Force 125 wont turn over with plugs in.

[0327kuhl]

My 1986 Force 125 spins freely with the plugs out. I have changed wires, batteries, and a new starter. If all the plugs are out the starter turns the motor over quickly and efficiently. If I put one plug in it just barely turns over 1/2 revolution at a time...and, with all 4 plugs in, it barely turns at all. Any thoughts?

 

[pnwboat]

Re: Force 125 wont turn over with plugs in.

Possibly bad starter solenoid or your new starter is bad? Make sure the battery is good by having it tested under a load unless it's brand new. You can do the following test. Pull the safety lanyard so the motor won't actually start. Take a good set of jumper cables and attach one end to the battery. On the other end, attach the negative cable to the engine block. Take the loose positive cable and briefly touch it to the battery connection on the starter. You'll see a pretty good arc but that's normal. Starter should engage. If it operates normally, then I would suspect a bad solenoid or bad connection. If it makes no difference, then it's the starter itself.

There is one other remote possibility. Something in the lower unit bound up? You'd have to drop the lower unit. Not the first thing on my list of things to do. Try the other stuff first.

 

[ljc1957]

Re: Force 125 wont turn over with plugs in.

Can you put a rope on the flywheel and spin it? If so, it's your starter.

 

[fucawi]

Re: Force 125 wont turn over with plugs in.

measure voltage at starter motor ..you should have 11.5v when cranking...if not check battery voltage should be 12v or just over ...if bat ok but starter volts low you have wiring problem.

 

[jerryjerry05]

Re: Force 125 wont turn over with plugs in.

First load check the battery and check all connections.Then do a compression test.Comp good??Uneven comp can cause hard starting.Then take the starter apart. J

 

[rdbjr]

Re: Force 125 wont turn over with plugs in.

I have force 120 that done the same thing and problem was the impellor was stuck so i took it apart pulled the impellor out and put a little grease inside the cover and it fixed my problem but just to see if that was my problem i pulled the foot off put plugs in and turned it over like that

 

[JB]

Re: Force 125 wont turn over with plugs in.

Several people have mentioned connections. Pay attention to all connections of battery cables for hidden corrosion. Take the connections loose and scrub them shiny before reconnecting.

Takes a few minutes and costs nothing.

 

[lazypengu1n]

Re: Force 125 wont turn over with plugs in.

I had the same issue, I could crank with plugs out but not in. Turns out my starter was dead. The crank should be spinning like its about to take off. Once that was done I was able to start her up with no problems... it was scary because I'm new to boating and I didn't expect that it needed to crank that fast.