1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

[jamie12r]

first of all im new to boating and to this site so hello to all!!. Ok i shut my motor off and when i turned the key and nuthing. just a click coming from a black thing on the engine. im lost thanks in advance for the help.

 

[JB]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

A classic case of corroded battery cable connections, Jamie. Of course that is only a 95% probability.

Remove the connections of both battery cables, carefully clean them, and reinstall.

The worst offender is where the battery ground cable bolts to the engine. That is a copper to steel to aluminum alloy connection and electrolysis is almost guaranteed.

Let us know how it turns out, welcome to iboats, and good luck.

 

[jamie12r]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

ok thanks i just checked the connectors and they look new and also my fishfinder works if that means anything and im lead to belive the thing i hear clicking is the silonide. could that be ?

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

Probably the soloniod making the noise.

The thing about boat batteries is, they will run the little stuff and still not start; connections can be clean and tight and look OK but not tight enough. They can start and then not start and the only difference is that the connection is a tiny bit loose. If you have wing nuts on the battery posts, use pliers anyway.

Right now on my 70, my bilge pump works but engine won't turn over b/c the battery is low. As soon as it stops raining I'll take the battery out and charge it. I know its a low battery b/c Sunday I jumped it from another boat.

Marine batteries don't last worth a damn. Don't expect X years out of an "X year battery." you can take it to an autoparts store and (if they are honest) they'll tell you if the battery is OK.

You can jump it from the battery to the starter, bypassing the solonoid, to see if the problem is somewhere in the line but be careful doing this.

So go back through your connections with a wrench/pliers and see if that helps. Good luck, and stay in touch.

 

[jamie12r]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

i just got back inside form fooling with it i checked a titened the wing nuts and they good,, then boosted it with my jeep and still nuthing, then i tryed jumping the starter and still nuthing but i may have done that wrong.
(connected pos battery term to the nut on the starter) thanks for the help any more ideas?

 

[jamie12r]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

it seems the current is not passing though the silonide

 

[dwco5051]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

If you have a test light or voltmeter connect one side to ground and the other to the nut on the starter. When the solonoid clicks you should have voltage at the starter. If not it would be the solonoid. However, you have already ruled out the solonoid by supplying battery voltage directly to the starter. The problem is now the starter. My guess is worn starter brushes on an engine this old if they have never been replaced. This will normally give you some advance warning such as having to click the key a few times but I have had them just quit after years of working OK. Taking the starter off the engine is simple.
Repairing the starter is not hard providing you have some experience with automotive or boat starters. If this is your first time ever checking out a starter and/or replacing brushes it can be difficult. The repair should not be that expensive. The problem is if you don't do it yourself you will pay a few more bucks for the parts and won't have the boat back on the water the same day.

 

[dwco5051]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

Addition to my last post.

Unlike automotive starters these outboard starters have permanent magnets. This can make for pinched fingers when putting them back together if the armature is removed from the housing.

 

[jamie12r]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

ohh myy lol ok how would i go about doing it and were would i get the parts?

 

[jamie12r]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

Im going to take it to the shop on tuesday and maybe just buy a new starter if they cant fix it or maybe ill try it my self where would i see a diagram of this starter i see them on ebay for 150 bux shipped

 

[dwco5051]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

Last set of brushes I bought were about $15. Add shop labor for testing, rebuilding, and reinstalling you could be in for the price of a new starter if you don't DIY. All that being said if you have some wierd problem that is not the actual starter you may now have two good starters, a boat that won't start, and are $150 poorer. Find a buddy that is somewhat of a gearhead and have him double check the basics. This much won't take long. If he concurs that it is the starter and neither of you are willing to tackle the rebuild then decide where to go from there.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

first tap the starter with a hammer then key it.
But with all you've done you're at the end of the line: the starter. That's why the jump test is a good one. Maybe you can find a rebuilt or used one--I don't know where you are but in areas with a lot of boats there are boat junk yards. Your local marine mechanic might have one on a parts motor.

 

[JB]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

Dad gummit, Jamie!! Quit with the yabuts and just do what I suggested.

 

[jamie12r]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

JB i did it all except check the neg on the eng and ill do it first thing in the morning and when i hooked up the pos battery and the starter do you need the neg battery grounded also? and thanks again all you guys are great!

 

[dwco5051]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

YES, the negative must be to a good engine ground if your testing was done from the Jeep with jumper cables.

 

[jamie12r]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

Ok guys, I think i found the poblem I got a volt meter today and there was 12 or so volts on everythig i tested even the starter so i took it off, and one of the brushes had worn that much it fell off the wire therefor no start im guessing this is right? where can i order brushes for this starter it has 2 brushes but i only need the positive one . thanks jamie

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

DWCO, just to amplify your answer for future reference: if you are jumping the starter from the boat's battery, hooked up, to bypass a defective switch or soloniod, you don't need to hook up the ground with the jumper cables; just POS battery to starter/soloniod cable connection.

 

[JB]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

DWCO, just to amplify your answer for future reference: if you are jumping the starter from the boat's battery, hooked up, to bypass a defective switch or soloniod, you don't need to hook up the ground with the jumper cables; just POS battery to starter/soloniod cable connection.

I disagree.

The most common starter circuit trouble is a bad connection of the ground cable to the block. Failing to bypass that will give misleading results.

When testing the starter, jump both + and - cables.

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

I'm with JB. Connections etc critical.

 

[dwco5051]

Re: 1979 johnson 70 will not crank over

Two different starters were used on this motor. If there are only two brushes yours must be the Prestolite, not the Bosch. I think the OEM part
# for these brushes is 037992 but don't take my word for it, do some checking - if you can get a part # off the starter it would be a big help.

The good news - no permanent magnets to slam the whole thing together on your finger

The bad news - brushes for this starter are about twice as much as the other.

Replace them both - you can only buy them in sets.