1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

[hollowayj82]

I purchased this boat several weeks ago and have since been trying to get it running. At first there was no spark so I narrowed that down to the power pack and replaced that with a used powerpack but seems to work fine. I didnt know tho if the leads from the powerpack had to be wired to a certain coil pack or if you could put any of the three leads on any of the coilpacks?!? The engine will turn over and start about every fourth try but will only run for a few seconds. During the other attempts it backfires and seems to be struggling to turn over. Seems like the starter is working very hard to turn the flywheel. Im wondering if this could be a compression issue a timing issue or could i have the leads from the powerpack hooked up wrong. Any input would be great as i am really getting aggravated with this thing. Also I have completely rebuilt the carbs thinking this was why it wouldnt start before. since installing them back on it is now starting every once in a while. It is a 1990 60hp johnson model number j60tlesm.

 

[JDusza]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

Each wire has a specific location. The coil energy has to be released in a specific order.
Have you performed air gap spark test?
Remove the spark plugs and spin the starter. The engine should go pretty easily.
J

 

[hollowayj82]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

Any idea where I could find a a diagram showing which lead goes where?

 

[fishfeatures]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

I've the same motor, and coming from the powerpack to the coils there are 3 wires for each coil, BUT ... the longest one is for top coil on #1 cyl, 2nd longest is for middle and then shortest is for bottom coil. Unless your changed power pack has equal length wires then this is how they should be connected.

backfire is sign of wrong timing so first stop is to check the leads and I reckon you've got one in the wrong place.

 

[hollowayj82]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

Yeah I did some searching and i think that the lead with the green stripe goes on the the bottom and the two leads with blue stripes on top. Now the motor will start with the throttle all the way up after a few turns and it will run for about 30 or 45 seconds as long as the throttle stays up. but I cant back off the throttle or it will die. Anymore suggestions?

 

[fishfeatures]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

all my wires going to the coils are the same colour (black with a rubber boot) , so if you have it hooked up the right way , then do a lync and sync as per manual, but you seem to say it dies after 30 secs or so which makes it look like the carb bowels are being emptied. try pumping the fuel bulb before this happens to see if this sorts your prob if so then you have a fuel pump issue IMO. I'd def start with a lync and sync. Run a search on here for it if you've no manual.

 

[hollowayj82]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

I dont have the manual. Looks like that is going to be my next purchase.

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

generic print shows your power pack should have 4 wires. orange/blue coil #1, orange coil #2, orange green coil #3 then a black/yellow that will end up at the tach. i would pull the plugs and see if theres a spark on each one before moving to the carbs. it sounds like plugged/dirty low speed jets in the carb but make sure the ignition is sorted before pulling the carbs

 

[hollowayj82]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

ive got fire on all three plugs and the carbs have been soaked cleaned and rebuilt. when starting it seems like there are certain spots that the flywheel doesnt want to turn. like in that certain spot in the rotation it is harder for the starter to turn the flywheel. ive been reading some about a sheared woodruff key. Like i said it will start after a few cranks but will only run with the throttle open and will die after about 30 seconds. does it sound like it could be a timing issue?

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

the starting is due to bad connections and a piston getting to max compression. clean the cables to the starter and the negitive both ends if that doesnt fix it then open the starter and clean the slots in the stator where the brushs ride. starter has to reach 250rpm min for the engine to get a full spark so that covers starting. check your timing and link and sync then lets see if that fixs the problem

 

[JDusza]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

Seems like ignition is in good enough shape to run the engine. Does it run well for 30 seconds or poorly?

If you get 30 seconds of run time, try to keep it running with the choke or by spraying some premixed fuel into the carburetors. See if will stay running if it had more fuel.

You may try to disconnect the fuel line at the carburetor coming in from the fuel pump and wrap it with a rag. Turn the starter and see if the pump is pushing fuel into the rag.

You also want to be sure that during carburetor cleaning the Welch plugs were removed and the low speed jets were reemed. Soaking alone may not clean those jets.

Think about attaching muffs so you don't ruin the impeller. The impeller should be on your maintenance list as next along with lower unit oil.

 

[hollowayj82]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

Im not familiar with how to do a lync and sync. I guess I am going to order the manual so I can get that done. I pulled the gas lines and made sure it was getting gas. Seems to be getting plenty of gas. Just seems to be fighting against itself. When you try to start it, it jumps and backfires some and it will start after a few tries and run as long as the throttle is up. But seems to be getting gas. Then it will stop running after about twenty or thirty seconds. doesnt seem like it matters what I do.

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

do you have a tach? are you testing in water or using muffs on land?. simple way to look at carbs is you have 2 sides one is the low speed thats a pathway in the carb that allows fuel to the engine at low speed and another at high speed which is a seperate path in the carb, this is why people are asking you if the carbs were real clean or just dipped and looked clean. if you havent bought parts then you have not removed the welsh plugs to get to the low speed jets (round disks in carbs you have to pop a hole in to remove). 20-30 seconds could be to little fuel. to much fuel. timing out (this changes when you increase throttle thats the lever that goes up under the flywheel.)wrong plugs. low rpm. if you have a warm up lever will it stay running when the lever is up? i know its frustrating to have to wait for the manual

 

[hollowayj82]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

I bought the kits for the carbs and cleaned them all out but I was not aware of the plugs your talking about. I still have the remaining parts of the kit so im going to pull the carbs back off and give that a try. Im just learning so im working on the trial and error method. I got the boat really cheap and dont have a whole bunch of money to throw at it so im learning on the fly. I really appreciate all the advise its been a great deal of help.

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

basics of link and sync is to set the carbs equal so they all move together then to set the timing at low rpm then to set the timing at high rpm. the trouble is its a lot of steps and it has to be for your motor and with out the pictures showing which screw is which its not easy. what you could do is put the timing light on coil one and see what the timing is at tick over in gear in water it should be 2 atdc to tdc. if that is way off that might be the problem

 

[hollowayj82]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

new problem now..... i took the welsh plugs out cleaned out those area's and now with all the carbs back on the boat will start with the throttle wide open but gas comes pouring out of all three carbs and the motor will run but the throttle is all the way up and the motor sounds like its justing barely above an idle. what would cause the gas to come out of all three carbs?

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

hate to say it but you might have made a mistake on re-assembly where is the gas coming out off ? (inside-outside). you did fit the new welsh plugs and tap them in with a socket? the bulb gets firm when the squeeze it and then stays firm (if it gets soft something is leaking that shouldnt)

 

[boobie]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

The carbs are flooding over. Have you got the needle and seats for the floats installed properly and are the floats installed properly ??

 

[Big Bubba]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

Yeap, I agree with boobie. Did the floats get set correctly. Here is a video off of youtube you can watch to see how to rebuild/clean a carb, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5cxBMDezuU. Let us know how it goes with your motor.

 

[hollowayj82]

Re: 1990 60hp johnson troubles! please help!

Yeap, I agree with boobie. Did the floats get set correctly. Here is a video off of youtube you can watch to see how to rebuild/clean a carb, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5cxBMDezuU. Let us know how it goes with your motor.

I set the floats level to the body of the carb like the guy in the video did. when i was done with each one i did the test where i blew in the carb upright and upside down. the air flow stopped when upside down like it was supposed to. i know this test doesnt exactly mean the floats are set at the right level but when i put them together i took pretty good caution that i got them level with the body of the carb. just assuming that the floats are level with the body of the carb and the needle seems to be stopping the flow of gas correctly what is the likelyhood of all three doing the same thing? Have any of you ever rebuilt one these carbs to know if there is a trick to setting the level of the floats? I just put them together and from the point where it was setting i leveled it to the body of the carb.