88 Johnson 30 hard starter

[birdjonman]

J30TECCE my motor has been a hard starter both cold and warm for the past several years. It would cough spit and sputter most starts but would always finally fire up. I had low compression numbers. So I finally put a new head gasket in it and took it to the water. It sounded way different on start up and fired on the first try all afternoon. I think I may have fixed my start up concerns. Here is a pic of the old head gasket. And a pic of the top of the pistons. Looks like I have a lot of carbon build up. Would a decarb help clean up the pistons ?

 

[timguy]

So you didn't clean carbon by hand before installing new head gasket? Then you can try a fuel additive to blast some carbon out. There will be carbon in exhaust chamber too. Just did an 8 horse today. What a mess, exhaust was going through a pencil size hole.
There are some good ways to loosen carbon using seafoam. I have "drowned out" idling motors by spraying seafoam in carbs (use my spray gun). Then let them sit overnight and restart with a good concentration of seafoam in fuel, then go for "boogie cruise". After that, they look pretty sweet. Amsoil Quick Shot is even stronger, but twice the cost.

 

[birdjonman]

No I didn’t clean when I had the head off. Got some sea foam and spray gun. I will do as you suggested. Smoke on the water.

 

[timguy]

Well it's an easy way to do it and you can more than make up for that little pollution by using Amsoil at 100:1 and non oxy fuel. I will never steer you wrong, my friend.