1980 Johnson 70hp

[CaptainPuget]

The engine in the photo is a 1980 Johnson 70hp that came off a 17’ Boston Whaler. It was pretty ugly when I picked it up a couple of weeks ago but the compression checked out at about 110 psi in all 3 and aside from the rust and carbon (lots of carbon) it does not appear to have any obvious problems. I cleaned it up, mounted it and it started right up, it idled great but didn’t pump much water so I rebuilt the water pump, changed the gear oil, painted the lower end, changed the T-stat, decarbed, changed the plugs. Is there anything else that I should do before I give it a water test? What have I missed?<br /><br />

 

[rabidfish]

Re: 1980 Johnson 70hp

Raise the starter bendix up and get a little grease on the helical grooves there. (just for preventative measure).<br /><br />Make sure you check for fuel leaks, and run it a little before you get too far from the dock.<br /><br />You may be just fine! Some of the best dates I ever had were with gals that looked a little rough!

 

[2cycle]

Re: 1980 Johnson 70hp

Those are great motors by the way. I have a 1976 model of the same HP. A boat salesman told me once that these "are the best running engines pound for pound on the lake."

 

[jtexas]

Re: 1980 Johnson 70hp

Whoa! Hold on there, Capt Puget! What's up with the fire logs in the background? It's not that bad! I got the '79 model & it works great. Don't torch it 'till you've tried it.

 

[CaptainPuget]

Re: 1980 Johnson 70hp

Just a little garage junk in the background, I didn't torch it. I did grease under the starter gear and everywhere I could think of and I took her out for a spin. It needs some adjustments on the gear cable and the tilt latch doesn't latch but it ran great. Took the little sled up to just shy of 40mph @ 5800rpm and I can't believe how well it idles. Now I just need a tilt/trim unit for it.