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1994 Johnson 120 TLERC Help!!!

J

jstatham

New member
I bought a 1994 Johnson J120TLER off craigslist. To make a long story short it had been sitting a while and had a bad crankshaft bearing which had put a hole in the front of the crankcase near the carbs. I got all that repaired and got the needed parts and as of Saturday it is still running bad. I have 2 plugs that are wet and 2 that are dry. After I ran it Saturday I took off the breather cover and there was a white milky substance in the front of the carbs. I know it is not water because I was using a brand new gas on a temporary can and the carbs were just cleaned. I also have a problem with the top left carb doing a slight snake spit out of the idle air orfice. I have tried swapping the carbs to different cylinders but no matter what whatever carb is located on the top left it snake spits.

Here is a list of everything that has been done.
1. Compression 120 all cylinders
2. Rebuilt all 4 carbs
3. Replaced Fuel Lines/Filter
4. New Plugs
5, New waterpump impeller and housing
6. Fuel Primer rebuilt
7. New Thermostats
8. Removed VRO fuel pump and replaced with new non vro pump.
9. New lower Crankshaft Bearing and seal and all parts that go along with that procedure.


SO this is where I am at. I bought a spark tester and I am going to retest the spark again this week but was very strong last time I tested. I believe I either have some type of a vacuum problem or I am out of time or I have a bad power pack or???? This motor is about to drive me nuts. Any help or suggestions with be greatly appreciated.

Here is my previous threads from other sites I was looking for help there are pictures and video of the motor running befor the crankshaft bearing replacement. It is basically running the same as before minus all the grinding noises.

http://www.screamandfly.com/showthr...ement-project-J120TLER&highlight=1994+johnson


http://www.screamandfly.com/showthr...-Please-help-Frustrated!&highlight=frustrated


http://www.thehulltruth.com/boating...-not-stay-running-please-help-frustrated.html


http://forums.iboats.com/forum/engi...stion-on-fuel-primer-solenoid-and-thermostats
 
Fuel spitting back via a idle "air bleed" jet indicates that a particular cylinder is running lean, normally cured by installing a idle air bleed jet with a smaller ID... unless a problem exists with the crankcase, cylinder, piston, itself.

The only liquids that exist with the engine is Fuel, Oil, Grease, & Water, the only one of which that will produce a "milky substance" is water. You will need to find out where that water is coming from.
 
joereeves said:
Fuel spitting back via a idle "air bleed" jet indicates that a particular cylinder is running lean, normally cured by installing a idle air bleed jet with a smaller ID... unless a problem exists with the crankcase, cylinder, piston, itself.

The only liquids that exist with the engine is Fuel, Oil, Grease, & Water, the only one of which that will produce a "milky substance" is water. You will need to find out where that water is coming from.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply. I used the exact jets that came off the carb before the clean and they are in the right place. It only happens on that one cyclinder no matter which carb is in that location. How can I tell if I have a problem within the crankcase. I just had it apart and it all looked good and the compression is 120 across the board.
 
Determining that a idle air bleed jet is at fault is simply a matter ofclosing off that jet slightly which enriches the mixture.

However, if that area is the area that the milky mixture (water) is flowing from, that flow should be your first concern. It could be due to a slight crack within the crankcase.

I assume that it was a connecting rod bearing that let loose and caused the hole in the crankcase? If so, what cylinder? Also, if so... this is the area I'd be looking for a crack within the crankcase.

Remove the intake manifold and lower unit... attach a garden hose to the copper water tube... observe closely, looking for water to enter the interior of the crankcase.
 
joereeves said:
Determining that a idle air bleed jet is at fault is simply a matter ofclosing off that jet slightly which enriches the mixture.

However, if that area is the area that the milky mixture (water) is flowing from, that flow should be your first concern. It could be due to a slight crack within the crankcase.

I assume that it was a connecting rod bearing that let loose and caused the hole in the crankcase? If so, what cylinder? Also, if so... this is the area I'd be looking for a crack within the crankcase.

Remove the intake manifold and lower unit... attach a garden hose to the copper water tube... observe closely, looking for water to enter the interior of the crankcase.
Click to expand...

All that I saw wrong when I had it apart was the lower bearing. I sent you a few emails with pics and youtube video links.
 
Did you fix hole in crankcase cover? A leaking reed block gasket or splits in rubber coating in reed bock will cause it to spit back thru idle jet. The white milkly residue is normal in throat of carbs in a humid location or after high speed running due to condensation
 
faztbullet said:
Did you fix hole in crankcase cover? A leaking reed block gasket or splits in rubber coating in reed bock will cause it to spit back thru idle jet. The white milkly residue is normal in throat of carbs in a humid location or after high speed running due to condensation
Click to expand...

I did fix the hole. I had a buddy weld it up. I posted some video of the engine on you tube. Check out the video and the others on my channel. I do live in Georgia where it is humid for sure and was humid when I ran it on Saturday.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agnZwo-yZXo
 
Yeah, I say that bottom main bearing has seen better days. I've never seen one fail like that and am trying to think of just what would cause it to fail so bad. Normally that bearing would be saturated with lubricant even if all others were lacking.

Has there been any traces of either plain clear water or the milky substance on any of the spark plugs?

The engine doesn't run long enough for one to be able to diagnose the problem. Does pumping the fuel primer bulb (acting as a manual fuel pump) result in having the engine run longer?
 
joereeves said:
Yeah, I say that bottom main bearing has seen better days. I've never seen one fail like that and am trying to think of just what would cause it to fail so bad. Normally that bearing would be saturated with lubricant even if all others were lacking.

Has there been any traces of either plain clear water or the milky substance on any of the spark plugs?

The engine doesn't run long enough for one to be able to diagnose the problem. Does pumping the fuel primer bulb (acting as a manual fuel pump) result in having the engine run longer?
Click to expand...
I believe the engine setup a long time and the bearing completely rusted and when we tried to get it going it grinded itself into pieces. I did notice when it was running the flywheel would hop and you would hear grinding noises. Anyway the only damage I really saw was in the lower bearing area the rest of the block looked perfectly fine. I am going to take another video this week or weekend at the latest so you can hear and see exactly what it is doing now. I tried to add pictures to this post but for some reason it wont work. Also pumping the fuel bulb does not help. When the motor dies it is completed tight. I even completely removed the brand new fuel pump and used the bulb to keep the carbs full and got the same results. Thanks again everyone for all your help and input and let me know if you have anymore questions and things I should do or anything you would like to see. Joe. I will email you pictures of the spark plugs but to answer your questions no. The white milky substance is in the front of the carbs where the breather would sit. I do see how it would be physically possible for water to end up there unless it is condensation like faztbullet said.
 
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