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[Wolves]

Alright, so...
A while ago, my parents bought a boat that's quite a few years old (I think maybe 20-40 years :/)
Then, my brother in law bought a brand new boat and we all use it instead of the old one (which is now mine)

The boat itself runs relatively well, aside from one really annoying problem, the throttle will randomly cut out, bringing the revs right down for a few seconds then right back up to speed.

They've put it in to a shop once before they gave it to me and it ran great for a few weeks then the same problem happened again.

I don't know the particular model of the motor (or the boat for that matter), just that it's an OMC (onboard motor company) and that OMC no longer exists.

I DO know, however, that it's a four cylinder inboard (should function just like a four cylinder car engine)

The problem is, if I put it in again, the people who'd work on it don't guarantee their work and probably wouldn't do too much to fix it.

The motor was rebuilt at some point in time, I don't know how long ago, but the paint on it looks fairly new so I wouldn't think too too long.

The wiring under the dash of the boat looks like a rat's nest, so if that could be a problem, I could probably redo it as a project sort of thing.

My question(s) are:

a) Could anyone list a few possible reasons for something like this to happen

-or-

Does anyone know any communities to get ahold of in order to figure that out

[coldasice]

I would deffinatly re-do the wiring. I doubt its the source of the problem but its always a good idea to avoid fires. I would check the throttle cable and make sure its not getting stuck on anything, clean all the linkage with brake cleaner. I would assume its bogging due to a lack of gas or air. I assume its carbed because well its old. Clean the carb up real good and see if you can find the guys who made it. Hopefully you could find a re-build kit.

EDIT: Pull your spark plugs and check them, any car manual will show you pics of the plugs with different types of wear and what they mean. also check your spark plug wires to make sure they dont have burned ends, coming apart, or frayed wires.

Its always better to start with the small stuff and work your way up. I spent a whole day at work trying to get a blazer to start, went as far as pulling the timing cover to check the chain. It ended up being the ignition points