I found my old previous post. Starting it for the 1 st time this season with a water hose. No spark while turning over fast.
It is a170 Mercruiser. I had the same problem last year. Once cranked I could repeatedly crank/run her again with no problem.
So today I connected a spark light between the # 1 plug & wire. No spark, no firing. Engine just spins.
I repeated what I did last year with no spark. That is I ran a wire from the + coil to the orange striped wire at the starter solenoid. Nothing. Then ran it to the + battery. No fire.
I saw a spark each time I touched them to the prospective terminals.