Bannister 6905
Petty Officer 2nd Class
- Joined
- Jun 5, 2015
- Messages
- 110
I recently purchased a boat that has a 1997 Mercury 125 ELPTO outboard.
I did a compression check on the motor and got good results - 120 / 115/ 115/ 115.
After replacing the fuel lines and other maintenance, I moved the boat out of my shop to start for the first time. This is when the issue arose.
The starter would barely turn the flywheel 1/4 turn. The battery is fully-charged, connections are clean. I removed the spark plugs again and tried the starter. It spun the motor with no problem. So, I checked the voltages at the solenoid and they were in the 12.8 range, but it still would not spin the motor with plugs installed. I even "hot wired" the starter with a different known good battery and had the same results. I also checked that the starter was not binding up on the flywheel and there was no binding.
At this point, I assumed the starter (original to the motor) was weak and bought a new one. I installed it and had EXACTLY the same results - no spin or very little...finally, I replaced the solenoid and removed and cleaned the terminals on the ignition switch, with no improvement.
The motor turns freely by hand via the crankshaft nut on the flywheel and makes no strange noises.
I am currently at a loss. Anyone have a clue as to where to look next? Any comments will be appreciated!
Bannister
I did a compression check on the motor and got good results - 120 / 115/ 115/ 115.
After replacing the fuel lines and other maintenance, I moved the boat out of my shop to start for the first time. This is when the issue arose.
The starter would barely turn the flywheel 1/4 turn. The battery is fully-charged, connections are clean. I removed the spark plugs again and tried the starter. It spun the motor with no problem. So, I checked the voltages at the solenoid and they were in the 12.8 range, but it still would not spin the motor with plugs installed. I even "hot wired" the starter with a different known good battery and had the same results. I also checked that the starter was not binding up on the flywheel and there was no binding.
At this point, I assumed the starter (original to the motor) was weak and bought a new one. I installed it and had EXACTLY the same results - no spin or very little...finally, I replaced the solenoid and removed and cleaned the terminals on the ignition switch, with no improvement.
The motor turns freely by hand via the crankshaft nut on the flywheel and makes no strange noises.
I am currently at a loss. Anyone have a clue as to where to look next? Any comments will be appreciated!
Bannister
