Evinrude Sportwin 9.5hp vs Johnson QD 10 hp

[wyo307]

Hello everyone I was just curious what everyone’s thoughts are on the two motors listed above? I currently have a 1972 Evinrude Sportwin 9.5hp that I use as my "daily runner" on my 12ft sears boat but I stumbled across a 1956 Johnson QD-17 in a friends barn the other day and it got me thinking if it would give me roughly the same performance as the Sportwin. What are the weight differences? I like the looks of the QD over the sportwin and I already have a number of pressure tanks in working order for my RD that I can use on it. Given the option which motor would you run?

PS I’ll attach some photos of the QD as it sits in that barn. Looks to be complete to me and is free and feels like it has decent compression. It has a 1955 tiller handle on it but other than that it seems to be in decent shape. I would go through it and do the normal lower unit service, water impeller, new ignition, and carb rebuild so that it would be a reliable runner if I were to get it (not mine yet)

[outbdnut2]

I have several QDs and a 9.5, and the QDs will run circles around my 9.5. The QD is rated in HP at the propshaft while the 9.5 is rated at the powerhead, so there is a bigger difference in HP than the numbers imply. The QD needs more oil in the gas then the 9.5 and don’t try to reduce the oil,or you may have rod/wrist pin issues. I would take the QD any day over the 9.5! After you do all the maintenance things you listed, you should have a very nice running, reliable motor, assuming you have a decent or rebuilt pressure gas tank.
That’s my 2 HP in the question – I’m sure there will be other opinions.
Dave

[PugetSoundBoater]

I parted out a 9.5 ,gave parts to a member. What a hard to work on motor. I’m sure the QD would be a much better motor and easier to work on. More Hp is always a good thing.

"Some people want to know how a watch works, others just want to know what time it is"
Robbie Robertson

[Steve D]

With my apologies to the 9.5 lovers out there, I would take any one of the 10s from 1954 and up, over the 9.5 any day. As was mentioned, easier to work on, more power and faster, possibly more parts available if needed, and in my opinion a more classic design.

Keep in mind that sometimes, not always, a motor that has sat in that environment, depending on how long it sat could have other issues that will cause you headaches down the road, such as general crustiness or corrosion on certain parts, stuck bolts making it difficult to replace certain gaskets, critters living inside, etc. But at least you say it’s not stuck and has what feels like decent compression.

[Anonymous]

A 1957 QD has the sturdy "5-bolt" gearcase used on 12, 15, 18, 20, and 25 hp engines (with evolution), but I imagine it suffers from weaker wrist pins…

The 9.5 has an evolved version of the 5.5 and 7.5 "4-bolt" gearcase, which while sleeker/faster, was less sturdy (can’t say as I’ve heard about gearcase complaints on the 9.5, but plenty of complaints about the tight quarters under the hood)

[Steve A W]

QD over the 9.5 all day long ❗ ❗

Member of the MOB chapter.
I live in Northwest Indiana

[wyo307]

quote outbdnut2:

The QD is rated in HP at the propshaft while the 9.5 is rated at the powerhead, so there is a bigger difference in HP than the numbers imply.

That is a good point that I hadn’t thought of yet. When did they make that switch on where they measured the hp at?

From everyone’s comments I guess I’ll have to talk to the owner and see if they want to part with it. If nothing else it would be a nice winter project for me.

[fleetwin]

no comparison, the QD will outperform the 9.5 and might even idle better. The QD has been sitting outside for awhile, so I wouldn’t spend much on it, just in case it has internal rust issues….

[Mumbles]

It all depends on what you want to do with each motor. If you want to get from point A to point B in a hurry, the QD would be the one. If you want to do some slow trolling, the Lo Profile 9.5 would be a better choice. Two different motors built for two different purposes.

As for working on them, the 9.5’s aren’t that bad. You just have to bend over further or open them up a bit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiWr-blRD5U&t=62s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwR2k0DO_kc

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[chris-p]

They started measuring HP at the prop in about 1985.

As others have stated, in my experience, the QD all day long. No comparison for me.

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