Boomyal
Supreme Mariner
- Joined
- Aug 16, 2003
- Messages
- 12,072
I took the 20 ft Gulfstream out , last weekend, for a Boy Scout Crabbing trip. We backed the boat into the water and started the engine before releasing from the trailer. It was unusually hard to start but did so.
We had a lengthy run at no-wake to get out into the bay. The motor was running but it was obviously not right. Finally, after much prodding from the kids on board we got to where I could open it up a bit and it seemed to run just fine (good power on acceleration) After a short while I pulled the throttle back to a sensible cruise speed and the motor started running really ratty.
I kept slowing it down until we finally came off plane. The motor was really running bad. I pulled it back into neutral and it stalled. It would not restart. It was backfiring thru the carb and acting crazy.
We are now dead in the water, in the middle of Tillamook Bay so I grab a radio to make known my plight. In the meantime, one of the other 3 boats had finally gotten underway after a rerouting of a failed electronic ignition system. Fortunately that boat owner was Mr El Mechanico.
He heads out to rescue us and we swap boats, I driving his and he trying to figure out what was up with mine. After trying to start it he pulls the distributor cap and it was absolutely soaked with condensation. I was tossing around a whole lot of volts due to my MSD multi-spark ignition with Pertronix II ignitor.
He wipes out the cap, hit's the key and away he goes. He got the reward 'cause he spent the rest of the day driving my 5.0 roller cam hot rod and I stayed in his 18 ft Beachcraft with it's temporary anemic 283 chev motor.
I had run the motor, in the drive, earlier in the month and it ran fine. Apparently the extreme fluctuations in temps and dew points combined to fill the cap with condesation.
I'll check it first hand next time.
Oh, btw, crabbing was abysmal but the weather was gorgeous. That's saying a lot for the Oregon Coast in late October.
We had a lengthy run at no-wake to get out into the bay. The motor was running but it was obviously not right. Finally, after much prodding from the kids on board we got to where I could open it up a bit and it seemed to run just fine (good power on acceleration) After a short while I pulled the throttle back to a sensible cruise speed and the motor started running really ratty.
I kept slowing it down until we finally came off plane. The motor was really running bad. I pulled it back into neutral and it stalled. It would not restart. It was backfiring thru the carb and acting crazy.
We are now dead in the water, in the middle of Tillamook Bay so I grab a radio to make known my plight. In the meantime, one of the other 3 boats had finally gotten underway after a rerouting of a failed electronic ignition system. Fortunately that boat owner was Mr El Mechanico.
He heads out to rescue us and we swap boats, I driving his and he trying to figure out what was up with mine. After trying to start it he pulls the distributor cap and it was absolutely soaked with condensation. I was tossing around a whole lot of volts due to my MSD multi-spark ignition with Pertronix II ignitor.
He wipes out the cap, hit's the key and away he goes. He got the reward 'cause he spent the rest of the day driving my 5.0 roller cam hot rod and I stayed in his 18 ft Beachcraft with it's temporary anemic 283 chev motor.
I had run the motor, in the drive, earlier in the month and it ran fine. Apparently the extreme fluctuations in temps and dew points combined to fill the cap with condesation.
I'll check it first hand next time.
Oh, btw, crabbing was abysmal but the weather was gorgeous. That's saying a lot for the Oregon Coast in late October.