Finally up and running, REALLY!

[Bob Smith]

Rather than run an everlasting thread about the motor on my Astro 2000, I decided to wait until the pain subsided!
I sent my motor to Northwest Florida Outboard Machine Shop, just south of Jay, Florida (near Pensacola). In fact the owner came and picked up my Mariner Mag EFI 200 HP in boxes on September 27. They brought it back on October 9th and hung it on the Astro. I handed them $4225.00, in cash. I started the break in in accordance with thier warranty policy.

The policy required 4-6 hours of "idle only", Which I later discovered is not the right break in technique for EFI engines, fortunately no harm done. During the entire idling period the motor vibrated horribly. Finally I got through the idle period and decided to jump her up on pad and check it out, NOT. It slugged out of the hole and never topped 3500 RPMs! Drove me crazy so I called NWFL Outboard Machine Shop and was told that it sounded like a stator, power packs or something along those lines, which they did not guarantee. OK now I had to find someone locally to check it out.
I finally found someone who wasn't too busy to look at the motor. Spent $204 the first go round to find out that the throttle linkage, timing advance linkage and most of the wiring was ran incorrectly. The idle stops were wrong blah blah blah. I took it out and it came out of the hole a little better, but still sounde like it was running on just a couple of cylinders and never topped 4200 RPMS. This was really starting to drive me nuts!

I took it back to the local guy who then re-checked the stator, power packs, voltage regulators, Bias network, Fuel injectors, computer, you name it! Finally, I said sarcastically, "they probably reversed my pistons?". The local guys eyebrows raised and he dissappeared and came back with a bore scope and spark plug wrench. We took out #3 and #4 and took a quick look. SURE ENOUGH! the port piston was on the starboard side and vice versus! This cost another $256.
I called the owner down in Tuesday Nov 4 (election day) and asked him if he could work on it if I brought it down. He said yup and had an apartment on the premises for me to stay. I was on vacation without a boat so what could I lose! I drove 6 hours that afternoon and got there to watch the polls close (dang it all! that was a miserable night!).
The next day they pulled the head covers to reveal not two but four pistons reversed. They pulled the computer/injector box off the front and carefully removed the rod bearings and tslipped the pistons through the head side. I had them ring gap check all six to be on the safe side. Then I personally watched them rig it back up. WE dropped it in a test pond and the thing jumped on pad like it was suppose to. They reimbursed me $400 of the $456, and it cost me another $120 in gas to get down there, but I'll absorb that.
By 5 PM EST I was back on the road to Georgia and got home around 11 Pm on Wednesday.
Ran another 20 gallons of extra oil mix through on Thursday, and fished. Then shook her down good on Friday morning! Finally up and running now.
She's hooked up to the truck and sitting in the driveway ready for a tournament tomorrow. First tournament out of my own boat since April! I am ready in spite of the lousy weather forecast!