New member with 1988 AS Osprey 22-2 CC

[AtlantaSaltwater]

Ok, new to the forum. Just became the new owner of a 1988 Aquasport Osprey 22-2 cc with a 1985 Mercury BlackMax 200 Hp. Oil injection disconnected. Premix now.  Bought in Miami. Being my only my second boat, first one a 16' Ouchita 50hp, this will be used quite a bit more as friends and I all have saltwater fever and go several times a year now.

Hull in in good shape. Could use new paint. WIll eventually replace transom and deck, maybe add transom bracket, but that will be next year.

When I bought the boat, I stayed with a friend on Boca Raton, and took her out several times. I absolutely love how she handles seas. She ran great but progressively got worse each time. Eventually I could not keep her running at idle. Makes it very difficult to trailer or dock. SO, got her back home to Atlanta, started looking at the motor and here is what i have found. Lazy Idiots worked on it! I know. Shocker.

BUT, just before leaving for Atlanta, realized that the leaf springs and bearings were all bad on the trailer. So, had to stay in Boca a few more days. WIfe not happy about it, being that she was home in Atlanta, but secretly I was happy to stay a few more days. Trailer needs a little more work to seat this boat properly, but not too bad.

Compression decent. 130-120 all six.
water leaking out of Therm housing(one bolt missing) thought head of bolt was broken off, so prepared to back a broken bolt out. Once I cleaned off all of the silicon they used, amazing, there was just no bolt nor any thermostats. Sad.

Stator wires (Yellow) disconnected. Rectifier removed. Looks like overheated due to slightly melted insulation on surrounding wires. So, of course, no tach.

Carbs and floats are good. Replaced fuel pump, lines, and bulb. Also, decided to check reeds. As suspected, most were wide open. So, after reading, learning, thinking, decided to go with Carlson reeds. Chris is amazing to speak with. Walking encyclopedia. Lapped the reed blocks, installed the reed valves, and took her out. Lost 10-15 knots. hmmmm.

SO, now idle issue must be electrical. Anyway, with the age of the motor, and the laziness I have already seen, trather than test individual components, replace as needed, and hope another does not go out while at sea, I am going to replace ALL of the electricals. Stator, trigger, coils and wires, switchboxes, rectifier(found better one at Fry's), Voltage regs, Starter, Solenoid, key switch, and any wiring not tinned. If anyone has any of these new for a decent price let me know. I have found all of them, but can always use saving a little.

So, finally, my question. As I do replace all of the electrical components next week, when I replace the stator, should I continue using the original stator or can they be upgraded to higher amp stator? I still have yet to take it out, as I want to have all parts on hand first before starting. Looks like there are three for my motor. 398-5454A7   , 398-5454A32   ,  398-5454A35.  The difference between the first one and the next two are a voltage regulator which I do have. SO, odds are I am good with one of the second two. But, just in case laziness was used in this area as well, can stators be upgraded to larger ones? Can't find anything online addressing this. Currently there are two DC 24 group batteries on a perco switch, but will have three more soon. Switch the current ones to starting batts, other three deep cycles for trolling motor as I use this for fresh water while stuck home. Will have to be a 36v 110# TM w/ ipilot. Right now has gps/fishfinder, but will have vhf, stereo, lights, bilge pump, etc.

Thanks and will share more later as I am long winded enough this post.

[seabob4]

Well that's a hell of an intro!  Welcome aboard, you'll find us a very friendly, as well as very helpful crowd.

Boat's wiring?  Replace it all.  I do this for a living, so I buy a lot of wire.  Check Greg's Marine Wire (where I get all mine), http://gregsmarinewiresupply.com/Zen/, and I get all my terminals, bus bars, batt switch, fuse blocks from genuinedealz, http://shop.genuinedealz.com/Marine%20E ... %20Supply/

Have fun!!

[pigbike]

Welcome to the board.  I see you plan on a lot of engine upgrades to a 1985 engine. I would make sure everything else is in good order before dumping that much cash into a older engine. If it is in good shape then replacing a bunch of 27 year old parts might be a good idea as they can go out anytime.

[AtlantaSaltwater]

Thanks for the welcome. As far as the motor, the shop I use would be about $2500-$3000. But, I have already sourced all the parts I need for $1k. With the compression and lower unit in great shape, this should be the last things needed. Chris Carson down at Chris Carson Marine spent about two hours on the phone with me saying he wouldn't dump that motor at all. So, fix her up, use it for a year or so, then sell it and repower with a 225 EFI. Of course, knowing how I am, I will be doing other things to the boat itself as well. Still looking through the rebuilds a number of the members here have done to get ideas. Storage, CC, bait tank, and seating.

[GoneFission]

Welcome Atlanta Saltwater!  Here are a couple things to consider:

So, finally, my question. As I do replace all of the electrical components next week, when I replace the stator, should I continue using the original stator or can they be upgraded to higher amp stator?
Answer:  The stator, flywheel, and crank are matched for most Mercury V-6 models.  The 40 amp stator is a unique model and you can't easily upgrade the lower output units.  Your best bet is to replace like for like, but you will only get 9 amps max output.  

I still have yet to take it out, as I want to have all parts on hand first before starting. Looks like there are three for my motor. 398-5454A7 , 398-5454A32 , 398-5454A35. The difference between the first one and the next two are a voltage regulator which I do have.
Answer:  These are the same stator - the "A" designation is the revision number of the part.  Yes, Mercury has updated/revised stators about 36 times!  The stator has been a consistent weak point on Mecury Thunderbolt ignition systems.  If you can, go with the latest you can get (A35 or A36).  Be careful removing the flywheel - you should use a special tool to take it off - and then it may take a day or so of soaking the crank/stator meeting point with PB blaster before it finally comes loose.  It is not unusual that the flywheel is seized to the crankshaft - be patient with it!   Also be careful with the screws that hold the stator down - it's easy to strip the threads in the aluminum plate under the stator.  Remember to carefullly index the flywheel key to the crankshaft when you reinstall the flywheel or timing will be off.  

You may have gotten a bridge rectifier at Frys - but the connectors will be different, so you will have to put new terminals on the connections (stator, tach, switchbox leads) to make it work.  The rectifier is not very expensive, so you may want to go with the Mercury part just to make installation easier.  

The Mercury voltage regulator is very expensive (over $200), but you don't need to use it for the low output 398-5454 (9 amp) stator - you would need it with the 12 amp or higher stator.  You probably don't have a regulator on your motor if the 398-5454 stator is orginal equipment.  I've got a VR111 solid state regulator I've been wanting to install on my motor to see how it works - the VR111 was used on millions of GM and AMC vehicles - it will require minor rewiring (2 wires), but only costs 10% of the Mercury part ($20 versus $200).  Again, you won't need it with the 9 amp stator.  

Here's a deal I ran across on eBay - if it fits your model, it's a deal - contact the seller and see what serial numbers it might fit:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/MERCURY-OUTBOAR ... 3a&vxp=mtr  

Flywheel puller:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mercury-Mariner ... 0d&vxp=mtr  

Hope this helps - good luck!!

[AtlantaSaltwater]

Well, I replaced it all. Stator, trigger, coils, switchboxes, plugs, rectifier(Fry's), starter, wiring, rebuilt carbs and back to factory spec jets and correctly adjusted floats. She cranked right up. Was blowing alot of fuel and oil. Removed the vent jets, found a clogged bleed valve port on #6 and cleaned out. Better.

SO, here is where I am at.

1. Still a lot of smoke at idle. More than usual. I realize these beasts don't like to idle, but this is rough. At cruise and WOT she purrs. Ok, roars. But at idle the plugs are very wet. Especially 5 and 6. I will be switching to a synthetic blend for premix. We will see. But would like opinions on increasing the idle jet sizes. Stock .046 maybe .048 or .049?

2. While doing the timing saw the red (+) wire from rectifier start smoking after noticing tach not working. First though was loose female connectors. Wobbled a bit on the rectifier blades. So, fixed that and they are tight. As well as cleaned and replaced all bad wires at the batteries. 2 bank 12v with perco switch. All connections are spotless now. Then took it out yesterday and completely melted the rectifier. grrrrr.  

Gonefission - You mentioned a VR for anything higher than the 9 amp stator. Would you think that would be my problem? Here is the stator I purchased. CDI 174-5456-16. Not sure I even have anywhere to mount a VR. Will have to take a look.

3. Seems to still be using quite a bit of fuel. Needle seems to move more from trolling than it does at cruising. But I will need to take her out more to be sure.

[slvrlng]

Do you have a OEM manual? Where were you running? I have a friend near me that is really good on Mercs if you can't figure it out.

[AtlantaSaltwater]

Have the online Seloc manual. I am over in Woodstock, so Lawrenceville would be a haul. I have a very good mechanic near me, so that is appreciated but not necessary. Really trying to figure this out on my own. Part of my "education" although it seems I will never graduate. I was on Lanier yesterday being skunked by stripers.

[fitz73222]

Look for a bad fuel pump diaphragm or sticking check valve. If I recall your pulse line is connected at or near #5 or 6 in the intake plenum. What can happen is if the diaphragm is cracked and leaking it will dump fuel via the pulse line on the upward piston motion and try to flood those cylinders. Quite common in the old days. The fuel pumps were very reliable and could be original and just needs to be rebuilt for $20. I would not recommend altering idle air or vent jets sizes and should only be done for high altitude conditions.

Fitz

[GoneFission]

The stator you installed is a 16 amp stator and your original was 9 amps.  So you will need a voltage regulator and a 16 amp rectifier.  The Mercury voltage regulator is a weird setup - yellow and red wires go from the rectifier to the voltage regulator (VR).  The Mercury VR controls voltage by grounding voltage above 16 volts - the other positive red lead on the rectifier goes straight to the positive side of the starter solenoid - not through the VR.  The VR is part number 88825A7 and is very expensive.   :(   The VR mounts on the top/rear of the engine with the red and yellow wires running down to the rectifier.  The wiring harness for the VR is part number 13397A1, but it's just two wires, so you really don't need the harness - you can just run 2 wires.  

You mentioned the red wire from the rectifier was smoking - that indicates a short!   :x   Check the red wire from the rectifier to the starter solenoid carefully and make sure the insulation is not damaged and it's not shorting to the block or some other surface.  You will need to replace this wire anyway with the 16 amp stator...  It's best to use 14 gauge wire with the 16 amp stator.    

An option would be to install an automotive solid state voltage regulator between the rectifier and the starter solenoid.  This SHOULD work, but I am yet to try it.  I am actually planning this mod next week on my motor as part of my alternator upgrade using a VR111 voltage regulator used by GM.  For the VR111, you would connect the red wire from the + terminal on the rectifier to the input on the VR111 and connect a new red wire from the output of the VR111 to the positive terminal on the starter solenoid.  The VR111 needs a solid ground to the engine - the bolt through the VR111 to the block should do it, but run a black lead from the ground tab on the VR111 to the common ground near the rectifier anyway to ensure a solid ground.  This setup should work and would be very reliable and cheap - you can get VR111s on eBay for under $10:   http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trksid= ... &_from=R40  

I agree with Fitz on the jets - keep the ones you've got.  The rich condition is not from the jets - something else is causing it - troubleshoot as he instructed and you will likely find the fuel-related problem.      

Good luck!

[AtlantaSaltwater]

First, thanks for all of the input. I do appreciate it. I did check all the recirc valves and replaced fuel pump. Wonder if the exhaust plate could have an effect on running slightly rich. Read something about it on another forum and can no longer find it.  I will double check the bleeds lines and make sure they are going where they are supposed to.

Let me know how the VR goes. I may be interested in that solution as well.

[AtlantaSaltwater]

Actually, after looking a little more it looks like nearly any Closed VR will work as long as it is a two blade VR.  What are your thoughts?

[wingtime]

Chris Carson is the bomb and he really knows his stuff.  He rebuilt a power head of mine once.  He had a sweet F-350 set up with a small crane in the back.  Him and his wife came up...  he popped off the power head in what seemed like minutes and dropped it into the back of his truck.  The back of his truck was loaded with power heads.  He drove around the state every two weeks pulling bad ones and installing rebuilt ones.  A few weeks later he came back with my rebuilt power head.  Plopped it on, got her running and tuned up in now time while his wife gave me the low down on break in warranty and such.  I loved my Merc 200 it was a 90's model with the idle box removed so she was temper mental on idle but buy did she like to scream!