1971 50hp Hydroelectric- How much is she worth?

[Jacob645]

I bought this motor thinking maybe it would come in handy if I needed some spare parts for my 1975 50hp but nothing I needed was interchangeable. I was told by the previous owner that it ran last time he used it and was only getting rid of it to repower his pontoon boat. It has no controls.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: 1971 50hp Hydroelectric- How much is she worth?

You need to reduce the size of your photos so we don't have to scroll left/right to see the entire pic and read the text in every post.

Since you don't have the control box, which is a big disadvantage since this motor is a hydro-electric shift and won't work with anything but a hydro-electric control, I'm going to guess that you don't know if the engine will run. The same goes for whether or not it will shift.

By the looks of the motor, I'll also hazard a guess that it will do neither. That being the case, and given that you don't have the control box, this engine is worth very little. I doubt I would pay you anything for it at all, because it is obvious that it has not been taken care of. That would make me question the condition of the key components, which would make it very expensive to restore.

 

[Jacob645]

Re: 1971 50hp Hydroelectric- How much is she worth?

Ok. Why is there all that chalky stuff on the flywheel? It looks like saltwater or something? Weird because the guy lives here in East Texas, and it was on a pontoon. Oh well. Is the cover worth anything? The starter also looks really new so maybe it will be of use to someone. Can I just hotwire the starter to see if it works? Maybe I should just scrap it.

 

[1960-lonestar]

Re: 1971 50hp Hydroelectric- How much is she worth?

craigslist it for 100.00 i did with mine when i had it and it was gone within one weekend orbro meening take what ya can out of it . electric drives are to sensitive and exspensive to restore or to maintain i dont know what you have in it yourself but hey someone else might need it who knows.
1960-lonestar

 

[CATransplant]

Re: 1971 50hp Hydroelectric- How much is she worth?

Based on the deposits, I'd be willing to bet that outboard has been submerged. Since you can't start it, and don't have the controls, take whatever some poor soul will give you for it.

 

[Starppy]

Re: 1971 50hp Hydroelectric- How much is she worth?

The LU is probably the only thing of real value. You could probably pull it and test the soleniods. If they test out good and the LU oil is clean the LU might be worth $300 or so on ebay. You can't get the solenoids anymore.

You might be able to get $30-50 for the prop as well if it's in good shape.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: 1971 50hp Hydroelectric- How much is she worth?

The white stuff is corrosion - that's what aluminum looks like when it corrodes. It may or may not have been submerged. I've seen motors that look like that, without having been under water.

As for hydro-electric motors - they can be great if they are in good shape. I have a 1972 Johnson 65hp on my boat that has been just fine. I recently used it to do a search for the Coast Guard and ran about 110 miles of shoreline, looking for a boat that was believed to have made a Mayday call. I do this sort of thing on a semi-regular basis and have no qualms about using my old motor for such a purpose.

The problem with your motor, however, is that it looks like it has been severly neglected. That means that you have to wonder about the condition of all of its systems. That's why I said that I wouldn't offer any money for it - there is just too much risk involved in trying to resurrect this engine.

 

[R.Johnson]

Re: 1971 50hp Hydroelectric- How much is she worth?

If a creature, such as a mouse get's inside the hood , and build's a nest, the whole powerhead will look like that. We see that here quite offen when a farmer store's his boat in a machine shed, or out building. They can really raise heck with the wiring, and hoses also.

 

[w2much]

Re: 1971 50hp Hydroelectric- How much is she worth?

I have been posting one in better shape for 150.00. No takers.

 

[Saskatoon2005]

Re: 1971 50hp Hydroelectric- How much is she worth?

People tend to shy away from the hydro-electric shift as they can be bothersome. Yes, iknow people will argue about this, but just from past experience i would shy away from it as well.

 

[chocsea]

Re: 1971 50hp Hydroelectric- How much is she worth?

I have a 100hp electric shift that i retired two years ago.....it's 38 years old , and the only thing aside from carbs , waterpumps ,and spark plugs ,an occasional coil or plug wire....has been the lower unit...I replaced 4 in its very faithfull career...hang on to the lower unit and the ignition system thats about the most wanted items... good luck

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: 1971 50hp Hydroelectric- How much is she worth?

My experience with these motors, is that the hydro-electric shift system can be fine, if the motor was well taken care of. If the gearcase has been properly sealed at all times, and the gear oil has been changed at proper intervals, the solenoids and shifting system will usually continue to work for years to come. If there is a weak point in the system, it is the shift switch in the control box, which often fails due to wear over the years. There are, however, "work-arounds" for the lack of NOS parts for this.

I can't say the same for original ignition parts. I've been very pleased with my 1972 Johnson 65hp motor, but had to completely rebuild the ignition system. In my case, the expense was worth it, because the gearbox and control box are fine, and the motor is in very good mechanical shape.

With these motors, the rule is pretty much - "if they're in good all-around shape, they can be great motors, but if they have been neglected, they can be huge money pits."

 

[freddyray21]

Re: 1971 50hp Hydroelectric- How much is she worth?

at best in that condition it's more like a parts motor to me. If I had to make an offer it would be 50 dollars