REED Question 1995 Intruder 150

[speedaholic]

I picked up a Stratos 278 the other day. Its got a 1995 Evinrude 150 Intruder. Its only got 117 hours since new and compression is between 108 and 112 on all 6 cylinders. Motor has not been run since 2014. It sat unused all of 2015. I pulled the airbox off and ran the motor on the hose. All things considered it sounded great. The lower carb on the starboard side is "spitting" a bit. I understand its most likely a reed. The question would be if I spray the heck out of it with carb cleaner do you think it might help? Could it just be buggered up and needs some cleaning or is it time to consider installing reeds? I plan on installing 6 carb kits anyway. Thanks in advance for any help......Ray

[speedaholic]

Is it possible I've stumped the experts???? Although I have been doing this a bit, I know little about OMC and even less about reed valves. I just need to know if I can clean them without removing them? If it can be cleaned then do I spray carb cleaner with it running on the hose? Will that hurt a cylinder? Is there something better than over the counter carb cleaner? Am I better off spraying the heck out of it while stopped with the plugs out? I'm just looking for a basic direction to go in.

[outboards4life]

cleaning it probably won't do much. I would give the carbs a good cleaning and just run it.

I've seen the carbs spitting happen quite a few times with the OMC plastic carbs and it doesn't effect it much if at all.

[bobthebuilder]

If you are ordering carb kits anyway go ahead and pull the reeds out and see everything it needs and get it all at one time.. Spraying carb cleaner in it will not help it or I seriously doubt it will. Sometimes reeds do not close well and you can tweak them around some very slightly and make them close.. Probably metal reeds? And CCM reeds work well. I am running them in a couple motors of mine.. Another thing you will find is the main jets in those plastic carbs do not stay tight. Do not tighten them much as it can damage the threads but gently snug them at least once a year.. I have done many carb jobs on those engines from sitting up too long and a few blown motors I have rebuilt had main jets just laying in the bowl.. they will sometimes just fall out over time.

[speedaholic]

Is there any way of knowing if I need to rebuild the carbs? The engine started up pretty easy and seems to run great on the hose. It will idle all day at 800 rpm's. throttle response seems to be "normal". I would love to not mess with the carbs. I only figured it is probably worth it based on the fact it sat for 18 months.

[speedaholic]

And meant to say...Thanks for the reply! Ray

[outboards4life]

Is there any way of knowing if I need to rebuild the carbs? The engine started up pretty easy and seems to run great on the hose. It will idle all day at 800 rpm's. throttle response seems to be "normal". I would love to not mess with the carbs. I only figured it is probably worth it based on the fact it sat for 18 months.

If the carbs were drained or properly stored I wouldn't have an issue running it. My buddies boat sat for 5 years before another friend bought it. But before it sat we winterized the motor and drained all the carbs. That motor has been running perfect for 3 years now. He runs the **** out of it every weekend.

[EMDSAPMGR]

A little different issue, but may pertain to your engine. My 1990 70 hp 3-cylinder engine spits fuel out of the top carb. A drop or two every few rpm's. My OMC master tech tells me this is "normal". Evidently the engine is designed to pump fuel, oil mix through the intake manifold so that this lube gets distributed to the crank. The final opening is just inside the intake manifold for the top carb. It is supposed to spray this drop or two back towards the airbox cover. Any excess will get recovered through the airbox drain, and recirculated back into the lower cyl. Have no idea if this also applies to your engine, but if you get hold of a master tech, ask if this applies to your engine. I'd be inclined to run it the way it is.