Author: Story and photos By Steve D’Antonio

I once read an article in a major boating magazine entitled “Oil Analysis Made Simple.” It caught my attention because, as a trained oil analyst, I know from experience as well as formal training that oil or fluid analysis is complex and fraught with both opportunity for sampling errors and misinterpretation of reports.

The engine faltered, and with that a cloud of dense, white smoke erupted from under the small runabout’s dashboard, enveloping the cockpit and its occupants … I vividly recall my first encounter with overcurrent protection, or more accurately the lack thereof.

There are two approaches to marine exhaust setups.