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1973 johnson 65 hp tell-tale install

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Kmills1389

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Hello all, I've put a lot of work into my 73 johnson 65 hp (65ESL73R) and it runs great, I won't go into all of the things I've done so far or the work I'm about to put into it but I've reached the point of "optional" or quality of life fixes. I'd like to put in a tell-tale or pee hole (whatever you want to call it) I've watched a bunch of YouTube videos and read a bunch of forums for suggestions of placement on similar motors but none that exactly match my motor. The closest I could find to my specific motor head was in this article https://forums.iboats.com/threads/1972-johnson-65hp-tell-tale-installation.283057/ (sorry if the link is in the wrong format). My concerns are two fold, first, as stated in that article the cylinder and crank case assembly is extremely difficult to access to drill into and install the fitting necessary (and I'm not super comfortable drilling into the cylinder jacket), and second, there seemed the be concern that he placed it in the cylinder head cover with no real explanation for why the major concern. The forum is not letting me attach a picture from my phone currently but the location in that post is my number 1 spot (just more directly centered as to be directly on top). I've also heard that the exhaust water cover is an option. Any advice would be appreciated.
 
The impeller replacement was the first thing I did, runs great, barely warm to the touch after WOT, I just want visual confirmation, especially while on muffs in the driveway.
 
It doesn't have one, I'm trying to figure out where to drill in the block, and why people took issue with the placement in the cylinder head cover.
 
I have seen many motors with tell tales that have overheated.-----Test your hot warning horn.----Install a new impeller every 5 years and enjoy that wonderful motor.----If you were to walk over to my cluttered shop I could show you a few blocks and where to drill.----But likely I am too far away.
 
That's nice of you to offer, Im in central NJ. Sounds like the hot horn test is the way to go at this point. I'm just trying to be diligent to no mess something up. Thanks for the advice
 
You are 1000 miles away.-----That motor has survived 50 years without a tell tale.-------After warm-up you should see a mist / fine spray coming out of the 2 holes below the rear cowling.-------At full throttle water should pour out of those 2 holes.-----As good a tell tale as you can get !!
 
True, I have the same Evinrude 73' 65HP. When the impeller was new, you could actually see the thermostat working while skiing.
Water would pour out, then stop, pour out again, etc. About every 5-10 seconds it would cycle like that.

Jim
 
??----This was true for the 3 cylinders made from 1968 to 2001 ----55 HP to 75 HP.----The tell tale is a " selling feature " for the salesman.------Regular maintenance of the water pump and you do not need a tell tale at all !!!
 
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