I have just had the privilege of purchasing a Mercury 650, whose serial number indicates it's a '66. So far I have $100 invested in the motor, 2 fuel tanks, the shift/gear control, and steering cable/wheel assembly. After clearing the wasp nests from inside the cowling, adding a new fuel line and battery I gave it a try, and this motor which was reported to have not run in 5 years fired up and ran smooth on all 4. (I did do compression tests{120 on all}and a quick spark test) I ran it for a while in a barrel and it seemed to run great. I have more experience with OMC products of this era so I have a few questions. This one didn't seem to pump much water from the two small square ports just below the power head, is this normal? During the whole time the motor ran it did not get too hot to touch, in fact it was just a little more than warm. I'm absolutely thrilled at how much smoother 4 cylinders are than the "Big Twins" ...... so I guess I was wondering ....... do I need to do an impeller change? Is it a similar operation to an OMC? Thanks.
