Re: Out of water test for a Mercury 500
Welcome to iboats.<br /><br />There are things called Flushettes (commonly called Muffs) that attach to a garden hose and slip onto the gearcase and cover the water intakes. You can buy them just about anyplace you can get boat stuff.<br /><br />When was the motor run last? Is it in running condition according to the seller? There are things I automatically do on a used outboard. Rebuild the water pump, replace the sparkplugs, and change the gearlube. It would also be a real good idea to rebuild the fuel pump on that motor. Parts for all that should be in the $50 ballpark, maybe a bit more. Labor to do all that would be quite a bit more.