1968 with no spark

[wseith]

If there is anyone out there that can help i would appreciate it. Im not a boat mechanic so please be patient. I get no spark at the spark plugs. I have replaced the amplifier and the coil. I have a manual but dont seem to get anywhere with it. Could someone please point me in the right direction im stuck

 

[WillyBWright]

Re: 1968 with no spark

Welcome to iboats.

Bad news and good news. You might not have needed that $300+ amplifier. But if it was still original, you probably did. There are points under the flywheel. They need cleaning and/or gapping. You should also replace the grease wick. The lobes where the points rub on the crankshaft rust and that acts like sandpaper and before you know it, there's no points gap left. You didn't mention horsepower. 55?

Be EXTREMELY careful with the distributor cap. It breaks very easily.

Run the top cylinder to top dead center. Check for spark on that cylinder. Just turn the ignition switch on an off without cranking. It should spark when you turn the key off. If it does, yank the flywheel and go after those points.

 

[wseith]

Re: 1968 with no spark

Welcome to iboats.

Bad news and good news. You might not have needed that $300+ amplifier. But if it was still original, you probably did. There are points under the flywheel. They need cleaning and/or gapping. You should also replace the grease wick. The lobes where the points rub on the crankshaft rust and that acts like sandpaper and before you know it, there's no points gap left. You didn't mention horsepower. 55?

Thanks for the info. it is a 85 horse with electric shift.

 

[wseith]

Re: 1968 with no spark

Welcome to iboats.

Bad news and good news. You might not have needed that $300+ amplifier. But if it was still original, you probably did. There are points under the flywheel. They need cleaning and/or gapping. You should also replace the grease wick. The lobes where the points rub on the crankshaft rust and that acts like sandpaper and before you know it, there's no points gap left. You didn't mention horsepower. 55?

Thanks for the info. it is a 85 horse with electric shift.

 

[wseith]

Re: 1968 with no spark

Thanks for the info. its an 85 horse with electric shift. Can you think of anything else or should i try cleaning and gaping first. Thanks

 

[WillyBWright]

Re: 1968 with no spark

Good motor, same ignition. I edited a procedure into my first reply. Try it.

 

[WillyBWright]

Re: 1968 with no spark

A few things you should know...

Mine is a bit newer and a tad bigger, but pretty much the same thing.

Make certain you have a good battery with clean tight battery connections.

It needs something called Premium Blend gearlube from a Johnson/Evinrude dealer. I find that many synthetics work well. The thick hypoid gearlube makes it shift hard.

Tape a spare AGA-20 fuse near the red inline holder by the start solenoid. A blown fuse completely kills that motor. Sucks to be without one on the water if it blows.

 

[OBJ]

Re: 1968 with no spark

Make sure your battery is top notch for that ignition system. A poor battery can cause the amp to blow.

Check your grounds. But I think Willy has called it right. Get under the flywheel and check the points.

By the by, those particular points are no longer available from anybody.....except SeaWay Marine in Washington State. I got a couple sets a few weeks ago. If you do need them, ask for the factory seconds. Nothing wrong with them except the points may be out of line a little. The seconds are around $32.50 per point. The "good" sets run around $64 per point.

 

[WillyBWright]

Re: 1968 with no spark

Wet/dry sand paper (dry). Start with 400, then 800, finish with 1000 or1200 grit. Cheap, works. There are two sets of points.

 

[wseith]

Re: 1968 with no spark

Dear sir, upon taking the fly wheel off i noticed that my rotor was broken. a peice of plastic on the bottom round portion came off exposing a gasket type material. would this cause it not to spark. I did get spark in the disributor with the key in the on position.

 

[iwombat]

Re: 1968 with no spark

Let's not forget the often overlooked "D'oh" option.

Make sure your kill switch isn't defective. You can do this quickly and easily with an ohm meter (switch should be open). Or, you can disconnect the switch and see if you've got spark all of a sudden. It's probably the easiest thing to check, and certainly worth looking at if you've got no spark at all.

The other simple stuff to check before diving into the points and powerpacks and the like (in no particular order).

1) Power connections.
2) Ground connections.
3) Plug wires
4) Fuses

FWIW I agree with the ideas above, but there's no worse feeling than staring a bunch of disassembled parts and realizing you forgot to check the fuses or something equally as easy.

 

[iwombat]

Re: 1968 with no spark

Y'know before I opened my big mouth . . .

Does that motor even have a kill switch?

Talk about D'oh!

 

[wseith]

Re: 1968 with no spark

Let's not forget the often overlooked "D'oh" option.

Make sure your kill switch isn't defective. You can do this quickly and easily with an ohm meter (switch should be open). Or, you can disconnect the switch and see if you've got spark all of a sudden. It's probably the easiest thing to check, and certainly worth looking at if you've got no spark at all.

The other simple stuff to check before diving into the points and powerpacks and the like (in no particular order).

1) Power connections.
2) Ground connections.
3) Plug wires
4) Fuses

FWIW I agree with the ideas above, but there's no worse feeling than staring a bunch of disassembled parts and realizing you forgot to check the fuses or something equally as easy.

 

[wseith]

Re: 1968 with no spark

i dont think this unit has a kill swith. if it does i dont know where it is. ive checked the manual schematic and the engine intself and find no kill switch. all fuses are good to go. Do you know for sure if this unit has a kill switch. I know it has a safety switch

 

[iwombat]

Re: 1968 with no spark

Yeah, I realized that shortly after posting. See above. Still the sentiment is the same. Check the easy stuff first, especially since this is a systematic problem - no spark on any cylinder at all.

Then check it again.

Then, dive into the points.

 

[WillyBWright]

Re: 1968 with no spark

One could always have been added. You never know. I'll be putting one in my boat sooner or later. It'll need one for sterndrives, not outboards.

 

[WillyBWright]

Re: 1968 with no spark

The rotor turns inside the distributor cap. You have to remove the cap to get at it. There is a notch in the crankshaft that fits the notch in the rotor. Don't pry much on the cap. It's terribly brittle. What you're seeing is the webbing used in making the rotor. Probably normal.