Gale or Sea King 15hp???

[reelfishin]

I bought a lot of motors today, all running, but there's one 1960-61 15hp Gale or Seaking that lacks all tags and decals. It's been completely stripped and repainted in fresh white paint, and there's no decals or markings saying what this was other than a gold foil sticker inside the cover stating that it's a 15hp.

How can I determine whether this was a Sea King motor, or Gale motor? The only holes in the cover are on the one end, where I assume the HP ID plate was.

Here's a pic of it next to a 25 hp Evinrude:

[tmcalavy]

There may be a ID metal plate on the front/top of the transom clamp. The hood looks like one from a Gale/Sea King 15 hp. Model number may also be stamped on a quarter-sized silver round plug somewhere on the powerhead.

[reelfishin]

The plate on the swivel bracket has been removed, there are four rivet holes, no plate. The inside of the cover has a decal that refers to it as a 15hp but no brand refference there at all. The freeze plug is new, it appears that the power head was rebuilt, or at least resealed at some point, all new paint, new gaskets everywhere, and a new fuel pump. It runs like a new motor.
I was thinking maybe it's a Gale rather than a Sea King as I thought the Sea King emblems were plastic and held on by studs? The cover has no holes on the side, only 3 or 4 at the rear.

[1946Zephyr]

Seaking, up till 1963 was made by Gale. The one you have there looks like it is a Gale made Seaking. Most likely an 18hp Johny/Rude look alike. There were some differences, but very similar.

[F_R]

If all the ID has been removed, I guess it is whatever you want it to be. Sea Kings were made by Gale and are exactly alike except for color and trim. Since you have neither, who cares?

You know of course that it has probably been stolen at some time in its history? Why else would anybody remove all ID? It doesn't just "fall off". Incorrect paint job completes the camoflage.

[reelfishin]

If all the ID has been removed, I guess it is whatever you want it to be. Sea Kings were made by Gale and are exactly alike except for color and trim. Since you have neither, who cares?

You know of course that it has probably been stolen at some time in its history? Why else would anybody remove all ID? It doesn't just "fall off". Incorrect paint job completes the camoflage.

I doubt if it was stolen, the guy that died who owned it was in his 90's, and was using it two years ago. He had stripped it and repainted the entire motor. It looked more like an incomplete restoration to me. I thought it was more likely that the emblems and plates were most likely sitting somewhere in a box in his garage. All of his stuff had been put into a storage facility after he died, I only got the motors. The emblems are probably in another lot, long gone. I did get a box full of Evinrude decals, and 3 quarts of blue Evinrude paint in this lot. (There were over 300 outboards total in the lot, so I take it the guy reconditioned motors as a hobby, this was the only Gale in the lot. The two motors pictured were set aside from the rest, the Gale was on a small glass row boat which also came with the lot.
Most of the motors were all 25 to 40hp Evinrudes from the mid 70's or older. The Gale is the oldest in the lot. My take was that he may have been running it himself, no decals and no plate is common here as there's a 10hp limit on non tidal water. No numbers, no badges means he could pass it off as a 10hp, its old enough that no one would know what it was or care. It's lighter than the modern 9.9 motors, and not much larger.
I'll most likely just leave it alone and do the same, unless I stumble across some side badges for it. It's super clean, and the paint is decent.

Where the lower units on these all white when new? Anyone got any pics of a Gale paint scheme close up?