1980 Evinrude 235 won't start

[Silverline235]

Hi everyone I bought my first decent size boat a few weeks ago. A 17.5 ft Silverline with a Evinrude 235.
I brought the boat home and have been trying to get it running since. I have replaced the spark plugs, repaired a few fuel lines that were cracked and leaking fuel (one off the primer solinoid, the other off the lower fuel pump going into the manifold that feeds the three carbs). It seems to be getting enough fuel to the lower 2 cylinders when cranking, but the 2 above that are less wet and the 2 highest cylinders even less yet. My thoughts were the fuel pumps, I don't know how long this motor has been out of service. I took off the fuel line before the fuel manifold and had a friend crank the engine it seemed to be coming out in spirts and not a steady stream. So where i am at now is changing the fuel pumps. Looking for advice to get a old motor going/ am I on the right track?

 

[multimech]

Re: 1980 Evinrude 235 won't start

What is the compression? That is most important. Next, rebuild the carbs. Replace all fuel lines. Check your fuel pressure after the pumps, it should be 5 to 7 pounds with no air bubbles, hell I would replace them too. Make sure the fuel tank is pristine and you have a fuel water seperator on this contraption. Check for six strong sparks on a spark board. Make sure the thing is in time. Check the flywheel to make sure the piston and the TDC mark line up.

These engines are junk basically. They suck fuel like you would not believe, thus known as "Two thirsty fives". They are crossflow models, which are highly inefficient. Do yourself a favor and get an engine that was built in this century. They did not make these for very long for a very good reason. I am in Florida and I have not seen one of these in 20 years. I work for an engine rebuilder and we don't even have blocks for them.

I'm sorry I am less than enthusiastic over your purchase man.

 

[emdsapmgr]

Re: 1980 Evinrude 235 won't start

If your fuel pumps are weak, you can perform a temporary test which may get the engine going. While cranking, have someone constantly prime the fuel hose bulb. This will force extra fuel into the carb bowls. If the carbs are in good shape, this should flow enough fuel to run the engine, both at idle or WOT. Once running, quit priming the hose bulb. If the engine quits-likely a fuel delivery problem-maybe bad pumps. If this test procedure does not work, next step is to pull the carbs apart and thoroughly clean them. You'll need to pull all the jets out for a visual inspection and clean all the internal passages with a carb cleaner-similar to a Gumout product. Agree that you should test the compression first. Best not to put any $ into an engine with a dead hole. When new, that engine probably had about 120 lbs on each cyl.