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Starting a Ferret engine after 9 years


njjeeper

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My Ferret engine had not run since at least 2007. When I got it, the engine was frozen. 2 cylinders showed rust on the spark plugs. After weeks of soaking the cylinders in ATF and rocking the flywheel I got it moving. The downside was lots of atf in the cylinders. I cleaned the points and got spark to the HT leads and put the carb back on. The video below shows the results. Please don't mind my son who was narrating while filming. I didn't know he was talking until I played it back :)

 

Since there was some fire expected due to the atf I had 3 fire extinguishers handy and a plan to shove the motor and dolly into the gravel just in case. Here is the video!

 

 

 

Now that I know it runs, it's time to get the carb cleaned up so it runs without the gas down the carb trick :)

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Congratulations on getting the old girl running!

 

You may need a carb kit to get the carb back in good shape. There are two accelerator pump diaphragms that are prone to splitting, I suspect because they don't like ethanol. And when they split, they drain all the fuel in the carb bowl into the intake manifold.

 

And check the base for flatness. It can warp badly and leak air to the point you can't get a good idle.

 

Malcolm

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Funny you mention the carb. I have 2 of them but only one fits the manifold. The larger one that does not fit has the 2 accelerator pumps on the back and an oval shaped venturi. The one that fits the intake has no accelerator pump visible and a much more round venturi. No idea why they are both for a ferret but only one fits :)

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The one that fits is probably the right one. :)

 

The carb is a Solex carb (although I just found out that Marcus made later ones), and it should have "40NNIP" on the side.

 

The accel pumps aren't obvious as the linkages are internal and the diaphragms are hidden behind the side cover.

 

If you fill the bowl through the large bowl vent sticking out at an angle above the venturi, and cycle the throttle plates open and closed, working pumps will give strong squirts of fuel into each venturi.

 

The accel pump design is very poor IMO as they take fuel from the very bottom of the bowl, where silt and sludge accumulate over the years. This plugs the inlets passages and check valves.

 

Malcolm

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The smile on your face says it all. I know what it feels like when that B60 fires for the first time. Its a great feeling. Good work, now put it in the hull and get driving.

 

Tim

Hi Tim,

 

How is the project going on your second Ferret ?

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  • 2 weeks later...

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