First time boater with a few Q's

[lawman18963]

I bought a used 1976 16' Seaswirl ( Bramco ) on the title. Made in Oregon I think. 120 hp stern drive. Inline 4 cyl. Sat for over 3 years. It turns over but won't fire. I don't see a fuel pump. I don't see a squeeze bulb if that's what I'm looking for. I added a fresh 15 gallons to the tank. Used a bit of stabilizer. I just don't think it's getting fuel. Do I need to prime somehow?

Also, how do I lower the drive? I have a toggle on the dash that activate two cylinoids. One up, one down? They click in response to the toggle but the drive won't move. Is there a external lock on the drive I don't see? Is it stuck?

I appreciate any help.

 

[Bondo]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

120 hp stern drive.

Ayuh,... What sterndrive, by Whom,..??

 

[superbenk]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

There's a tutorial on troubleshooting a points ignition system. You may not have spark.

If you're trim/tilt is only giving you clicks, you may have a low battery or bad solenoids that need replacing (or just bad wiring/connections).

As Bond-o said, can't help much more without knowing more about what you have.

 

[jtmarten]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

Quick way to test spark/fuel issues: spray some gumout/carb cleaner into the carb while cranking, if she fires, its a fuel issue, if not, spark.
It should have a mechanical fuel pump on the side of the engine. To test the pump you can disconnect the hose from the carb, then crank the engine while directing the hose into a can or bottle. If no fuel, disconnect the feed line from the pump. If its dry, you may have to manually prime it, just try not to inhale the fumes or drink too much gas when it starts flowing! Blow into it first, if you hear bubbling in the tank, the line is clear.

 

[lawman18963]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

I knew I came to the right place. I belive it's a mercruiser. Any sure way to tell? Engine block says OEM and that's it. Spark and fuel is what I'm missing. Primed the carb and no fire. Will check the wiring and ignition system. Prime the fuel line. Another thread said that a complete tune up would be in order since it sat for so long?
You all are the best. Will tinker with and come back to report.
Thanks

 

[superbenk]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

I knew I came to the right place. I belive it's a mercruiser. Any sure way to tell? Engine block say OEM and that's it. Spark and fuel is what I'm missing. Primed the carb and no fire. Will check the wiring and ignition system. Prime the fuel line. Another thread said that a complete tune up would be in order since it sat for so long.
You all are the best. Will tinker with and come back to report.
Thanks

No spark definitely is a problem. Not sure about the lack of fuel. Could be a number of things along the line. I'd also agree with the tune-up suggestion. It's a cheap thing to do & you'll know it's good parts when you're done. When I got my boat I was lacking a spark too & replacing the tune-up parts (cap, rotor, points, condenser) solved that problem right away.

As for the engine, post a pic.

 

[jtmarten]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

I would replace the impeller and raw water pump housing prior to running it too.

 

[PiratePast40]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

Start out here: http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=288430

You need to get an idea of how things work and begin some troubleshooting. It's REALLY going to help to find out what engine and outdrive. You can't buy tuneup parts without knowing what you have. Most people are pretty sure you don't have a motorcylce engine in there but a little more to go on will be helpful to you and to others .

Hey - welcome to iboats!

 

[lawman18963]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

Alright. I work nights, therefore the lag in responding. I took some pics of the engine. I still can get the drive to lower. I read a post about it just might be stuck after years of sitting? Still looking for a manuel release of some kind?

 

[superbenk]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

It's an OMC. You can see 'OMC' molded into the manifold.

 

[superbenk]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

Here's the tune-up kit for that engine:

http://www.iboats.com/Universal-Tun...1022806--**********.379706998--view_id.270060

 

[superbenk]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

Here's the impeller kit for the Stringer 400 I think you have:

http://www.iboats.com/Water-Pump-Ki...1022806--**********.379706998--view_id.187584

 

[superbenk]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

Here are the pictures of the dolly I was talking about that I made (album: http://picasaweb.google.com/superbenk/SterndriveDolly?feat=directlink):

 

[lawman18963]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

Thanks Superben,
I can't see the pics after I posted them. Not sure if anyone could. I didn't recognize OMC as a brand. Thought it was something else. Thanks for the links. I appreciate the help. I've looked on the web but wasn't looking in the right place. I could have sworn the seller told me it was a Mercruiser. Sheeez!

Nice dolly. I think I might even be able to do that with the tutorial.
Will tackle this as soon as the parts arrive. Thanks again.

 

[superbenk]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

I can't see the pics after I posted them. Not sure if anyone could.

Ya, they aren't showing up. I followed the links that came through in the email to see them.

Your image links should be within tags:

[IMG]<<http://www.example.com/myimage.jpg>>

(without the '<<' & '>>')

 

[lawman18963]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

Any thoughts on how to lower the drive? Could it be stuck from sitting so long? Just checking. Can't figure that one out. On post said he had a someone applying pressure while he manipulated the switch and it freed up?

 

[superbenk]

Re: First time boater with a few Q's

Any thoughts on how to lower the drive? Could it be stuck from sitting so long? Just checking. Can't figure that one out. On post said he had a someone applying pressure while he manipulated the switch and it freed up?

What happens when you hit the switch? Do you hear the solenoid click? Do you have a good charge on the battery? The quadrant gear might be jammed against the tilt gear if the bushings on the clutch pack are old/worn & there's some slop. Could be bound up where the worm gear operates the ring gear inside the tilt clutch housing. Could be a bad tilt motor or electrics. The pivot points could be seized up (when did you grease the zerks last?).

One sure-fire way to get it down is to remove the quadrant gear (the half moon shaped gear on the port side). Once you have the quadrant off you can work on diagnosing the tilt mechanism & electrical without the resistance of the drive weight.