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Crabbinman

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Hello to all, I kind of inherited a Honda BF15A with a home my wife and I recently purchased. It has been sitting a while, but inside, and "ran when parked". I am going to see if I can get her going again in the next couple of months when I have time. My past mechanical adventures have been cars, an old farm tractor, and small engines, and this will be my first foray into an outboard. I will look forward to some guidance after I get goiing. I think the motor is a 1997, the frame # is 15 BAAL-1401545, engine number BAAL 1301833 (this one a little hard to read). Thanks in advance to all. Bruce
 
Many thanks for the reply. I printed the owners manual off of the internet, and bought a Honda service manual. I have been doing some reading and making some notes. I have also watched a couple of utube videos, including one on a water pump/impeller rebuild. It looks like it might be better to get the full water pump kit given the age of the engine and the fact that it has been sitting. Bruce
 
Pull the gearbox and inspect it before buying any parts. Maybe do a pressure test on the gearbox. Just add no more than 8 psi to the empty gearbox and spray with soapy water as you turn the shafts and shift gears. Pull the thermostat and lookfor corrosion. Do a compression test and check spark with a open air spark gap tester. Be sure and replace the washers on the drain and vent plugs. Grease all the zerts until you see fresh grease come out. Alot of stuff to do maybe check valve lash. Nice to see someone being proactive on preventive maintenance it makes for trouble free outings when you keep up with PM.
 
Electric or pull start only?

These are GREAT little outboards and I would feel very lucky if "inherited" one! ;>)

If whoever parked it drained the carburetor it is likely going to fire right up. But if she sat with old fuel in her, you may be in for the carb cleaning chore to get her going.

Below is a link to one of the best tools you can have on hand to help you keep that outboard running great. It is the Honda Marine Carburetion Manual publication TO44. The TO44 is the latest edition. You can buy older versions for, in some cases, much less money but I can only vouch for TO44.

https://m.ebay.com/itm/HONDA-MARINE...663425?hash=item2f0a15cb81:g:iaoAAOSwa3ZZneqT


There are also some good videos on you tube about cleaning Honda carburetors
but I prefer the manual for all of the diagrams, color flow graphs and insight on just how these little carbs work.

I also recommend the Helm Publications official shop manual for your model. Sealoc and Clymer manuals are available but for just a few dollars more you can have the far superior "real deal".

Congratulations on aquiring one of the best twin outboards ever made and welcome aboard the Forum!
 
Correction: the carb manual reference is TMO44, not TO44....

Good luck and keep us all up to date.
 
Thanks for all the replies. I am blessed to be on vacation this week, going to the Daytona 500 today. I saw Richard Petty at the restaurant we ate dinner at last night, what a nice guy. I am hoping to go down to visit the Honda next weekend, I am looking forward to some (hopefully successful) tinkering. Bruce
 
Go Clint Bowyer!

Although it looks like it may turn out to be the Roger Penske show with the Kez and Logano Fords being so strong during speedweeks.

I only hope it's half as exciting as the Xfinity race yesterday! Uh-oh!
I'm GEEKIN' OUT!

Have a GREAT DAY!
 
I will say that the races on Saturday and Sunday were the best in a good while. As usual, there was Chamber of Commerce weather!

The manual I bought is the Honda manual. I looked online for the Helm and did not quickly find a source. Is it worth the hunt as opposed to the factory manual?

The engine is manual, not electric start. I like simplicity, so one less thing to break makes me happy.

Thanks for the link to the carb manual. I also saw on ebay a rebuilding service.

I am also thinking about a mobile (with wheels) type stand for the engine. It is on a stationary stand attached to a workbench in a location I would like to reclaim. Any thoughts on a sturdy, easy to maneuver stand for this engine?

I am going to try to figure out how to post a picture so everyone can see what "before" looks like.

Thanks to all, Bruce
 
Depending on how close or how far you live to a large metro area, I have had great luck buying wheeled outboard stands on Craigslist.

However, I had to buy a heavy duty one and got that new from an online store called Discount Ramps. I like to buy from them.

Wal-Mart currently has a four wheel model for $49.99 but if you want to run the outboard in a test tank (preferred method) the two wheel, tilt back to travel type is easier to work around.
But, I'm actually tempted to buy that Wal Mart one myself and build a test tank I can slip over the cross bar.

You can't beat that price for a stable dolly AND it comes with dually plastic wheels instead of cheap pneumatic tires that constantly go flat. I had to take those off and shelled out $50 for solid, never flat ones.

If you have the Honda manual, it was probably printed by Helm so I think you're good there.

Good luck.
 
Thanks for the reply. I live in the DC area, so I will watch craigslist. The engine is in Southern Maryland down near Point Lookout if you know where that is.

I looked at the four wheeled Walmart one. They also have a two wheeled one for $49.

Many years ago, a friend had an Evinrude 6 which we ran on a 10' jon boat in a local lake. A little smoky and noisy, but ran great! It was on a two wheeled stand so I understand the test tank (trash can for us back then) issue.

In a quick look, for example on the Discount Ramps site, the 15 hp stands say 85 lb. capacity. My owner's manual says engine weight is 95.9 lbs. Tippy would not be good, so I am thinking about the next size up so there is room for error. The two wheeled one at Walmart is rated for 130 lb.

I am not in a big hurry, so I can watch craigslist as the weather turns. If time becomes important, the Walmart one looks like a good backup plan.

Thanks for the reply, Bruce
 
Well my motor has been lonely as we have had a busy couple of months. Also the March weather was like a second February, cold, windy and some snow.

We also suffered a big fire at our old house (where our kids grew up and which we still own), which has been a big distraction. Our son and his wife were living there as they had sold their house and they were waiting on closing on their new one. Luckily they were out of town. They lost one cat (the other one miraculously lived) and basically all their worldly belongings, but we are all safe. It could have been much worse if they had been home. The insurance is covering everything, but it has been a major distraction.

Anyway, I am down at the new place this weekend and looked at the motor. It got me inspired to go ahead and get a stand. I ended up buying the f130 from Discount Ramps. I like that is has ample capacity, the folding handle, and the shelf for the gas tank. It looks like I can get a can of water under it for testing when the time comes. It is backordered, but should arrive about the time I am ready to get back into gear.

Thanks to all, Bruce
 
Sorry to hear about your trouble Bruce, but having your family safe and free from trauma other than their poor kitty is a gift from God.

I hope you new stand serves you well after you get it.

Wishing you well,
JimmyD.
 
Hello and Happy New Year to all!

Well, after a busy and distracted 2018, I am looking forward to working on my inherited motor in 2019.

I assembled the stand I bought from Discount Ramps, it was not too bad of a job. My son was down this weekend and helped me get the motor on the stand. I went this am to move it from the shed it was in to my shop. Let's just say it did not roll well with the motor on the stand and no air in the tires. :rolleyes: Whoopsy. Anyway after correcting that operator error with a 12V compressor, I rolled her into my shop.

I took a picture, which I will try to figure out how to post.

I feed a compression check coming on to kick off trying to bring her back to life.

Bruce
 
Hello,

Time for an update after a busy and crazy 2019.

I am adding pictures of the engine so you can see what I am working with. If you see anything alarming, let me know!

I really need to get going on this over the winter. I got a little 16' aluminum v hull to buzz around the creek in. It has a Mariner (Tohatsu) 9.9 4 stroke, but the Honda will give it a little more zoom.

Happy Holidays and thanks to all, Bruce
 

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Well....it certainly looks like everything is is there and in place.
The only thing I might be wary of is that you want to use it on a 16' aluminum boat.
It's a long shaft outboard, probably meant for a 20' + sailboat, and a 16' alu hull just doesn't provide enough height to get it mounted properly.
That a you say you want to operate in a creek. I'm thinking you will probably run into some "clearance" issues with debris or the bottom from time to time unless you keep it extremely trimmed in the up direction.
You might build a transom height extension to get the prop position correct but doing that will surely interfere with how easy the outboard is to operate.

Another option is to get her going and sell or trade for the (short shaft) outboard that fits a 16' aluminum run about.

Either way, most problems seem to get dealt with by clever people. Regardless of how you go about it, I wish you the best of luck!
 
Hi JimmyD,

Thanks for the reply.

The tin boat has a 20" transom, so I am good on that. Picture of boat (with power washer) and 9.9 Mariner 4 stroke attached.

Not sure where you live, but I get that "creek" brings up different ideas.

I am on St. Jerome's Creek, near Point Lookout in Southern Maryland. About a mile from my dock there is an inlet that goes directly into the main Chesapeake Bay. Picture of the dock (during some coastal flooding) and the creek attached. To give you a sense of it, also attached is a picture of one of my neighbors landing his sea plane in the creek off of my dock!

I figure if I can get the Honda running, I have lots of options. To sell it or the Mariner, depending on how they are running and fit the boat, or sell both and buy another engine. Surprisingly, the boat is rated up to 40hp! That seems a bit much to me, but I could see zipping around with a 20 or25. Just going to stay in the creek and fish and crab, or run out to the inlet where there is a beautiful beach.

Bruce
 

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Hi Bruce.
Well I could be wrong about how that Honda will match up to that boat but I'm ABSOLUTELY wrong about difficulty operating them in your "creek" ;>)

Yes, creek can mean many things I suppose. But, Im originally from Texas and have lived in many other places. I now reside in Southern California where creeks are usually known as arroyos....meaning "dry wash" in Spanish.

In ALL those places I've known a creek as a stream you could usually spit across to the other side. But YOUR CREEK?? No way man!

Or as the CROCODILE DUNDEE would say: "Now THAT'S a creek!"

Totally jealous! What an Idyllic looking place!

Yes! I hope you enjoy your found outboard on your l "little" creek!
 
Here is my go to checklist when working on a new to you/me motor:

- Replace all filters
- Replace all external fuel lines and primer bulbs
- Inspect and replace internal fuel lines (if it was stored with ethanol, your saving headaches in the long run and will have peace of mind.)
- Inspect and replace timing belt
- Remove water inlet cover, replace thermostat and inlet cover gasket
- Check the valve lash, adjust within spec (great tutorial video from Dangar Marine on youtube)
- Inspect and replace spark plugs if necessary and add dielectric grease
- REPLACE impeller AND HOUSING - it is cheap
- Replace oil + oil filter
- Replace lower unit oil
- Grease all zerts
- Go through the electrical connections and spray electrical cleaner and connectivity spray
- Pull Carbs, clean, replace gaskets and needed parts
- clean battery connections and cables
 
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