1979 85 hp Evinrude electrical problems

[Shaun1201]

Hey everyone I need help, I was on the water fishing Saturday and the boat ran fine, but when I was going to crank up to go back to the dock, I turned the key and nothing happened. I checked all my fuses and all my wire connections. They were all good. I noticed that the electric choke would not click when I pushed the key in. After being towed back to the dock and put the boat on the trailer, I tried it again and it fired right up. Any suggestions of where the problem might be? I have a tournament this weekend and I am scared to get the boat out now.

[guyjg]

kimcrwbr1 is right. I like to use spray battery cleaner on the battery positive and ground terminals. After they are cleaned and reinstalled I give them a shot of battery protector spray. I also use it on all ground terminals where they touch the engine. You can get it at any autoparts store. If your key switch is accessible under the dash disconnect the battery and remove, clean and reinstall each wire. Wipe a finger full of battery protector on each terminal before reinstalling. Look for corrosion where the wire feeds into the terminals. I have had to remove the old terminals due to corrosion, (label the wires first) strip the wire back, coat w/solder paste, retin the clean bare copper wire w/solder and a soldering gun then install a new connector. With the wires off you can check the switch w/an ohmmeter.

[Shaun1201]

Thanks everyone for the advice. Just to let everyone know, I replaced the battery 2 weeks ago and also replaced my cable leads. As far as starting the motor out of the water, I just seen if it would turnover, I never let it actually crank. I will keep in mind about jumping the starter next time out if it happens again. Also my key switch is in the shift control box. Would putting aluminum connectors on the cable leads make a huge difference, or should I go with the copper connectors? I will however take my leads off at the motor and clean them real good. Thanks again for the advice.

[guyjg]

Would putting aluminum connectors on the cable leads make a huge difference, or should I go with the copper connectors?

Are you sure they are not plated copper?

[matt.speedtriple]

The first thing i`d be looking at if the engine cranked over later on would be insuring the control lever is locked in the central position so the lock outs disengage allowing the engine to be started. I had this problem a couple of times with an old evinrude 50 and there`s nothing worse than going through all the hassle of launching the boat only to find it won`t start and having to haul it back out again. Lift the fast start lever to ensure it`s correctly in place.

[MrRodeoCC]

Also check your emergancy kill switch, I bumped mine once, it looked fine but it was just enough to keep the motor from cranking, I felt quite silly after getting towed back to the dock and the guy reset it and it cranked.