BF 8 water pump - new style engine

[Wandering Sagebrush]

Does anyone know if the new BF 8 is the same as the Classic when it comes to changing the impeller?

[Wandering Sagebrush]

I will answer my own question. I pulled the leg off the new Honda 8, and found them to be much different than the Classic 8.

There are 5 bolts instead of 4, with the 5th bolt at the end of the plate.

When I dropped the leg, the drive shaft stays with the leg. On the Classic, it stays with the power head side. When I pulled the pump housing, the impeller is keyed, rather than having a flat drive surface. Don't lose the key.

There is also a gasket under the housing plate. I don't recall that on the Classic.

I took it apart because I had a pump squeal when I started the motor last time, and it wasn't peeing until I dug around the pee hole with a small wire tie. There was no evidence of overheating. I found a piece of impeller down at the intake screens, so figured I had one coming apart. That was not the case, the impeller looked fine except one vane was turned back counter clockwise.

What I did find was slightly melted plastic at the bottom of the shaft opening (impeller side), and some more slight melt around the water outflow that sends water to the engine. I suspect the melt was from a much earlier incident where I had an impeller come apart while running. That time, the leg got real hot, real quick. I was in a hurry, and had a dealer fix it, and I suspect they didn't catch the slight melted areas in the pump housing.

Off to get parts in the morning! Hopefully it goes together both easily and correctly.

Afterthought... 10mm bolts on the leg and pump, versus 12mm(?) on the Classic, and 10mm on the shift link nuts.

[Wandering Sagebrush]

One more...

I just stumbled onto a repair guide...

http://cdn.powerequipment.honda.com/pe/pdf/pubs/pci54299pdf.pdf