Finally got my outboard running but now there are more issues - 1995 Mercury 60hp -

[bigjo911]

I finally got this 60hp to run, it's a 1995 oil injected 60hp Bigfoot Merc. Compression is good on all 3 cylinders, around 125-130. I changed the plugs, drained the gas and got it running on a high dose of sea foam and gas in the tank.

Now I have three additional concerns:

1) Once got I got it to start up, I hooked it up to muffs and let it idle for 20 seconds. The tell-tale wasn't spitting so I filled up a half cut 50 gallon drum and got the water to about the skeg. Again., it started right up but didn't spit. I went back to the muffs and compressed them while the water was on and noticed the tell-tale was pushing a stream, this was with the motor off. I grabbed some clamps and locked them on the muffs and started it back up. The stream didn't get any faster.

- Does this mean the water pump is bad? Would the tell-tale spit just due to pressure of the water being pushed through it?

2) While the motor was running and water was coming out, I put it into forward gear. As I was putting it into gear it made a clunky noise.

- Not sure what this means but it did it when I put it into reverse to.

3) I hope someone is still with me . So my last issue is that while I had it in gear for maybe 1-2 minutes I noticed the water coming out the tell tale was very hot, I immediately turned the motor off.

- Could this be a thermostat problem or something else?

I really hope I didn't land my self a crap motor but after being excited I got her running, I'm a bit disappointed again.

 

[hardwater fisherman]

Water should be well above the water pump when running in a barrel.. The pump is not self priming..So up to the skeg sounds to me like not enough... Also as you seen the hose will push the water through the pump and motor even when not running.. For this reason the muffs are not the way to test the water pump.

 

[bigjo911]

So water being pushed through by force of the muffs doesn't indicate that the pump is possibly good or bad? If the water isn't properly being pumped, could that have lead to the water getting really hot out of the tell tale?

 

[roscoe]

Yes, you need to replace the water pump impeller.
Might as well do the thermostat as well.

You need about 20 inches of water - minimum - to run the motor in a barrel.
Water must cover the pump and water intake by several inches.

Don't run the motor again until you change the impeller.

Outboards make a clunk when put into gear.
Make sure motor is idled down, then make a quick move with the shift handle to pop the motor into gear.
Don't try to do this slowly, to ease it into gear, it won't work and will do damage.

 

[QBhoy]

I’d try poking the tell tale pipe and it’s source with a bit of wire to see if it’s blocked. Quite common with a sea water engine and especially if it’s been stored for a while.
Not sure about the water pressure on your hose, but if you have the right fitting muffs, where I live the water pressure is about enough to almost or actually push water all the way through the engine and out the tell tale, even when it’s not running.
The in the bucket of water just covering the intake bit doesn’t usually work. You need a head of pressure to be sure...either with well suited muffs or in the water

 

[bigjo911]

I'll look into the water pump and thermostat. Hopefully it isn't that expensive. The tell tale is clear of obstruction, that was the 1st thing I checked.

 

[Texasmark]

I don't recall having any water coming out of the tell tale when on the muffs engine off and I have 65# of static water pressure at the hose end.

At rest the impeller in the water pump is a displacement pump meaning that something in the pump has to move to move water through it, unlike a centrifugal pump (what it is at WOT) where there are blades bent back (manual talking here) to paddle the water through the chambers......good reason to suspect worn out impeller letting water leak by.
Most of my experience with Merc has been in the 100-150 hp range and the pellets on the stats are stamped 143F which is their opening temp with manufacturing tolerances and also the temp of a US domestic hot water heater set to the Normal position. If the tell tale is plumbed directly off the stat, it has to open to get any so initially you will have none and then intermittent squirts, and once up to temp (don't expect it at idle on muffs) the stat will stay open and a solid stream.

A good impeller will pick up muff water at idle and squirt a solid stream especially if plumbed off the exhaust manifold directly, with water squirting out around them with the hose faucet opened a good bit, without requiring you to attempt to stop the bypassing.