Older outboard boat motors lacked electric starting systems when Ole Evinrude patented his outboard motor in 1911. They were started with a recoil starter, much like that used on some lawnmowers today: you pull the rope, the motor starts. That was the theory, anyway, but years of pulling and false starts and more pulling wore these pull-ropes to the point where today, many have to be replaced before the motor can be started.
Remove the four screws that hold the recoil starter to the top of the engine. Set the screws aside and turn the recoil starter upside down on a flat surface.
Tell a friend to hold the body of the recoil starter while you pull the rope. When you have the rope fully extended, two holes--one in the pulley and one in the hub on which the pulley turns--will line up. Insert a nail in the holes, to keep the pulley from recoiling with the rope.
Find the knot where the end of the rope passes through the hole in the pulley and cut the knot off. Pull the knot and the rope out of the starter. Cut the knot that holds the T-handle to the rope and remove the handle.
Slip the end of the new rope through the hole in the pulley and tie a knot in its end, to keep it from slipping back through the hole. Slip the T-handle onto the other end of the rope and tie a knot to keep the T-handle from coming off the rope when pulled.
Remove the nail from the pulley and hub. Allow the spring-loaded hub to pull the rope back into the starter slowly. Fit the now-repaired recoil starter back on top of the motor and screw the four original screws back into place.
