1980 Gamefisher

Joined
Aug 30, 2022
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8
Hey ya'll.

Just picked up a gamefisher 7.5 model number 217-585932 (1980 model). I am new when it comes to gas outboards but have a little experience with small motors but not much with 2 stroke motors. The outboard itself seems to run well. It is incredibly clean. I am just not sure about oil to use, fuel mix, best stuff to use. I guess my question is what should I do to keep it in good running condition. Is there anything I should be worried about with this motor? Thanks for reading! Happy boating!
 

brim_buster

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1,219
40:1 mix with TC-W3 oil. Regular foot marine foot oil. In-line fuel filter between tank and carb.
 

tpenfield

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Small outboards seem to have a mind of their own. Most problems are fuel delivery (carburetor) and cooling (impeller).

I usually run a high concentration of curb/injector cleaner in the first tank after a layup (winter) to make sure the carb is not getting gummed up.

Mercury Powertune (spray) is great for internal engine cleaning, should it ever need such.

You will want to verify the manufacturer of the engine (Tanaka, Eska, etc.) to cross reference any replacement parts needed.
 

matt167

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Sep 27, 2012
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TCw3 may not actually be the correct oil since they are air cooled. It is basically a techumseh 2 stroke lawn mower engine. However lawn boy did spec TCw3 for their push mowers but they were part of OMC. Its an Eska motor
 

tpenfield

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I found a parts list online that indicates water cooled. Maybe the OP can verify.

I'd actually like to find an air-cooled 7.5 myself :LOL:
 

matt167

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I found a parts list online that indicates water cooled. Maybe the OP can verify.

I'd actually like to find an air-cooled 7.5 myself :LOL:
The exhaust is water cooled. They have an impeller. But air cooled motor. Game fishers after 85 were force
 
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Aug 30, 2022
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The exhaust is water cooled. They have an impeller. But air cooled motor. Game fishers after 85 were force
This is correct. Since it's an 80 model it's an eska. I'm curious as to if there's a manual floating around online I saw the reproductions on eBay and I have found that Sears parts direct still have the part numbers but no longer sell them. I'd like any info on it. When I saw it running before I bought it it wasn't really shooting water like a traditional outboards would but I've also read in some old post that it more mists than shoots water. Not sure the accuracy of that info.
 
Joined
Aug 30, 2022
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UPDATE:
So I have taken the motor out and put it through some testing. My first impression is that the motor is in great condition and seems to run pretty good. The fuel tank does have some surface rust or corrosion in the gas tank luckily the filter that is plumbed in took care of that. The motor seemed to idle okay. When the throttle was in the lower half of the shift zone it wanted to die but always started back up not sure if I can adjust the carb float to help this out. We were in a no wake zone so we couldnt go WOT but once we figure out the right trim we should be good to go to a bigger lake and wind it out.
 

brim_buster

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I dont trust what most people say when it comes to buying boat motors....LOL. Id take it apart and check the fuel pump bladder and inspect the carb
 
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Aug 30, 2022
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2nd Update:

Went out to my garage to work on a different project and noticed something peculiar. There was some ooze from the fill screw on the lower unit running down. Looks like chocolate milk so I know what that means, contaminated lower. I've got amsoil marine gear oil coming in so I can do a service. I'm hoping that the fill screw is to blame and while it is tight I don't think it's making a good enough seal. Updates to follow.....hopefully I don't have to make gaskets to re seal the entire lower.
 
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Aug 30, 2022
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3rd update:

Ok so we got the lower unit oil flushed and changed out. When I took everything apart the fill screw was missing it's gasket, so I'm assuming that how we mixed but won't know until it shows more signs of mixing but right now it still looks good. We ended up reinstalling the shift linkage wrong and we thought we broke something but after adjusting the shift linkage the motor works pretty well. At WOT the motor seems to skip twice but other than that ran well. I am not entirely sure why but overall it is working well. The neutral stop advance rod is broken and we're not sure how long it's been broken but that may be why is it doesn't love it idle but once we switched to traditional 2 stroke oil and not the Stihl mix we had lying around it seemed to idle well. Propels the boat at 3mph at the top of shift zone/start so over doing well. Will update with any other things we plan to do. I know we would like to get rid of the corrosion and rust in the fuel tank so that will be a winter project
 
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