Hi - this forum has been a big help in my gaining an understanding and trust in my Atomic 4 which I bought last year. Thank you!
Unfortunately, that trust was severely undermined when my engine died and I'm hoping for some ideas on identifying the root issue.
I have the Moyer manual and with help from the forum, I've replaced all spark plugs, changed the oil, installed a new ignition coil, cleaned the carb, and run compression tests. This engine is awesome and I've run it about 20 hours in the SF Bay without any issues.
On Monday, after running it about 6 hours, I filled the gas up and put it away. Yesterday, I took it out and motored for about 4 hours. We were getting hammered by some swell and were rocking around. The engine suddenly died. I was able to get it started again and motor for about 45 minutes before it died again.
The only major differences that I can think of are the gas (maybe it was dirty but why run for 4 hours if that's the case) or, according to the Moyer manual's fuel system troubleshooting section:
- The vent line to the fuel tank became clogged (could getting rocked with a tank that is almost full slosh gasoline in a way that it clogs the fuel vent line?)
- the fuel pump failed (I don't think this is case since it's an electric fuel pump and the engine started back up once in the slip again.)
- Oil safety switch failed (I don't think this is the case for the same reasons as above.)
- Dirt in the bottom of fuel tank or pick-up tube. I plan to remove and clean the pick up tube and check the supply / fuel lines but don't think this is the problem either because we motored for 4 hours before the shutting down issue happened.
While the engine seems to be working again, I want to regain confidence in the engine to ensure this doesn't happen again and the best way for me to do that is to pinpoint the root cause. I'd appreciate any ideas or suggestions in pinpointing the issue. Thanks!