Can't tell you the exact year: but Winner Marlin fits. Take a look HERE.
His paperwork should have the year on it, and anything prior to 1970 is reasonable. Looks like a late 60s model.
Welcome aboard.
Some (admitted) long shots: how bad/good are your ball gears? I'm wondering if you've got a little extra play on them and when you change RPMs quick, you feel a "hit" from them re-engaging.
Might also take a look at the drive shaft between the upper and lower gear case. If it's starting to...
I personally wouldn't change to electronic ignition. I've heard too many troubles with those conversions, and honestly the boat (and cars) I've worked fine on points. Servicing, cleaning, rebuilding the carb usually never hurts.
Welcome Aboard.
That boat is most likely older than a 1972, which is when HINs would start being required. There might have been a serial number on the manufacturers plaque; but it may not have had one either.
You may have to have one assigned when you register it.
On the tilt: check your battery charge. If it's full, then it's possible you need to clean / rebuild the tilt motor. Lube for the clutch pack is a possible problem, but I would guess even after draining it and filling it (lower port side of the stern drive) that won't make a huge difference.
Have you looked at the carburetor?
I'd work backwards from the plugs at this point, and make sure I'm getting the spark I'm supposed to. But I think I'd also do some basic checks on the carb, and make sure it's working correctly.
Possibly.
But, that's not the way to do it. You're risking damage to your boat, you're not accounting for places in the hull way forward and you're not getting enough pressure on whatever is leaking.
With the boat floating, and the engine off, you can actually see the water come in to the...
As far as I'm concerned, most Stringers on muffs look like a porcupine of water. Did you confirm you were getting flow up by the engine? (or at least it stayed cool?)
You can hardly go wrong with those little boats. We used to yank the outboard, and row ours out in the lake, lash the oars and flip it over. It made a great swim platform :)
Drag it over to the sandbar, roll it back over and row home.
If the leak is in the cooling, then you should be able to see that on muffs.
With having to run the pump the entire time you were out, I'm wondering if you may have a leak at the transom boot. If it's relatively easy, put the boat in the water and get your head in the bilge and watch the water...
Been looking for the right trip to dive with manatee. I've seen them at a spot we go annually in Charleston and think they're a pretty neat critter to be around.
A recommendation: do a quick gut check, and a little internet searching. Boats are pricey right now, so patience is your best friend. For the $5k (plus a little maybe) you can probably find a decent boat in reasonable condition within the time frame it would take you to do the restoration...
