Stinger Swap

Winter is the perfect time 

to scrounge for boat chit.

The so-cal conditions aren't too bad,

it seems the dark at 5pm 

messes with people.

People give stuff away!

On my craigslist hunting,

I found this oddball 1980's Force 90hp...

Free!

On funny enough the same boat as ours.

All it needed was a quick white cowl paint, 

to ditch the goofy pink and blue graphics.

The Force line has the worst reputation.

The engine is a bulletproof chrysler design.

Marketed to first time boaters,

the abuse comes from not cleaning the salt,

forgetting to mix 2-stroke oil,

not emptying the carb gas when stored,

not checking lower unit oil,

and most likely over-revving.

This one was a peach.

Equal 130 psi compression,

looked brand new under the cowl.

The perfect Baja motor,

it's going to Cabo to live in La Paz,

not with us though...

A concurrent score was this gem,

a 1974 Johnson 85hp v-4,

at about half the asking price!

Why do guys like to strip down perfect Whalers?

Hey I'll make it easy for them!

All the pieces were there,

just not put together.

This had baked in Palm Springs for years,

thankfully it was mechanically clean.

A rattlecan touch-up freshened the outside.

And wow after finding a fuel blockage,

this thing didn't want to stop.

My quick cowl spray paint was marginal,

and unused Johnson decals

were a needed distraction.

This one had 125-130 compression,

and would have been 

the period perfect backup outboard,

since our whaler is 1970.

Johnson/evinrude kept this solid design 

from 1974-1996 I think,

and these engines can run forever.

But again not on our boat!

This one left too,

finding the perfect home on an old glastron.

This deal was sweet,

as there was a trade option.

The owner had a 70's Johnson 70hp

with a dead lower unit.

How could I resist!

Well after some quick sleuthing,

this turned out to be even better,

a clean 1977 Johnson 75hp Stinger!

This was the hot chit back then!

Tons of race records broken,

all before power tilt/trim was standard.

This design also set the stage for Yamaha,

who used the inline 3-cylinder model as a base,

for the 90hp that we have now.

It's crazy how similar these engines are,

basically a reverse engineered copy.

It made giving up the 85hp easier!

Now the hunt is on for a lower unit.

The original is way trashed.

I doubt I'll get the cool Stinger graphics.

Crazy hippies...

Anyway,

always something fun!

TP