Outboard Maintenance and Repairs

[glenc18]

Kevin,
Thanks for returning my call. I couldn't find the "Maintenance Shop" phone number though. Could you please forward it to me?

What I'm looking for right now is just an annual servicing to make sure all systems are go. I'm new to sailing and not too sure of myself when it comes to outboards. The last thing I want is to be out and have the motor fail. That happened to me last year in Dog Island Sound, near Carrabelle. Getting back wasn't tragic or anything, but it did take me about and hour and a half to go 1/2 mile back to the marina. It was around 5 in the afternoon and the winds had died to about 2 kts. It was just me and my wife at the time, but I plan on taking more passengers with me in P'cola and don't want to subject them to that.

Ben,
Any suggestion or reccomendations?

[S/V Faith]

Any suggestion or reccomendations?

Outboard maintenance is a pretty straightforward proposal. The days of changing points
and adjusting the carb are pretty much past us with solid state ignition and the EPA.

There are basically 3 things a modern outboard needs, 4 if it is a 4 cycle. If it is a 4
stroke you should change the oil (just like your lawnmower) and the directions are in
your owners manual. 2 stroke motors get all their lubrication from the oil in the fuel.
Fresh fuel is important for any outboard, but especial so for a 2 stroke. Some
manufactures recommend you discard fuel that has been mixed for more then a few
months.

The spark plug should be changed once a year although they really can go for years. It
is amazing what a new spark plug can do to make the ignitions job easier. Carry a spare
onboard.

There is oil in the 'lower unit' that lubricates the gears that change the direction of the
rotation of the motor from vertical to horizontal. Again, check the manual for the
procedure. This is normal maintenance and takes a couple minutes. Many folks do it
once a year, but check your manual for the frequency.

The last item is the impeller. If your motor is water cooled (most are) you have a small
rubber impeller that sits between the power head and the lower unit. It is usually
mounted on the shaft, and can be accessed by removing the bolts just above the
cavitation plate. The directions for changing this are in some manuals, but you might
need your service manual to get eth specifics on your motor. While some change their
impeller every year, modern rubber compounds can last for years.

Doing all these things will take you less time then taking your motor to a shop... and you
will save money. More importantly you will be better equipped to fix your motor if and
when something happens 'out there'.

[S/V Faith]

Here is an exhaustive* discussion of outboard's Outboard motors; Cruising, dingy, tips, maint, & reviews on SailFar.net


* pun intended...

[s/v Monomoy]

Outboard maintenance is a pretty straightforward proposal.

I concur with this statement. You may not want to tear a motor apart on your own to re-ring it, etc. (although you could), but doing the annual maintenance on your own is a piece of cake after you figure it out the first time The typical owner's manual for an outboard will explain how to do the general maintenance on your own and if you don't have an owner's manual, then let me know the year/make/model of your outboard and I'll see if I can find one in PDF on the web for you to review.

You definitely want to carry and extra spark plug with the plug tool if your outboard is a 2 stroke, because they are bad about fouling plugs when least expected. Sometimes plugs will foul faster or slower just from the load on the motor or a slightly different gas/oil mix. As already mentioned by Craig (s/v Faith), if you are unsure if you have a 2 stroke or 4 stroke, it is easy to figure out; 2 stroke you must mix gas and oil to put in the gas tank and 4 stroke accepts straight gas.

Also, if you become unsure about something during the process, then you can always post a question on here and I'm sure someone will be happy to help out.

[glenc18]

Faith,

Thanks for the input. That's exaclty the kind of pointers I was looking for. I know it's not such a big deal to do the regular servicing, just somthing I'm unfamiliar with.

[s/v Monomoy]

I understand about being unfamiliar with things and possibly deciding to have someone else do it. I will generally try to watch someone do something the first time, then I typically figure out how easy it was and do it myself the next go around. That is how I learned a lot about the things I now do on my own. After Hurricane Ivan took the roof off my last house, as it did on most of the houses in NW Florida, and my insurance company only wanted to patch it, then I thought I was going to have to pay the rest out of pocket, cause I wasn't about to just patch my roof. However, my cousin happened to be having a roofing party (where all your buds get together to roof your home at no cost other than supplies, food, and beer afterwards) and asked if I would help. I did help and figured out that I could roof my house on my own, so I did (with my father-in-law working with me). Pulled the permit and my father-in-law and I got on my roof, ripped off the old, and put on the new for less than what the insurance company provided for just patching. When I sold that house, the home inspector commented on how great the roofers did and that he had not seen quality work like that in a long time; I just sat back and smiled.

Anyway... I know I jumped way off course with roofing, but it is the same general principal. In the long run you can save money doing the job yourself, sometimes even do a better job than paying someone, and in the event of a problem in the future, you will know what to do.

If you decide to pay someone to do it once a year, then there is no harm there either; my brother-from-another-mother (excuse the slang) has all of the capabilities to perform his boat maintenance on his own or have me give a hand, but he prefers to take it engine to the shop once a year for routine maintenance. I think it runs him around $75. (I think.)

If you decide to give it a shot doing the work yourself and want someone hanging out with a beer for another watchful eye to remember how it came apart, then let me know and I'll be happy to get together with you to give a hand.

[glenc18]

Ben,

Thanks for the offer. I'll definately take you up on that next time in Pensacola. I'll get in touch and give you plenty of notice.

Thanks a heap!

[xologist]

Hi Ben. I see you are quite helpful with many things. In this post and in following the sequence I see that you have some knowledge of getting PDF manuals of sailboat kickers. I have a Johnson 4.5 sea horse model number J5RLGS. She is getting up there in years (almost 30 years old). She came with my Mariner and I took her to the Sunset Marina shop to have her checked out. A hundred dollars later they determined that she needs a carb as someone really messed this on up. She needs recoil starter parts although she is also an electric start. Sunset asked me if I had the recoil parts and I don't have anything.

So I need a manual to see if I can repair this gem which has good compression and good spark.

Thank you Ben I appreciate your help.

Jim Frock

[S/V Faith]

Jim,

If the motor is all that is hilding you up I have a spare that I could lend you to get the boys out on the water for a bit if you would like.

Let me know.

[s/v Monomoy]

Hey Jim.

I'm currently in Michigan sitting a marina with spotty Net service and won't be back to reasonable Net coverage till next week, but will be happy to see what I can dig up at that time.

In the mean time, Craig's offer is very generous, so perhaps that will help to get you out on the water.

Talk to you all soon.

Ben

[s/v Monomoy]

So far no luck on my search for a manual for you, but my Net connection is fairly slow here in Traverse City, MI. Just wanted to let you know that I haven't forgotten and will try again when I get better speeds.

[S/V Faith]

So far no luck on my search for a manual for you, but my Net connection is fairly slow here in Traverse City, MI. Just wanted to let you know that I haven't forgotten and will try again when I get better speeds.

Enjoy the fudge (at the risk of being called a 'fudgie').

[s/v Monomoy]

So far the only manuals I have been able to find are the ones you pay for at http://www.iboats.com/Johnson_Outboard_ ... _id.251023. It might be worth ordering a manual to keep on hand.

Didn't ever get the chance to sample any fudge, but there was no shortage of beer sampling.