89 Johnson 110 Hole Shot Issues.

[codyhunter]

I have a 1991 16' Stratos 264 with a Johnson 110 on it. I've recently had the carbs rebuilt, head gaskets replaced, powerpack replaced, spark plugs replaced, water pump relpaced, replaced all fuel lines and installed a water separator and new bulb, and replaced the original 13-19 prop with a 13 3/4-17 michigan vortex prop. It definitely runs better than before I did all of this work on it but I have an issue now that I can't figure out.

When coming out of the hole, the motor seems to miss and the boat shakes as if you were running over big rumble strips like on the side of a road. It does this fairly consistently at different speeds and throttle response times. Once you get on plane it runs great. So just out of curiosity, when I put it on the trailer I put it in gear and throttled up slowly and the motor ran beautifully. It was smooth and sounded brand new and tried to push the truck up the ramp. I did this a few times and can't figure out why the motor runs so good on the trailer and not on the water. The only difference that I know of is that when it's on the trailer more of the motor is down in the water than when it's floating natural on the water. I'm so confused. It has unbelievable torque when it's on the trailer but struggles to get out of the hole on the water. I always take off with the trim all the way down. WOT RPM's run between 5200-5500 with a top speed around 47mph. All 4 cylinders run between 90-94 psi after warm up. Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks to all that reply.

 

[ezeke]

Re: 89 Johnson 110 Hole Shot Issues.

When was the last de-carbon treatment?

The boat is rated for 140HP so you are in range power-wise. Have you tried raising the motor? you might be able to reach 5800 RPM at WOT if you get the motor one hole higher.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: 89 Johnson 110 Hole Shot Issues.

have you checked your spark? did you remove all 6 jets in the carb, most people miss 2 of them.

 

[nymack66]

Re: 89 Johnson 110 Hole Shot Issues.

All good pointers double check the carbs, could also be a sticking timer base advance, with someone at the helm verify its indeed advancing smoothly during the throttle advanceand not sticking, on muffs this will not be quite obvious in regards to how the engine sounds or runs, under load on the water huge difference.. Good Luck ..

 

[codyhunter]

Re: 89 Johnson 110 Hole Shot Issues.

I had a boat mechanic do all of the work so I have to assume he rebuilt the carbs properly. I've got good spark. Like I mentioned, it runs great when I'm trying to push my truck up the ramp and I believe it would if the truck were in neutral. It's just when I take off out of the hole when it feels as if one cylinder is missing or cutting out and the whole boat shakes pretty bad until I get on plane. I wonder if the prop isn't in the water deep enough? But then again, I never had this problem with my old prop. I've got one more hole until the motor is all the way down. Assuming the carbs and spark are fine, I don't know where else to go other than raising or lowering the motor. Why else would the motor run powerful and smooth when on the trailer(backed down the ramp) and not on the water? I'm going to pull the flywheel off and look around and see if I can find anything obvious with the timing and what not.

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: 89 Johnson 110 Hole Shot Issues.

Set up is huge for performance, especially hole shot. Weight distribution of your people and gear and fuel tanks etc. Motor height and trim are also important factors. What prop do you currently run ???

 

[codyhunter]

Re: 89 Johnson 110 Hole Shot Issues.

It's a 13 3/4-17 Michigan Vortex 3 blade aluminum. I can tell a great difference in hole shot since I've installed this new prop but with the new prop also came the vibration and/or missing problem I'm having. Not sure how deep the motor should be but my horizontal fins are approximately 1"-1.5" higher than the very bottom of my boat(the V part of the bottom). Is this about right?

 

[codyhunter]

Re: 89 Johnson 110 Hole Shot Issues.

But I will add that I currently have the boat intentionally unbalance to simulate having a passenger. I have 2 average size batteries and a full 18gal tank in the back with a 20lb bag of tools on the left side also in the back. I also filled both front and back livewells. This is as close as I could simulate my normal fishing setup.

 

[emdsapmgr]

Re: 89 Johnson 110 Hole Shot Issues.

Your 17 pitch prop is getting the engine closer to the ideal top rpm's. If your top rpm's are still in the 5200 to 5300 rpm range, you are still "lugging" the engine at those rpms. You need to get the rpm's up in the 5500 to 5700 range at full trim. Make sure the engine is not mounted too low on the boat. Low mountings cause huge drag and water spray ar the rear of the boat. When running on plane, the water coming under the boat at the stern should run just under the lower unit antiventilation plate for optimal performance. If you think you have a miss, take an inductive timing light with you next time out. Check the light flashes from each plugwire and make sure you don't have a miss.

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: 89 Johnson 110 Hole Shot Issues.

But I will add that I currently have the boat intentionally unbalance to simulate having a passenger. I have 2 average size batteries and a full 18gal tank in the back with a 20lb bag of tools on the left side also in the back. I also filled both front and back livewells. This is as close as I could simulate my normal fishing setup.

That's a lot of weight at the stern end yo have put. I now noticed your new prop is 3/4" bigger diameter. Are the blades completely in the water ??
How did it perform with the old prop. You can always pop that back on and compare. Why the need for the new prop ??