Please, please help ! I can not boat in the Land of 10,000 Lakes .

First time boat buyer:

I bought a 1973 Silverline (roundabout) 65 Johnson supershift II, from a charity auction, last week. I paid a lot for the boat and it does not seem to be worth the money!%*?%**.

Once I had time to really looked it over-- I was really hurt and very upset, and trying to remain positive, after the purchase and I do not want to put a lot of money into the boat, in vein.

I do not have any instructions whatsoever for this sort of engine, but I'm a pretty good wrencher when it comes to cars!

The boat has not been registered since 2002.

I can not get the boat to start; I have tested the engine with a tester to see if I can get current, which there is, in certain areas;however, it will not turn over by key or manuelly; there seems to be a somewhat simi thick grey coiled wire, which was disconnected, not sure if any parts are missing from within the engine. There also seems to be an electrical concern, don't sure how to bypass the ignition switch to start the engine or check other areas within the electrical system. Spark plugs seem fine, but I will replace if needed.

I would really appreciate it if someone could help me with some step by step instructions,

Where should I begin ? How can I start this boat ?

When will I be able to boat in the land of 10,000 Lakes !

Re: Please, please help ! I can not boat in the Land of 10,000 Lakes .

Welcometo iboats!

OK, you're are going to need a service manual for your motor. The OEM factory manuals are the best. Ken Cook or Ebay are sources for the manual.

Read and follow the suggestions for "awakening a sleeping outboard" in the FAQ on this site.

The manual will address any wiring issues you might have and give detailed destructions on repairing the motor.

Granted, you don't want to waste bucks replacing parts that could be good by guessing, that's what the manual , and this, forum are for.

The FAQ section of the forum is having a bit of a problem, so here's the article:

Awakening a Sleeping Outboard
Frequently Asked Question (FAQ): I got this motor and it hasn’t been run in several years. What do I need to do to get it going?

I see a lot of posts from folks who have a motor that has been in storage, belonged to their dad or granddad, or for another reason, hasn’t been started for quite some time. It occurred to me that this would be a good topic for a FAQ. I recently went through most of these steps myself in preparing a motor which hadn’t been used for 15 years. Following is an attempt to provide a concise list of steps, an expanded bullet-list if you will, that have been suggested by the many experts on this forum to prepare that motor for the water.

First get yourself a manual, there is a ton of help on this board but to be fair, and so that you can learn, a reference book is a must. They can be found for sale on many sites, a few of which are kencook.com, marineengine.com theoutboardwizard.bizhosting.com, maxrules.com, and iboats.com. Although some folks use Seloc or Clymer manuals, they cover a range of engines and sometimes details are omitted. The reprints of the original OMC manuals are the most specific to your particular engine. Get one of them.

If any steps prove challenging or if there are questions about any of the processes, post a question in the applicable forum here at iboats using the red "search" selection at the top of each forum. You will receive an answer from one or more of the many experienced veterans here.

Let’s get started.

Lower Unit – Remove the prop and any fishing line that may be tangled, wound around the prop shaft. If the shaft is splined, apply a coat of marine bearing grease to it before re-installing the prop. If an inspection of the prop indicates any damage that could cause a vibration or imbalance, replace it or have it repaired. The rubber bushing securing the hub to the prop itself may also need replacing, but that probably cannot be determined until boat-tested.

Remove the drain screw (bottom) from the lower unit and observe the quality of the lube as it exits. If it is milky, there has been water intrusion. If you observe metal shards, there may be gear damage requiring a re-build of the lower unit. If it is empty, there may be other problems. Remove the vent screw (top screw) to allow complete draining. If none of the above mentioned situations exists, fill with lube from the bottom screw hole until lube emerges from the vent hole. Lube should be available from any oil outlet and labeled as suitable for outboard lower units.

Note: Electric shift lower units require different lube than manual shift units. Check your manual.

After unit has been filled, replace vent screw using an appropriate new screw-head
gasket. Then do the same for the fill screw, trying to prevent as little loss of lube as possible.

Water Pump – Using your manual as a reference, replace the water pump – if not the complete pump, by all means replace the rubber impeller. This is absolutely necessary on motors of unknown history or on motors that haven’t had a new one in a couple of years. Before re-assembling mid-section (lower leg), see next step.

Cylinder Walls – If not already, lay the motor so the sparkplugs are up. Remove them and put in a few squirts from an oil can filled with TCW-3 oil. Move the engine around so that the oil will contact cylinder walls. Allow it to soak for a day or two. By hand, rotate the flywheel a couple of times. If it resists rotating, allow to soak longer. When flywheel finally rotates freely, install new sparkplugs.

Spark – Pull the plug wires from the sparkplugs. Your spark should jump a minimum of a 3/8" gap with a hot thick spark. If it doesn’t, you need maintenance on the ignition system. Check the sparkplug cables for cracked insulation. Otherwise, the needed maintenance will be determined by type and year of motor you’re working on. Refer to your manual. Replace the spark plugs with the manufacturer's recommended plugs, keeping the old ones as spares.

Wiring – Check all engine wiring for brittle insulation or fraying. This would necessitate re-wiring or installation of a new wiring harness.

Lubrication – Lube all moving parts including throttle linkage (white lithium) and steering shaft (chassis lube is OK).

Carburetors – Remove and disassemble carburetor(s). Soak in carb. cleaner or spray with aerosol carb. cleaner, paying particular attention to all small passages and fuel-ways. Blow dry with compressed air, again, paying particular attention to internal passages. Reassemble using an appropriate carburetor rebuild kit. If kit doesn't include a new needle and seat, get one. If the float is cork, replace it with a plastic one. Some kits include them. If the float is plastic, make sure the integrity has not been compromised. Re-install and link and sync according to your manual. Replace all under-cowl fuel lines.

Fuel pump – Using your manual as reference, remove fuel pump and clean metal parts with carb. cleaner. Install a new fuel pump kit, or replace fuel pump entirely. Replace fuel filter and any vacuum hoses that may be connected.

Fuel tank – Replace the fuel line along with the squeeze bulb (OEM bulb preferred). Note: on dual-line tank, there is no squeeze bulb. Drain fuel tank. With a flashlight, inspect for dirt, debris, or rust. If OK, rinse and refill with correct fuel/oil mix. If there are quick release connectors on the fuel lines, check the small o-rings at either end. Replace if necessary.

Controls - If remote control, check throttle and gearshift cables for proper operation. Mine were frayed and rusted and had to be replaced.

Re: Please, please help ! I can not boat in the Land of 10,000 Lakes .

Xcusme:

I want to thank you for taking the time to reply to my post; I very much appreciate it.

Did several of things you suggestion, and indeed, the engine now makes noices, it tries to kick over but it's not there completely. The only thing that I did not do was to replace the carb with a new kit, although I squirted a little gas in the area and there was some back firing.

I also noticed at the face of the engine, the unit directly facing my face level, that there were some screws missing at the bottom and water leaked from those holes, and along side the vertical crease--is there a filter in that area, sorry do not know the name of that area.

Should I now spray automotive carb spray in that area; rebuilt that area; are there springs that are tricky to reassemble in the carb, where do I purchase the parts ?

Thank you again for sharing your knowledge with me and the other readers.

Re: Please, please help ! I can not boat in the Land of 10,000 Lakes .

laingsoutboards. com has most everything you will need. if you don't see it on line call Jeff. fast shipping. please get the OEM manual, it will save everybody headaches, make sure it's for your year and hp.