Hey guys, been reading on the many lengthy great restoration threads on here. Just joined the party, I picked up a 1983 160 SS in pretty good shape on a nice tilt trailer with a questionable 1983 johnson 50hp for $550 in upstate NY. I came from a super heavy 17ft glass boat I sold last year and vowed never again to tow so much weight. Previous owner did a lot of the cleanup work already. One thing he did was take most of the interior aluminum that made up the two side consoles and made a center console. I'm not sure I want to keep this setup or not, since I think I'd prefer the original layout being a bit more family friendly. Also my wife , dog and son much prefer riding up front with less noise. One nice thing is PO handed off to me all the cardboard templates for new flooring that he made. Anyway, those decisions are a long way off still.
I started in on cleaning up the motor which has been pretty neglected. Seems like it may be original to the boat, 1983 model E50BELCTA. Last reg on the boat is 1998 so I'm pretty sure it hasn't been used much. What I'm working on now: carb rebuilds, water pump kit, fuel lines, compression test on the motor since weather has been bad I've stayed in the garage. At this point, dropping about $100 to see if I can get it running, if no luck I'll have to bail on it and part it out. Have some outboard experience, and I've been posting over in the jonny/rude forum with some questions for experts there.
A couple of photos before I start my journey.
I started in on cleaning up the motor which has been pretty neglected. Seems like it may be original to the boat, 1983 model E50BELCTA. Last reg on the boat is 1998 so I'm pretty sure it hasn't been used much. What I'm working on now: carb rebuilds, water pump kit, fuel lines, compression test on the motor since weather has been bad I've stayed in the garage. At this point, dropping about $100 to see if I can get it running, if no luck I'll have to bail on it and part it out. Have some outboard experience, and I've been posting over in the jonny/rude forum with some questions for experts there.
A couple of photos before I start my journey.
