merc. vent bowl jets

[laserman880]

Hello all, my question concerns the vent bowl jets on the carbs. The top carb has both jets, the middle carb has only one jet, the bottom carb does not have any. The carb #s are WH-7-1A, WH-7-2A, WH-7-3A, All 3 have the casting # of 1395-6247, the # on the jet itself is 090. Is this normal or were they left out?? This engine has always been hard to get started on 1st start up, have to choke it a lot to ever get it going the 1st time ( fuel bulb pumped up hard), after that it cranks right up and runs out good. The serial # on the transom bracket is 5488879. I have been told its a 1980 model. I discovered the missing jets by accident, the needles stuck in the seats after sitting for a couple of weeks, a local shop said this is caused by ethanol gas and I need an additive to prevent this??? Thanks in advance for any help.

[boats.net]

Not know what model you have but that is not uncommon. If have access to non-Ethanol gas it will solve the stuck float valve problem.