The beauty of Johnson/Evinrudes is that most can be made to run with little effort. In the past, I would never buy running motors because, to me, the fun was in the restoration. These days I’d rather buy a good specimen that needs little work to speed up the time from purchase to use. One thing to consider is that a really good specimen is usually cheaper to restore in the long run than a junker. I bought all of the above motors from friends I have met through the club. None were very expensive. I’m not sure I could have restored the 1939 Johnson KA-39 for the price I paid for it. The 1955 Mercury MK25 was completely rebuilt from top to bottom. I think I even helped the previous owner rebuild the powerhead at one of our weekly unofficial meets. The friends you make and the knowledge you can gain by being a member of the club is far more valuable than the motors that bring us together.