Two stroke smoke from front of engine

[two stroke mick]

I have a 2001 Johnston 15 hp two stroke which I use for pike fishing on the lake. Most of the time the engine is at tickover for trolling. I notice when I open it up I get two stroke smoke from the front portion of the engine (where the choke lever is located). I also note that the engine can sometime run rough and then stop running rough when used load. The tone of the engine also changes. The engine is easy to start an ticks over all day long for trolling.

I suspect that it maybe caused by a reed valve not closing fully when the engine is driven on or it could be a leak where the power head attaches to the mid section. It seems to improve if the engine is driven on for a while.

Thoughts please

regards
TSM

[Allye]

If that motor has any vacuum lines check they are in good nic and attached.

2 strokes aren’t huge fans of trolling around for hours on end, the rough running will be oil’d up plugs. Once you give it some beans it’ll clean them up a tad hence the better running after a burn around!