2002 Merc 150 XR6....carb/oil question

[MasterCASTER!]

Couldn't get my motor started at the ramp saturday evening........tore into it yesterday and found the plugs were really dirty, so I cleaned them - still wouldn't start. Sprayed carb cleaner into the intakes - and it fired right up.

My question is this - how difficult is it to clean the carbs? Do I need to pull them or can I spray more cleaner into them and they'll be fine?

Also - friend has the same motor and was telling me he's had this same problem - and it's due to something with the oil lines and fittings....which is allowing more oil than necessary to be injected into the carbs and fouling everything up. He's suggesting that I replace all the oil lines and fittings. Said his was blowing more smoke than normal at start ups - which mine is doing too........sometimes looks like I'm fogging for mosquitos.

Does this sound legit? Is this a common problem - or has anyone heard of this happening?

I always run a can of sea foam with every fill up......Thanks!!

[alli ss]

Sounds like you need your carbs rebuilt/checked out. No you cant just spray em they need to be properly rebuilt. You also need to have all of your fuel delivery system checked to find the issue. Do not run your motor on carb cleaner.

[MasterCASTER!]

How hard is it to rebuild them? Is it as simple as pulling them, cleaning them and sticking them back in? I can do that - but I don't know what all rebuilding them entails.

[leonreno]

It's not real hard. The difference in cleaning and rebuilding is not really different, basically just replacing seat and needle vs cleaning. When you remove them you clean the bowl and all the fuel and or passages and the jets. You could replace the jets too, but that's not usually needed. If you have to remove the jets, make sure you number and label them. The jets are different for each carb. If you have the service manual it helps a lot. You will also have to do a link and sync when put back on, also detailed in the service manual. They sell gasket kits (for cleaning only) and rebuild kits (with needle and seat).

[MasterCASTER!]

I don't have a manual........

[JOE54]

make sure choke working [enrichener] check fuel syst out first

[straffordengineer]

How hard is it to rebuild them? Is it as simple as pulling them, cleaning them and sticking them back in? I can do that - but I don't know what all rebuilding them entails.

Rebuilding them is not much different than any carburetor. The difference between a marine carb and a regular carb in the carb synchronizing when you re-install the carbs. It is not difficult but without a manual to know the timing and alignment specs it is very difficult to get it adjusted correctly.

[JOE54]

agree ^^^^ rule out other fuel system probs first

[xcoach]

Agree with Joe, my xr6 smokes a lot when I fire it up.