'76 650 65HP 'Thunderbolt' electrical gremlins

[WillsHusky]

G'day All,
Took my old 'glass Brooker half cab for it's first post purchase run today and something odd is happening. There doesn't appear to be an 'off' 'on' and 'start' position on the control box key start. Is that OK?
When attempting to start and the engine fires the starter motor can be heard still turning, and on inspection the flywheel and starter motor teeth are permanently engaged. Is that OK? Also, today two fully charged 12v batteries were drained when operating the motor today for less than two hours. The engine stopped and it was a paddle back to the boatramp
I thought the engine would run without a battery once started? I'm not sure if the engine was down on power, it was my first time on the water with the boat and motor. Struggled to plane on WOT though and the boat is only a 4.5m 'glass half cab.
The motor has a distributor and is a 3 cyl.

Help!

cheers William.

 

[usskydvr]

Re: '76 650 65HP 'Thunderbolt' electrical gremlins

No, that is not ok. You have a bad ignition switch. The starter should not continue to run once the engine is started and the teeth should NOT engage the flywheel once the engine has started. The engine does not need the battery to power it (but the battery needs to be connected to prevent damage to the electrical system). Check to see if you have more than 13.5 V at the battery when the engine is running. You may have a bad stator or rectifier.

 

[WillsHusky]

Re: '76 650 65HP 'Thunderbolt' electrical gremlins

Thanks, it turns out the key switch was broken/worn out. Bought a new one today from my local Merc dealer. 110 Aussie Dollars..ouch!

I still have both batteries on charge and will try and start it tomorrow, I tried today but there wasn't enough 'oomph' in the battery to spin the motor fast enough it seems. I noticed that the starter was reluctant to spin at all, is it possible by constant turning it's also shot? How does one check? Once I get the engine started I can check the alternator output.

Which color wire should go to the battery positive terminal to carry the charge to the battery?

Cheers William.