Clymer,Seloc, factory- Which manual is best?

[The Wright Stuff]

I recently bought my first boat with a 1988 Mercury oil injected 50 HP 3 cylinder.<br /><br />Im looking at picking up a good service/repair maunual for it but Im finding out there are several different ones. All seem to cost around $75 but I see there is Clymers, Seloc, and the original Mercury manual. Are any of the three better than the others? It looks like the Clymers and the Seloc manuals cover a broad variety of engines in the single manual so maybe they arent as model specific as the Mercury manual? I am completely new to the outboard arena as this is my first and I know nothing about them. Any help on which manual I should go with is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[JB]

Re: Clymer,Seloc, factory- Which manual is best?

Factory manual is almost always best, TWS.<br /><br />You can find them on ebay for a lot less than $75.

 

[dajohnson53]

Re: Clymer,Seloc, factory- Which manual is best?

I've got a little merc and bought the Seloc manual first because it was available locally on the weekend I needed it. I thought, and still think it's quite adequate. It's worked me through a water pump rebuild and a carb. cleaning.<br /><br />I also went ahead and bought a factory manual. Looking at the carb section because I re-did the carbs again, the photos and diagrams are identical, but the writing is different. Both are good though.<br /><br />Both of my manuals (factory and Seloc) cover many merc models and years from tiny 2 cylinder models to 6 cylinder models. So neither is "more specific" than the other. Both you have to figure out which carb, lower unit, powerhead, etc. applies to your engine -but that's not a big deal.<br /><br />Doing over? I'd just buy the factory manual. No need for both. However, it involved a little more expense and mail order, where the Seloc was available on the day I wanted it. Hope this provides some insight!

 

[The Wright Stuff]

Re: Clymer,Seloc, factory- Which manual is best?

Thanks. thats pretty much what I was thinking but didnt know if the aftermarket manuals had additional info or not. <br /><br />As for ebay, I havent though of checking there and I definitly will do that.<br /><br />Do have one other question on this topic though.<br /><br />I see that there are Owners Manuals and there are Service Manual. If I get the service manual is there any reason I would need an owners manual? Thanks.

 

[Vlad D Impeller]

Re: Clymer,Seloc, factory- Which manual is best?

Get the service manual for your make,year and model, the factory manual is always best like JB said. I've found the others to be quite adequate,<br />you can purchase a seloc at the bottom left corner of this page, good luck

 

[dajohnson53]

Re: Clymer,Seloc, factory- Which manual is best?

I also bought an "owner's manual" for both of my old engines. I don't really know if everyting in the owner's manual is also in the service manual - but the owner's manual gives you routine operating and maintenance instructions in a compact easy to use format which I've found nice to have. They are way overpriced though.

 

[The Wright Stuff]

Re: Clymer,Seloc, factory- Which manual is best?

Alright, thanks everyone for the information.

 

[rwcreigh1]

Re: Clymer,Seloc, factory- Which manual is best?

please check ebay first.save lots of $$$$$$$.i agree with jb Factory manual is the first choice.but i own a seloc and i like it.lots of pictures.

 

[Moody Blue]

Re: Clymer,Seloc, factory- Which manual is best?

Get the factory manual and you won't regret it. I have the Clymers and it is adequate for most things but there are omissions and errors. Some details, like the entire mid-section of the motor, are not included. I'm now looking for a good deal on a factory manual.