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    Stringer contour question

    Workworking stores and the Home Despot carry profile gauges. They have many thin rods (think 8d finish nails), in a row, in a friction holder. You press the gauge into the area you are trying to profile and the steel rods slide to match the contour. Then trace onto the stringers.
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    Boat Radio/Stereo Help

    You can connect the red and yellow wires together and turn power off at the accessory switch to save the battery. The stereo will loose all radio station data, but a lot of stereos have an automatic radio station finding function.
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    Mercury 80hp 800 1970s LU oil type

    Any Marine gear oil for mechanical shift motors. It will be a 80W-90 or an 85W-90 oil. It should be available at wallyworld or most automotive stores. Buy 2 quarts and a pump, to make it easy to fill the gearcase, from the bottom hole. It will take 25 oz. When the oil oozes out the top...
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    Steering choice and control help

    You will need to buy side mount controls for Yamaha, as different OEMS have different style controllers. Universal controls (if for Yamaha) are acceptable. They should be available wildly. Try to get the OEM control number from a Yamaha catalog and search the internet on that.
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    1986 Mercury 115 tilt trim help needed

    An '86 115HP Merc looks to have a standard PTT unit, like the kind used for a long time afterward. Those have lower pins for the trim cylinder to swivel on. The pins have drilled passages for hydraulic fluid to go from outer trim cylinder to inner tilt cylinder. The casting can get worn and...
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    2011 Optimax 150 snapped driveshaft

    A new gearcase from SEI will have a new driveshaft. Does the end of the driveshaft look to be defectively cast/forged? Not sure how a Merc driveshaft can snap that way, if gears are in good shape. Johnson 90HP motors did tend to break driveshafts, for some reason.
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    Cooling hose for Black Max

    That hose looks to be for the telltale. The OEM price is outrageous. Simply grab a piece of cheap 24" fuel line of the correct diameter. It should be $6-8 or so at a wallyworld.
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    How old is your outboard?

    OEMs are generally required to produce parts for motors for 20 years. After that they make a business decision on how long to provide parts. Popular motors usually have aftermarket parts available, for a very long time, especially for the normal replacement items like fuel, ignition and...
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    Steering when steering left it goes right can anyone help

    Did you replace the steering cable? Is it rack and pinon steering or Rotary steering? In R&P steering the Rack (cable) needs to sit on top of the pinon, or she will steer backwards. On Rotary steering the steering cable can be put in the wrong hole of the steering head, causing backward steering.
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    Burnt wires

    Some of the OEM VRs on Mercs have a clear potting. You can look thru and see burn marks on the printed circuit boards. If you see burn marks, it is time for a new VR. They are avail from Sierra and others, and easy to install.
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    Help my old gal won't start

    Did you "Those motors ground the switchbox to kill the spark. Disconnect the black/yellow at the switchbox and see if speak returns. If so, suspect the wiring is grounded somewhere or the ign switch is bad."
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    Help my old gal won't start

    Those motors ground the switchbox to kill the spark. Disconnect the black/yellow at the switchbox and see if speak returns. If so, suspect the wiring is grounded somewhere or the ign switch is bad. If the motor had a kill lanyard, check that as well. I would expect it has a switch on the...
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    5.7 mercruiser deck boat

    You should repost this in the MerCruiser forum. Those guys are experts.
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    1996 Mercruiser A1 Gen2 4.3 turns left on its own

    Does it turn left only under power, or when idling? If only under power, adjust the anode fin above and behind the prop to be more centered.
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    fiberglassing in new floor

    In addition to what Emerger said, Lay some strips of cloth over the tops of the stringers, and around the perimeter of the plywood deck and saturate them with poly resin. Now install the plywood deck and screw thru the deck into the stringers with SS wood screws. On some boats, the edges of...
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    1978 mercury 850 fuel pump spring

    The 4 coil ignition system (versus Distributor and 1 coil), idle pickup timing should be 0-9* ATDC. Max spark advance s/b 21* BTDC.
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    Power tilt/trim

    What year are the motors?
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    1978 mercury 850 fuel pump spring

    Check the spark plugs to make sure they are the same color. If one is real clean, you may have water infiltration into that cylinder. Even with good spark, water puts the fire out.
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    Mercury M-800 Thunderbolt Full Throttle Only Now Help

    Your reed valves are pretty rugged. I would be shocked if they are bad. Engine must spin 300RPM to choke properly (choke is working?) and make good spark. Clean starter cables. Also look for bulges on cables. This can indicate corrosion under insulation. I would set max spark advance to...
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    1978 mercury 850 fuel pump spring

    What kind of shape is your wiring harness? They often go bad on those older motors. Is she running on all 4 cylinders? A bad fuel pump diaphragm can cause bogging at idle. I would rebuild the fuel pump thereby making sure the fuel pump is operating properly. and then see how she runs.
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