1961 Evinrude Fastwin 18 HP 2 stroke wont start, tried everything!!! PLEASE HELP!!!!

[rcpro88]

So a couple of days ago i picked up a 1961 Evinrude Fastwin 18 hp outboard. I saw the thing running in the barrel, it started on its first pull, all looked good, water pump etc. So when i was at the lake i found out the shear pin was broken, fixed that, then a spark plug blew when i gave it full throttle. Repaired the threads, cleaned the carb, pistons were all good, replaced the fuel lines (they were cracking) adjusted the points to 0.020 (both spark plugs are firing bright blue) and made sure the gap was set. The issue is now the thing wont start. I have no idea what is going on with it. i tried everything, but it doesn't want to start. I adjusted the high low speed trims and all, looked on all these forums.
One thing i did notice is that the engine it pretty hard to crank now. When i remove the spark plugs its easy to crank, when i put them in, it become really hard, is this an issue? could this be another effect of something that may not be causing it to start?

Oh and i did my compression test, both cylinders have great compression.

PLEASE, I NEED HELP FAST, this week im planning on going fishing with my father whose not going to live much longer, and i need my boat outboard working!

Thanks of any help!!!

 

[torchddv]

Re: 1961 Evinrude Fastwin 18 HP 2 stroke wont start, tried everything!!! PLEASE HELP!

Spark plug wires reversed? Usually the top plug wire has a metal clip a few inches from the cap to identify it.

 

[samo_ott]

Re: 1961 Evinrude Fastwin 18 HP 2 stroke wont start, tried everything!!! PLEASE HELP!

What is great compression?

 

[fromcarsToboats]

Re: 1961 Evinrude Fastwin 18 HP 2 stroke wont start, tried everything!!! PLEASE HELP!

Man that is a pickle. The hard cranking can be a bad connection. check them after cranking to see if they are getting hot. Then tighten all the connections to be sure. Is your battery needing charged? Check the flywheel key way it maybe sheared. Highly unlikely though.It takes three things to run: Compression, Air/fuel, and spark.

 

[Toddboat]

Re: 1961 Evinrude Fastwin 18 HP 2 stroke wont start, tried everything!!! PLEASE HELP!

maybe stale fuel. have you tried starting it with starting fluid? when you try new fuel, you have to first drain all old fuel out of lines, carbs, etc. before priming bulb to get new fuel into motor.
have you tried starting with choke on? choke will reduce the amount of air in the air/fuel mixture by choking the motor.
it may help to start it when cold.
what about timing? are those strong sparks happening exactly when they are supposed to? watch some videos on youtube about adjusting the timing, and read about it on this forum. I don't know how to do it myself, but I know it's important that the plugs spark just after the piston compresses the fuel mixture.
if it doesn't start but then it starts the next day, it could have been flooded. unlikely if you've rebuilt the carbs, as a faulty needle valve in the carb is the most likely culprit for flooding. I know you've already done your carb work, but just make sure the motor isn't flooding. look down the carb throats while priming the bulb. there should be no fuel leaking into the carb throats. if there is, it's a bad needle/seat. those old cork floats were coated with shellac which quickly deteriorates with ethanol. if the floats aren't floating, then the needle won't seat itself fully in the seat and the motor will flood.
try starting it with the throttle wide open (in neutral). this adds a lot of air, offsetting the excess fuel. if the motor only starts with the throttle open, then it was probably flooded.
I think its pretty normal that it would get hard to turn the flywheel once the plugs are in. it's the compression you're fighting against. still, you may want to change the lower unit oil.

 

[rcpro88]

Re: 1961 Evinrude Fastwin 18 HP 2 stroke wont start, tried everything!!! PLEASE HELP!

Thanks for the replies guys.
I made sure the spark plug lines were going to the corrects spark plug. yes the metal clip is on top, when i opened up the head to replace the stripped threads, i checked to see if the spark would ignite when the piston was at the top of its stroke, and it did.
Ill give the starter fluid a try, the gas is new, so is the oil, i changed out the fuel lines so there should be no bad gas in the system, even cleaned out the filter and emptied that glass reservoir and cleaned the filter.
Compression was 122 psi and 126 psi, so id say that's great.
ill look more into the carb, see if i can find anything, but i did notice there was a lot of gas in the carb when i took it apart again today, what do you think that is? could that lead to the engine not starting?
if i put starter fluid in the engine will that show that everything is running ok and its more a carb issue?

 

[rcpro88]

Re: 1961 Evinrude Fastwin 18 HP 2 stroke wont start, tried everything!!! PLEASE HELP!

its a pull start, not electric.

 

[AlTn]

Re: 1961 Evinrude Fastwin 18 HP 2 stroke wont start, tried everything!!! PLEASE HELP!

when you put the carb back on did you check the link and sync positions?

 

[kfa4303]

Re: 1961 Evinrude Fastwin 18 HP 2 stroke wont start, tried everything!!! PLEASE HELP!

The good news is that the compression sounds ok. Considering you replaced the fuel lines, I would make sure you're getting proper fuel delivery. This link may help.

Maintaining Johnson E & FD Serie

 

[rcpro88]

Re: 1961 Evinrude Fastwin 18 HP 2 stroke wont start, tried everything!!! PLEASE HELP!

Yes, i checked the link and sync positions. I took the carb off today and found there was a lot of gas in it, so im guessing the engine is not starting due to the fast of a flooded carb, i think im over priming the bulb, i squeeze it like 7-8 times. So i emptied the gas from the carb, but the engine is really hard to pull start. i cant even pull it. When the spark plugs are removed it pulls just fine, but when they are in it makes it nearly impossible to pull it. Any ideas on what could be the cause for this? i checked the cylinders and there is nothing interfering with them, i put oil on them too to help with the issue, but it is still very hard to pull, i cant even finish one pull stroke.
I checker the pull device, and its working great, like i said, i can pull the thing easily when the spark plugs are removed.
any ideas on what is causing this?

 

[jonbellamy]

Re: 1961 Evinrude Fastwin 18 HP 2 stroke wont start, tried everything!!! PLEASE HELP!

Ask hightrim, i don't know much about boat motors, but i do have a '68 fastwin that i was having a problem with. Someone (like always) please correct me if i'm wrong, but you shouldn't have to squeeze it that many times--i give mine a couple squeezes and it get hard. My fuel pump had a blown diaphragm and I noticed that I could prime the bulb as much as i wanted but it never got hard. Also, after i pumped it a bunch it made it near impossible for me to pull start it. Have you checked your fuel pump? I'm not a huge help and don't know as much as everyone else around here, but it's simple to check the fuel pump: just unscrew it from the block with fuel hoses still connected and pump the bulb. if fuel leaks from the back than you need a fuel pump kit or new fuel pump.

 

[rcpro88]

Re: 1961 Evinrude Fastwin 18 HP 2 stroke wont start, tried everything!!! PLEASE HELP!

thanks for your help, the fuel pump is fine, i rebuilt that already. i cleared the engine of all gas and i still have that very hard to pull issue. im guessing its the compression release valve, and now half of the screws holding the exhaust manifold wont budge.
please anyone have any idea on how to free up screws that havent budged in over 30 years?