1973 Johnson 65hp...what do you think?

Hi Everyone,

I recently acquired a Johnson 65ESL73R outboard motor and controls. It came on a boat I bought.

I’ll start off with what I do know:
1. It is a monster and heavy! LOL
2. Each cylinder has 130psi compression
3. Stator is leaking black goo
4. Parts that are still available are easier to find in the US, but the majority of the major players don’t ship to Canada.

What I do not know:
1. If it will start
2. How much money I would need to put into it for it to be rock solid reliable.
3. If it is even worth sinking money into
4. When I’m going to need an essential part that is no longer available.

I’ve read and been told, sell it. Not worth putting anything into it unless I wanted to match it to a restored boat from a similar era, etc., and even then, it’s throwing money away that could be better spent on something newer.

It does not have PTT which, if it did, I’d be more inclined to keep it.

What are your thoughts?

Thanks for the advice!

From a visual standpoint, the outboard looks to be well maintained...







Third pic shows the leaking resin from the stator.

The "resin" from under the stator is the most concerning thing. I would pop off the flywheel and see if you can identify exactly where it's coming from. It's highly likely this is a leaky seal from top of the crankshaft. Fairly easy repair to pop the seal out once the flywheel is off. Check to see if the seal is availalble in CA.

Good Luck!

If it is an electric shift model RUN!! The electric shift parts are expensive if you can even find them

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kofkorn said:

The "resin" from under the stator is the most concerning thing. I would pop off the flywheel and see if you can identify exactly where it's coming from. It's highly likely this is a leaky seal from top of the crankshaft. Fairly easy repair to pop the seal out once the flywheel is off. Check to see if the seal is availalble in CA.

Good Luck!

Click to expand...

I’ll be pulling the flywheel this fall, but I’m pretty sure that black goo isn’t oil. It’s more of a tar-like substance that has hardened.

GYPSY400 said:

If it is an electric shift model RUN!! The electric shift parts are expensive if you can even find them

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Click to expand...

Nope, not the electric shift on this outboard.

AnglerRoy said:

GYPSY400 said:

If it is an electric shift model RUN!! The electric shift parts are expensive if you can even find them

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Click to expand...

Nope, not the electric shift on this outboard.

Click to expand...

In that case I think it's worth tinkering with.
I'd take my time over the fall and the winter and investigate the goo under the flywheel. If that issue turns out to be nothing serious ( possibly a crank seal or something melted inside the stator) then clean the carbs, replace the water pump and gear oil ( I'd pressure test the bottom end too) and it should be good to go..
I would pay special attention to the entire ignition system and replace anything that looks suspect to failure, even replace all three coils if you can find them for a decent price.
Www.marineengine.com is a good source for part numbers.. you can buy from there too, but once shipping and dollar exchange is factored in, a lot of the time it's easier to buy from a local dealer. Another good source is EBay once you have your part numbers.
Expect a budget of $500 To get this motor running reliably.

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Thanks for the advice! I’m gonna do just that and hope for the best! I didn’t think of a bottom end pressure test, good idea!

There might be (honestly I need to investigate it further) a CDI conversion kit available, which I would assume is fairly reliable and less money than the replacement ignition components.

MarineEngine is a great resource, unfortunately they don’t ship to Canada.