Just an intro

Heya folks. I figgered I'd introduce myself. I am new to MarineEngine.com & forum, but not new to marine engines. Proud owner of several reclaimed and/or recycled outboard engines, all Johnson/Evinrude. Just a preference I have and nothing more. I haven't actually paid for an outboard for 30+ years. Lots of parts though... Any tips for canucks ordering from MarineEngine I should know about? If none I will assume I am good to go.

Cheers!

Good to see a new member post. What do you have your motors mounted on, and what hp are they ?

Most of my motors are hanging on a wall! I have a '77 140hp Evinrude, 2 '85 Johnson VRO 70s, a '72 60hp Evinrude selectric, a '65 Seahorse 9.5hp stubby shaft egg-beater, a '96 6hp Evinrude and a '78 6hp Johnson. I also have a couple 2.5hp sailboat kickers and bits and pieces of a bunch of wrecked motors.

Unfortunately (more like fortunately) I am down to only one hull right now, a 16' Glasscraft Marlin, built in BC probably around 1980 give or take. An excellent Double Eagle style hull but with half the weight and better chines, flares and angles all around really. Very nice handmade double hull boat that does about .95 mach with the 140hp on it and cruises very comfortably at ~35mph with one of my 70s. The 140 uses an insane amount of fuel so I rarely use it anymore.

I am about to buy a Hustler 4 blade 13.25"x17 prop and pop it on a 70 and see how that works. I have lightened the boat a lot this year and a 70 actually spins kinda freely: ~6000rpm. A bit high so I thought I'd keep all the oem prop numbers the same but add one blade and try to get the revs back down to 5500.

OK, now I'm just rambling!

so what is your focus.....fishing, pleasure boating....etc ??

A bit of pleasure mixed with a whole lotta fishing frustration! Actually, I do a lot of both now that I have kinda retired, more or less. I like to get out on the lake as much as humanly possible, and I don't give a hoot if I catch anything or not. But I will not deny that I get a huge thrill when I pull the odd 8+ pound Dolly up from the depths. Nothing in this world beats playing a fish like that for 30 minutes. I guess the short answer is a little of both and a lot of either. You? With a name like that I expect you like Bass or Walleye? Don't really know what sorta fish you have down Sacramento way.

i used to do a lot of bass and walleye and northern pike fishing in minnesota. now in sacramento, i focus on lake trout and kokenee. as a new member.....do not hesitate to jump in and share your knowledge. EVERY bit of input and hands on experience is really appreciated here. every now and then you will get a mechanics disagreement, but hell, that is what makes this a great forum.

I am pretty good with that sort of thing, I just back off. If I think I have something worthwhile to add I will, but if someone else has a better idea -- or even just a different one -- then I just learned something too. Thanks for the encouragement.

BTW, I grew up in Northern Ontario and caught a few pike, pickerel and bass, Never hunted Walleye though. The lake I go to most has bull, cut-throat, rainbow, dollies, kokanee and northern pike minnow. It has a lot of profiles from spinning with light test mono to braided line way deep on a down-rigger. But most of my catch just gets told off and sent home with no dinner. I kept a 9.5lb Bull in April so I am halfway to my season limit already!

The timing is set-up using the great Joe Reeves' WOT method, but that sounds like a good idea getting a 19-3 blade as well as a 17-4 blade. The oem prop as you probably already know is a fairly unsophisticated one piece design, but Hustler props have a separate hub so it's an entirely reasonable ~$100 or so more for both props. My main aim is to get the boat on plane faster, as well as drop the revs a wee bit. Fuel consumption is actually pretty good considering, but again I rarely run flat out,

Top end is mostly the carbs opening up, so backing the remote is a good way to save fuel alright. Plus I use gapless resistor plugs to allow the coils to build up a solid spark (NGK BUZHW-2) and have always wondered if they affect the timing a little. Virtually every OMC motor I have seems to benefit greatly by running those plugs. An accurate and quick response temp gauge(s) is a must IMO. I also use a handheld infrared and monitor the cylinders and head temps a lot while fiddling.

All these older engines have a personality, unlike the new stuff which are cookie-cutter clones and very predictable. Both my 70s have decidedly different "moods" while being physically identical. Another fella suggested the 4 blade may cavitate less in the hole, but much more at speed but i am hoping the design of the prop will keep that to a minimum.

It seems to be a little under-propped now that the boat is so much lighter, and I expect it to just get worse as I tweak. I have polished and smoothed out most of the intake and exhaust porting and this motor is now noticeably quicker than it's sibling. It will likely have even a little more power when I polish the carb bores and maybe install some stiffer reeds if I can find them. I do get a little cavitation out of the hole but none on top, so my single remaining brain cell screamed "4 blades oughta fix that!" -- but I am bringing in a 3-blade 13 & 1/4 by 19 as you suggested.

That brings a question to mind: I was told once that using the reed block from a 75 gains a bit of power, but without the carbs etc I figured it is probably a mistake that will simply make the engine run way rich. What say ye fellows? Just go with stiffer reeds, or find a complete intake/exhaust off a 75, maybe even jet down a bit?

And I forgot to say: Yes, the 70 is enough for a 16', but after pushing this boat with a 140 a fella loses all sense of proportion. Besides, I am a chronic fiddler and am constantly trying to maximise a motor's efficiency -- within reason of course. I'm not aiming for a race engine, but it never hurts to tweak these older 2 strokes a little. Polishing and light porting really improved the power and economy with a little right hand restraint.

Thanks for the tips.

Copy that. Thing is 75s are kinda rare and I may never find one, so I'll just go with the stiff reeds and polish/re-jet the carbs for now. I found an outfit called Chris Carson Marine who look like they make exactly what I need. http://www.chriscarsonmarine.com/reed-valves.htm

Thanks for the advice partner. I think the two props just might cover the bases.