TOPIC: fuel problem or electrical?

today i took my boat out and had a blast but realized 2 things. one an 80 hp evinrude is a thristy girl. 2 i have a problem i can't figure out. (long winded so please bear with me). i got on the lake and she ran on the first tank beautifully. when the tank ran dry i plugged in a new tank and she would not start. tried choke, no choke, auto choke, can open, can closed, pumped bulb nothing. after 10 minutes or so of setting she started and ran great for another 6 full gallons. swapped tanks and she started then died out. pressed the bulb and the bulb did not reinflate.afer swapping tanks bulb got needed pressure but would not start again. was in about 4 feet of water by then so got out and walked the boat to the launch. turned key started great. truned it off to clear boat from weed bed and would not restart. pulled boat out of water and smelled fuel like it was flooded. pulled truck and trailer to the side and trun key (gas tank not connected) started and ran fine. I think i need to rebuild the carb and maybe the fuel pump. or do you think i should look at electrical? any ideas would be great.

It sounds like a fuel issue to me, a couple of thoughts come to mind;

1 When you run completely out of gas in the tank the motor uses up the fuel in the carburetor bowls. After switching tanks you have to pump the primer bulb enough to refill, the bulb should get firm again when you accomplish this. Shouldn't need to choke the motor at all if it's warm, she should fire right back up. (Sounds like you were right, it flooded on you?)

2 If it's been a couple years, or especially on a "new to you" motor, cleaning and refreshing the carbs and fuel pump(s) is a must IMHO. The kits are fairly inexpensive and readily available, and it's also a good idea to replace all rubber fuel lines at this time. Tiny particles of dirt or rubber coming off old lines can wreak havoc with the jets and settings, starving one for fuel is a really quick way to cause bigger (more expensive) problems.

They're great old motors, just takes a little TLC to keep them running right. The first thing I do is get a manual specific to your motor and perform a basic "tune-up", it's the best way I know to get hours of trouble free fun out of the old girls!

I have found a site to buy individual parts but not kits. Any sites for kits you could recomend?

I'm sorry, but I don't remember what year your motor is?

Vapor lock?

Papa, check out marineegine.com that's where I've been getting my kits.

Bob

How would I determine and fix it if it's vapor lock?

It a 66 80 hp evinrude