new owner with questions.....

[bmdakk]

86 e50belcde...on a 25' crest pontoon.... Ok I replaced the thermostat and impeller yesteday. Had a good stream coming from the pee hole before I did the job. after , not so much.. While sitting in the yard with the motor in a tub of water. it started fine and had good throttle from Idle to WOT. I took it out on the river this morning. took forever to get it running and warmed up. The stream coming out of the pee hole was just a trickle, (had a harder stream in a tub of water). Finally got it warmed up to where it would go into gear with out stalling, and it wouldnt go faster than 4-5 MPH( just a guess as it doesnt have any guages). We went about 1000 yards up the river and I noticed that the pee stream kept dwindling to almost nothing so I turned around and headed back to the ramp. while doing this, when I steered either left or right the motor would race and sounded like it was slipping. Im at a loss as to where to start. any suggestions on what to look for? here is the problems for now 1. wont idle in the river, but will in a tub. 2. pee hole is almost non existant in river but decent in a tub or with ears muffs. 3. No speed at all with wot , Id say it isnt even 2000-2500 rpm . I have tried while hooked up to muffs and it engages into gear and prop turns and revs high, but not in the river. 4. While turning in the water motor seems to be slipping( almost like pulling a clutch lever on a motorcycle). Where do I start????????

 

[bonz_d]

If it was running well before you started work on it I would say it's time to go back and start at the beginning of what you did. Go over all of it again step by step. You either got something wrong in the repair or you knocked something else off or loose. Are you certain you installed the impellar in the correct direction and that all the vanes are right?

Recently bought a used engine that was to have just had the impellar changed and it wouldn't pump water. Pulled the lower and inspected the impellar to find 2 of the vanes were going in the wrong direction. Fixed that and it pumped just fine.

 

[ronward]

Is the motor getting hot? If so, the water tube is probably not aligned properly. If it isn't then I'd say the pee tube is partially blocked. The issue of the motor racing could be a spun prop hub. Scribe or paint a line across the hub and the barrel of the prop and run it again until the same thing happens, then check to see if the marks you made are still lined up. Since this boat is new to you are you sure it's not a short shaft motor and it needs a long shaft? This would cause ventilation(motor racing) and low water output because your water intake is too high.

How is your compression and spark? Either of those could cause low WOT. It can run on one cylinder sittin in your yard. I had an older 50 horse that did the same thing...ran great at home, fell on it's face on the river. I had a blown head gasket on one cylinder. Have you been thru the carbs? Just brainstorming here but these are what I would check first. With a new to you boat you could have taken on all manner of problems that you weren't told about. You may have gotten a good deal but it sounds like it came with several different issues. Take your time and work through one problem at a time. Start with compression, then spark, then fuel delivery. And check that water pump tube again.

 

[phipps]

When is the last time the carbs were gone through?

 

[bmdakk]

I forgot to mention that this boat had sat for about 3 years before I got it. Motor was started every year, but was never put in the water. was hooked up to rabbit ears though.

Compression is top 128 and bottom 125 psi. Gonna check the spark, just went and purchased a spark tester. How do I ground out the plug wires? I was told I needed to to keep from damaging the ignition system.

I have the carbs off now and soaking. the lower one was oxidized real bad green stuff like you would see on copper pipe.

Im gonna take the lower unit off again and check and see if the vanes are all turning the same way. I ran it in a tank after I replaced the impeller and it was spitting a pretty good stream, although not as strong as it was before I changed it. put it in the river and not hardly any at all and got worse the longer i was in the water.

The old stat was stuck and it did get hot but doesnt now after I replaced it.

as far as the short shaft/ long shaft. This is the original Motor that came on the boat. The motor sits good in the water. I would say 6 inches above the Cav Plate.

Im new at owning a boat, I have ran them before as my parents always had one. The Low WOT was only when the boat was under way, I can have it in neutral and it revs just fine.

 

[Faztbullet]

Not uncommon for prop to cavitate on hard turns with pontoon as tube drags water away from prop.On a Johnrude the pee steam is a indicator for water pump, it does not indicate engine is cooling......

 

[bmdakk]

well I took the lower unit back off and sure enough , 2 of the impeller fins where turning the wrong way.

 

[bmdakk]

well I took the lower unit back off and sure enough , 2 of the impeller fins where turning the wrong way.

 

[ronward]

OK now we're getting somewhere. Hopefully water issue is fixed. Sat for 3 years, carbs are definitely gummed up. Order the kits and don't be intimidated by the round silver core plugs. They need replacing because there are idle passages under them that need cleaned. When putting newplugs back in just use a hammer and punch, lightly, to just barely flàtten them enough to seal. Doesn't take much. Report back. Might need a fin for that ventilation issue if the prop hub checks out good.

 

[bmdakk]

took the carbs off and soaked them overnight in acetone, they came out looking a whole lot better. The green residue was gone mostly , there is still some light green discoloration, on the brass tube that comes down into the bowl. tried a brass brush with no luck. The little silver plugs were not a problem as I found a video on youtbe of what to do. However the carb in the video looked exactly like my two and had 3 plugs, where as mine only had 1, in the top. the one on the side was just a screen, and the one in the bottom was nothing there. should they be plugs in the other 2 spots? . I am going to try and get the rebuild kits tomorrow and some other parts that I noticed were bad, ie. The red knob on the primer solenoid is leaking, and new fuel lines.. I looked at a couple parts break downs and only seen the top plug for my model carb, so Im not 100% sure they need to be in there. What does the screen do in the side of the carb?. Oh and I need to replace both float valves.... acetone does a number on the orange rubber tip. LOL

 

[bonz_d]

Good to hear you got the water pump straightened out. As for the carb, be sure to clean that brass tube really well. If you look cloesly you will see 2 tubes, one inside the other. That is the fuel pickup tube for both the high speed and low speed circuits. New float needles will come with a rebuild kit.