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    How do you trim?

    Some boats will ventilate if you trim them at idle and then accelerate. This is especially true for boats where their outboard motors are mounted high for less drag/higher speed. When my Merc 135V6 was mounted high on the jackplate, it needed to be trimmed all the way down to accelerate at...
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    Rotary steering cable

    I am trying to get the wheel straight on my speedboat. I need to look good for the audience, however, with the NFB system it is hard.
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    1984 115hp TOP Switch Box Wiring

    It is hard to tell from a picture if the ground is good. Some general stuff. All those questions ask if the grounds are good. If you have a good ground, the switchboxes do not use lots of amperage, so a light duty ground wire is fine. If in doubt, add a ground wire to any good ground.
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    How to restore this 1961 hull?

    To be accurate, the balsa coring in my '62 Crestliner went from chine to chine, not to the gunwales. The sides were solid 3/16" or less fiberglass. The original owner rolled it over to paint the bottom, and the hull deformed side to side, which was unusual. It was fixed with some FG cloth...
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    thunderbolt ignition blows fuse after start

    Also check the accessory wire from the ign switch, rubbed bare somewhere and shorting to ground. It should be purple.
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    Rotary steering cable

    The steering wheel position is one of ascetics. On a destroyer wheel or other steering wheel that does not have a "straight" position, it does not matter. But if you have one of the steering wheels that does, say a three spoke steering wheel, you can try to make it orient straight when the...
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    How to restore this 1961 hull?

    The balsa coring in my Crestliner was 1X2 strips laid on the bottom of the hull fiberglass "skin", giving it fore-aft strength, and some side-to-side strength as well. The coring forms the entire bottom of the hull, from the vee shape to gunwales. The boat had no deck. The vee shape was on...
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    How to restore this 1961 hull?

    When I had my '62 Crestliner with its rotten coring, the bow would make a small left or right turn, when hitting a wave. I replaced about 1/3 of the stern hull coring with a piece of 3/4 plywood and a gallon of poly resin. Now the stern was solid. The bow still deflected with every wave.
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    question on the starting a "2 cycle Merc" sticky

    Gee, remember the rust on the rocker panels in the 60s and 70s? Cars are just about throwaways today. When they finally break, they can be worth so little is is not worth it to fix 'em.
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    2005 J115PLSOR weird oil leak

    Maybe the Pulse Limiter is leaking. It is very low on the block.
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    Kicker motor vs towing

    Gee, one can run 50::1 premix in a 4 stroke motor. Vice versa is very bad however.
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    question on the starting a "2 cycle Merc" sticky

    Gee, the high beam button on the floor was in my fathers '62 Mercury. By 1980 it was gone. Detroit used to use it for the starter, before they had key start and the solenoids necessary for that.
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    Kicker motor vs towing

    I have been boating for 50+ years. I always try to keep the engine maintained so it will keep running, but about 5 times, it has failed me. One was a hard aground, so that doesn't count. One was when my wife (in another boat) was to tow me home when I broke down. I was troubleshooting an...
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    New Winch or Winch Strap?

    Gee, isn't aircraft cable stainless steel? That stuff laughs at salt water, rain and the like, no?
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    It rained on my fresh, wet paint!

    Oil based paint is fairly resistant to rain. Latex, OTOH.... If it is bottom paint, let her dry and maybe touch up a few places where it got wet.
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    2005 J115PLSOR weird oil leak

    When you tilt up a carb motor, fuel often leaks. The gasoline tends to evaporite, leaving thin oil. Is that the scenario?
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    How to restore this 1961 hull?

    I had a Crestliner of about that age, years ago. The hull was cored with Balsa wood. It was mush in the 70's. If your hull is cored, you need to make sure it is still stiff and useable.
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    question on the starting a "2 cycle Merc" sticky

    My '88 Mercruiser had an electric choke. You had to pump the throttle twice to start her. Obviously, marine engines had carbs and points well after autos.
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    New Winch or Winch Strap?

    Joe, inquiring minds want to know. How do you refasten the winch strap to the eye after you cut it off. Usually, they are sowed. 3 pop rivets comes to mind.
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    question on the starting a "2 cycle Merc" sticky

    Gee, It just dawned on me that a lot of the younger generation do not have much experience with chokes, carbs and the like. Push button start auto have been around close to 20 years, and fuel injected cars about 45 years. So you need to be 40+ to remember pumping the accelerator pedal in your...
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