75 HP Force Outboard Concern

1997 Force 75 HP on a Fisher 1

1997 Force 75 HP on a Fisher 17 foot boat. I may buy the boat but was wondering if the Force motor should be a consideration. It looks great and runs well. The only thing I know about them is that they are an orphaned child of Mercury and are not made anymore.

Should I pass becasue it's a Force Outboard?
Bill

"Bill, Force always was a &#34

"Bill, Force always was a "budget" motor. Not built bad, just built with parts that were often 20 years old when they were slapped on the motor - and yes, they are mostly orphaned although many, many parts are still available through Merc and the aftermarket.

I recently worked on a rebuild of a 1990, 90 horse that had well over 2000 hours before it chewed a piston ring. We rebuilt it (new pistons/rings/bearings/gaskets etc) for about 1000 bucks - compare that to the cost of a new 90 (about 8k).

I wouldn't put a great deal of "value" on the motor itself however in determining what is a fair price for the whole rig.

If the boat is very good shape, ditto the trailer or whatever else comes along with it then try to determine/take a guess at what that combo would be worth "without" the motor and then tack on maybe 500-750 extra for the value of the running motor.

On a positive note, this model had Merc's CDM ignition (still fully supported by Merc). Not as good as their Thunderbolt 4's but miles ahead of the Prestolite ignitions that you find on many Force motors.

I'm not a great fan of Force, but a running Force is a much better outboard than any Merc or Ev that's laying in the scrap heap "