help (and laugh) at the newb with engine problems :)

[Moose 200x]

Ok i am by no means a "boater" but i recently bought an old pontoon boat. well, i was driving around the lake in my boat and i ran out of gas, no biggie i switched to the other tank. but before switching i added an extra bit (1/8 quart) of 2cycle oil to the gas. the engine started fine and all but after maybe 5 mins it died. i checked the gas and we still had plenty (3 gallons).

I got pulled to the marina and filled up, but it still wouldnt start. my buddy changed the spark plugs and after a few attempets it started. but it wont idle, and when u let the choke thing out you have to give it a ton of gas to get it going. when u do this it starts slow and after 15 secs kicks into high gear. i will try to best explian how this engine/boat works to help you in your quest to help me

The boat is a 73 sylvain pontoon
you lift this lever up (choke thing) and then turn the key, it will idle real fast. you push the lever down and then use the hand gas pedel thing to go. im sorry for these newb terms.

the engine is a 48hp 2cycle johnson.


when it goes from idle mode with the lever to using the gas hand pedel it jerks very hard.


any and all help is appreciated. also, if you respond feel free to use technical terms as my dad and bro can help me with these thank you!

[kenJ]

You have all the symptoms of a gummed up carberator. If the boat has sat for a while it probably needs some TLC. Clean the carb, start with fresh fuel, lube the throttle cables. The carb will need to be dissassembled to clean all the jets and airways. Check on gasket availability and any consumables you might need before you start taking it apart.