89 force 50 hp need help!!!!

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Oct 17, 2009
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I have a 1989 Force 50 HP outboard motor. I purchased it and hooked up the earmuffs and was gonna see how it ran, but i couldnt get it started. so the first thing i did was check all connections on the entire engine. everything was tight and clean. then i went to check the spark. i had strong spark on one plug but none on the other. so i thought the coil was bad. i switched the two coils and got spark on the other coil. so both coils were good. so my next thought was the blue cdi box. a friend of mine had one that was good so i put that on there. still the same thing. so i took the flywheel off and looked at stator and trigger. that stator looked great. but the trigger had some deep groves in the innner part. so i took a trigger that my buddy had and put that in. this trigger looks new but is metal instead of plastic. would that make a difference. but it had different color wires and i hooked them up the way it said to on cdi website and now im not gettin any spark at all. is there any way that the magnets on the flywheel could be weak or would that have anything to do with it. i just dont have all kinds of money to pay a shop to do it or be buying tons of new parts. i would love to have this running in the next couple weeks because fishing season is right around the corner. any help would be appreciated. thanks for your time.
 

john from md

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Re: 89 force 50 hp need help!!!!

Buy a Clymer Force Outboard Shop Manual. You can get them at Amazon or Barnes and Noble or West Marine. It has troubleshooting steps to follow to ohm out the stator and trigger and CDI module.

In my experience with Force engines, when the problem is spark on one plug and not on another, the problem is usually the CDI module. As you have found, the coil is good, next thing to check is the trigger.

There is a remote possiblility that the stator is bad but I have not seen to many bad stators unless they had mechanical damage. When stators get fried, it is usually the charging coils that go.

Make sure the connector to the CDI is good or if you have a terminal board, that the terminal connections are clean.

I'm betting on the module though.

John
 
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Re: 89 force 50 hp need help!!!!

i thank you for your help. i have a multitester and instructions on what to test, but i am unaware of what i set the tester to, it has like 10 setting. plus the stator looks good. also the 4 wires coming out of the trigger only 2 are working
 

john from md

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Re: 89 force 50 hp need help!!!!

If you get the Clymer manual, it will tell you what the resistance readings should be.

John
 
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Re: 89 force 50 hp need help!!!!

i have all the resistance settings. i just dont know what to set the multi tester at.
 
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Re: 89 force 50 hp need help!!!!

i think i uploaded right. thanks for all the help
 

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john from md

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Re: 89 force 50 hp need help!!!!

For reading resistance, put your black(NEG) plug in the center jack and the red (POS)(positive, not piece of sh**) :cool:

Set the dial selector on the ohms position that looks like a horseshoe. It is located just under the red ACV position.

You should touch the two probes together and the meter should read 0. That indicates that it is operating properly.

Thus set, you can read the resistance of the stator, trigger, coil and CDI module.

Whatever you do, don't touch hot wires with the meter in the ohms position as you will blow a fuse, a circuit breaker or the meter itself.

If you have any issues with your readings, send a PM to SILVERTIP. Although not a Force engine expert, he does know alot about electricity and electronics.

John
 
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Re: 89 force 50 hp need help!!!!

thank you very much for the assistance. i appreciate it. i wont get around the boat til probably friday, but i will post my results.
 

john from md

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Re: 89 force 50 hp need help!!!!

No rush for me. I'm sitting around with 34 inches of white stuff on the ground and expecting 20 more. My boat will be buried until summer at this rate. :D

John
 
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Re: 89 force 50 hp need help!!!!

I know this is a stupid question, but do I test the wires while engine is cranking or just sitting there? Thanks for your time.
 

john from md

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Re: 89 force 50 hp need help!!!!

You test them with NO POWER ON THE ENGINE. That means disconnect the battery and do not attempt to apply power when you are checking for resistance.

John
 
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Re: 89 force 50 hp need help!!!!

well i gave in and took it to a shop and they said stator was bad. one question though, i have a stator for 86 force 50 hp but it has 2 green/yellow and two blue wires. would this stator work. the one that was on it, has 2 yellow, two brown/blue and two brown/yellow. if it will work how would i go about hooking that up. thanks for your time.
 
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