Get back and have a critical look. No cracks in castings all parts there etc peel off 125 and thank him for bothering to rent a shop so that you could find it! Do not be too hard on the bargain pay fair and you are very likely to find this fellow brings you more treasures. Leave your card and maybe show him some pictures of square tank engines so he will know what to look for.
If there are major issues with it like hunks missing or cracked water jackets be gracious but prudent in your offer. You do not have to worry about this guy thinking you are too keen he has had old outboards sit in his shop and has seen piles of them in barns. You want him to know you are KEEN KEEN KEEN (but not a sucker) If he knows you will pay fair for this stuff he will call you first and he might grab up stuff that he would leave for the garbage man in absence of a good customer.
All my best finds have come from telling people that I have "an addiction" and that I am a "sucker for old outboards". When they know you are keen they will go thru the trouble of making stuff available. IF they think you are a tire kicker they are not going to call great uncle Bart and convince him to move 50 hay bales to get at "that old motor".
At the end of the day you control your wallet so no need to worry about what they think they can get. Keep the games to a minimum. You can walk away if they are greedy and likewise they can offer you more and better stuff if you are fair.
Sorry for the ramble but I am sitting here waiting for a caretaker of a light industrial park to call back about a dumpster full of repo’d small engines replete with lots of old OBs. He knows I am KEEN so he went to the trouble of calling the bondsman. If he thought I was not keen he would not have called………. at least two square tanks in there……………one freshly crushed……..oh the agony.
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