• Welcome to the Checkmate Community Forums forums.

    You are currently viewing our boards as a guest which gives you limited access to view most discussions, articles and access to our other FREE features.
    By joining our free community you will be able to:

    » Interact with over 10,000 Checkmate Fanatics from around the world!
    » Post topics and messages
    » Post and view photos
    » Communicate privately with other members
    » Access our extensive gallery of old Checkmate brochures located in our Media Gallery
    » Browse the various pictures in our Checkmate photo gallery

    Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please, join our community today!

    If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact support by clicking here or by using the"contact us" link at the bottom of the page.

New boat...bad experience

S

scottswierenga

Member
This past weekend I put my MX-16 (w/150hp inline 6cyl) in the water for the first time since we got it. Saturday afternoon after TONS of cranking it over (about 10 min. of attempts) , it finally fired and we successfully ran it full out at about 41mph at just over 5k RPM...providing the gauges are correct. The previous owner stated that he had it to 60mph on Memorial Day weekend; so either he greatly exaggerated or something is off. After a few laps around the lake we beached the boat by our camper for the night. Sunday morning we attempted to run the boat again and I was back to cranking and cranking it over; I killed the battery after about another 10 minutes of trying to get it to start. With no other boats on the lake to tow me to the dock, recover was what we'll call a challenge, but we eventually got it on the trailer and back home.

This afternoon I used a spare batt. and still couldn't get it to fire after a few tries. I pulled the spark plugs and they are all clean and look good. The plug wires all seem to have good connection. The cap and rotor don't look bad but I wish I had an inline tester to test for spark. The fuel bulb was hard.

That's all I know to test/check for....where do I go from here??
 
To the forth owner in a year.:poke:
Just messing with ya!
Hope you get it figured out, a broke boat sucks.
 
You can check your spark by taking a plug out and putting it back in the plug wire and grounding it to the motor. If you have spark then the plug will arc on itself, it's the easiest way in my opinion. if you have spark and you have fuel it should run. I would also make sure your choke is working properly, I believe those motors should have flaps that slide in front of the carbs. As far as it's performance when running I would rebuild the fuel pump, it's cheap and most likely needs done. if it can't keep the fuel in the carbs then it's going to limit your rpms, i had the same problem. I couldn't turn over 4800 rpm but it would run great up to that point. I had a 79 inline 6 90hp and it was the most reliable motor i have probably ever had, i had it in storage for over a year didn't winterize it, I got it out hooked up a gas tank and cranked it about 10 times and it fired right up. It would start almost immediately everytime, especially once it was warmed up. Good Luck and have fun with it! With the right prop and a little motor height that thing should run mid 60's.
 
scottswierenga said:
This past weekend I put my MX-16 (w/150hp inline 6cyl) in the water for the first time since we got it. Saturday afternoon after TONS of cranking it over (about 10 min. of attempts) , it finally fired and we successfully ran it full out at about 41mph at just over 5k RPM...providing the gauges are correct. The previous owner stated that he had it to 60mph on Memorial Day weekend; so either he greatly exaggerated or something is off. After a few laps around the lake we beached the boat by our camper for the night. Sunday morning we attempted to run the boat again and I was back to cranking and cranking it over; I killed the battery after about another 10 minutes of trying to get it to start. With no other boats on the lake to tow me to the dock, recover was what we'll call a challenge, but we eventually got it on the trailer and back home.

This afternoon I used a spare batt. and still couldn't get it to fire after a few tries. I pulled the spark plugs and they are all clean and look good. The plug wires all seem to have good connection. The cap and rotor don't look bad but I wish I had an inline tester to test for spark. The fuel bulb was hard.

That's all I know to test/check for....where do I go from here??
Click to expand...

First of all you should have water tested it a few times before planning a camping weekend. Old boat motors are like old women, you gotta touch them just right to get them in the mood to get moving.

Take it out for the day, play with it and figure it out. Go out with out the wife and kids nagging or a bunch of spectators bugging you about it, leave them home. The old motors are not for everyone, including me.

Another thing, dont try to get your best speed the first time out, you have LOTS of learning to do about the boat.

My final thoughts... if you were looking for a jump in and go boat, you bought the wrong one. An old MX with an inline is like anything old, it takes time, patience, and lots of work. Maybe a trip to Wally world for some For Sale signs is in your future.
 
Last edited:
Stupid question but are you sure you're using the choke or primer properly? When I bought my Liner last fall I had come from being an I/O owner for 20 years and I had a he'll of a time getting it started. Once I figured out the trick to it I can get it to light after only a few seconds of cranking. Mine has a primer instead of a choke so after making sure the bulb is solid I turn the key on, push it in for an 8 count and then crank it.

John
 
also, always start that motor with the engine as level as possible, fuel will leak out of the top carbs making it hard to start.
 
I agree, Those old inlines need to be started using the correct starting procedure or you will have nothing but a string of dead batterys and frustation at the end of the day. Follow the advice above and if everything else is good you should be all set.
It may be a good idea to get some clear fuel line running from the pump to the carbs so you can actualy see the fuel going in to make sure the pump is pumping enough.
Pump the ball, level the motor, put the cold start lever up about halfway and hold the choke in for 5-10 seconds before cranking it, then once you hear it spit stop cranking let off the choke and crank it again and it should fire. Again, thats if everything else is right.
If you are still having trouble after that you can take a spray bottle of PREMIXED fuel and try spraying right in the throat of the carbs, and she if she fires. Then you will know you have carb issues.
Let us know how you make out with it.
 
try starter fluid on it and make sure that gas is good. I know I have a hard time with my 1400 if it not at least level or trimmed down past level. Watch the carbs when starting to see if they are leaking any gas. Other than that you might have a bad part somewhere. If your bulb is hard when you squeeze it again you should see gas come out of the top carb through a hole.
 
How about a bad starter? Mine acted similarly, I ran power directly to the starter, determined it was bad, purchased a repurposed one from the local evinrude dealer and had it on before my date arrived that afternoon.
 
ACK!!!!DONT USE STATER FLUID!! it will cause a lean condition and melt the pistons. thats why I underlined PREMIXED gas. I know this from first hand experiance. It may not be thie first or second time you try it but it will get you.
If it was a bad starter it may not turn at all or turn to slowly to generate spark, he said it was turning over TONS of times. So it doesnt appear the starter is an issue. Although... if he keeps cranking it for all that time that will be the next thing to replace.
 
+1 on NO STARTING FLUID. A spray of premix from a spray bottle will work just as well without putting your engine through the pain of running without lube.
 
I'll second the "No Starting Fluid" chant...Definitely go with a premix bottle, I bought an old evinrude 235 with one of the boat purchases and the old guy said he used starting fluid to get it running every time he took it out. Fortunately for me he didn't use it very much...

Once you get it back on the water take a buddy with you to squeeze your prime ball once you get wound out to full throttle. If you get an increase in RPM then your pump can't keep enough fuel in the bowls at WOT. My 90 wouldn't turn much over 4500 but would hold there and ran great up to that point. I had my buddy out for a test drive and he jumped back and pumped the ball and i had a nice increase in RPM. So i got a rebuild kit, which is pretty cheap, and next time out good to go!
 
Are you priming the carbs before you try to start it? On my boat, you have to press in the key for 10-15 seconds when you start the engine cold to allow fuel to flow into the top sections of the carbs, this richens up the mixture and allows the engine to fire quickly when cold. Needless to say, do this after you squeeze the bulb until it's hard.
 
I've not tried the priming trick of pressing the key in...actually I didn't know I needed to. I'll give it another try after the regular battery is recharged and see what I get.

Just to make sure I'm understanding the starting procedure correctly I need to do the following; and correct me if I'm wrong.

1. Connect the fuel line to the tank of Non-Ethonal gas & 2 Stroke Oil to a mixure of 50:1
2. Squeeze fuel bulb until hard
3. "Level" the engine
4. Set Idle Lever to 50% (straight up)
5. Turn key to ON position, push in the key and press and hold CHOKE button for 8-10 seconds before turning key to START position
6. Upon first sputter of firing, release the key and choke.
7. Again turn key to START and engine should fire reaching a high idle set by the Idle Lever

Is this correct?
 
You got it! That procedure should get you going as long as everything else is good.
Keep us posted. As soon as it fires put the idle lever back dont over rev it. She could run away on you.
 
Even though the batt. is still charging I grabbed the key to check into the pushing it in that was mentioned. My key does not push in at all.

...and here I was hoping it was gonna be my golden ticket to an easy starting engine
 
Welll that could be a problem, you need to choke that thing to start it.
Does it have have a separate choke button anywhere? The older controlers had a button on them. Over the top of the key, Can you post a picture? it may have been changed and the choke had never been hooked up correctly.
I think I may have the manual for that controler. Ill check it.
What year is the motor?
 
Last edited:
It does have a seperate button towards the back of the motor control labeled CHOKE, but I was thinking I may have had redundant systems as I do for the trim. I know the choke plates work b/c I can see them flip shut on the upper two carbs when I press the button. The lower carb does not have a choke plate on it. I'm not certain of the year of the Merc but I presume it's a '74 same as the boat, and it has a MerControl (I think it's called) motor control.
I don't know how to post pics.

The starting procedure I tried was get the fuel bulb hard, activate the choke, and crank it over. I've even played with different settings of the idle control between attempts and while cranking also. I have no clue what I did right to get it to run the first day; the only thing I did the first day different was to remove the engine cover to watch the cables and such work as I tried to start it
 
you must have just gotten lucky.


i have a 1981 johnson 115 and it has the same basic design as far as ignition + choke goes. Mine will almost never start without choke, except when its already warm. I usually have to tap the choke on and off for the first 30 seconds or so, even with the high idle set... just use enough choke to keep it from stalling though.




Don't know much about the mercs, but if the choke is wired how i would guess, then you might just be able to add another switch in parallell with the existing switch. Im assuming the existing switch is an intermittent switch (as in you have to hold it)... I would use another intermittent switch somewhere you can easily reach when turning the key.
 
Ok, So you have a choke and it appears to be working,( all the "newer" carbed motors have and enricher not a choke) as you said the plates are closing when you hit the choke button. Sometimes these old inlines are a bear to start even when things are pretty much set up correctly.So...
With the choke button held down try the same starting procedure as before but obviosly there is no key switch.Once the primer ball is hard:
Hold the choke down, lift the cold start lever,Crank the motor till it spits(5-10 seconds) let off the choke, and crank it again. It should fire. if not push the choke down again while cranking. repeat a few times if needed. IF that doesnt work after the first three times, Try spraying some premix gas in the top carb from a spray bottle, and do the procedure again. Once it fires it should be good for the day, if not
You may need a good carb cleaning and as much as I hate to say it...a trip to the local merc mechanic to make sure youre not running a lean condidtion that could end up distroying the motor.
One other question, The gas you are using is fresh and there is absolutly no water in it, right? Old gas or even trace amounts of water will drive you crazy tring to get things right.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top