Cubman
Well-known member
I bought a boat this morning with a 1991 Johnson 60hp outboard (3 cyl). The motor ran great, it stayed running on the third crank after sitting since the end of duck season. It ran great then, and also when I took it out this evening and made a long run with it. When I got back to the ramp I started having trouble. It will crank and run for around 10 seconds, then die. This happens if you leave it idling or if you put it in gear. The motor was warm. The gas is of unknown quality and this occured with ~1.5" of gas in the bottom of the tank (old metal pressurized tank). I am going to test tommorow with the gas can out of my other boat, which has known good gas. Does this sound like a fuel issue, or something more extensive? I'm not expert, but I thought it was the fuel pump. I tried pumping the bulb while it was running and it did not help the problem. My friend's dad suggested that it might be the stator, but I don't think this is an ignition problem?
I know the easiest thing is for me to go try this good gas, but I wanted to ask TinBoats member tonight so hopefully I can get this sorted out tomorrow.
I know the easiest thing is for me to go try this good gas, but I wanted to ask TinBoats member tonight so hopefully I can get this sorted out tomorrow.
Glad you made it back before the trouble started. As for the issue at hand, sounds to me like it's carb related. I'm betting on a stuck float needle, improperly adjusted float (not the most likely culprit in this situation as it did run for some time), or (most likely guess) you got a little piece of debris from the bottom of that old gas can suck up and it is blocking the fueld from passing fast enough to keep the bowl supplied with fuel. My recommendation: Go ahead and run on down to the auto parts store (I usually have good luck with O'Reilly's and Napa) or your local Johnson dealer and pick up the necessary carb kits and just go ahead and replace them now. It's early in the season and it seems obvious to me that the carbs weren't properly stored....so save yourself the future frustrations. If you don't want to mess with all that, pull the carb(s) and give a good thorough cleaning and re-assemble. That's where I would start if the fresh gas doesn't fix it. Good luck and keep us posted.
