Hard Starting after shutting off motor for awhile

[glastron4452]

My boat has an 1974 Mercury 85hp motor. It runs great at open throttle. I took it out and it started right up when I first put it in the water. After running it for a bit when I shut it down then tried to restart it and it would not stay started at times. I would have to crank and crank for a while before it starts. This happened thru out the day. Whenever it does start as soon as I put it in forward it would die. It idles fine in neutral once it is started. When I push the fast idle lever forward it would rev higher. Only when I push the drive lever forward is when it dies. To keep it from stalling I would have to leave the fast idle level forward and then push the drive lever down to hurry and accelerate so it wouldn't stall. Also when I check the primer bulb it appears that it is not holding firm after awhile. Any help or suggestions is greatly appreciated.<br /><br />Thanks