1963 Hydroswift
New member
I have a 1972 Johnson V4 85HP (85ESL72) Had an issue with the timer base sticking only when motor was hot which was caused by a severely worn distributor cap. (After cleaning and oiling as chronicled in multiple other threads, I still had the issue, so I ran the motor until it started binding again, removed the distributor cap and the timer base instantly moved with very light finger pressure again.) I've purchased a new old stock distributor cap which matched both the parts diagram for this model and the one being replaced which was previously on the engine. Only upon receiving the new distributor cap did I realize how staggeringly worn the existing cap was. Problem is, the new distributor cap doesn't fit onto/into the machined bosses on the top of the crankcase the same way the old one did. The old one would sit down flat on the machined surfaces (3 each), and was held concentric with the crank by the raised portion which is just outboard of the stator retention screw holes. The new one sits on top of the raised portion, not down in between them. I don't want to tighten the 3 stator retention screws and crack my new cap, but it seems like it shouldn't go together as is. The old cap has some worn looking notches in the perimeter at each location which cause it to fit snugly centered between the raised bumps. The factory service manual only says "making sure cap is properly seated" and then lists the torque value and a loctite spec for the 3 stator screws. Is there some kind of initial install procedure for a distributor cap (involving removal of plastic locally to allow it to sit down on the machined flats) that only has to be performed the first time a new cap is installed? The last thing i want to do is make the new cap look exactly like the old one and as a result duplicate the binding problem I'm trying to get away from. Any experienced help would be greatly appreciated.