Guys I finally got around to getting the spark tester over the weekend. Unfortunately I was not able to locate one with an adjustable gap at any of my local parts stores so the one I got just has a little glass-looking window in it where I can view the gap. I'm going to try to get to a meaningful test here in the next few days. I'll report back when I have something.
Did you ever get your issues with the motor fixed and if so how did you do it. I am having similar problems with my 1972 Johnson 25HP.