1995 johnson 48 spl (fuel problem?)

[cucomaza]

I would like to get some insight from the members of this group. I have a 1995 johnson 48 spl that I just purchased. this motor runs great when I let it idle and can even accelerate it with the muffs on. the first time I put it in the water it ran great through the no wake zone at a slow speed. As soon as I gave it some gas this motor pushed the 14ft fiberglass boat at approximately 30 mph. the problem is that this only lasted about 15 seconds and the motor started to bog down. It did not cut off but continued at a moderate speed. I was able to push the key in to activate that choke causing it to run great. I did change out the main line the priming ball but still had the same problem.

I am thinking that this motor might need the carbs looked at but am open to any other suggestions before i take it in to a shop. I am mechanically inclined but feel that me doing the carb work may be over my head. What would be reasonable charge to get these 2 carbeurators serviced at a shop?

Corpus Christi, Texas

 

[boobie]

Re: 1995 johnson 48 spl (fuel problem?)

Sounds like you need carb work. The shops very with labor rates. You can also get an OMC factory service manual and do it yourself. There's plenty of help on this forum for any questions.

 

[pn]

Re: 1995 johnson 48 spl (fuel problem?)

you can take your carb apart and clean it pretty straight forward. maybe watching a couple of you tube videos would boost your confidence. if it's not your carb it might be your fuel pump. one test is to pump your primer bulb, if it gets hard and stays hard then the diaphram in the pump is probably good. if not then you'll have fuel spilling into your carb or crank case.

 

[cucomaza]

Re: 1995 johnson 48 spl (fuel problem?)

you can take your carb apart and clean it pretty straight forward. maybe watching a couple of you tube videos would boost your confidence. if it's not your carb it might be your fuel pump. one test is to pump your primer bulb, if it gets hard and stays hard then the diaphram in the pump is probably good. if not then you'll have fuel spilling into your carb or crank case.

Thanks. I did watch a couple of videos on youtube and feel that this is something that I could do. Is it really necessary to remove the Jets in the carbs to clean them out? Seems like something could go wrong with this step.

 

[boobie]

Re: 1995 johnson 48 spl (fuel problem?)

After you soak the carb and get it good and clean and blow it out with compressed air, you can take a packing wire and run it through the jets. Make sure you get the high speed jets in the float bowls.

 

[phillnjack2]

Re: 1995 johnson 48 spl (fuel problem?)

Before you take the carbs off just take loads of poictures of the engine from all angles and at full throttle and at idle (engine switched of obviously)
now again keep taking pics as you take the carbs off and use a bit of cardboard to lay everything out on in order.
that way when putting back together it will be nice and easy.

once you done this youl be back on the water and very happy knowing that you have saved a nice amount of money, and that you done it.

do make sure you buy proper carb cleaner and let it soak,soak ,soak. with jets always take them out, just write down exactly how far in they were.
if you screw them in first count the turns to see EXACTLY how much is required to put them back correctly.
so if it is 2 full turns to seat them fully in, then when you put them back you simply fully seat them then two full turns out is where they were originaly.

its very easy once you done it once, and the carb cleaning results are great.
everyone with an outboard engine should know how to do this, and do it once every couple of years as a safety maintainence program to keep everything sweet.


phill

 

[Silvertip]

Re: 1995 johnson 48 spl (fuel problem?)

Before diving into the carbs, if you are using a portable tank, dump out the fuel into a container with a cloth for a fuel strainer. I've looked at lots of these tanks brand new and most of them have the bits in them. It happened on my personal boat some years ago. Then examine the cloth and interior of the tank for plastic bits left inside (or now on the cloth) from the tank manufacturing process. Those bits can plug up the pickup tube in the tank and can get sucked into the primer bulb. If the tank is clear then go after the fuel line and carbs, and don't overlook the fuel pump losing volume at higher speeds.