I actually read the manual for the new to me 2003 15hp Johnson that I just bought. I know it was just a momentary lapse of judgement . (-; The manual actually tells you to not run the fuel out of the carburetor after use. I have been doing this all my life when I did not plan on running an outboard more that a couple of days. Any feed back on what I should actually do? Tom
Been thinking about this too, I always run my outboard's carb dry, if I'm not going out again the next day. Unless there's an automatic oil mixing system for a 2 stroke. My motivation is not just to prevent varnish deposits, but also to empty the fuel system of ethanol. I figure the less time the ethanol sits in my carb, the less damage is going to occur. I don't even know if a 2003 model is rated to run E10 gas without sustaining fuel system damage. Previous post: http://www.microskiff.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1235492808
Thats been out for a long time. Somewhere in my files I have an OMC newsletter or bullitan stating not to run the 2 stroke empty. I believe the reason was, the engine will still run when the oil in the crankcase has been depleted. I am considering welding a small coupling to the botom of the fuel bowl and then drilling a hole into it. A small pitcock or plug could be installed, then you could empty the bowl. A 10 second run should then clear the crankcase and not damage rings, rob bearings or top main. I want to find an old bowl for my engine first in case it turns bad.
