Hello all,
Recently purchased a Mercury Force engine, a 1995 I believe. It turns over, but will not start. Battery power is fine. Switched to "run", primed, choked, tank venting ....nothing. Turns over, does not catch, or start.
I am very new to outboard engines, and have learned more about them in 24 hours than I thought I ever would, but am still not confident that I've identified the problem. I hope you all can help.
At the advice of a friend, I took off the carb bowl, as I had noticed at one point that a small amount of fuel was dripping from the bowl. There was some veeeery small pieces of debris in there which I cleaned out. I replaced the bowl, tried again, no dice.
I have checked the plugs - they look ok but I have not tested for spark. (don't want to do that unsupervised!) At one point I was able to detect some fuel on the plugs. At another occasion in the same day, I was not. I'm not sure what symptoms or level of moisture I should be looking for here, and under what conditions.
My suspicion, based on a few hours of reading and practically zero experience, is the carb. Perhaps it needs a rebuild? I hope not, but perhaps so. I assume that costs plenty of money. I'm not sure if I can take any measures to clean the carb while it is attached to the engine? - if there is a spray or something I can try before taking it to a mechanic?
I am using the existing fuel that came with the boat. The previous owner said the boat was on the water running 2-3 weeks ago, and the fuel should be good. I have replaced the fuel line, and the prime pump stays firm, indicating it works.....
I hope this provides enough information for some feedback or suggestions. If not, let me know what else I can offer.
Thanks in advance...
Recently purchased a Mercury Force engine, a 1995 I believe. It turns over, but will not start. Battery power is fine. Switched to "run", primed, choked, tank venting ....nothing. Turns over, does not catch, or start.
I am very new to outboard engines, and have learned more about them in 24 hours than I thought I ever would, but am still not confident that I've identified the problem. I hope you all can help.
At the advice of a friend, I took off the carb bowl, as I had noticed at one point that a small amount of fuel was dripping from the bowl. There was some veeeery small pieces of debris in there which I cleaned out. I replaced the bowl, tried again, no dice.
I have checked the plugs - they look ok but I have not tested for spark. (don't want to do that unsupervised!) At one point I was able to detect some fuel on the plugs. At another occasion in the same day, I was not. I'm not sure what symptoms or level of moisture I should be looking for here, and under what conditions.
My suspicion, based on a few hours of reading and practically zero experience, is the carb. Perhaps it needs a rebuild? I hope not, but perhaps so. I assume that costs plenty of money. I'm not sure if I can take any measures to clean the carb while it is attached to the engine? - if there is a spray or something I can try before taking it to a mechanic?
I am using the existing fuel that came with the boat. The previous owner said the boat was on the water running 2-3 weeks ago, and the fuel should be good. I have replaced the fuel line, and the prime pump stays firm, indicating it works.....
I hope this provides enough information for some feedback or suggestions. If not, let me know what else I can offer.
Thanks in advance...
