63' Mercury 850 - Not starting

[ProAngler82]

Hi everyone. I have a 63' Merc 850. It was rebuilt a year ago and i recently changed out the old oil and gasoline. I'm not sure what potition the throttle and choke are supposed to be in when i start it. I tried to start, with water muffs attatched, and it tried cranking over, but no go. Any Ideas on what I can check, and how to know I'm in the right position?

 

[jake505]

Re: 63' Mercury 850 - Not starting

you say you changed the gas. how old was it? if its been sitting a long time with that gas in there and no fuel stabilizer it probably turned to varnish and gumed up your carbs which would mean you need to clean them. I know with mixed gas mine tends to turn a little faster than staight up gas so you have to be careful you can tell if its turned by seeing what it smells like. dont take big inhale of it thats bad but if you can just get a little wiff of it you can tell, fresh gas is going to be very pungent where as bad gas that has started to turn or has turned will have sort of a sweet smell to it that is very different from fresh still very pungent though. Usually what i do if i know my boat is going to sit a while is i'll unplug the fuel line from the engine and let it run till it starts to sputter then turn it off that way you dont have to worry about gumming up the carbs plus it flushes out the engine with some fresh water.