1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

Slimmdaddy

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Apr 2, 2011
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I have a 1974 150 that is causing me some sleepless nights. I just swapped this 150 onto my boat replacing a perfectly good and dependable 115 because I want more power (yea I have heard all the grief about taking off the 115 that was running as perfect as when it was new but I wanted more power for some reason that eludes even me at this point). When you start this 150 on the hose it starts as easy as a new engine, idles super smooth and is peppy when the throttle is worked. In the lake, it starts equally as well and idles about 600 rpm in gear very smooth.

The aggravation occurs when trying to throttle up, it will not rev past approximately 1300-1400 rpm and just 'bogs' down as if it is out of gas. If I choke it when it bogs down the engine just dies. It will start right back up faster than you can let pressure off the key.

Things to know:
Boat - 1978 Cobra Phantom 17' (looks exactly like this Bullet --> 1986 19' Bullet Bass Boat)
Prop - Quicksilver 21 pitch (had same prop on 78 115 and it launched like a missile and top out at 49.5 mph gps)
Compression - 130-135 on all cylinders (checked warm, checked by two different people using two methods, results are within 3psi each cylinder between the two methods)
Timing - 5 degrees BTDC at idle, 21 degrees total timing
NEW - fuel tank, all fuel lines, fresh rebuilt carbs (have tried 2 sets both rebuilt WMK-19 with economizer ports blocked off per Mercury's $20 classic outboard service call)

Something I noticed is that the distributor appears to have lots of grease oozing from the separation points and when I remove the cap there is grease and oily film inside the cap and under the disc that spins above the rotor button. The rotor button appears to be fine, no cracks or chunks missing. The distributor cap contacts show minimal signs of wear but are not corroded. If a screwdriver is used to jump spark from the tip of the spark plug to ground while the engine is running, all cylinders show the same drop in power.

Can the ignition be dropping out under load? Could stuck reed valves cause this problem?

My mind is going in a million directions it seems so I will proof read this a time or two and post...then add additional info as requested.

Thank you for any help, it will be greatly appreciated.
 

festeraeb

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

I would check the coils. Sounds like one is dropping out under load. They run good at idle but start shorting out when you pour the power to them. The older ones like that a lot of times you can see them if they are cracked but I would test them nonetheless
 

Chris1956

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

SD, That is a symptom of the idle mixture adjustment being too lean, or of dirty carbs.

Festeraeb, I believe SD has only one coil.
 

festeraeb

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

Chris, Your right that one only has a single coil.

SD, in light of chris's correction I would check the carbs.
 

Slimmdaddy

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

Sorry for the response time, I got swamped at work then did some more tinkering and testing on the boat. The idle mixture screws are set approximately 1 3/4 turns out and this is the second set of fresh rebuilt carbs. Is it possible a failing ignition box or coil could cause a smooth idle and poor performance or do these items generally just go bad at once?


SD, That is a symptom of the idle mixture adjustment being too lean, or of dirty carbs.

Festeraeb, I believe SD has only one coil.
 

Chris1956

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

Well, if your sure the link and synch is correct, it really points to the carbs. Maybe you have a bad float? Maybe the float is misadjusted. If that isn't it, the carb idle mixtures could still be a bit lean.

Oh yeah, check the spark plug wires for arcing to ground
 

Slimmdaddy

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

Thanks Chris, been fishing all afternoon and evening and just got home. I have checked the link and sync twice and had a merc friend check it also and it seems to be correct. Although I am confident in the carbs I will yank them tomorrow and tear down again for inspection. The thing with the carbs that I find troubling is the same problem with two completely different sets of carbs even after both sets have been gone through thoroughly and I have sat on the back of the boat with a squirt bottle of gas/oil mix and squirted into the carbs while someone else operated the boat in an attempt to add fuel that may not be getting through the carbs and if ANY gas is squirted into ANY of the three carbs from a small amount to a large amount the engine immediately dies but will start right back up with just a tap of the key.

I do concede that I am only human and could have overlooked something so I will yank them tomorrow and check them well again. I will also do the link and sync again and be as thorough as I can.

While on the lake today I met a guy who had a different boat but same engine and he claims that his engine did the EXACT same thing (idle fine and smooth, rev on hose yet no power and no rev in the water) and it turned out that his ignition module was bad...tested ok and started and ran fine until you put a load on it....I have no way of knowing if that is true or possible but I do know he had that God awful expensive CDI unit on his..lol

Thanks again for the input, I will start fresh tomorrow after work and check carbs and then link and sync again and see what I can come up with.

Slimm
Well, if your sure the link and synch is correct, it really points to the carbs. Maybe you have a bad float? Maybe the float is misadjusted. If that isn't it, the carb idle mixtures could still be a bit lean.

Oh yeah, check the spark plug wires for arcing to ground
 

MH Hawker

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

It most likely wont apply but last year my 96 15 hp wouldn't go over 2500 rpm no matter what, it ran fine just wouldst rev any higher, then the CDT failed completely and I found out it has a two step system, one for low rpm and one for high RPM ignition.
 

Slimmdaddy

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

Thanks MH, that is what I am wondering about also especially after my conversation with the guy I met at the ramp yesterday. I have still not gotten a clear answer from anyone I talk to about if this ignition system can do that although I am really starting to lean that direction. I am subconsciously planning on that new CDI unit so my wallet is prepared for the hit..lol


It most likely wont apply but last year my 96 15 hp wouldn't go over 2500 rpm no matter what, it ran fine just wouldst rev any higher, then the CDT failed completely and I found out it has a two step system, one for low rpm and one for high RPM ignition.
 

MH Hawker

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

Well I am far from a mercury wiz and I know their several types of ignition around depending on year and motor size, just thought I would mention it. The guys here are very very good at solving problems.
 

Chris1956

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

The 1974 IL6 had a single CDI system powered by the battery. The stator/rectifier simply serves to keep the battery charged. There is no high or low speed stator windings, like in the newer motors (after 1979 1/2). So if you have spark at idle, you have it at all speeds. If the spark plug wires are not arcing, you need to look elsewhere for your issue. The carb idle mixtures are real fussy about how they are set. The carbs are real fussy about being clean and the floats can disolve or crack. Make sure the floats are in good shape and adjusted correctly.
 

Slimmdaddy

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

Chris, I went and spoke with another Mercury mechanic that is now retired and once I explained to him the things I have done and how I went about doing them he confirmed my thought that I had done things correctly and offered me a phenomenal idea from his own past experience. He told me that he had experience with many engines that had the same symptoms and surprisingly quite a few of them were caused by mice getting into the area behind the prop and building a nest that blocked the flow of exhaust.


I drove home (1 1/2 hour drive from my home to his) and yanked the lower unit and guess what I found.





Got it cleaned out and put back together and hit the water....OMG that things launches like a rocket and I cannot believe the difference in power from the old 115 to the 150...WoW that things revs so fast and seems the higher you rev it the more it begs for more!

Anyway thank you all so very much for your time and help, I appreciate it a lot.

Slimm

The 1974 IL6 had a single CDI system powered by the battery. The stator/rectifier simply serves to keep the battery charged. There is no high or low speed stator windings, like in the newer motors (after 1979 1/2). So if you have spark at idle, you have it at all speeds. If the spark plug wires are not arcing, you need to look elsewhere for your issue. The carb idle mixtures are real fussy about how they are set. The carbs are real fussy about being clean and the floats can disolve or crack. Make sure the floats are in good shape and adjusted correctly.
 

Chris1956

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

Gee, Glad you got it fixed up. What a mess. What is that stuff?
 

Slimmdaddy

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

It appears to be hair and some grass/straw type plant material soaked in grease and oil where the engine has been ran so much trying to locate the problem.

Gee, Glad you got it fixed up. What a mess. What is that stuff?
 

Slimmdaddy

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Re: 1974 150 (serial 3915965) wont rev, low power

UPDATE: ok after reading your post I remembered I sat that stuff out to dry and soaked it in some laquer thinner for a few seconds to clean the oil residue off..it is some sort of plastic strips like the filling in a childs easter basket or when an old tarp dries up and comes apart and animal fur but mostly plastic strips of some sort...

Gee, Glad you got it fixed up. What a mess. What is that stuff?
 
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