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Johnson 115 HP Issues

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robwcarp

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This is my first post on here. I have been reading a lot ofposts on here since I purchased a bass boat for $800.00. The boat is solid, butneed s a little interior cosmetic work. I figured for $800.00 I could geteverything working as it should on my own. My son and I have been fishing outof it, but only using the trolling motor to get around. The boat has a Johnson115 HP (Model# J115TLEOR). Anyway I have a few questions with this motor that Iam hoping I can get some help with.1. I have even pressure on all 4 cylinders.
2. It has good spark
I was able to start it after several tries, but when I didget it started it was running pretty rough at first like it was starving forfuel, so I pumped the fuel bulb a couple of times to keep it started and thisis when the alarm with pulsing beeps started which I know is not getting oil soI pumped the oil bulb and the alarm would stop for a little while, but the alarmwould start back up after a couple of minutes. This went on for about 5minutes. After all of this it started to run at very high RPM's (~4500) so Ishut it down since I was on the muffs.
I am using non-ethanol fuel with stabil added. I have been contemplatingdisconnecting the VRO and hand mix 50:1, but really don’t want to unless I haveto.
My biggest concern is why would the motor go to very highRPM’s all of a sudden like that? It did run good at those RPM’s but like I saidI shut it down after it did it for about 10 seconds because I didn’t want toblow the engine.
I was able to tune up a Johnson 4HP and it runs awesome, buta 115 has a lot more parts to deal with so thought I would see if anyone couldgive me some ideas at what to look at.
Thank you for any and all advice!
 
robwcarp said:
Johnson115 HP (Model# J115TLEOR).
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This is a 1995 model. It will have the OIS 2000 ignition.
robwcarp said:
1. I have even pressure on all 4 cylinders.
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robwcarp said:
2. It has good spark
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What exactly is the compression?
Is the spark jumping a 7/16"?


robwcarp said:
running pretty rough ....pumped the fuel bulb a couple of times ...alarm with pulsing beeps started which I know is not getting oil so I pumped the oil bulb and the alarm would stop for a little while, but the alarmwould start back up after a couple of minutes.
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It sounds like you definitely have fuel and oil supply issues. My guess is your system is sucking air somewhere and losing prime, thus the warning horns.

Do not trust any of the hoses or primer bulbs at this point. Get new 5/16" or 3/8" fuel rated hose and a new primer bulb and run completely new from the fuel tank to the VRO fuel pump.

Also, get oil rated 1/4" hose and replace all lines and primer bulb from the oil tank to the VRO pump.

robwcarp said:
....
Click to expand...
robwcarp said:
started to run at very high RPM's (~4500) so I shut it down since I was on the muffs.
Click to expand...
robwcarp said:
My biggest concern is why would the motor go to very high RPM’s all of a sudden like that?
Click to expand...
Engines will run at higher RPM when on muffs due to no backpressure on the exhaust. if you're doing testing it's really best to dunk the lower unit in a tank or barrel and run it that way. More than likely the high RPM can also be due to a lean condition.....which can be caused by poor fuel lines I previously mentioned.

Since you don't know the history of the engine you will be safest if you replace all the lines like I mentioned including the VRO to carb lines. Also, get Evinrude carb rebuild kits and go through each one, cleaning all passages and making sure any gunk is cleared. You're right, you don't want to roach this power head. Fuel lines and carb rebuilds are really cheap insurance to avoid damaging the engine from a lean condition. At this point everything is an unknown so you're better off to take some precautions rather than risk major problems.

KJ
 
KJ,

Thank you for the reply! My compression is about 120 to 125 on all cylinders and the spark is a nice blue 7/16" spark on all cylinders using an actual spark gap tester.

The guy I bought the boat from said he replaced all fuel lines and they do look new. The oil line I don't believe was replaced and the lines to the carbs from VRO pump. I will pick up a couple carb kits and change all the lines that have not been replaced and see how that does.

I read on this forum somehere that the check pulse limiter and/or vapor separator cover gasket could possibly be a culprit, but not really sure how to check those. I would really hate to spend money that I don't need to if there is an easy way to check them. Would these possibly be causing it too suck air, if this is what it is doing?

Thanks,
Rob
 
One more thing I wanted to add: You mentioned 1/4" oil rated hose. The hose that is on this motor is a lot bigger than 1/4", I believe it is 5/16" could this be an issue with it possibly sucking air?
 
I put carb kits in both carbs, good thing, they were very clogged up with gunk and replaced all of the fuel lines. While doing this also found that the fuel connector to the motor was leaking so I also replaced it.

We took it out this morning and couldn't keep it started. It took a little while to get it to turn over, but once it did it just sputtered like it wanted to keep going then died. I really wish I would have started it on the muffs just to get it started and see if the RPM may be too low to keep it going in the river. Not sure where to go from here??
 
Yes I did. Took them out and cleaned them. Top carb, they were pretty good but still cleaned them. The bottom carb they were clogged up bad, along with the intermediate jets. Took all the jets out cleaned them real good and re-installed. When I got done the carbs looked almost new!

In my original post I was having a probem with having to pump the fuel bulb up constantly, but after I did all that KJ recommeded the bulb pumps up hard now. I am definetly lost at what to do next.
 
Take the air box cover off, get a squirt can of pre-mix fuel and squirt some fuel in the carb throats when it's acting up. Let us know what happens.
 
Seeing you have the OIS Ignition System the sensor in that system can also cause the RPN run away and hard starting.
 
Your motor is a crossflow no OIS ignition on that. You also need to be running that on a 50-1 pre-mix before something gets wrecked . Find the procedure for bleeding and testing the VRO pump to determine if it is bad. You also need to do a link and sync to make sure the carbs are closing all the way and operating correctly. You also need to check to make sure the throttle cable is adjusted correctly. I also don't believe you have a vapor separator on that motor.
 
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Is it smoking a lot when it does run? Air leaks in the fuel system are the biggest pain in the A** to locate. Make sure that you didn't pinch any of the gaskets on the carbs when you re-attached them to the throttle bodies.
 
I have been very busy at work so haven't had the time to look at the engine, but got a chance today and something told me to check the compression once again. I have 3 cylinders at 120 and one is at 90 now! Obviously the one cylinder is out of the tolerance specs in my service manual. I tried spraying some fogging oil in the spark plug holes as the manual stated to do (wet test) and all cylinders rose about 5 psi. Another suggestion the service manual stated was to decarbon the pistons by spraying engine tuner in the spark pug holes and let it sit for an hour. Of course it states Johnson/Evinrude Engine Tune. Is there something else that will work instead, that is easier to get ahold of? or should I just remove the head for that piston to check the piston and rings and decarbon that way?
 
So would it hurt to remove the head and use the seafoam to clean any carbon deposits off of the pistons and the head? I can also see if there is any issues with the piston, rings or chamber at the same time.
 
Thanks for the information! I am going to try to remove the head tonight so I can see what it looks like. I am hopeful that there is no serious issues and it may just be carbon related or just the head gasket that needs to be replaced!
 
Every one of these crossflows that i pick up to rebuild / for parts has broken rings.---------First thing some shops do is a compression test.------Pull heads off .-------Sell client a new motor !
 
Once I pull the head off tonight, I will take some pictures and post them here (if I can figure out how to). Depending what I find, I may be asking the question would it be worth fixing/rebuilding?
 
I removed the head and the good news is the bore is smooth and you can still see crosshatching. The bad news is the piston is nicked up, assuming from a broken ring. Can you just replace one piston and rings? Of course I would have to tear it down so I might as well rebuild the powerhead. I believe I can do this myself and I know it would be cheaper than buying another engine, which I really don't have the money for right now. I have pictures attached. Is this worth the headache?
 

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As stated I see that damage all the time.-----------Rebuild it !-----------You will end up with a simple smooth running engine.----------Measure the bores amd pistons before the next step is taken.
 
racerone...Thanks I was hoping you would say that! I do have a question about the head...As you can see in the second pic (picture of the head), do I need to fix the pitting damage or will it be ok? I was thinking I might be able to flatten it a little, but seems to me that it shouldn't make too much difference. Now I just have to convince my other half!!
 
Pick out any loose ring bits.---------Peen the damage as much as you can.---------There are hundreds of these motors running with heads damaged like that.
 
Thanks for all of the help! I am going to get the gasket kit on order and a piston kit as soon as I measure everything. I have a 16 year old that can help me and learn about engines at the same time.
 
robwcarp, make sure the head is not warped and prepared properly before reinstalling. Place head on a very flat glass table top covered with 220 grit wet/dry sandpaper, run head in a figure 8 pattern until entire surface of head shines the same, A large flat file can be used on the block using careful strokes,not to gouge surface of engine block,stuff rags in cylinders to keep out debris, putting each cylinder at tdc. Vacuum when done filing
 
Thanks for the tips on the heads and block. I am probably going to pull all the pistons out and go ahead and replace all of the rings at the same time. Better to be safe than sorry. I sure don't want to do this again in a year!
 
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