MacGregorSailors.com

Hi y'all,
Just getting our 26 X ready for the maiden voyage (after many months) and wanted to know :

-as I was flushing the motor, and it started first time, I did not see any water coming out of the hole.
-is there a delay? Or should the water come out immediately?
-and if it should come out immediately, would this indicate that perhaps the thermostat is stuck?

Would appreciate any feedback...

Many thanks,
Mike

What type of outboard and how are you flushing.
I have a yamaha 60 and it has a flush hose connector on the side but its not supposed to be run with only that connected. Only for fushing without running.

Mine also hate the muffs. Draws very little so I always put it in a garbage can of water and it pees like a race horse

Depends on the motor. My Honda BF50 has so many vents and pickups that it gets tough to block them all. I cut down a plastic 55 gallon drum for when I want to run and flush the motor at home. Honda sells a flush kit, but you still need to tape off the pickups.

Sorry, forgot to mention that the motor is a 2003 Honda 50, and I tried 2 methods:
-one with the muffs
-then I tried connecting the hose pipe directly to the motor and taping the other side and I ran the motor for about 60 seconds and when no water came out, I turned her off.

Mike.

It should be pretty quick for water to flow if its getting a good supply. When is the last time the impeller was changed?

Always worth poking a toothpick up the little tell tale hole from time to time, as a small hole they can pick up crud on occasion. Helps keep the heart rate down

In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice;
In practice, there is.
Restless on the web

On the 2000 honda BF50, there are 3 screens and several slots. even with tape and a good flow, I could never get muffs to work. In my opinion, your best bet would be a cheap garbage can cut to fit. As soon as I dit that, the cooling indicator started to whiz. Good luck.

I have a BF50, around 2000 vintage, and I have no problem with the muffs. I use the round ones, with the single-side water, but there are rectangular ones now that would cover the big side openings better. You still have to tape off the small top inlet, the one with the small hex bolt holding the screen on.

Older BF50's like mine have a small pee tube and nozzle. Very small. So small, Honda made a retrofit kit with a larger barb fitting for the engine, larger flex hose, and larger nozzle.

I haven't done that work yet, but I keep a paper clip on the galley top, so I know where to find it, specifically for clearing the pee hole. If the boat's in the water, I tilt the engine all the way up and remove the engine shroud (engine off, of course), and clear the nozzle with the paper clip. I take the shroud (hood? bonnet?) off so I can see where the nozzle is from inside the boat, but it's much easier while standing on the ground of course.

If the pee stream still won't happen, take the hose off the engine fitting and clear it there. Make sure the hose is clear, too. And the nozzle.

If it won't give a pee stream no matter what, it's time to investigate the impeller. They're only good for a couple or few seasons, by the way, and you DON'T want it coming apart in there. I change mine every other season. I haven't done it on this one yet, only on inboards, and I had the dealer do the work when I got the boat. The impeller was chewed and hanging on by a thread - glad I had it done, and not the first time I've seen an impeller like that.

Oh, and it should pee no matter the state of the engine temperature or thermostat - it's there to show that the pump is working.

I have a bf40 and a bf50 and I use the round, water on one side muffs and they work fine. I just started up my bf40 yesterday for the first time and it fired right up and within a second or two the water was shooting out the back. You should have your motor cover off and watch closely and once the head of the motor is starting to get warmish ( by hand) then shut it down before and damage occurs. I use to have a Suzuki 40 and no water was coming out and it was a sensor that was gone but if I wasn't paying attention then the motor would have been gone also. I have also had to do the propeller once and they are just soft rubber and wear out with use and then they can't pick up enough or quick enough. So to sum up....once you fire up your Honda, within seconds you should have water out the back or 1.) your water system to the motor is working ( ie hose and muffs, tape??? ) 2.) a sensor is gone 3.) the water intake propeller is warn out or gone , or 4.) there is a sensor gone . I think its the way that you are trying to get water into your Honda. Use a garbage can or one of the water intake muffs and make sure that works perfect. Good luck:)

Life is good, she pees like a race horse.
- Change the thermostat (old one was OK)
- Took off the pee tube and cleaned it
- Put the lower part of the engine in a large container of water to eliminate any leakage

All well except, we bought the boat last fall and previous owner does not know if his service man has ever
changed the water impeller, so l need to to purchase a service manual for the BF 50 Honda so l can change it myself
Is Honda best place to get one?

Many thanks for all the help.
Mike.

I bought a Seloc manual like this one

http://www.marineengine.com/manuals/seloc/honda.html

The Seloc manual is very good. It would be nice to have it on PDF.

If you can find a download for the original manual without giving away your credit card number ( they just want to look at it and promise not to bill you ... ) let me know.

Thanks for the info Phil re the workshop manual.
We are in the process of ordering one.
We are leaving for our maiden cruise in 3 days, around the islands off Vancouver Island.

When we get back, we will plan to change the impeller as a precaution.

Happy Sailing,
Mike
P.s. we have sailed in Sask. in our younger days - that's one windy place!!

If the impellor doesn't get water quickly it doesn't take long for it to destroy itself......from experience when we changed motors I didn't realise that the new one (Suzuki) had more than 2 intakes and very quickly the impellor was gone....having then pressured the system with a hose it wasn't apparent that the motor wasn't pumping but just letting the pressurised water pass through and didn't work when put in the water....I NOW ONLY USE A TUB AND LET THE MOTOR SUCK ITS OWN WATER...JUST LIKE ON THE WATER

I also use a tub - actually a rain barrel it is. I remove the propeller first. Just keep testing the water to see how much it warms up, as I do recirculate the pee hole water back into the rain barrel.
Now if I lived in downtown Calgary, You could just leave it out on the street and run the motor.

Mike ,
Before that year they changed the outhole on the block to a larger size (2000 Yr)but did not increase the plastic out hole so things get clouged up at the pee hole.
Take a small #12 wire and gentley push it up and down the pee hole to clear passage.
Also when you put the Retanglar flush unit on also use a cheap open barrel turnbuckle and slide it over the two arms of the wash out and tigheten the eye bolt so th rubber flaps are tight against the motor. Water pressure will expand the rods if you don't do this .Water pressure flows out the rubber baffels instead of engine.
Good thing to change thermostate and gasket.
The Honda Bf50 has very small waterway passages thru out system.
Take a 40 gal. bucket and fill with water and a quart of white vinegar.
Run engine at idel for 5 min. , shut engine down than restart after 1/2 hr, run for 5 min. than do again 1 hr after.
This will help clean out deposits clogging the water ways.
Dave

Mikex wrote:Sorry, forgot to mention that the motor is a 2003 Honda 50, and I tried 2 methods:
-one with the muffs
-then I tried connecting the hose pipe directly to the motor and taping the other side and I ran the motor for about 60 seconds and when no water came out, I turned her off.

Mike.