Reed problem ?

I have a new problem with my 89 7.5 HP Force, it will not go past (approximately) 1500RPM while in gear, could bad reeds cause this? It starts and idles fine, though it does seem to "high-idle" at a lower RPM while in the warm-up/start position. While running it's like I have the throttle 1/4 open, when it's wide open, 6MPH instead of 20+MPH...

Before this, the outboard ran great. I had a fuel delivery problem which would cause the engine to die every 20 seconds unless I used the primer bulb to feed gas to the engine. I replaced the fuel pump diaphragm kit and fuel quick disconnect fittings which resolved the fuel problem, but now it won't rev up properly. I don't know if I could have buggered up the reeds while working on the fuel pump as I had reved the engine up a few times manually at the carb, didn't use the throttle. Guess I might have "over" fixed it

My second guess is that I got a chunk of garbage past the fuel filter while working on the fuel pump and a jet is plugged up in the carb?


I'm good with engines, but not a 2 stroke genius by any stretch ...


Thoughts?

Re: Reed problem ?

I decided to dig into it...

I did something really stupid while working on the fuel pump as 2 of the reeds for the top cylinder are bent out about .015" and the other 2 are not flush either. The 4 reeds for the bottom cylinder are completely flush.

I'm never going to rev up an outboard with the carb's throttle again. The engine gets more fuel and air, but no more ignition timing, guess it's the reason the reeds are bent