Outboards Don't Die - They're Killed....

[Chinewalker]

I spent most of my Memorial Day weekend in the shop cleaning up after folks who abused, neglected and otherwise mistreated their outboards. I'd say that in the last year I've repaired or rebuilt close to 50 motors, and in that time, maybe two or three were in my shop for something genuinely age related. All the others were in the shop because their owners thought they could skimp on oil, squeeze another season out of an already old waterpump, didn't own an owner's manual for their motor, attempted to work on their motor without a service manual, or simply did "stupid" stuff to their motors.<br /><br />One of my weekend projects involved a 1973 Merc 50hp that had had the lower unit trashed because the owner didn't realize that the thrust washer was there for a reason. The prop had slid forward into the lower unit housing, tearing up the housing, spanner nut and rear carrier. I managed to find him a new housing and the innards to his unit were still okay, so he's back in business, along with an explanation as to what that round stainless steel thingy is for.<br /><br />Another involved an owner who attempted to run his 1961 Johnson 5.5hp on THREE-year old gas, which apparently also had about a quart of water in the bottom of the tank to boot. This is the same guy who had been in my shop last year with the same motor saying he was having trouble pulling it over. He had tried starter fluid - enough so that it had washed all the lube out of the motor AND had drawn enough moisture into it to seize it up. I found him a powerhead, which he ran (on the then 2 year old gas) for the latter part of last year. Turns out he had cursed me out for a "poor repair" because his motor was still hard starting. Fortunately, his wife actually listened to me this year and set him straight on what NOT to do and she personally threw out his starter fluid can and dumped the old gas on a leaf pile. The motor now runs like a top.<br /><br />Sorry to vent - have had my fill of people who don't ask the questions (no such thing as stupid questions!!) or don't listen to the answers and advice when given...<br /><br />- Scott

 

[Dhadley]

Re: Outboards Don't Die - They're Killed....

Good points Scott. <br /><br />Dont ya just love it when someone asks you why about something and after you explain it completely they just frown for a moment and then say "Naw, thats not it!"? That always brings the usual response --<br /><br />If you knew the answer, why are you asking me???

 

[CATransplant]

Re: Outboards Don't Die - They're Killed....

I pulled my boat out of the lake today after going fishing. A guy was there, with his 10-year-old boy, and an little aluminum boat tied to the dock...jerking the heck out of the rope on the nice little Evinrude 6hp on the back of the boat.<br /><br />Once I got my boat on the trailer and in the parking lot, I walked down to see if I could help out in any way.<br /><br />Turns out that he just took the cover off the thing for the first time today after the winter. Same gas that was in the tank in the boat from last fall. I asked him how it ran last year, and he said that it ran crummy last year and he didn't use it much.<br /><br />Maybe he expected that it would somehow heal itself over the Winter and run just fine on that tank of old fuel.<br /><br />Long story short: I took pity on the guy. We drained his tank into an empty one I had in the boat, pumped all the fuel out of the hose and I filled him up with fresh fuel. It was 24:1, but the motor was a 60's vintage, so no harm.<br /><br />I pulled his spark plugs...nasty-looking things. Screwed in my spare pair of J4Cs, after using a spray bottle of premix to put a little fuel in his cylinders.<br /><br />Choked the thing and pulled the rope. Fired up on the gas in the cylinders and ran for a few seconds. This time the spray went down the carb throat. Fired it up again...it sputtered, but kept running. Once the bowl was empty, it cleaned up and ran smoothly.<br /><br />"There ya go," I said, and took off. I didn't do it for the guy with no sense. I did it so he could take his kid fishing.

 

[kenimpzoom]

Re: Outboards Don't Die - They're Killed....

CATransplant, you did your good deed of the day! Good on ya.<br /><br />My dad and brother are about the same. Always half-assing everything and then wondering why it broke. I have to sit behind them making sure they do it right.<br /><br />My brother found out you shouldnt run the engine without the water on, after his impeller shredded and found its way into the engine. Hopefully he will listen this time.<br /><br />But look at it this way, you made a ton of money off other peoples stupidity.<br /><br />Ken

 

[LubeDude]

Re: Outboards Don't Die - They're Killed....

I couldnt help but look at this post. I myself have seen so much of this myself. I hate to count how many times I have experienced what CAtransplant did and helped out.<br /><br />I hang mostly with the Bass crowd, and most of them are very much in tune with there boats. Occationally I will come across one that is ill informed though. Its hard to imagine some of the ill taken care of boats you see at the ramp though. I saw one the other day, that I swear was drug out of the back yard after several years setting there. Dang, I wouldnt have gone out in the water in that thing even if they did get it running. It deffinatly belonged on Blue collar TV.

 

[fireman57]

Re: Outboards Don't Die - They're Killed....

LD you need to stay out of my back yard! I don't have a shop like you guys do so I don't see and have to listen to the crap you guys hear. I do see my share of bozos on the ramp at the Ohio river where I do most of my fishing trying to start engines that haven't been run since last year. When they don't start these guys just keep it on the trailer in the water and repeatedly try to start it until the battery is dead. Then and only then do they move their vehicle off the ramp so someone else in the long line can try to launch their boat that hasn't been started since last year. Now everyone is at least double mad because they are stuck waiting in line for someone whose boat won't start and then PO'd again when they get there and theirs won't start. They think nothing of sitting there also until their battery runs down. Or worse they launch it and take it the few yards to the dock and have the coconuts to ask someone for a jump. Ooh, Scott you are right. That felt good.<br /><br />Scott (also)

 

[Perfidiajoe]

Re: Outboards Don't Die - They're Killed....

Call that job security !!!!!!!!!!People try to make things completely fool proof, fail to take into account the resolve of the complete fools.

 

[CATransplant]

Re: Outboards Don't Die - They're Killed....

"Occationally I will come across one that is ill informed though. Its hard to imagine some of the ill taken care of boats you see at the ramp though. I saw one the other day, that I swear was drug out of the back yard after several years setting there."<br />===========================================<br /><br />Hey! I resemble that remark. My boat is as ugly as an english bulldog with the mange. But it's sound and everything works. You can't always tell from appearances.<br /><br />Besides, I like the flat olive drab color it has attained since it was built in 1967. It must have been shiny once, but that was long before I bought it. I considered polishing the gelcoat for about 5 minutes, but there are fish to catch out there. [grin]

 

[CATransplant]

Re: Outboards Don't Die - They're Killed....

Fireman,<br /><br />What you said! That's why I don't fish on the weekend. The ramps are crowded enough as it is, and the guys who launch then grind their battery dead while their trailer sits in the water really torque me off. They've never heard of muffs. They couldn't find the spark plugs on their motor if you offered them $100. Some of the gas in their tank is two years old.<br /><br />And these are the same guys who get ticked at me because I'm boating solo and have to drag my boat to the far side of the dock before I can pull my trailer out...maybe three minutes, tops.<br /><br />And, speaking of the far side of the dock...what is it with people tying their boats on the inside of a short dock, with their party standing there on the dock while the driver parks the trailer and slowly ambles back. The next guy in line has to wait until the guy gets back, maybe gets the motor started, and gets everyone seated in the boat.<br /><br />Sometimes it makes me want to scream...PULL YOUR DARNED BOAT AROUND TO THE OUTSIDE OF THE DOCK!

 

[umblecumbuz]

Re: Outboards Don't Die - They're Killed....

I've laughed at all the stupidity around the slips here, cos I can launch my well-maintained boat and retrieve it solo in two or three minutes. <br /><br />Smartass me.<br /><br />Helped two old fellows put their boat in yesterday while I admired their brand new four stroke. They were trying it out for the first time. Got talking a bit, which was just as well. Six hours later, I had dropped the hook in a rising wind, while trying to get the water out of my gas tank, with the motor dead. I had been promising myself I'd flush it through before we started this season.<br /><br />While watching the weather, only twenty feet from rocks in a confused sea, hanging over the stern cleaning the plugs, who should potter round the corner but these two old guys happy as sandboys.<br /><br />They circled me in their smaller boat for half an hour until I finally managed to get the motor running again. They would have tried to tow me in, but size for size it would have been a dangerous mission.<br /><br />I'll be careful to make friends instead of laugh in future.

 

[fireman57]

Re: Outboards Don't Die - They're Killed....

I'd gladly lend a hand to the people at the ramp if they didn't know everything to start with. I guess a kind word would ease tensions a bit in the situation I descibed above. The problem is that I would spend all day at the ramp helping get boats running. I was mostly talking about common ramp courtesy that is not so common.