I am getting my boat ready for fall fishing and duck hunting.
I have had this boat & motor for 15+years and still do not understand the priming system. I have come very close to not getting it started several times.
I always make sure the battery is fully charged before using.
I buy premium marine batteries.
I only use N0n-Oxygenated fuel.
1985 70 hp Evenrude VRO(I mix the fuel myself).
Push key in to activate prime.
My question is;
What takes place when I activate the prime?
Is there a single metered squirt of fuel into one or more cylinders?
Or is there a continuous priming while i hold the key in?
I had someone recently tell me that the correct starting procedure is to,
crank engine over a couple of seconds, then push in on key and hold it in until engine fires and then release prime.
I on the other hand have tried many different things, mostly I have pushed key in multiple times to get engine to fire.
Added note, Summer starting has been no problem, I am again looking at below freezing temps in many instances. Picture the decoys with ice rings 6-8 inches around them, and a snott-cycle hanging from the beaks;)
I’m going to go out on a limb, and say that it engages the fuel pump, without the motor turning, to fill the carburetor bowl in anticipation of starting the engine.
On my 2stroke outboard, this is accomplished manually by the operator by pumping the fuel line bulb to fill the fuel line, and carb bowl to the correct capacity. If I don’t prime the system, it can’t suck fuel to the float bowl, which means fuel isn’t reaching the cylinders. Once primed, the fuel pump takes over via the pressure changes in the crankcase.
It squirts a little petrol into the inlet manifold to assist starting. This is particularly useful if the engine has a fuel pump operated by crankcase depression. Once running, the pumping action is taken over by the mechanical action of the engine.
Depending on exact model, etc, it might just squirt it into the carb.
In response to this part, do everything else to prep the engine, such as squeezing the primer bulb if you have portable tanks.
When you reach for the starting key, push it in (little squirt of gas is delivered to carb/intake), then turn the key with it pushed in. Some folks hold it in for a few seconds. I don’t know if this does anything. Your idle lever should be advanced to keep the RPM up.
Yes I did forget to include squeezing the priming bulb on the fuel line and the Idle lever is raised:o
That is where I am at. I just hate to do things in the blind, (not knowing the why).
I do like a choke much better from what I know about the primer that is. Maybe with the right information/understanding the prime is better than a choke(gag), but the old run on 1/2 choke for warmup is great IMHO. My 9.9 hp kicker will run 10+ min. with choke closed but will smoke up the area too!
I always thought the pushing the key in was an electrically operated choke? It’s been many years but I remember Dad and I checking its operation. Late 70’s 70hp Evinrude. A solenoid pulled the choke shut.
Here is my little trick for getting a boat motor to start.
Take out a spark plug or two. If it appears you have flooded the engine with fuel, dry out the plug and turn the engine over a few times without the plug(S) in to flush out the excess gas.
Then, using a straw, strip of paper towel, long screwdriver, whatever, get a few/handful of drops of gas into the chamber. Put the plug back in and try again. If you can get it to fire once, that often gets the motor spinning for a short period of time way faster than the starter
spins it, which makes the carb and fuel pump and probably other stuff work better.
That procedure has saved me several times, and I don’t even boat much.