Anybody ever seen this in a carb?

boatman37

So been having trouble with our boat running so ordered a carb kit and this is what the inside looks like. I have rebuilt dozen of carbs in my day and have never seen one like this. Any ideas what this is and what caused it? Looks like little tiny light tan granules but not a sand texture. I'm thinking it is related to ethanol?

F1100

I have, we pulled my buddies old buell bike carb last year and the same white flecks of gunk were in it.  We cleaned it twice and the jet, then a new fuel filter

boatman37

hmmm. I have it soaking now. Have to figure out how to get all this out and make sure there is none left in any of the passages. Will air blow it out or do I need more than that? I have a welding tip cleaner and pushed it through some of the passages but don't want to score the passages so being careful with that. Hoping after it soaks the compressed air will clear everything.

boatman37

No access to an ultrasonic tank so hoping I can get it clean enough with a chemical dip. Already got the kit and new float.

boatman37

Got the carb cleaned and assembled it last night. Took a few cranks to get fuel into the float bowl but it fired right up after that and idled smooth and revved quickly. Very promising.

But now I think I have another issue. Can't see how it is related to this but here goes...

The base gasket that was on there was about 1/8" thick. The one that came in the kit is a regular thin gasket. Shouldn't matter but had just a little trouble getting the throttle linkage back on but that shouldn't have mattered since the bracket for the linkage sits on top of the carb flange so it moves with the carb. Once it was all together I went to work the throttle to make sure nothing was bound and the throttle lever was hard to push out of neutral. Got it moving then went to put it in neutral and it wouldn't move that last bit to get to neutral. I unhooked the linkage just for the heck of it and no change. Finally got it to move to reverse but then couldn't get it back to neutral again. Finally got it to go and got it to neutral so tried starting it. It fired up and the throttle felt normal. Hooked the throttle linkage back up to the carb and still normal. Shut the engine off and had trouble moving the throttle lever again. Started it back up and it moved free again.

Any ideas? I only mention the base gasket thickness cause that is the only thing different but it shouldn't have mattered. I had my bellows replaced last fall by a local marina. Pretty sure they replaced the lower shift cable but I'd have to dig up the receipt to be sure. It has been fine until today.

Didn't go out with it today but fresh carb sounds great.

Oh, it's a B3 outdrive.

reneechris14

B3 don't like to shift when not spinning. Actually it is recommended not to shift when not running. 

boatman37

lol. yeah, just found that out. did a little searching online and read that so called my local shop and he said 'yeah, don't do that again'...lol. so i'm guessing i'm good to go now. don't think i damaged anything. i was in the engine bay and just wanted my wife to move the throttle so i could check for any binding. figured it was easier to just tell her to push the gray button than it was to tell her to push the gray button and the round button in the center and push it forward...lol. lesson learned

boatman37

Went down today for a marina party. Hit the key and it fired right up and idled fine. Before the rebuild it would usually crank a few seconds before starting. Didn't take it out today but it idled fine at the dock.

PickleRick

Do you run a stabilizer with your fuel?  Ive been running pri G however i cannot easily get 93 oct in non ethanol unless i drive an extra half hour when i launch so I'm going to make the switch to marine staibil when i run out.  For some 200+ gallons of treatment its about 20 bucks.  I saw it at acadamy sports earlier this week. 

boatman37

I always put a bottle of Star Tron in when I fuel up but I bought this boat last August and who knows if the previous owner did.

PickleRick

Check the bottle, is startron just ethanol treatment or is it also a stabilizer?

boatman37

Took the boat out today for the first time since rebuilding the carb. Went about a mile or so upriver to my mothers marina and hung out there then back to our marina. All no wake zone but boat ran great

Dream_Inn

PickleRick said:

Check the bottle, is startron just ethanol treatment or is it also a stabilizer?

It does both.  I've used startron for many winters with success.

PickleRick

Awesome. I couldn't remember. I used to sell startron but now its sold at box stores for just a few dollars more than what my distributors charge me for it so its been years since i had it on my shelf. Many of the tree companies I sell/do service work for buy the stuff by the case, they swear by it.   

Dream_Inn

Yes, I use it for all my lawnmower & 2 cycle small engine (including dinghy outboard) stuff.  It goes a long ways and I already have it anyhow for the boat.  That ethanol is really tough on the smaller motors (ie lawn mower).  

PickleRick

I say let the govt put more ethanol in the fuel, its great for my business!  Not so great on the consumer

69fastback

I run e10 in everything I own, because it's all we have here. Lawn equipment, chainsaw, my Rinker, My Champion with a 2 stroke outboard, 2 stroke TPI dirt bike, 2 stroke carbureted dirt bike, 4 stroke dirt bike and quad, 9 second carbureted small block street car,DD's, everything. I've never had one single issue, ever. Zero. I don't drain my lawn equipment over the winter, and the only thing I put fuel stabilizer in is my boat. 

rasbury

First, you have way to many toys, must be single. If I use e10 in a weed eater, it won't last the season and it seems to have gotten worse over the years...maybe areas get different quality of fuel. I used to use it without a problem.

PickleRick

I dont special shop for fuel(i also run a small engine/outdoor power equipment repair shop)  so everything I run has ethanol in it.  I stabilize the fuel upon purchase and have no fuel system issues.  Both my vehicles are diesel and I've gone to battery powered string trimmers but chainsaws, lawn mowers, generators, boats, and pressure washer are all gas. I dont have any issues with them. They are all usually stored with a full tank of stabilized fuel.  

I usually use pri g but in my smaller stuff ive been using stabil because i have it.  Once my pri g is up im going to try marine stabil with ethanol treatment. About 200 gallons of treatment is less tham 20 bucks at Academy sports.  I cannot buy it from my distributors for that price and that's 15 bucks less than about the same treatment size my cost of pri G.   I should also add i only buy 91 to 93 octane.

At the shop i buy qt 10%ethanol high test which is run in everything we sell or repair. We work on or sale hundreds of pieces of equipment every week and some customers wait 6 months or even more to pick up equipment then expect it to start and run as if it was repaired yesterday.  Once i started stabilizing all our fuel cans i quit having to rebuild cabs a 2nd time for free( i also now charge 2 dollars a day storage after 30 days) but other than batteries dying from sitting and tires leaking down our repeat carb issues are 90% eliminated.

Id buy high octane non ethanol if it were convenient but usually all non ethanol i find is 87 oct and that's good for what?  Certainly not good for storage or anything 2 stroke, high compression or that works at loads seen by a boat.

69fastback

rasbury said:

First, you have way to many toys, must be single. If I use e10 in a weed eater, it won't last the season and it seems to have gotten worse over the years...maybe areas get different quality of fuel. I used to use it without a problem.

Nah. Been married 18 years, 2 kids, all that fun stuff. I've had my Stihl weed eater for at least 10 years. Still going like a champ!

69fastback

PickleRick said:

I dont special shop for fuel(i also run a small engine/outdoor power equipment repair shop)  so everything I run has ethanol in it.  I stabilize the fuel upon purchase and have no fuel system issues.  Both my vehicles are diesel and I've gone to battery powered string trimmers but chainsaws, lawn mowers, generators, boats, and pressure washer are all gas. I dont have any issues with them. They are all usually stored with a full tank of stabilized fuel.  

I usually use pri g but in my smaller stuff ive been using stabil because i have it.  Once my pri g is up im going to try marine stabil with ethanol treatment. About 200 gallons of treatment is less tham 20 bucks at Academy sports.  I cannot buy it from my distributors for that price and that's 15 bucks less than about the same treatment size my cost of pri G.   I should also add i only buy 91 to 93 octane.

At the shop i buy qt 10%ethanol high test which is run in everything we sell or repair. We work on or sale hundreds of pieces of equipment every week and some customers wait 6 months or even more to pick up equipment then expect it to start and run as if it was repaired yesterday.  Once i started stabilizing all our fuel cans i quit having to rebuild cabs a 2nd time for free( i also now charge 2 dollars a day storage after 30 days) but other than batteries dying from sitting and tires leaking down our repeat carb issues are 90% eliminated.

Id buy high octane non ethanol if it were convenient but usually all non ethanol i find is 87 oct and that's good for what?  Certainly not good for storage or anything 2 stroke, high compression or that works at loads seen by a boat.

My 2 stroke bikes get 89 because that's what the manufacturer calls for, and my boat gets 87 because that's what the manufacturer calls for. Running higher octane than what the engine is tuned and designed to run only lightens your wallet. Compression, ignition curve, squish, chamber design.....once it's all in place, an octane rating is determined, and best performance comes from running the lowest octane that resists detonation. My Mustang actually runs it fastest time on pump gas, but VP110 gives a larger tuning window on the bottle, so I typically run it when I'm spraying. The car runs better on 93 though. 

PickleRick

I dont buy 93 for performance, I buy it because over time even with stabilizer it holds a higher octane rating for longer than 87. Obviously winter and summer fuel are made differently but over time the octane level drops.  So in 3 months let's say that 93 is now 87.  Well that 87 would now be down to 85 octane.  The price difference between 87 and 93 is roughly 50 cents a gallon so its not like its going to break the bank.  Its a little extra insurance against predetonation!  Don't quote me on the time line but fuel does lose its octane over time, how much per say would require some googling.  


I try not to even look at the price im paying when i fill up the rinker. I just watch the fuel gauge.  

Your boat is also probably efi, everything down to the timing is controlled on the fly.  My 650 holly doesn't atomize fuel as well on that early 90s/late 80s probably a flat tapped cam and needs all the help she can get!   Im not saying i couldn't get away with running 87,  I'd just rather not try.

boatman37

Finally took the boat out on the Ohio to try out the primaries. Went well. Idled out through the no wake zone then up on plane. Cruised about 1 mile up river then back. Full throttle runs a couple of times and dropped back to neutral and idled fine. First time on plane since the carb rebuild.

boatman37

Went out again today. First time since last post. Been real busy. So anyway about 1/4 mile no wake to get to the Ohio then went a mile or so upriver on plane then back then anchored for a couple hours. Fired up and came back in. Ran perfect.

rasbury

Great!