Which motor to purchase – if any

[jerry-ahrens]

Wow, that boat looks great with a vintage Merc on the back! I think that would be the way to go…

[jimaz]

Thank you Jerry. Going to see a few this weekend. Will know more then if any can be saved reasonably. I love the look also.

[wiscoboater]

I work on Mercs and Johnsons. For me, I find the Mercs easier to work on. Most on this board will scoff at that but I really don’t care. The Mercs make sense in my head for some reason. Lots of vintage parts available from many vendors and I have yet to not be able to find a NLA part I needed over on johns old mercury site. What ever your vintage motor choice, plenty of guys here and on Johns site to help get you up and running.

[jimaz]

Thank you for the input wannabe. If I pick a Merc up this weekend, could use your help/knowledge sourcing whatever might need repaired or replaced.

[wedgie]

Mercury’s are great cool and fast motors but…. OMC will be easier to work on.

I have what I think is a ’68 sea scout. I like the fact it’s welded aluminum so no rivets to leak ! I repainted it, fixed the cable pulley steering, buffed scratches out of the windscreen, added new flotation, floor boards, and a pair of sleeper seats. I plan on changing the seats to something closer to the originals some day as the sleepers don’t suit it. Does your boat have seats ?

I’ve run a ’58 35 hp RD, and a ’59 35 hp Big Twin on it. Top speed was around 26 mph with 2 people and a few rods, fuel and a 6 pack. I have a ’69 Ski Twin. unfortunately, it was a short shaft that came as a bonus with the boat. I found an extension kit for it, installed Atom ignition modules in place of points and condensers but due to a shoulder injury I have yet to run it on the Sea Scout . Runs great in the barell though ! Now that the shoulder is better,I’ll run it this summer for sure!

http://vid635.photobucket.com/albums/uu … -00014.mp4

[frankr]

Yep, that’s a 30hp. Looks a little rough to me, with missing parts (silencer). But you should be able to find a used one.

[dave-bernard]

don’t be afraid of the mercury’s.

[mercuryspecialist]

The first outboard pictured, the Merc 500, is a 1963, not a 1961. Not only does the serial number fit a 1963, but 1963 was the first year model without the shock absorbers. The water intake located in the strut area of the lower unit housing was first seen (for Merc 500 models) in the very last serial numbers of 1962 production (and as most any modern outboard takes it’s cooling water in), it has the exhaust exiting from the propeller hub (also starting for the 1962 model year, and industry adopted), and all Mercurys were painted black for 1964 (the 1962-63 Merc 1000 models, and 1963 Merc 350 and 650 models, were also painted black). As the provided information does show the Crestliner rated for 50 horsepower, I would much rather have extra power when needed, and be able to operate at 75% throttle setting, when most any outboard is very fuel efficient, rather than near wide-open much of the time with a smaller outboard. Although I seldom login here, do feel free to ask in this thread, and we can speak/write if you should have any questions on Mercurys (I grew-up in my family’s marine business, being a Mercury dealership for 50+ years).

Regards,
Joe

[lindy46]

I believe the 1956 Javelin 30hp is a 6 volt system. Something else to consider.

[wiscoboater]

I’d be glad to help you any way I can Jim. The 2 guys that have both commented here, 20mercman and Dave Bernard (Betty ann Bernardd) are about the 2 most knowledgeable I know of when it comes to Mercury stuff. Both are walking encyclopedias of Mercury knowledge and reading some of their comments I sometimes think they both know more about Mercurys then Carl did. Excellent resources both of them. If you would go with the Javelin, I would have the missing pieces you would need as well as all the parts to convert it back to a short shaft. Lindy46 brings up a good point about the 56 Javelin being a 6 volt system rather then a 12. Not a big deal to switch it over to 12 volts and I could help you with parts there as well. Good luck in your motor shopping and do not be afraid of the dark side.

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