water pump '57 gale buccaneer

I recieved my new water pump yesterday (thanks imported F R) and because of the great instructions (thanks tashasdaddy) i put it in in under 1 hour. The guy I bought it from said it was sitting in his uncles garage for over 25 yrs. When I took the old pump out, it looked as if it had just been replaced. It was in perfect condition. However, for the money, and peace of mind, it was well worth the new pump.

Here are two questions. I had to slide the drive shaft out to remove the lower plate of the pump. When I put it back in (lined up exactly as it came out) it seemed to have a springy action to it. It slid in well, but as I pushed it lower into position, it wanted to come back up, like it had air pressure or a spring under it. It did settle back down without any force and it all went back together great. Is that normal?

Also, I found out the motor has been repainted. Do you think color in the pic above is the original color or were these motors a different color?

Re: water pump '57 gale buccaneer

about the shaft i don't know, looks like someone was trying to copy the older johnson's as far as paint.

Re: water pump '57 gale buccaneer

Did you remove the driveshaft from the lower unit and that's where it went back in springy? It's possible it was due to the oil in the LU that built up a tad of pressure when you put it back in... That's just a guess though...

Re: water pump '57 gale buccaneer

yes it was the lower unit. I was thinking maybe it was the lube. But it doesn't compress, unless maybe air and lube mixture and it slowly oozed out.