1989 Johnson 150. No spark on #2 & #4

Caudfish15

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Joined
Jul 9, 2016
Messages
26
I bought this boat last July. I've replaced: fuel lines, carbs, fuel pump, 5/6 coils, power pack 2x's, starter, starter solenoid, and spark plugs. I just replaced the starter and solenoid because it was cranking slow and wasn't firing up. A mechanic tested both and said they were bad. Now the starter is cranking well, but I don't have spark on #2 & #4. I would think that having spark on 4/6 cylinders would allow it to fire up, but it's not. Last year I replaced the powerpack and it only lasted a little while because by October the mechanic said that it was bad. After replacing the pack the boat ran great, but it was time to put it away for winter. I got it out in January and February and everything ran great, but then a few weeks ago I got to the lake and it started slow cranking.

Speaking with a mechanic today after finding out that I've lost spark, he says that he will test the stator and the voltage regulator(??) to see if they are causing powerpacks to go. He says that my current situation sounds like another pack issue. He charges $94 for an hour of diagnostics, so I don't want to keep it there too long if I can avoid it. I've read that stator's normally do not go bad, but my motor does have black tar like substance under the stator. It's been there since I bought it. Any thoughts or recommendations? I have a multi-meter, but not real familiar with how to use it. Any help would be greatly appreciated.:facepalm:

Compression last year was 84-87 on all six
Wiring harness looks to be in rough shape (mechanic bi-passed the plug with the red wire.)
5/6 coils replaced last summer
power pack replaced twice, most recent was November
fly wheel key sheered and replaced twice
starter and solenoid replaced recently

​Thank you in advance!
 

Caudfish15

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Jul 9, 2016
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I've been looking through a clymer outboard shop manual. I'm just new at this and having trouble following it. Where can I get leads to run some of the test?
 

Caudfish15

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Jul 9, 2016
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Yeah, I have a multi-meter. The manual says something about a Stevens adapter and jumper leads that are 16 gauge. I've also, been told that I need a DVA meter to test electronics accurately. I don't know what these things are. I've never ran any kind of test on electronics. I did switch the ignition coil from #4 with #6 and still didn't have spark on #4. So that means my coil is still good right? I'd like to test the stator, power pack, and wiring harness to make sure they are doing their job. My wiring harness was a concern last year. It's pretty beat up and not sure how well of a connection it's getting at the plug.
 

ggodwin

Petty Officer 3rd Class
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Feb 14, 2017
Messages
75
You must buy the DVA. It's $29 ish. I was having similar problems as you until I got the DVA. It helps isolate the problem. If you have spark on 1,3,5,6 then it's not likely to be the stator or the pack. The pack usually kills all of it or half (one bank) I'm actually surprised it doesn't start on 4/6 cylinders being good.

Are you sure only 2 & 4 are bad?
If yes, the I'd disconnect all kill switches yellow-blacks.

Make sure that your power pack is grounded. Tight locked on. Not loose. Bad grounds and voltage leaks into the yellow-blacks kill Packs.

Crank it and see if it starts. (If it does start you'll have to pull plug wires off to kill the engine. Grab the rubber boot)

If it does not start.
Then disconnect the rectifier (not sure on the colors) but it is under the pack. If you don't have a manual let me know. I have it in my shop.

I've had one motor this spring go through this entire sequence. Finally, I found a bad terminal connector on one of the yellow-blacks. Since fixing that all has been well.
 

Caudfish15

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Jul 9, 2016
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Good to hear that I'm not the only one going through this mess. Update, I took the boat to a new mechanic who was recommended by a guy who runs some bass tournaments that I fish in. This guy replaced a connector to my battery, then ran test on all the key starting components. Stator and timing base tested good. He found that the flywheel key is sheared once again. This is the third time since buying the boat last July. He continued to have intermittent spark on all cylinders. His next move is replacing the flywheel key then continuing test to see if the powerpack needs replaced. He will also check the regulator to see if that is the cause of blowing so many packs. The guy said that my flywheel is bad shape which may be the cause of the sheared keys. He said that there's not much meat left under the flywheel which may cause the new key to not fit well and may cause another sheared key. Does this sound correct? Is he talking about the magnets? Anyhow, I'm looking for a new flywheel part #583844. There's only one on ebay. Any other places that may have one? I'm hoping not to be putting too much money in this thing, but I've gotta do what I've gotta do I guess.

I do want to check the kill switch wires as well, so I'll ask him to look at that as well. Where are the yellow-blacks that you mentioned ggodwin? I don't want to keep blowing packs.
 

racerone

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 28, 2013
Messages
36,044
I have said it many times.----------The key is only to put the flywheel in position.------The flywheel is driven round by the locking tapers.-----Only a factory key will do.-----The flywheel and crankshaft tapers MUST be lapped with grinding compound for a perfect match / fit.----------------Clean all parts and torque to specification.---------That is the only way !
 

clemsonfor

Lieutenant Junior Grade
Joined
Sep 19, 2005
Messages
1,011
Try ebay for a flywheel or find an boat mechanic with lots of old parts motors sitting around and ask to buy one.

CDI is your friend for testing the electronics. I have a 1990 150GT and it is a pain to start cold.

Stators do go out, but I see you have that ruled out. If your wiring harness is suspect get a new one. The wires corrode from the inside many times and just fall apart inside the insulation that looks good but just old from the outside. Been there done that. A new one was painful but made all the gremlins from that problem go away.
 

Caudfish15

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Jul 9, 2016
Messages
26
I ordered a flywheel today from ebay. Should have it Saturday. Is there a chance that the flywheel has caused a lot of my problems this past year? I'm hoping not to be dumping a bunch more money into this thing. As soon as I got it the flywheel key sheared and this is the third time, so I'm hoping that the flywheel is the culprit in my mess. When it's running, it really runs great and starts up easily. I'm still going to continue checking through the wires too because it is an old motor.
 

Caudfish15

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Jul 9, 2016
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An update on my situation: The mechanic replaced the broken flywheel key and installed the flywheel that I had ordered. From looking at the old flywheel, he pointed out that the groove the key fits into has been worn down and would more than likely continue to shear keys. After installing the new flywheel the motor will still not fire. The mechanic has gotten spark on all cylinders, but it is erratic spark. Other cylinders besides #2 & #4 have had spark and then not had spark, but at times all 6 are showing spark. He again tested the stator and the timing base which were both good. He says again that the power pack is bad and needs replaced. This will be my third pack in less than a year, so I'm not sure what the deal is. I'm a teacher and don't have a lot of extra money to allow a mechanic to continue to work on it. So his suggestion has been to replace the pack, then test voltage to see if the regulator/rectifier is bad. If so, that would be the cause of my packs to repeatedly go bad??? I have read the trouble shooting guides to test the regulator/rectifier so now I guess I need to order a new pack. What do you guys think? Should I be on the right track or am I missing something?
 

racerone

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 28, 2013
Messages
36,044
Packs can be damaged by a wee bit of voltage applied to the " kill circuit "-----That may be killing the packs-( yuk, yuk )--So i would take a close look at the wiring cable from control box to motor.----Remove a section of outer sheath.-----And look at the ignition switch itself.
 

Caudfish15

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Jul 9, 2016
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Thanks for the reply racerone. I'll take a look myself this weekend. I asked the mechanic if he had tested the ignition switch and he said that's pretty much where he started when diagnosing things and it was fine. Is the ignition switch included in the kill switch or is it separate? My knowledge of the kill switch is the thing that has the lanyard on it. I'll be sure to take a look at everything, would it be worth disconnecting the kill switch altogether?

So to understand what you said; power begins at the ignition key, goes to the battery, then back up to the ignition and onto the starting solenoid and to the starter...etc? So when I turn the key, power could be traveling through that kill switch causing a short that would initially get to the powerpack? Remember, that I'm new and want to learn and track down this mess myself.
 

racerone

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 28, 2013
Messages
36,044
Power first comes off the solenoid+ battery side !.Goes to the ignition switch.----Power goes back to the solenoid small terminals in order to crank the motor.---So there are + power wires in the cable and ground / kill wires..-----If they are damaged / touching anywhere inside the harness cable there will be problems.
 
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