David,
You said that you are sure that you didn't overfill the engine.
Did you run the engine at idle either in the water or with a hose and adapter for 5-6 minutes before checking the oil level?
Over the winter my oil migrated down into the block from the oil reservoir which showed empty. I added oil and started the engine which then bogged down and stalled in a cloud of smoke. Using an electric pump (available at all marine stores), I removed the quantity of oil that I had added and cleaned the plugs and siphoned out any oil left in cylinders. I started the machine and ran it on a hose at idle and then in the water at speed. Very smokey and oil expelled from jet and intake. After the smoke cleared, it ran fine and the oil was back to normal. Intake filter injested some oil, but not enough to plug it...Sometimes you get lucky.
It takes a leap of faith to start the engine when the oil dipstick shows empty, but I now know that unless I see oil in the bilge, I still have plenty of oil.
Stingray359
May 2009
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