Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

87superbee

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Sep 21, 2010
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This is my first post so bare with me. I purchased my bumble bee about 2 months ago non-running. The motor had given up on previous owner after he done a complete restoration of boat. My uncle got it to start about 3 days after i purchased so i was very excited. I took the boat out with my uncle to verify it was running and it ran great. Ran it about 800 to 1000 yards up river and back. Next morning me and the wife went out to enjoy our new boat and it was real hard to start but she fired up and was running excellent for about 500 yards and then it was like i was letting out on throttle but i wasn't. We brought it back home and i started investigating my problem. I had been reading iboat forums for quite some time already so here i went. I have read what seems like 2 long novels of problems similar to mine but none seemed quite the same. I did use those to troubleshoot mine. Here's a list of some things i've done: checked compression 95 lbs all four cylinders', rebuilt carbs, done link and sync, changed starter"other one was getting weak and ended up dying", finally done a spark check and suprisingly to me it couldn't jump 7/16ths. i replaced powerpack with genuine johnson pack and still nothing. it would jump about 1/8th and thats it. then noticed a bad place in wire on rectifier so unhooked it and wallah.. spark jumped 7/16ths no problem and motor actually started on three cylinders.. now im exstatic.. so i take it to the river this morning and planned on it just running like a champ but nope. same problem.. starts up super easy now, idles awesome, give it gas and it just feels like it goes to half throttle and stops. stick keeps going, throttle advaces on carbs, timing advances as it should, it just is super sluggish. the boat will get on plane and run but it feels like its at a good cruising speed even though it is wide open and should be burning the wind. i have eased in the throttle and it doesn't help. pump the bulb and no change. hit the choke and it tries to die. can someone please help me. as stated in title it is a 1977 JOHNSON JAVELIN 85 H.P. oh one more thing, i checked compression again and it is now 105 on three cylinders and between 100 and 105 on the other one. Thanks; JUSTIN
 

ezeke

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Sep 19, 2003
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Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

What propeller are you using? What are the length and weight of the boat?
 

87superbee

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Sep 21, 2010
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Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

the boat is a 16 ft. that weighs 675 lbs dry. prop unsure cause it ran so good before i hadnt checked it but i can go look
 

ezeke

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Sep 19, 2003
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12,532
Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

Have someone move the control arm forward while you watch the engine linkage to make sure the timing is advancing.

Have you run with an inductive timing light so that you can see if all cylinders are firing at all RPM?
 

87superbee

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Sep 21, 2010
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Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

timing does advance when throttle is moved. i checked the prop and i cant find it anywhere. i took it off and can't find anything. the previous owner had painted the motor solid white"including prop" so it may be filled in with paint. i measured its width and it is 14 inches
 

87superbee

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Sep 21, 2010
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Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

no i havent put a timing light on it. is that another tool i need to buy? i like this tool buying cause the wife wants the boat fixed so when i tell her i need a new tool she's all for it. Already aquired a muli tester, compression tester and a spark tester
 

boobie

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Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

I would recommend you investigate your ignition wiring on the motor more closely and get the spark to jump the 7/16 " air gap on all 4 cylinders before going any further. Stator,timer base checks and ect.
 

87superbee

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Sep 21, 2010
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Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

it does jump the 7/16ths on all 4 cylinders. im not exactly sure how to test the stator and timer base. i have a meter to test them but electrical work may as well be in chinese to me.
 

garzilla

Petty Officer 2nd Class
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Oct 24, 2010
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174
Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

Sounds to me like a carb thing.....then again I'm a nook.......how do the plugs look after it's chugging fit?
 

87superbee

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Sep 21, 2010
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Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

after the first time it done it i replaced the plugs and took it back out and had no improvement when i got home i pulled the plugs to find three plugs looking like they were about 1 month old and the other looking clean as if new out of the package. that is when i decided to rebuild the carbs. and to no surprise found the jet that controls that one plug to be clogged so i figured the carb rebuild would fix it but it didn't. i didnt replace the plugs again i just cleaned them up and after it has been ran a few time the three plugs just look normal and the one still looks a little too clean. it will have a little gas mix residue on it but its not catching up with the others. probably should try brand new plugs again and see what they look like after a short run. thinking of soaking the carbs again and rebuilding again incase i missed something. would it be ok to re- the same kit or should i just buy 2 new ones
 

emdsapmgr

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Dec 9, 2005
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11,551
Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

Save your money and use the new plugs you have. Sounds like it may not be running on all 4 spark plugs. Weak ignition components tend to fail after they warm up to normal operating temps. You can have great spark when on the trailer, but you can loose spark once you are on the water with the engine warmed up. Rent/borrow an inductive timing light and take it out with you the next time you go boating. When the engine seems to be running poorly, check each plugwire with the light when it's under load. The light will show misfires, no fires, and weak firing.
 

87superbee

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Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

well i still haven't had a chance to put a timing light on it, but i did recieve my new rectifier and after the install it was back to being very hard to start. if i unhook it it fires right up, hook it back up and nothing, unhook it and it fires right back up. is it possible i got a bad rectifier? or is it possibly causing some problem with my stator when it is hooked up?
 

emdsapmgr

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11,551
Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

The ignition components on this engine are all fairly expensive. From a cost standpoint, it is probably best to invest in some troubleshooting prior to making an expensive purchase of a part. An original factory service manual has a solid electronic troubleshooting section. You can purchase that manual from Ken Cook Co. Or you can try this web address for help: www.cdielectronics.com/ You can rent a timing light from most any auto parts store.
 

87superbee

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Sep 21, 2010
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Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

well i broke down and took it to a boat mechanic that knew how to use an electrical tester and it didn't take him long to find out my stator was toasted and i had a bad sensor on my timer base. got all that straightened out and took it to the lake with very little improvement. so i take it home and had planned on using it that next morning figuring i have a fuel issue. i know the carbs were very clean when i rebuilt them but i figured trash must have clogged my high speed jets. i just used aerosol air for electronics and sprayed into the jets and hoped that might help. take it out the next morning and it ran awesome for about 5 minutes or so then went back to the same thing. i take it back home and pulled the carbs as soon as i had a chance and went back thru them. i got a moth out of one and some trash out of both. very very little but some. then as i was reassembling everything on the motor i noticed what looked like wet saw dust in the bottom of the air intake. now puzzled at where that much stuff could come from because i had scrubbed and spayed it with carb cleaner the time before. then i notice just how brittle the foam on my cowl is..rub it with your finger and dust goes everywhere.. so now im hoping i have found the evil culprit. i removed all foam and cleaned up all dusty residue. haven't had a chance to run it yet but i have my fingers crossed.
 

87superbee

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Sep 21, 2010
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Re: Please help!! 1977 johnson javelin 85h.p.

well just thought i'd let everyone know that was the problem.. the dust off of the foam from the cowl was clogging my carbs. i finally got a chance to take it to the river and run it. ran it about 4 miles with no issues at all. so if anyone has a problem with their boat feeling like it will only run half throttle a W.O.T. it could very well be this same thing. i suggest cleaning carbs and removing the foam from your cowl. worked for me after i had spent some hard earned $$$ replacing stuff.
 
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