Vermin under cowling

[Rattle-]

I have a 76 Johnson 9.9 Seahorse and something packed alot of shredded paper, seed husks and other stuff all throughout the moter, wiring, etc.
I removed the air intake and found seed laying in the carb opening. Question...is this a simple job for a layman, and what should I be looking ahead for. I've never had a carb off an OB before. Thanks for any and all help!

Kerry

 

[SKEETR]

Re: Vermin under cowling

Throttle was closed? If not you may have to remove/inspect a bit more than the carb which is probably ok. I'd be more concerned about any seed getting past the carb into the intake reeds. Check all your wiring carefully too.

 

[Xcusme]

Re: Vermin under cowling

It sounds like you have a mouse hotel. Clean under hood, check wiring for chew marks, fuel lines too. This is not uncommon for motors that have been stored out in the garage or shed.

 

[Rattle-]

Re: Vermin under cowling

I checked all the wiring and it "looks" ok. The seeds that were laying in the crab opening is what I'm worried about. Sould I take it to a shop, or can I remove carb myself and clean, with my limited skills as a mechanic. I don't want to really screw something up worse than it may be.

 

[Xcusme]

Re: Vermin under cowling

The job of removing the carb is not a hard thing. You will have to remove the fuel line and choke linkage, simple enough. Depending on your motor, the recoil may have to go to access the carb mounting nuts (2). Unless you had a large amount of seeds etc in the carb throat, it might not warrant removing the carb. Not knowing how long the motor was stored, you may have to remove the carb anyway to clean the internals (to remove old fuel deposits that would clog the jets etc.). A service manual would show the steps to service all parts of your motor, and is a good investment.

Removal of the carb would allow you to verify that there's not more debris behind the carb and in the intake manifold (area in front of the reeds). I'd fully open the throttle and with a strong light, look to see if there's much, if any debris, past the throttle butterfly. If it's clean you should be OK. I take it that you haven't tried to run the motor or pulled the starter rope before cleaning out the nest.

 

[Rattle-]

Re: Vermin under cowling

Motor has run every summer, and has started every time on 1 or 2 pulls. Runs like a champ. I've always removed the cowling in the spring to see if anything has gotten up into it. This is the first time anything has bothered it. However I have since taken it to a shop for them to service it, since I don't want to make things worse. I really appreciate the replys I got concerning my problem. Thanks again