89 Johnson 90 Hp starting issues

I have a pontoon that we primarily fish out of. We drag a worm off the bottom for mainly catfish. we are often stopping and starting the motor. It has been often hard to start over the years there does not seem to be any routine that will start it consistently. Sometimes it will start in neutral idle and do well, but at other times we need to give it a little gas in neutral. The primer seems to work fine at a cold start, and it will almost always start cold. The issue is we start and stop frequently while fishing sometimes it just won't start it won't even hit it is like it is not getting fuel. We usually can let it sit for about 15 minutes and get it started and it may not do it again for the rest of the day. Any ideas?

 

Hows the primer bulb when you let it sit, primes like from first startup or its full of fuel?
Where is the tank in the boat height wise compared with the engine?
Does it still have the VRO pumping fuel?

 

I have a 90 Johnson. Acting up. Would run well, but super hard to start. Intake manifold was very slightly loose.

 

Hard starting after being warm is somewhat common on these motors, and the exact restart method can vary.

Sometimes it's because the fuel has evaporated out of the float bowl, so pumping the bulb and priming is required.