Take off /chug

my boat has been running good but a few weeks ago it was starting to die at idle or just in gear.thought i had pinned down the problem and blamed a bad connection to the battery.cotinued to run fine until today when the same thing occured .so i replaced the battery and both cables.upon restart and test run it was still wanting to cut out. so i adjusted the idle and it seemed to stay running better. but at slolom TAKE OFF itwould hesitate and really chug or just die . cannot drop the hammer as i used to. a veteran sn owner diagnosis was the fuel pump and said nothing i do to the carb will help until the fuel pump is replaced. my boat is a 87 sn 2001 351 ford. Does that sound correct., and will it be hard to find said fuel pump ? it looks like the original pump .

old i guess bought the boat last summer they looked clean and roter looked clean .swiped them with a nail file gentle like a couple times before season ???? is that a no no . how does one adjust points?? i have been using my boat 2 3 times a week since late may .i do have to pump the throttle a tad to start it. but its been running like a champ until this last hiccup????

I was having the exact symptoms - Gap on the Points had closed up. Re-adjusted to correct gap and it runs like a sewing machine.

well .... i did the points first time went pretty smooth and helped with starting the boat. still falls on its face at hole shot ... i was told by a pro its my accelerator pump...so tomorrow thats my project .

the long one under the deck was done start of season.... it was in bad shape and was stinky with lots of debri inside. dizzy advance ??? not sure what that is (advance) I checked the screen at the inlet to the carb . no blockage. i don t have a see through in line filter after the pump its all metal to the carb.

picture of dizzy weights

Did you replace anything other than the points? The condenser, cap and rotor should be replaced also. I've chased my tail more than once by one or more of these being an issue and a standard tune up should include all of them.

Also wouldn't hurt to remove and clean up the advance weights/springs as stated. If they're sticky or rusted a little bit, they can definitely affect your advance curve. They shoud move to full advance and back again nice and smooth without any rough or tight spots.

I have a hard time believing that your accelerator pump all of sudden is out of adjustment. If you just had the carb rebuilt, OK, definitely worth checking.

You did time it after you replaced the points right? How many degrees BTDC do you have it set for?

Jllogan wrote: however if he is having issues at an idle it woundlnt have anything to do with the advance. have you checked the timing? Maybe the bolt that holds it down is loose and it slipped a little. Try and twist on the dizzy with your hand and see if it moves. This has recently happened to mine and sounds exactly like how mine acts when it slips.

I agree ... sticky advance would not affect it at idle.

I brought it up because of his hole shot statement...

river ratt wrote: well .... i did the points first time went pretty smooth and helped with starting the boat. still falls on its face at hole shot ... i was told by a pro its my accelerator pump...so tomorrow thats my project .

Andrew,
reading back, you asked how to adjust points. I assume you have not checked timing either? Like Justin and a few others have said, you need to do a complete tuneup. Get the basics out of the way.

THEN if you still have problems move onto some of the other suggestions.

Andy, my money is on one of those damn master craft guys screwing with our boats when everyone leaves!

I agree with the timing comments, hopefully it's running better as we speak.

Now you can do a little more fine tuning knowing that everything is new and setup properly.

Take it out and get it warmed up. Put it in gear and idling. Now you can adjust the idle mixture screws on each side of the metering block right next to the primary float bowl. Turn in each screw and as it bottoms out it'll start sputtering and want to die. If you turn it back back out quick it should stay running. Keep backing it out until you get the fastest idle. Do that same thing for the other side then. You may have to do each side a couple times.
If you have a vacuum gauge you can use that to adjust to the highest vacuum but I still prefer to just go by the fastest idle. It's easier to hear and see on the tach. By the time you're done, each screw should be about 1-1.5 turns out from being bottomed out. You may have to adjust the idle speed screw on the primry throttle plate after that to your prefered idle speed.

As long as you do this whole process in gear and idling, I'll bet it clears up your bog.

Jeff,
You say it will idle after it warms up but not before. Have you checked the choke setting. Dead cold it should be almost closed.

Jeff, I agree with the above two recommendations.

I will add, to also check that you are getting a good squirt from your accelerator pump. You said it "falls on it's face" when taking off.

This could mean that you're either not getting a good squirt or that it's coming too late. The slightest bit of slop on the Acc pump linkage can give you a hesitation out of the hole.

Should you be able to turn the dizzy and make the weights come out pretty easy by hand? Mine do not and I have been experiencing a chug at take off. And can you replace just the springs and weights?

mine is doing the same thing still hard to start inconsistent idle . after it warm it runs pretty solid but at take off it still lacks the preformance it once had new acc pump points cond. rotor cap idle mixture screws adjusted 1.5 times out 10 deg btdc etc... still get the chug at take off . were do you check the choke setting? mine is electric ... i think?