1970 MERC 1350 rebuild questions and pics

This all started with THIS thread. I decided to take the plunge and rebuild the old beast myself. I could probably get another powerhead and swap it if I looked long and hard enough, but I just feel like a miserable excuse for a human throwing such a beautiful thing away. I have all of the pictures of the boat HERE if file uploading won't work as well as the actual blog i have been keeping HERE.

I have a couple of concerns to start with, and I want advice on how to move forward from here. First off is the distributor.
As you can see, there are three wires coming out of the distributor that are in really bad shape. I was wondering what they do, if it is better to try to save it, or if I can get a replacement for a reasonable price.

Next is the reason I took her apart. The compression was low and I was trying to check for how much damage has been done. Unfortunately the flywheel removal process did not go well at all. I tried to make a bolt-on puller for it, but it destroyed it (1/2 inch steel!), so I tried an automotive puller and nearly busted that. Then i tried heating it with the puller going. The propane torch didn't work, so I used an oxy acetylene torch to heat it. I was about to break the puller, so I wacked the slide from the bottom (I had unbolted the flywheel so as not to bend it) and after about 10 hits it finally popped off. I know that can mess up bearings and seals and such, but it was the only way to get it apart. What do I need to check for damage/how, and are there any precautions I need to take?

Finally are the actual pictures of the cylinders and pistons. It looks to me like a case of bad rings, but I really know very little about this subject and will defer to the experience of this forum.

Re: 1970 MERC 1350 rebuild questions and pics

Re: 1970 MERC 1350 rebuild questions and pics


I noticed that the rings were stuck on one side on at least one of the pistons.

I need to know a few things here. I would much appreciate it if you could contribute a list of what absolutely needs to be done, what should be done, and what would be nice to do. I don't have too much of a budget and any input would help me figure out where to go.

Re: 1970 MERC 1350 rebuild questions and pics

It is hard to judge this from the pictures!
I take there are no scores on the cylinder walls, I could see some crosshatching.
I also take that there are no broken rings on the pistons.
If there are no scores in the cylinders do a light honing and just install new rings. Do check the size of the pistons/cylinders, if I am correct oversize pistons and piston rings are hard to come by, though I remember seeing standard size replacement rings.
As the absolute minimum free up the stuck rings by cleaning the ring groves. Be careful not to break a ring! Do check if the locating pins are there for the rings.
As the max, you could have all the cylinders bored and have new oversize pistons, probably not worth it because of cost.

Good luck, Peter

Re: 1970 MERC 1350 rebuild questions and pics

Is this the right ring? HERE
This site has the impeller (which I need) as well as theses piston rings for the cheapest I can find by a long shot. The cost of both is almost half of what I was expecting to pay for rings!

Re: 1970 MERC 1350 rebuild questions and pics

Before you buy anything have the cylinder walls measured as the inline's wear out around the ports. If it over .003 out of spec it will need boring to run correctly. OS pistons are still available and so is trigger($360) new. If this is not a restore project save your$$ and get a later model motor as you can sink over a grand in what you got now and still only have about 110+hp.(engine not prop rated)