

Any thoughts? Thanks! "

"Walter,

If you pulled the

"Walter,

If you pulled the oil out using a suction tube, you might have left some in the sump. Since this is a 1965 engine, is it equiped with an oil-lubed transmission? Old Paragons use engine oil for lube and although designed to drain into the crankcase, could trap a quart or two.

Also, you didn't mention whether you have a remote filter system. Oil trapped in the lines can hold a quart or so.

Manuals are seldom wrong, but the refill amount may be based on a completely dry engine and transmission. If your dipstick is accurate, I'd trust it and keep an eye on your engine temp and color of the oil as you run since water is evidently getting in.

"