1994 mastercraft prostar 190 sill crank but not start

My brother left to sea on the

My brother left to sea on the USS Nimitz and left me with his ski boat. Unfortunately he left me with one that wont start. It will crank but not fire. I checked the output of the distributers and there is nothing. My brother said that it was working fine the last time he used it. I have limited knowledge of boats and was looking for some help with this one. Thanks in advance to those who help.

"Is there a lanyard on the saf

"Is there a lanyard on the safety switch, next to the throttle? If not, put it on. If it is there, wiggle the throttle while you crank- the shift cable may be a bit stretched and the neutral safety switch thinks it's in gear.

When you turn the key to on, you should hear a click and buzz for 2 seconds, then nothing. If you don't hear this, it could be what I described before. If you do hear this and is still won't start and you have access to a digital multi-meter, I can get you through this- I was a MC tech for about 5 years.

How long has the boat been sitting? If it's been a long time, the gas may be bad and I would check the raw water pump's impeller. Seeing that you have the LT-1, one thing I will tell you right now is that you don't want to overheat it because the heads don't survive it well and are expensive. Better to replace the impeller and be safe than have a problem. Also, if you'll be boating on a body of water that has weeds in it, you'll want to become familiar with clearing out the transmission oil cooler, at the rear of the motor on the port side. You'll want to clear it out when the boat is on the trailer or a lift because the hose you need to remove is between the inlet of the cooler and the hull, which means that the water pressure will cause the water to get in the boat. I have a set of forceps that I grab the weeds with. since my fingers don't fit in the opening.

I don't like nut drivers so I use a 1/4" ratchet wrench with a short extension and 5/16" socket. It fits all of the hose clamps and is a lot faster to use. "

I have checked the kill switch

I have checked the kill switch and it is good. I have wiggled the throttle while trying to start and still wont crank. There is a click and a buzz so the fuel pump is working properly. not sure where to go with this now. I have a digital multi-meter handy and ready to get it fixed or at least diagnosed.
Thanks Jim

"OK, will it crank but not fir

"OK, will it crank but not fire or not crank at all?

A little history of the boat will help, too. How long has it been sitting, is he the original owner, who does the service on it, etc. Any major repairs recently?

I saw your post on www.tmcowners.com so disregard the first part of that reply.

Look for the ECM- it's about 1-1/2"x 4" x6" and has two big plugs going to it. Near this are three fuse holders. Make sure they aren't corroded and the fuses are good. If they look good, check them with the meter set to OHMS, since they can look good but still turn out to be bad.

No spark is fairly easy to diagnose but you have to know what to look for, and where. Take your meter, set it to DC volts and look on the harness going to the plate under the coil packs, for a purple/white wire. Use a straightened paperclip or thin stiff wire to probe the terminal- don't poke through the insulation. That can allow corrosion to kill your wire and it'll be hard to find the source of the problem. You should see 1-2VDC while cranking, on this wire. If you don't, post what you see.

Look on the starter for a molded black plastic cover at the rear of the motor. There is a circuit breaker on this and it may be popped. If it is, push it in and see if it runs."

"Thanks Jim, if you are ever l

"Thanks Jim, if you are ever lookin for a pull or anything in Denver I can do please dont hesitate to ask.
Thanks again
Kevin"

"Thanks for the offer and glad

"Thanks for the offer and glad it works. You'll find that the MasteCraft site is a great resource, not only for boat owners but especially for skiers. I was also a moderator there for about 3 years."