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Thanks guys for the ideas! The gas I would think is still good, it is fresh from 1 month ago and I added MMO and marine fuel stabil to it at that time. I actually kind of know it is good now, because I just came back from the boat, where I decided in a desperate attempt to create a 4th carburetor out of the 3 I already tried. Combined a few parts, checked the specs on MMI, and the miracle happened. It started first try. I can't believe it but I am so, so, so happy about it.
However, I do still have a problem: the engine is overheating (I stopped it after 3 to 5 minutes of purring perfecty as I noticed an alarming temperature of over 220 and climbing). This tells me I don't have the full story yet, and that when I started having issues a couple months ago, it was indeed overheating (and not just a defective thermostat/gauge).
Why it overheated I don't know, but it probably did and damaged the head gasket. My repeated attempts to start the engine and run it as much as I could probably didn't help, and maybe the carburetor also got either clogged or damaged by the overheating? So when I finally replaced the head gasket / thermostat/ etc. , it still didn't start, but I do think it was necessary (this gasket was blown clearly, and it matches the overheating issue). Now with the carburetors, I probably had really bad luck (trying 3 of them, none worked...really??) but also I tried them before replacing the head gasket, so this might explain that.
Now, it starts, but still overheats, which means that if I don't want to start it all over again, I'd better find out why. I am going to follow Don's owner's manual little diagram on overheating troubleshooting starting tomorrow. I do have a good water flow both in and out... I took the water pump out despite the good water flow, because I figured a cleaning and a new impeller couldn't hurt at this point (and I thought that maybe the flow used to be better, once upon a time, and maybe my impeller was worn out... which it wasn't. But anyways).
The path to go sailing is a little closer but still far away. Thanks for your help and support, I was really really desperate, and I still can't believe the miracle that happened today. It's like it was waiting for me to be at my lowest before giving me a little hope and keep me going a little longer. This engine is sadistic.
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