Buying a run down used boat with the intention to rebuilder her is always easier to dream than to execute. There's a number of video blogs now on line of young people buying a used boat and doing this very thing. When I watch them on YouTube I'm alway talking to the computer screen - "No its not going to be that easy." They do always get things done and go out cruising. But they never appear to work to the standards that I apply to my own boat work. Which brings me to the subject at hand: The installation of my new engine. The old Volvo was still serviceable, and had a number of years of life left in her but only with endless tinkering. They do say that cruising is boat maintenance in exotic locations. Limiting the likely things to go wrong has to put me ahead of the game.
Now that I have the old Volvo out I can see that there had been a different engine before that. That original diesel also had engine mounts 16 inches apart, so I guess the boat was moved up from the one cylinder Volvo, but we likely will never know. The Volvo MD2B was much too big for a boat under 3o feet.
Its going to take some thought on how to mate the new Beta to the old bed-logs.