62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

[retiredtofish]

Good Morning All,
New to the forum and to motor maintenance, so I appreciate the wealth of knowledge I think i'll find here.

I have inherited what looks to be a good motor in good condition thoulgh I know it has been sitting idle for about 5 years. It is clean under the cowling and only a few visable leaks around the grease certs. I have not attempted to start it but have pulled the starter handle to make sure the motor was not seized. It does not have a tank so I will buy a new one. Connections seem to be in good shape, as does all the visable rubber hoses.

My question is, what are the "essential" things I need to do before I attempt to start it up? And is there a likelyhood that I will need to replace any parts just because it has sat that long.

Thanks for any help out there in cyberspace!!
Larry

 

[F_R]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

Gas it up and see if it will start. If it does, then a tune up and new water pump are due as preventative maintenance. If it won't start, troubleshoot it & find out why.

 

[retiredtofish]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

Thanks for that. Would you think a shade tree mechanic with a manual should attempt this replacement and tune up?

 

[Tom @ Buzzard Bluff]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

As F R said you can attempt to start it as is. BUT---if it should actually start don't be tempted to run it for long lest you do serious damage.
At a minimum you should replace the waterpump impeller no matter how well it appears to be pumping as this time. You don't want to experience the frustration involved in trying to retrieve all the pieces of an old, semi-petrified impeller that breaks up and clogs the most difficult to access passages in the cooling system. The waterpump is the cheapest insurance available to keep a veteran functioning properly.

If they haven't already been renewed you WILL need to replace the magneto coils under the flywheel on the OMC 'universal magneto'. They are virtually always in an advanced state of disintegration on older OMC products. They malfunction in strange and inexplicable ways that often leads to un-necessary carb and timing repairs. They are available in scores of locations from internet sources, OMC dealers and at your local NAPA Auto Parts outlet under P/N 18-5181 ranging in price from @ $12 to $30 depending on the source.

1962 fuel lines were never intended for use with alcohol bearing fuels. They are easy and inexpensive to replace. Just do it. Or be prepared to have to go through your complete fuel system to remove the melted black 'gook' they produce as they disintegrate from the inside out.

If you don't have one get a 'harmonic balancer/steering wheel puller from retailers such as Horror Freight or your local auto parts store so that you can pull the flywheel in order to access the mag plate without ruining the flywheel. NEVER put an outside finger type puller on a flywheel! It will almost assuredly ruin it. And you will need to get under the flywheel! Because of inspecting the coils for one thing but also to clean off the invisible film that old points acquire that insulates them from efficiently passing current. If the points are pitted on one side with corresponding high spots on the other side use a points file on them first (And replace the bad condensers that caused it!) to get them level and then polish them with some used 400 or 600 grit wet or dry sandpaper to a high polish. Reset them to .020" and finally drag several strips of clean cardstock or Kraft grocery bag material through them to clean off sanding dust and/or fingerprint grease.

Before you do anything review this excellent overview of reviving a veteran that has sat unloved and un-maintained for a time. HTH, Tom

<>http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=158086

 

[chuckm51]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

Hi RTF,

I too am trying to resuscitate a 60s Sea King. Mine is a '63, according to the decoding of the serial number. I've owned this motor for 8 years. Back when I got it it ran lousy so I put it away after replacing the impeller and noodling around with it for a while.
Now it is back on the main burner. I drug it out, cleaned out the wasp nests, etc from the cowl, and dismantled the carb. Mine looked pretty clean overall, so I sprayed all the internals down with carb cleaner and blew out the passages.
After buying a new hose and cleaning out the old gas tank (btw, Academy sports has 6 gal plastic tanks on sale for $19. I would have bought one but I had spent 2-3 hrs cleaning the old one.) I put the carb back together, cleaned and checked the points, and started pulling. Success!
The impeller even pushes out a satisfying amount of hot water.
My problem is finding a manual. My serial number doesn't show up on any lists I've seen, apparently too late in production to be listed.
Old hands here say the Gale products are more or less identical to johnson/evinrudes of the same vintage.
This place http://www.marineengine.com/manuals/index.html has blow up diagrams for johnson/evinrudes, and complete manuals. By looking at the diagrams they show 4 different models for my year (yours too I think) but none of them are exactly the same as mine.
Other than a crappy cork carb float, my carb is pretty good, so I am concentrating on the fuel pump and ignition for the moment. My coils look brand new, so I am conflicted on replacing them. Points and condenser for now.
NAPA says it has/can order them as generic OMC parts...we'll see today.

chuck in austin

 

[Tom @ Buzzard Bluff]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

<Other than a crappy cork carb float, my carb is pretty good, so I am concentrating on the fuel pump and ignition for the moment. My coils look brand new, so I am conflicted on replacing them. Points and condenser for now.>

Clean the float with acetone. Lay it in the hot Texas sun to dry out completely. On the dashboard of a truck a day will normally do the trick----especially if not parked in the shade! After drying clean it again with an acetone, lacquer thinner or shop grade alcohol wipe-down to remove the oily residue that bled out.
Re-coating it can use many different products. Clear model Airplane dope is excellent if you have a good model shop available. I'm told that clear fingernail polish is identical but can't testify personally. Some use epoxy and some insist thin super glue is superior.
Personally I use highly thinned clear dope to dip it 2-3 times to be certain that the natural pits and seams of cork get coated. After it is completely dry I often apply a light coat of highly thinned epoxy as insurance. Thinned dope adds virtually no weight. It's the epoxy you must be careful with as it loses no weight as it cures.

Your coils may have already been replaced if you are among the fortunate. Just bear in mind that if you can't get it to run sweetly after you're certain that everything else is set right and operating as it should then the problem could lie with the coils. Personally I like to start with new coils (unless I'm absolutely certain that they are as new) and save the ones that seem OK for later use on some new acquisition.
The modern replacement coils are a dull pea green but earlier versions were several different colors.
HTH, Tom

 

[retiredtofish]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

Good Morning Boaters.........
Have a new impeller base plate and new rubber grommet from a reseller for my 62 Gale. Have had it for a few weeks and am now mentally prepared to tackle the replacement. Started by lowering the lower power unit, sure that the gear shift disconnect could be accesssed by lowering it a couple of inches....but (hello Murphy!) I cannot see a coupling as expected.

I am working with a Johnson/Evanrude manual for the same year and horsepower but I only see the one option as I described.

Does anyone know how to disconnect the gear shift rod so I can lower the unit??

Thanks
RTF

 

[tmcalavy]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

There should be an oblong plate on one side of the leg. Remove two screws/bolts, remove plate...look inside and you will see the shift rod connector, also with two bolts. Remove top bolt and the lower unit will drop after you remove the bolts holding it to the leg. Notice the notch in the bottom of the top shift rod...that must be perfectly aligned with the bolt hole in the coupler when you put it back together...otherwise you will bugger/strip the threads on the top bolt. Use a flashlight to get it lined up and go easy when you put it back together.

 

[F_R]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

Nope, sorry, the Gale does not have a disconnect. You have to pull the powerhead just like the older Johnsons and Evinrudes. You will need a new 304314 powerhead gasket and new 303345 seal gasket and 303347 seal o-ring.

EDIT: Oops, wrong picture. Try this one:

 

[retiredtofish]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

Thanks F_R for the answer on the gearshift disconnect!! But too late on the driveshaft seal and o-ring...
I ordered the waterpump repair kit from Lansing.com. I replaced it according to the J/E manual I purchased on eBay. But when I ordered the waterpump parts I didn't know I would need a gasket for the powerhead. And when I ordered the gasket I didn't know I would need a seal and o-ring. Neither the manuals, nor the parts supplier mentioned I would need these parts and I put the gasket on with Permatex so if I pull the powerhead again I'll tear up the gasket.

Do you think it unwise that I operate the engine without a new seal and o-ring.

 

[Tom @ Buzzard Bluff]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

<Do you think it unwise that I operate the engine without a new seal and o-ring. >

YES!

 

[F_R]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

Let's just put it this way: That seal keeps water out of the crankcase. If it leaks, water gets up in there and is pumped throughout the powerhead by the oiling system. It is just a bit of water and you won't notice it at all. That is, until some day it tosses a connecting rod through the crankcase. Won't be today, and won't be tomorrow, but some day.... And when it does happen, somebody will look at it and insist you ran it with insufficient oil. It never gets blamed on the REAL problem, that's why nobody realizes the real problem.

So, if you are confident that it isn't leaking.....

 

[imported_Skippy]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

Comment: purged for not agreeing with the elders

 

[chuckm51]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

The NAPA auto parts store near me was able to order condensers, coils, and points for my '63 Sea King 5hp. Half the online prices pretty much! The guy also gave me an extra "NAPA quality marine products" master catalogue they had. 780 pages of omc parts! the stuff came in in 1 day from San Antonio.

And an extra wheeled city trash can makes a terrific test tank, the sturdy kind they grab with a hydraulic clamping device on the trash truck. It has a very sturdy front edge that is plenty thick to clamp the motor to.

 

[F_R]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

You must have a good NAPA store. The one here charges double what iboats sells the same stuff for, and charges an unreasonable shipping charge if they don't have it in stock (they never do). Buy from iboats.

 

[DECK SWABBER 58]

Re: 62 Gale/Sea King 5hp

Buy from iboats.

Support the place that gives you such great technical advice.