question on the starting a "2 cycle Merc" sticky

[Chris1956]

Gee, the high beam button on the floor was in my fathers '62 Mercury. By 1980 it was gone. Detroit used to use it for the starter, before they had key start and the solenoids necessary for that.

 

[jimmbo]

My first 3 cars had the Floor Stomp Dimmer Switch; 66 Ford Galaxie, 71 Buick Skylark, and 76 Olds 88 Royale.
I remember the Foot activated Starter Pedal, on several Trucks on my Grandmothers' Farm.
I also remember the Turn Signal Switches, being in a Housing that was Clamped to the Steering Column, just forward of the Steering Wheel, and Wipers that were operated by Manifold Vacuum

 

[tphoyt]

Yeah and you could fix all that stuff in your driveway or even the side of road. Now days it takes hours and big bucks to get to anything that needs fixed.

 

[dingbat]

Yeah and you could fix all that stuff in your driveway or even the side of road.

Which you often did….lol

Imagine a 67 Galaxy 500 getting 35 miles to the gallon, no component failures and still burning zero oil at 230,000 miles.

The good old days where not all that long ago and where not all that good

 

[Chris1956]

Gee, remember the rust on the rocker panels in the 60s and 70s?

Cars are just about throwaways today. When they finally break, they can be worth so little is is not worth it to fix 'em.

 

[racerone]

Major work on modern cars is not done by shops anymore.-----Labor costs too much and skilled mechanics are not abundant.----Overhaul it yourself or get another car.

 

[jimmbo]

Gee, remember the rust on the rocker panels in the 60s and 70s?

I remember the 73 Fords, missing the lower Door Skins, after one or two years, less than 6 Months if in the Salt Belt

 

[billhig]

Well, my merc now starts like a beauty. After cleaning the carb, it was a lot better. I had a supposed "marine mechanic" do the link and sync but I suspect he didn't know what he was doing. The idle throttle stop was not even touching the lever so the carb plate was acting as the stop. I adjusted it until it is just touching the lever as the throttle plate is closed. Lastly, I replaced the last of the wiring. This motor has crazy bad mercury wire rot and I've already hard wired everything to the motor except the battery cables. I replaced them with some #6 cable and now it starts instantly. No choke, no throttle, no drama. You don't even hear it crank. i goes from off to running.

I want to get new engine side and boat side harnesses, but they cost $450-500 together.

 

[FLATHEAD]

My first 3 cars had the Floor Stomp Dimmer Switch; 66 Ford Galaxie, 71 Buick Skylark, and 76 Olds 88 Royale.
I remember the Foot activated Starter Pedal, on several Trucks on my Grandmothers' Farm.
I also remember the Turn Signal Switches, being in a Housing that was Clamped to the Steering Column, just forward of the Steering Wheel, and Wipers that were operated by Manifold Vacuum

Right there with you jimbo. Don’t forget the wing windows, the cig lighter, bumper jacks, push button tune on the radio and you could watch the red indicator move. Gas .65 a gallon.

 

[jimmbo]

Glad to hear she's running better

 

[airshot]

Gee, remember the rust on the rocker panels in the 60s and 70s?

Cars are just about throwaways today. When they finally break, they can be worth so little is is not worth it to fix 'em.

When you compare the cost of repairs to the cost if a new vehicle.....I can make an awful lot of repairs and still have money left over !

 

[Scott Danforth]

Hey guys, stay on topic

 

[tphoyt]

Well, my merc now starts like a beauty. After cleaning the carb, it was a lot better. I had a supposed "marine mechanic" do the link and sync but I suspect he didn't know what he was doing. The idle throttle stop was not even touching the lever so the carb plate was acting as the stop. I adjusted it until it is just touching the lever as the throttle plate is closed. Lastly, I replaced the last of the wiring. This motor has crazy bad mercury wire rot and I've already hard wired everything to the motor except the battery cables. I replaced them with some #6 cable and now it starts instantly. No choke, no throttle, no drama. You don't even hear it crank. i goes from off to running.

I want to get new engine side and boat side harnesses, but they cost $450-500 together.

Glad you got her going again. It’s always nice to hear the good parts of the story and what the fix was. Enjoy.

 

[Chris1956]

The engine wiring harnesses were avail several places on the web. surplusunlimited was where I bought one for my '77 Merc.

You could buy a Deutch or Amphenol connector to replace the side quick d/c for short money.

The boat wiring harnesses were much more resilient than the engine wiring harnesses, maybe you can keep using yours, with new ends. They were marine tinned copper wire in '79, I would think.

 

[billhig]

The engine wiring harnesses were avail several places on the web. surplusunlimited was where I bought one for my '77 Merc.

You could buy a Deutch or Amphenol connector to replace the side quick d/c for short money.

The boat wiring harnesses were much more resilient than the engine wiring harnesses, maybe you can keep using yours, with new ends. They were marine tinned copper wire in '79, I would think.

Thanks for the feedback. My boatside harness is just as bad as the engine side. check out the pics. I've found lots of sources for replacement harnesses, just $300 for the boatside and #175 for the engine side. I'll checkout surplus unlimited.

 

[Chris1956]

Gee, those look like battery cables. If that is all that is wrong with the boat harness, new ones can easily be spliced in.

Usually it is the quick connect that goes bad.

 

[billhig]

Gee, those look like battery cables. If that is all that is wrong with the boat harness, new ones can easily be spliced in.

Usually it is the quick connect that goes bad.

Every single wire on both harnesses is like that right up to the connector. Nothing left to splice too.

 

[Chris1956]

You can always make a new boat wiring harness. Measure the wire gauge of the old harness and buy some wire to match. Cut the wires and using different color electrical tape, wrap the new wire ends for identification.

Your motor likely has red for battery, black ground, black/yellow for spark killer, grey for tachometer, yellow/red for starter solenoid, purple for ignition power, and yellow/black for choke. You may have the old wiring colors, as your motor was likely made during the transition.

There are all kinds of products to hold the harness together, including electrical tape. Find an Amphenol connector that is suitable for that many wires and solder it on both ends, as well as the ign keyswitch.

I would route new battery cables directly from the battery to the starter solenoid and frame ground, bypassing the quick connector.

 

[billhig]

You can always make a new boat wiring harness. Measure the wire gauge of the old harness and buy some wire to match. Cut the wires and using different color electrical tape, wrap the new wire ends for identification.

Your motor likely has red for battery, black ground, black/yellow for spark killer, grey for tachometer, yellow/red for starter solenoid, purple for ignition power, and yellow/black for choke. You may have the old wiring colors, as your motor was likely made during the transition.

There are all kinds of products to hold the harness together, including electrical tape. Find an Amphenol connector that is suitable for that many wires and solder it on both ends, as well as the ign keyswitch.

I would route new battery cables directly from the battery to the starter solenoid and frame ground, bypassing the quick connector.

That is exactly what I've done and it works great. I was just hoping to find replacement harnesses that would let me use the stock connector location and style. The new wires snaking out the front of the motor housing look a little amateur.

 

[Chris1956]

Gee, you have found replacement harnesses, just not for the right price....