Mercury 42hp pull cord doesn’t engage

[19611starcraft]

I have an old 402 mercury that when pulling the pull cord does nothing,I don’t feel any kind of tension at out . Any idea what the problem is does the recoil just need to be lubed up or cleaned . Also this motors set up for controls does the key have to be on in order to pull start the engine. The wiring is all messed up and doesn’t work by just cranking the key over

 

[Scott Danforth]

could be full of critters and just need to be cleaned

could be stuck and need to be lubed

could be broken and need to be replaced.

since the wiring also needs to be replaced, time to start troubleshooting.

 

[airshot]

Search around for a factory service manual then start reading and looking at pics....all kinds of valuable info in those manuals !!