1984 470 cold starting

[AQUA222]

So the " Morgan Joy" is afloat for the first time since 2004 and it's been an interesting first few trips.  My question is why do I have to rev the engine so high when I cold start it. On an 80 degree day the thing fires right up no problems but when it's cold, 40 degrees and less, it stumbles rocks like crazy and stalls about 10 times before I can smooth out the throttle and let it idle around 700rpm. I've read that these motor are notorious for distorting the motor mounts from cold start rocking. Black fish season and cod fish are keeping me from winterizing it and I was hoping she would be happier in the cold. Any suggestions? I have had the choke replaced and the carb cleaned twice, once professionally and once myself, my water separator is working fuel pump pumps plugs and ignition working as they are should.

[Aswaff400]

still have points or electronic ignition?

[AQUA222]

Points, have the pertronix but am afraid to install because of timing and all. Good to here from you Aaron I was hoping you would reply.

[Aswaff400]

install the electronic ignition, night and day difference and way crisper throttle response and way smoother idle. my dads searay which we havent ran in over 6 months. fires right up every time. what we do when she hasnt been ran in a while or if its cold is pull the coil wire and crank over a few times to make sure oil and fuel is flowing,, plug it back in, and bump the key and she lights right off and stays running... we do let it idle for a minute or 2 at 800 rpm to build some temp before we take off... when we had points ignition we'd fight to get her to stay running even on warm days. and keep in mind, we have 2 of these in the searay, along with one on a stand in the garage, and one in a crate at my work. we have to pull the stbd motor, has 2 stuck valves from a half-assed rebuild shop...

[AQUA222]

Thanks A. I will, just nervous about the resistance / non resistance coil, the installation instructions confuse me a little and on some forums they say timing was hard to set others say they didn't have to touch it.  While we are on the topic though my temp gauge never reads higher than 130. Seems low to me. Everything else seems to be ok, don't know if you remember but this was a low hour 470 I got cheap out of a galaxy and popped it the 222ff . She goes good top speed wot 35 cruises nicely at 22-26. I'm so happy, just still don't trust it for the long off shore trips yet.

[Aswaff400]

my dad didnt have any trouble timing the motors. i forget which kit he used... ours usually runs 160 degrees depending on how hard we run her

[AQUA222]

1146a is the kit I bought. My motor never runs past 130. If it's not a problem I will just run it. Just want to make sure it's cooling properly because I know it can be an issue with the 470.

[GoneFission]

Yes, the electronic ignition will really help.  Do yourself a favor and replace the coil and plug wires at the same time.  Not much money there, but the new ignition system will be even better with upgraded wires and coil.  Graphite core plug wires break down over time, so go with spiral wound wires that have much less resistance - here are some suggestions - Summit has good prices and delivers quickly:

Wires:  http://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-g813/overview
Coil:    http://www.summitracing.com/parts/pfs-30200/overview

Good luck - see ya on the water!