Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

[scrit9mm]

I went to look at this Johnson earlier today. It was in better shape than I thought..
Here are the problems.
1. The two wires from the kill button that go to the "power packs" are cut.
2.The metal plate that goes in front of the carburetor is not attached to the carb, the seller says he has some screws around that he can put back in.
3. The choke lever is not in the black plastic controler that is attached to the before mentioned metal plate. Nothing appears to be broken, just needs to be put back together.

Those are the problems that I know of.
Here are some other issues.
1. Water pump replaced
2. Carb rebuild
3. Spark plugs
etc...

The motor is at a repair shop and has been there for 5-6 years. The owner of the shop has the items to repair/rebuild everything that is wrong but he does not want to work on anything that small. He also does not know what is wrong if anything is. The motor has great compression and the prop will spin the flywheel in both reverse and forward. The motor has been inside and only shows some cobwebs. The seller also said he would throw in a gas tank, asking $350.00

The motor does not have a model/serial number plate, it appears to be knocked off. The numbers on the silver plug on the side of the motor is...
25R73
E3789899

 

[all duck'd up]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

LOOKS like a clean motor from the pics. the water pump and spark plugs are no big deal they would problably take all of 35 bucks, and 45 min to a hr for both as for the carb i myself would leave that to the pro's but thats just me.

make sure to get a bill of sale

 

[kfa4303]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

Hi scrit. It looks like the motor is all there. Everything you mentioned can be easily repaired. The kill switch wires can be easily replaced/spliced into, the metal plate in front of the carb is just there to keep things from flying into the carb's throat and isn't absolutely necessary. Just take the old screw(s) with you to the hardware store if/when you need a replacement to reattach the plate. The plastic choke knob should just attach to the carb via a long thin screw. Rebuilding the carb is also easy, and realyl just entails thoroughly cleaning the carb and replacing the seals and gaskets that wear out over time. There are tons of links here in the forums that can walk you though the job. You can even get the carb kit (and virtually all of your other consumable parts) right here at iboats for about $20. Holler if you get stuck.

 

[scrit9mm]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

So, the price he threw around was $350.00 including a gas tank. Perhaps he will throw in the carb rebuild kit and the water pump at that price.

 

[kbait]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

It's a points under flywheel magneto from '73. Probably want to clean them up/reset to .020. Good news on the model/serial number plug.

 

[James R]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

The 25 horse is one of the most popular motors round here. Good solid motors. 350 is a good price and parts are readily available. I can sell every one I can get.

 

[ultra353]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

Looks pretty good. I would want to see a demo of it running for 350, maybe it has spark issues or maybe the lower unit needs repair- bad clutch dog/fwd gear/water leaks. Thats going to add up, see if he`ll work with you on the price. Then again you said those engines are hard to get a good one in your area, maybe go for it.

 

[AlTn]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

I'm with Ultra for $350 it should be demonstrated to run...'73 was the conversion to exciter coil and points under the f/w and this would bring concerns to my mind...this other stuff you mention is no big deal EXCEPT for lower unit issues and these can get pricey in a hurry...did you loosen the lower unit drain screw to check for the presence of any water?...I can't say much as I bought <on impulse> an electric start 71 model with no water present and it started jumping out of gear the second time I took it out.This motor didn't run either when I got it and to top that, I knew it to be from Florida and used in saltwater...$275 initial purchase and 1 carb rebuild, 1 condenser, 2 new plugwires and terminal ends, I new head, gasket, 3 head bolts, shorting switch, new lower unit seals, water pump housing < pricey > and impeller, dog and fwd gear currently out for machining....can't recall much else. Ya know, as always, try to mitigate your losses before purchase, as in, don't do what I did and buy a motor that you can't test on a boat under power. If no other choice, expect the worst and be happy if it's less.

 

[scrit9mm]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

Looks pretty good. I would want to see a demo of it running for 350, maybe it has spark issues or maybe the lower unit needs repair- bad clutch dog/fwd gear/water leaks. Thats going to add up, see if he`ll work with you on the price. Then again you said those engines are hard to get a good one in your area, maybe go for it.

for what it's worth, while the gear selector is in forward and I spin the prop there is really good resistance and it does turn the flywheel, same with reverse.

 

[scrit9mm]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

I'm with Ultra for $350 it should be demonstrated to run...'73 was the conversion to exciter coil and points under the f/w and this would bring concerns to my mind...this other stuff you mention is no big deal EXCEPT for lower unit issues and these can get pricey in a hurry...did you loosen the lower unit drain screw to check for the presence of any water?...I can't say much as I bought <on impulse> an electric start 71 model with no water present and it started jumping out of gear the second time I took it out.This motor didn't run either when I got it and to top that, I knew it to be from Florida and used in saltwater...$275 initial purchase and 1 carb rebuild, 1 condenser, 2 new plugwires and terminal ends, I new head, gasket, 3 head bolts, shorting switch, new lower unit seals, water pump housing < pricey > and impeller, dog and fwd gear currently out for machining....can't recall much else. Ya know, as always, try to mitigate your losses before purchase, as in, don't do what I did and buy a motor that you can't test on a boat under power. If no other choice, expect the worst and be happy if it's less.

even with all that expense, what would you say you had in it?

I see people posting wanted ad's around here for 25hp all the time and most of them are $800 upwards. Hopefully this will not be a bad learning experience.

 

[jbjennings]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

A non-running motor that a mechanic won't fix?????? This is a red flag to me. If it could be fixed cheaply, I'd think a mechanic would do so. I personally wouldn't pay 350 for it, because I hate the ignition system on it, and because it doesn't have shallow drive except for that ratty bar that you put up under the leg. (If it's the model I'm thinking of). It's a good motor, just an annoying ignition system and not friendly on the shallow drive. I suspect a bad lower unit, and bad ignition. For $350, expect to have at least another 250-300 in it before it's reliable. If you're o.k. with that, buy it.
JMO,
JBJ

 

[scrit9mm]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

Might be showing my lack of knowlege here but what is a shallow drive?

So $350.00 for the motor/tank/carb rebuild kit/new water pump, worst case if everything is fried in the lower unit another couple of hundred bucks, still cheaper than purchasing one that is in good running shape around here.

If the lower unit was disfunctional would I be able to get resistance on the prop in forward and reverse? I would'nt think that turning the prop in this case would turn the flywheel if something were majorly wrong. Guess we will see when I bring it home!

 

[all duck'd up]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

Might be showing my lack of knowlege here but what is a shallow drive?

So $350.00 for the motor/tank/carb rebuild kit/new water pump, worst case if everything is fried in the lower unit another couple of hundred bucks, still cheaper than purchasing one that is in good running shape around here.

on most motors there is a leaver that you push down then you pick the motor up so it catches the tilt pin doing this allows you to go threw shallower water

heres a pic of mine in you can see how it picked it up

 

[scrit9mm]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

ahhh, that's not all that important to me.

 

[kbait]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

$350 for a non-runner laying around the shop..

I need to bring some of my motors down your way to sell 'em!

 

[all duck'd up]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

$350 for a non-runner laying around the shop..

I need to bring some of my motors down your way to sell 'em!

you and me both, ill hit up my local scrapyard today haha

it takes everything ive got not to pick up every motor i see out there anyways lol

 

[ultra353]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

Turning the prop with it in gear means nothing more than the lower unit is engaged, tells you nothing about the guts of the lower unit. A bad clutch dog/gear won`t show its ugly head until you have some force applied to it - i.e running. The prop could also have a spun hub that you won`t know about until its under power as well.
Were not trying to discourage you from it as these are my fav motors, just trying to give you a heads-up on what you could be getting into after buying it. Without knowing the cond of the lower unit see if the dealer will work with you on the price.

 

[scrit9mm]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

I bought it. Hopefully I wont be spending too much time on this forum with questions. Now for the manual...

 

[Vintin]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

I bought it. Hopefully I wont be spending too much time on this forum with questions. Now for the manual...

Good for you.

It will be a lesson for us all. Keep us posted.

 

[nphilbro]

Re: Buying Advice 25 horse Johnson

My personal rule of thumb is that if I the estimated cost (to the higher end) to purchase and repair the motor is at least 50% less than the market cost for a similar working motor it's worth pursuing.

This makes my time investment worth actual money, even if it is a hobby, and also covers unexpected parts.

I looked at a 1989 Merc 200hp a couple weeks back that was very clean and he only wanted $700 for it. I REALLY wanted this to be a diamond in the rough. Upon inspection, most of the ignition parts were removed or completely missing, there was no prop and the motor was on its side so I couldn't check compression - and there was something in the middle shaft area that made a "clunk" noise and stopped the flywheel from going a full 360. I went home and looked up parts and figured I could be in for about $2k to $3k easily on just the problems I could see. If the lower unit was bad or there is something seriously wrong with the block I'd be out $700 with no way to recoup my initial investment. I figured an engine that clean was scrapped for more than just a bad powerpack! No Sale.

Personally, if I found the opportunity you have I'd likely go for it. You have at least price worth of parts alone.