Evinrude Lark VIII '66 Selectric shift

[merc20076]

This past fall, in late october, I purchased a old Crestliner fiberglass 14' with a 1966 Evinrude Lark VIII Selectric shift. (40 HP) I tested it on water before purchasing it and everything was running ok. Since I live up north, I changed the oil from the lower gearcase for storage season (inside). But the problem, I used normal Quicksilver gearlube. DO I have to re-change for type C? Could it occur damages. Anyways, I dind't restart the engine since.

Also, were those evinrude good outboards? Parts still available? What were the problems of these motors? Shifting Control?



I restored pretty much the boat with a new coat of paint, but the boat is in very good shape.

 

[F_R]

Re: Evinrude Lark VIII '66 Selectric shift

This past fall, in late october, I purchased a old Crestliner fiberglass 14' with a 1966 Evinrude Lark VIII Selectric shift. I tested it on water before purchasing it and everything was running ok. Since I live up north, I changed the oil from the lower gearcase for storage season (inside). But the problem, I used normal Quicksilver gearlube. DO I have to re-change for type C? Could it occur damages. Anyways, I dind't restart the engine since.

Also, were those evinrude good outboards? Parts still available? What were the problems of these motors? Shifting Control?



I restored pretty much the boat with a new coat of paint, but the boat is in very good shape.

Do put in the right oil. Heavy oil can cause slippage and wear of the clutches. They are great motors, outselling the manual shift motors by a considerable margin--at least where I worked. But that was 1966 and this is 2010. They are still good motors, but they are plagued by misunderstanding, poor maintenance, improper repairs, ignorance, and hard-to-find parts that are very expensive when you do find them. Most shops won't touch them because they require special tools and their service personell don't know how to work on them. Did I mention ignorance?

 

[merc20076]

Re: Evinrude Lark VIII '66 Selectric shift

I will rechange the gearcase oil for type C right before the boating season. Right now it sits in my garage (arround 45?F) I payed 1500$ (CDN) for everything. Everything seemed to work very well when I tested the boat, with 3 adults, I was going at arround 25-27 mph.

There are still parts available for 1969 40 HP on shop.evinrude.com , is it the same model of it's different than a '66.

But how the selectric shift works? Something electric in the lower unit?

 

[Jeep Man]

Re: Evinrude Lark VIII '66 Selectric shift

Where are you located. I've got a Lark and some parts from my 14' Crestliner that I scrapped that you might want. I need the space.