Mercury 90 2 stroke popping and running rough

[Kurt Watson 72]

Hello,
I recently bought a 15' Invader bowrider with a 1982 Mercury 90 2 stroke. The boat had sat covered for 3 years before I bought it. I drained the old fuel out and filled the tanks with fresh fuel with 50:1 oil mixture. I took the boat out 2 times. The first time it ran perfect. The second time, after awhile, while running at approximately 3/4 throttle, the engine suddenly started popping and lost power. I reduced the throttle to idle and it ran fine while idling. I thought I had run out of fuel, but I still had a 1/2 tank. When I got home, I took the engine cover off and found the carburetors were all covered with fuel. I don't see any cracked or broken fuel lines, and I have not run the engine with the cover off yet as I don't want to damage it. YES, there is a steady stream of water coming from the tell tail hole. I'm thinking maybe a clogged jet, but would one out of 3 clogged carbs make it run that bad or cause fuel to be everywhere?

 

[racerone]

It gets worse.----If a carburetor is plugged , then no fuel goes into 2 cylinders and no oil !----Do not run this motor again.-----Find the issue and fix it.-----Find the small hose ( oil recirculation ) that goes from bottom of engine to the top bearing area.-----On the starboard side of the motor.----Perhaps it has a leak.

 

[Kurt Watson 72]

It gets worse.----If a carburetor is plugged , then no fuel goes into 2 cylinders and no oil !----Do not run this motor again.-----Find the issue and fix it.-----Find the small hose ( oil recirculation ) that goes from bottom of engine to the top bearing area.-----On the starboard side of the motor.----Perhaps it has a leak.

Thank you. That is what I was thinking. Luckily I only ran it a few seconds while it was running rough. It does idle perfectly, so I assume it's a clogged jet, but the idle circuit is not clogged.