Mercury 500 50 hp reed stop question

[vuk_klek]

hello to all forums. I decided to completely inspect my mercury 50 1977 9136284 and I encountered a problem with reed valves. a lot of them don't close completely, so I chose good reeds from the old engine and replaced them. now the question remains at what height the reed stop is adjusted as a recommended measure. thanks everyone in advance.

 

[Chris1956]

OEM Reed valves do not usually go bad. They may be slightly open at rest, but close well enough to seal. If the motor doesn't idle, the reeds could (could) be to blame.

I did not think reed stops were adjustable. They are factory bent to allow the correct opening.

 

[Mc Tool]

Yeah , as long as they are not damaged a reed hanging open ....even up to a mm is ok , they slam shut pretty quick when the air starts flowing back that way

 

[vuk_klek]

thanks for the answers, I chose the reed valves to lie completely or with a very small gap of only 0.05mm. I saw somewhere on youtube that a man who serviced his engine older than mine was paying attention to the maximum height at which the valves are allowed to open. mostly I will see that they all open to the same height. I also noticed, since I mixed the valves with two engines and both worked, who knows how much, that some valves open easier, others a little harder. I hope it won't affect the performance of the engine too much.

 

[Mc Tool]

The reed stoppers are there to limit how far the reeds can open , you may gain a little power by bending them open a bit more but you also greatly increase the risk of the reeds failing . Typically they will split and crack ,bits then break off and destroy the piston and/or cylinder wall on their way out .