old 175 ran well but now will not start

I have 1978 evin 175 (175840c). I just replaced the stator and powerpack on starboard side. The engine ran well at idle thru an entire 6 gallon tank of fuel. I had to help it start by injecting fuel mixture into carb initially. Now, with new tank of premium fuel octane 93, no signs of firing in cylinder at all. I tried a tank full of octane 89 with no sign of firing. I have good fire at each plug. Voltmeter dva checks out good. Does any one have any ideas?<br /><br />dc in ms

Re: old 175 ran well but now will not start

Howdy, DC.<br /><br />Welcome aboard. <br /><br />Check out the Engine FAQ on non-starting.

Re: old 175 ran well but now will not start

is the kill switch in control box on the side of it, my friend's 115 had the kill switch bad it wouldn't run till it was by pasted then replaced.

Re: old 175 ran well but now will not start

With good spark at each plug the kill switch would not be involved. Check the flywheel key to make sure its not sheared or partially sheared which upsets timing. Pull the plugs and check them for wetness. If they are dry the engine is not getting fuel. If wet, it may have spark, just not hot enough spark.

Re: old 175 ran well but now will not start

I sheared the key initially because the flywheel was not tight enough. It is ok now. I have checked it several times very recently. Number 6 black/yellow kill wire checks good. Spark color is blue x 6.<br /> Prior to loss of crank, the solenoid switch stuck with starter continuously cranking with key switch off. I disconnected battery and tapped on solenoid to free stuck disc. The starter solenoid worked fine after that. I am thinking I may have created short in key switch which may ground kill line upon crank...plugs may not fire when in motor? Is this a possibility?<br />Also, I may be flooding motor. The plugs are soaking wet upon check. I feel that it should fire atleast some...I am getting no fire from motor at all. <br />The plugs are relatively new.

Re: old 175 ran well but now will not start

With soaking wet plugs the engine will not fire. The situation is made worse if spark is present but not up to spec. Have you run a compression check? If you have any spark at all the kill circuit is not affected. If you suspect the ignition switch is bad, turn the key to the RUN position and jump the starter solenoid manually. How have you been checking for spark? If you are cranking the engine with the key and the plugs removed and you have good spark the key switch is obviously not the problem.

Re: old 175 ran well but now will not start

To eliminate the key switch, disconnect the large red plug at the engine. Jump across the large terminals on the starter solenoid to crank the engine. If it fires up you may have a problem with the key switch or a shorting wire. <br /><br />Be aware that if it does start you will have to choke it to get it to stop. And you will have to manually choke it to start.<br /><br />If the problem still persists, run a spark test on each cylinder. The spark should jump at least a 7/16" gap with a hot lighting like spark.

Re: old 175 ran well but now will not start

Spark plugs should be Champion QL77JC4 plugs, gapped at .040.<br /><br />Compression should be 100+ psi and even on all cylinders. Is it?<br /><br />With the spark plugs removed, rig a spark tester whereas you can set a 7/16" gap (don't check the spark by using the plugs). The tester and that 7/16" gap is a must.<br /><br />At cranking speed, the spark should jump that gap with a strong blue lightning like flame.... a real SNAP! Does it?<br /><br />There's a few home made spark testers listed here at "iboats". Do a search for "spark tester" and they should show up.<br /><br />If the above two tests prove to be okay, check the carburetors for fuel. If you started with a empty tank, then added oil first, that raw oil would be pushed up the feed tube and into the carburetor float chambers when you added the gasoline. On a empty tank, add a couple gallons of gas, then the oil, then the rest of the gas.<br /><br />Let us know what you find. Be specific, don't just say that the compression and spark was okay, describe what you find fully.

Re: old 175 ran well but now will not start

Recent compression check....110 psi all six cylinders.<br /> Spark check is done by removing all six plugs from engine, placing them back into their respective boot, running a single grounded bare wire to each plug in series and cranking. I am simply observing spark at plug...Champion UL-77V.<br /> I did a quick DVA check on Charge coil output, Sensor coil output, and Power Pack output and the numbers seem to be fine. All connections are secure.<br />I have not used a "spark tester' so I do not know the relative intensity of each spark.<br />Cranking RPM may not be high enough? I may simply be flooding the cylinders.

Re: old 175 ran well but now will not start

There's a pic of a homemade spark tester on the link below. Easy to make.<br /><br /> http://forums.iboats.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=28;t=038398 <br /><br />You really need to look at the spark intensity as Joe pointed out. The spark across a plug gap can be deceiving. <br /><br />Another way to check spark is to cut the head off a 10penny nail. Stick the end into the spark plug boot. With insulated pliers, hold the pointed end of the nail 7/16 to 1/2" away from a CLEAN engine ground and have a helper crank the engine. Do this to all the spark plug leads.

Re: old 175 ran well but now will not start

My next step will be to check spark properly with a spark tester or some rig with gap of 7/16-1/2. Once I do this I will bet back to forum. <br /><br />Thanks to all for advice thus far

Re: old 175 ran well but now will not start

I checked spark intensity....nice blue arc at 7/16th inch on the 3 port plugs...on starboard side I was disappointed...although the plugs by themselves were producing spark, they failed the test using a spark tester. Two of the three actually sparked at 1/4th inch. One would not spark at all. I know for sure the end terminal within this boot is corroded as it would intermittedly indicate continuity using a test meter.<br />It seems that each of these three coils at some point in the past melted their casing. You can see where the melted plastic ran down side of motor.<br />I have ordered three new coils and I'll go from there. <br />If this does'nt solve problem I will clean / rebuild carbs.

Re: old 175 ran well but now will not start

I want to say "thanks to all who commented on my question". I think the actual problem here was the lack of adequate fire at these three plugs. I know now that you can't simply rely on the fact that there is fire at the plug...that you must perform a spark test with a "spark tester" to get accurate results. <br /><br />If I do continue to have trouble getting the engine started after I install these three ignition coils...I will post a new question...but I think this should fix things...<br /><br />I appreciate all the comments

Re: old 175 ran well but now will not start

Final note......old 1978 now cranks and runs...<br /><br />The poor spark on starboard I think was due to low cranking rpm's....with a fully charged battery and clean battery-cable connections my spark improved to 6/18ths on the three ignition coils. <br /><br />The actual problem with the engine not firing at all however was due to the timing being way off. I had adjusted the "idle screw" to lower idle rpms. I altered the timing without realizing it. It took me a while but I finally figured it out. <br /><br />Thanks again to all who helped me out with this problem.