1972 Evinrude 60

[Trackbolt]

Can one of you OMC gentlemen tell me about this motor. 1972 Evinrude 60 hp. Number of cylinders, reliability etc. My son and I are going to look at one in running condition but I am not familiar with the model at all.

Thanks

Track

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: 1972 Evinrude 60

3cylinder, hydroelectric shift, which the shift solenoids in the lower unit are extremely hard to find, if you do expensive. no taletale steam. the lower unit has a oil pump that shifts the gear, the solenoids direct the flow of oil, for the shift. i have a 71 50hp, that i am going to replace, as the solenoids are bad, and i now only have forward, the motor defaults to forward gear, if no electricity to the solenoids, so you can still get home. unless it is an extremely good deal, i would go for 73 newer, 73 is hydro assist shift, still has oil pump, but shift direction is mechanical, rather than electric solenoid. 78 and newer is all mechanical shift.

 

[F_R]

Re: 1972 Evinrude 60

No such thing as a 1972 60hp. There was a 1970 & 1971 60hp. 1972 was a 65hp. The 65 has a much better ignition system. The Hydro-electric is not to be feared. The solenoids may be hard to find, but fortunatly you don't often need to. The big bummer is the push button switch in the remote control. That is a troublesome item and hard to find and expensive. Speaking of that, the wiring and remote control are part of the motor. If you don't get that stuff, you aren't getting a whole motor.

 

[HighTrim]

Re: 1972 Evinrude 60

Whenever I go look at a motor, I like to check the compression, spark, and bring a large slot screwdriver to have a peek at the first bit of oil that comes out of the lower unit drain screw, a little milky white or chocolaty, there is water intrusion.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: 1972 Evinrude 60

If yours is really the 1972 model, I have the Johnson version of it and the other contributor is correct - it would be a three cylinder 65hp. I bought mine for $400 and put about $1,200 into it intially by taking it to my OMC dealer to have the carbs rebuilt, water pump rebuilt, rectifier replaced, total lube, etc. I also did a bit of work on it myself after a few weeks of running revealed some other problems. In total, I have less than $2,000 in the motor and am very pleased with it. I live in an area where we can enjoy our boats 12 months per year so it is run often - as in "the guys are tearing the Specks up, down in Lafitte and I need to get there this Sunday morning!!!"

What you end up with in the long run reallly depends a lot on the condition of the motor when you buy it. I wouldn't advise buying one if it is a high time, salt water motor. Mine, on the other hand, was a very low time, fresh water motor. It wasn't perfect but there were obvious signs of not having been used much, such as original paint that was hardly worn, even at the skeg, and very high compression values. I did take somewhat of a gamble but I rationalized that in my own mind by paying a price for the motor that would have enabled me to part it out on EBay, had turned out to be in need of too much work.

Compared to todays motors, and has been mentioned by others, these motors are unusual in that they have electric shift. There are two types of shifters available - one with the push button selector and one (Johnson version) that has a single lever that both advances the throttle and triggers the electrical circuits which result in activation of the solenoids in the lower unit. As was mentioned, the engine defaults to forward gear, so if you lose the electrical connection for some reason, you can still operate in forward. When the motor is running and in neutral, one of the solenoids activates and holds it in that position. Selecting reverse activates the second solenoid and results in enagement of the reverse gear.

One of the things to be aware of when buying one of these motors is the condition of the wiring that runs from the inside of the cowl down the leg to the lower unit. They often become brittle and have to be replaced. Mine was OK so I didn't have to spend the couple of hundred dollars that a replacement piece costs. Another common issue with these motors is that the seal where the wiring enters the inside of the cowl is often dried up and ineffective. This causes exhaust gases to back up into the cowl, where they will be ingested by the carbs, resulting in lowered performance of the engine. There is a simple fix, however. Mine had this problem and I just bought some heat resistant silcone in a tube (available at any auto parts store) and sealed it. That was many hours of running ago and I have had no problems with it since then.

On the issue of control units, I agree that it is best to try to get one with the motor but they are around if you look a bit. The bigger issue in my mind is making sure that however you get one, that it includes the yellow plug for connection to its counterpart in the engine cowling. If the plug isn't there the CU will just be a source of parts to fix another one and if it isn't yellow, it isn't the right one.

One more things about this LU - it requires "Type C" gear oil or its equivalent. This is not a big deal but you do have to make sure that it is serviced with the correct lube.

One tip that might not get mentioned otherwise because it is not strictly realted to reliability, etc., is that the '72s and older do not have steering tubes in the transom mount assembly. That means that you will have to buy a conversion kit, which consists of an aluminum plate with a threaded tube welded to it and a more or less standard steering arm to attach to the motor and your steering cable/rod. The aluminum plate is bolted to the transom via the engine's upper mounting bolts. These assemblies are available through aftermarket suppliers such as Donovan. I paid a little over $200 for mine and it works just fine.

If you get a good one, these can be great motors - just choose carefully and pay the right price if you do decide to go ahead.

 

[Trackbolt]

Re: 1972 Evinrude 60

Thank all of you for the replies. The ad said 1972 60 HP. That is why I put it out here. I answered the ad but the gentleman has not called me back. I'll go have a look if he does. I am sure it is a salt water motor as down here that is bout all there is. He's asking $200 obo.

 

[R.Johnson]

Re: 1972 Evinrude 60

When you look at the engine, I would take someone along who has some knowledge of outboards, and know's what he's looking at.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: 1972 Evinrude 60

I was just looking at your share-a-project page and I hope this motor is not for the boat you are restoring! The '58 Bigtwin is the one to go on that boat!

BTW, I read your comments about getting decent pressure tanks for the "Rude. If you would like to do that just to maintain the original configuration, I can see that but don't feel that you have to. These engines are very easily converted for use with a fuel pump/single line tank. There are two ways to do it, as follows:

The original bypass covers actually have the "bosses" on them to mount a fuel pump because the Gale version at the time, had one. To convert using the existing covers, remove the lower one and drill the center boss all the way through to provide the pressure/vacuum source to the pump. Then partially drill and tap the other two holes to the correct thread size for mounting the pump. You will then be able to mount a stock pump but you must do it upside down so it doesn't hit the cowl pan. The reason why you can't mount the pump on the upper cover, rightside up, like the later 28hp and 33hp motors, it that the bosses on the older motors are molded into the cover very slightly higher than the newer ones. This causes the throttle control rod (located under the port side of the fly wheel) to hit the top of the fuel pump. Once you have the new pump on, mount a stock, single line connector on the motor, in place of the old two line connecter. It will fit without modification. The last step is to close off the pressure outlet on the bottom of the intake manifold cover, which will be open because there will no longer be a hose connected to it. Remove the threaded nipple and repalce it with a SHORT bolt or screw of the same size. Be sure to use a soft, oil resistant washer to provide a seal. The reason why I am saying to use a short bolt is that one that is too long will hit the leaf plate behind the cover.

The second method is to simply find an upper bypass cover from a 28hp or 33hp motor. They are externally exactly the same, with the exception of the lower, already prepared mounting surface. I can't say with certainty that he inside curvature of the bypass cover is the same because I have never compared them that closely, or compared part numbers, but they will fit the motor perfectly. I also made this change on one of my '58 Bigtwins and it has run fine for hundreds of hours. If you go this route, just bolt everything together and complete steps 2 and 3, above.

 

[Trackbolt]

Re: 1972 Evinrude 60

Jay,

The 58 Bigtwin is going on the Alumacraft. The Alumacraft Open C is rated for 50 hp and the '58 Bigtwin 35 has always pushed the boat along at a respectable 30 mph. That combination of boat and motor was sold as a package in 1958. My son found the 72 in the paper and both of us got curious. We are looking to overhaul a twin cylinder water cooled motor. Like my dad I am partial to OMC motors. I would rather start with something smaller than that 60 and one where the parts are more common at a reasonable price. Anyway the motor was sold by the time I responded to the ad. The guy said he got his asking price of $200.00. I decided to keep the pressurized system on the '58. I did some trading for two good six gallon pressurized tanks and it will only cost me for new lines and o rings for the quick couplers. The fuel pump conversion looks easy though. I have stalled on the Alumacraft restoration due to a heavy work schedule but it is getting moved into the garage this weekend so I can finish up the hull work this winter. I have all of the motor ignition and water pump parts and paint for the boat interior now all I need is time to finish it up.

Thanks all, for all the advice.