How good are older Mercury outboards

[freybaby]

I am looking to buy an older 20-30 hp tiller motor--I have been told that some of the Mercs had problems in the past ( the ones with the blue stripes)--not sure if this is correct or not--Also how do the older Evinrudes and Johnsons stack up?

Thanks for any input you may have

 

[JB]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

They were all good in their day.

They must have been good to still be around.

How good they are today depends entirely on the care and/or abuse they have had.

 

[turtles11756]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

the old mercs were very well made motors or the collection i have here would have been in some scrap pile long ago

 

[sschefer]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

It all depends on what you are comparing it too. If you're looking at a new motor and comparing a 20 year old motor to it then the old motor will pale in comparison regardless of brand.

If you're looking at buying an old motor and expecting it to run like it did when it was new or even just decent, it's probably not going to happen. The problem is not with the motor, it's the fuel we have today compared to then.

You can put some money in it and make it run pretty decent provided you know what you're doing.

 

[freybaby]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

I appreciate everyone's input--I guess what I was really asking was whether or not a certain year or range of years for the older Mercs were known to have a lot of problems. A co worker told me he believed the motors that had a blue stripe on the engine covers were in this time period and suggested I avoid these--figured I could get better feedback from a larger group of people or if this was misinformation on his part

 

[coolguy147]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

broken and corroded bolts and wiring i've found to be the worst things on the motors

good motors but corrosion which affects all motors but merc tend to be the worst because of the materials they used.

keep a good water pump!!! trust me

 

[starcraft1982]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

As stated,it depends on how they were cared for and maintained.The internal wiring is definately the "weak link"of older mercs.If any had certain "issues",I would believe they would have been worked out(or fixed)if theyre still running today.Make sure compression is good and spark is good.If you want to keep it for a while,when you get one,replace ALL fuel lines.rebuild carb,do waterpump rebuild,do fuel pump rebuild.Of course,if youre like most people,youll buy it,run it(w/no maintenance done),break it and swear off mercs forever.Treat it right and itll treat you right.

 

[sschefer]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

Traditionaly Merc used blue for the salt water motors and red for the fresh water motors. Salty's that were actually used in salt water don't weather well even with the added protection that merc provides them.

Its human nature to consider that a motor that was made for saltwater should last without special maintenance. Unfortunately, that's just not the case.

A lot of them also ended up on work boats where the motor is considered disposable and replaced on a regular basis.

Many times you'll open up one of these motors and find corrosion that makes the motor not worth repairing.

If you can, try to find a motor that has only been used in fresh water. Your odds of ending up with a usable or rebuildable motor will be better.

 

[8hygro]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

It all depends on what you are comparing it too. If you're looking at a new motor and comparing a 20 year old motor to it then the old motor will pale in comparison regardless of brand.

If you're looking at buying an old motor and expecting it to run like it did when it was new or even just decent, it's probably not going to happen. The problem is not with the motor, it's the fuel we have today compared to then.

You can put some money in it and make it run pretty decent provided you know what you're doing.

Very true...and issues with "pump fuel" is one of the primary reason's for the four stroke engine development.

8hygro

 

[chum1]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

Blue or redband I dont think makes much difference, Parts might be harder to find for the old distributer style ignition ( and there is more moving parts) vs the coil per each cyl. type ignition, but mercs are good and worth working on. Anything made of rubber,gasket and seals you can find easy and replace. CDI makes electrical parts new, good quality and readily available (although over priced),

If you haven't had good luck working on your car or lawnmower dont think these engines will be any easier, if you've had good luck you will find they are pretty easy.

If your so worried about fuel burn 100LL avgas with 50:1 oil mix (although 5 bucks a gallon) pump gas works just fine in my 70's vintage 85hp, just have to flush it out with avgas at the end of the season.

 

[sschefer]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

Blue or redband I dont think makes much difference, Parts might be harder to find for the old distributer style ignition ( and there is more moving parts) vs the coil per each cyl. type ignition, but mercs are good and worth working on. Anything made of rubber,gasket and seals you can find easy and replace. CDI makes electrical parts new, good quality and readily available (although over priced),

If you haven't had good luck working on your car or lawnmower dont think these engines will be any easier, if you've had good luck you will find they are pretty easy.

If your so worried about fuel burn 100LL avgas with 50:1 oil mix (although 5 bucks a gallon) pump gas works just fine in my 70's vintage 85hp, just have to flush it out with avgas at the end of the season.

I used to have many of the same thoughts. As time went on and I gained experience and knowledge with several motors, I began to see things differently.

 

[jbjennings]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

The older mercs are good motors, but some have expensive electrical parts that no amount of "care and maintenance" will protect. The pre-'76 mercs had mild steel drive shafts that were prone to rust pitting around the seal area over time---regardless of care and maintenace.
If you're interested in a 20-30hp merc, try to get one after '76 when they have stainless drive shafts, but regardless CHECK THE LOWER UNIT OIL!
Also, check on some of the internet parts diagrams before you buy and find out how much some of the electrical parts cost to replace. Triggers, switchboxes, etc. can be darned expensive. I personally find the older mercs lower units to be really sturdy if kept sealed well. The "shift in the handle" mercs have a lot of trouble with clutch dogs and reverse gears (from the 80's). The 70's 20hp mercs were really fine running and super fast motors for a 20hp, BTW.
Good luck,
JBJ

 

[SeaKaye12]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

Traditionaly Merc used blue for the salt water motors and red for the fresh water motors.

I'm really surprised to see you saying that. Do you mean the older 60's and 70's and 80's engines?

It has always seemed to me at ALL Mercs from 1968 or so were red band until about 1972 when they shifted to Blue Band...until about 1984 when they went brown....then after that the cowling designs varied all over the map.

Maybe you are referring to newer "Salt Water Series" of engines?

Chuck

 

[coolguy147]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

the older mercs had wayyy better lower units. they were spring loaded into foward gear.

my 1961 merc500 has a good driveshaft and it sat for about 20 years before i tore into it?

i usually rub a little bit of oil around the driveshaft or grease to keep it dirty.

 

[sschefer]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

I think there's been blue water, salt water, brown water, yellow water, green water, gray water..... Well you get the drift.. Who's to say for sure. I really depends on how much the original owner paid attention when you boil it all down.

 

[79Glastron]

Re: How good are older Mercury outboards

It sounds like most of the motors you are hunting are gonna be 2 cylinders. I would get one with fully electric ignition, in other words, no points. My `75 75 Mercury has been trouble free since day one, I believe it was the first year for coil per cylinder in the smaller motors. My `75 500 still has the ignition driver.