Hi,

I saw an ad. for a sea king 3.0 hp outboard. I'm wondering is it harder
to find parts or service for a sea king than for other brands like
Johnson. This is my first boat motor. any comments is welcomed.
thanks.

s.o.

wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi,

I saw an ad. for a sea king 3.0 hp outboard. I'm wondering is it harder
to find parts or service for a sea king than for other brands like
Johnson. This is my first boat motor. any comments is welcomed.
thanks.

I have Sea Kings, have rebuilt them, and have a manual.

It depends on the year. There still are some parts out there.
Im Rebuilding a 1981 S.K. 7.5 right now, and I had to dig
around on the web, but "almost" all parts are available.
Ask the guy for the model number, and then look around
on the web to see if parts are abailable. It depends on the
price, and the year really. More than likely its a Chrysler
Force engine. Some years were Ok, some more
problematic (recoil starter problems etc). They do run well.




s.o.

Remember the older motors were HP rated at the flywheel, whereas later
ones (around late '80's onward) are rated at the prop - abt a 1 HP
difference in these small sizes in practical output. If you can find a
good deal on a not-abused 2.5 HP Nissan/Tohatsu/Mariner (all the same)
you will not only have a little more pwr stock, but if you take the
little aluminum restrictor plate out of the carb it will be a 3.5
HPssshhh!. You can still get parts for these and more easily too, as
they are still in production, but they are expensive.

I found a higher-pitch 2-bladed Al prop locally at a prop shop (no clue
where you'd find one now) for my 2.5, removed the restrictor plate, and
it will plane me alone on my 7'6" inflatable on a calm lake & runs like
a raped ape (for a tiny 22 lb motor). By comparison, my earlier type 3
HP 2 cylinder Evinrude in perfect condition has less poop than the 2.5
stock.

On Sat, 23 Jul 2005 07:33:43 -0700, "Mr Wizzard"
wrote:


wrote in message
roups.com...
Hi,

I saw an ad. for a sea king 3.0 hp outboard. I'm wondering is it harder
to find parts or service for a sea king than for other brands like
Johnson. This is my first boat motor. any comments is welcomed.
thanks.

I have Sea Kings, have rebuilt them, and have a manual.

It depends on the year. There still are some parts out there.
Im Rebuilding a 1981 S.K. 7.5 right now, and I had to dig
around on the web, but "almost" all parts are available.
Ask the guy for the model number, and then look around
on the web to see if parts are abailable. It depends on the
price, and the year really. More than likely its a Chrysler
Force engine. Some years were Ok, some more
problematic (recoil starter problems etc). They do run well.


I have a early 1970's 5 hp Sea King that I have been working to
restore after it sat for 25 years. Smaller Sea Kings in the late 60s
and early 70s were built by Clinton Engines which have gone out of
business. There are some parts available from a person who apparently
bought a stock of parts and maybe the name out of bankruptcy. They are
reachable only by phone (you get an answering machine that does not
even say you have reached Clinton engines - it just asks for your name
and number and they call you back). Personally I would not buy a Sea
King of that era - maybe earlier and maybe later, but not if it is a
Clinton made model.

The Other Dave Hall

wrote in message
oups.com...

By comparison, my earlier type 3
HP 2 cylinder Evinrude in perfect condition has less poop than the 2.5
stock.

Evinrude made a 2-cylinder "3" HP? Wow, whats
that got, like a 1-inch bore per cylinder. Thats cool.
I have the number for the dude on the East coast
that bought up all them Force/SeaKing parts if
needed. And yeah, stay away from the Clinton.
The Force's in the late 70's, early 80's had lots
of problems with the crazy spool-gear type recoil
starter, and such, but when a motor is free, money
spend for parts is not so bad. Speaking of old motors,
I recently did a full rebuild of a 1974 Sears Gamefisher
7.5, and almost ALL parts are still available including
pistons, and all bearings. This is a one-lunger Techumseh.
Old outboards are fun. (expecially when they run after
rebuild)

Mr Wizzard wrote:

Evinrude made a 2-cylinder "3" HP? Wow, whats
that got, like a 1-inch bore per cylinder.

Very common motor in its day.

Thats cool.
I have the number for the dude on the East coast
that bought up all them Force/SeaKing parts if
needed. And yeah, stay away from the Clinton.
The Force's in the late 70's, early 80's had lots
of problems with the crazy spool-gear type recoil
starter, and such, but when a motor is free, money
spend for parts is not so bad. Speaking of old motors,
I recently did a full rebuild of a 1974 Sears Gamefisher
7.5, and almost ALL parts are still available including
pistons, and all bearings. This is a one-lunger Techumseh.
Old outboards are fun. (expecially when they run after
rebuild)

A hobby of restoring or playing with motors is fun, personally
rewarding and not to be dissed, even respected. But for practical &
reliable use these are, well, bottom-of-the-barrel motors & were so
even when new. Any 5HP 2-stroke less than 20 yrs old will outpower a
'70's 7.5 Gamefisher & be more reliable to boot - and is available for
the same or much less than the cost & time of hunting up & buying parts
for one. I have my share of small junkers around, too, Gales & such,
but it is wiser to put any effort or even parts into a good-performing
model of motor. The cheapos also use much richer oil mixes, which gets
expensive & dirtier.

wrote in message
ups.com...
Mr Wizzard wrote:

Evinrude made a 2-cylinder "3" HP? Wow, whats
that got, like a 1-inch bore per cylinder.

Very common motor in its day.

Thats cool.
I have the number for the dude on the East coast
that bought up all them Force/SeaKing parts if
needed. And yeah, stay away from the Clinton.
The Force's in the late 70's, early 80's had lots
of problems with the crazy spool-gear type recoil
starter, and such, but when a motor is free, money
spend for parts is not so bad. Speaking of old motors,
I recently did a full rebuild of a 1974 Sears Gamefisher
7.5, and almost ALL parts are still available including
pistons, and all bearings. This is a one-lunger Techumseh.
Old outboards are fun. (expecially when they run after
rebuild)

A hobby of restoring or playing with motors is fun, personally
rewarding and not to be dissed, even respected. But for practical &
reliable use these are, well, bottom-of-the-barrel motors & were so
even when new. Any 5HP 2-stroke less than 20 yrs old will outpower a
'70's 7.5 Gamefisher & be more reliable to boot - and is available for
the same or much less than the cost & time of hunting up & buying parts
for one. I have my share of small junkers around, too, Gales & such,
but it is wiser to put any effort or even parts into a good-performing
model of motor. The cheapos also use much richer oil mixes, which gets
expensive & dirtier.

All very very true. The old junkers given to me (Gamefisher included)
was my first introduction to boat motors in general. And since well
versed at rebuilding small engines in general, this was a natural for me.
After I learned what you just stated, I went out and bought a brand
new 2005 Johnson 8 2-stroke for my Zodiac, and then understood.