I love the Beta engines, had a Beta on my previous
boat, repowered my
current boat with Beta, and we also have a Beta
generator. All use the same zinc and your
photo looks normal to me. The threads are tapered and you just need to screw it in tight enough to not leak, do not over tighten.
The tiny 3/4 inch pencil zinc drives me crazy but forces me to check it regularly and change it more often than a longer zinc, which is probably a good thing.
Here's what I do:
- Order a supply of pencil zincs (zinc only). I get mine from
Boatzincs.com, and the item # is E-0BZ, a 3/4 inch zinc, 3/8 wide, with 5/16-18 threads, currently selling for $2.24 each and usually order 10 at a time, which will last me 5 years or more for both my
engine and
generator. Or you can skip the hassle of re-using the nut and
get the assembled unit from Beta Marine for $7.50 each.
- When replacing a zinc I have an assembled one ready to go, and recycle the nut by removing the old zinc and replacing it will the above.
- If the old zinc doesn't come out easily (it usually doesn't) I use a dremel to bore out most of it (it's brittle and easy to do) and use a 5/16-18 tap to clean out the threads. If you don't have a tap, letting it soak in vinegar or some such and brushing/scraping the little bits out is easy, but a bit more time consuming.
- Screw in a new zinc and you're ready for next time!
- Alternatively you can make your own pencil zincs from 3/8 zinc rods, cut them up and thread them with a 5/16-18 die, but I'm too lazy for that.