EBAY

[reka12]

Has anyone bought an outboard on Ebay? What was your experience?

 

[JB]

Re: EBAY

Bought two.<br /><br />Batting .500

 

[reka12]

Re: EBAY

good for baseball, bad for wallet...

 

[steelespike]

Re: EBAY

You need to be careful. CHECK FEEDBACK.ASK QUESTIONS.Dont assume anything.Be sure the seller knows how to ship.Get a shipping estimate before bidding.Dont get caught up in a bidding war.Im batting 1000 2 motors and 2 major problems.I got full insurance recovery on one and didnt bother on the other.I would bid again with the right seller and motor.

 

[phatmanmike]

Re: EBAY

i have boughten several motors on ebay, ranging in size from 4hp suzuki's amd 5 hp tohatsu's all the way up to 115hp inline mercs and 115v4 johnsons and everything between.<br /><br />i have bought and sold many motors on ebay.<br /><br />the best way to ship larger motors is through www.forwardair.com as they are cheap and quick.<br /><br />check the feedback of the seller, if its their first sale, be really leary. if they have lots of good feedback, have at it.<br /><br />i get a lot of engines off a fella in central florida near gainsville, his name is john. ive bought 9 motors from him in 6 months ,all from ebay. his e-bay username is " JTL1939" he likes me a lot, i give him my money tell him "some guy named mike" sent ya. he rebuilds larger omc motors and repaints them too, with warranty. usually the v4 and v6 motors. but he always has about a hundred motors at his place. all sizes and such.<br /><br />if you look on ebay and see somebody who is selling some motors or parts, check their feedback history and you can see what they have sold in the past and dont be afraid to email the buyer of the past sales and ask how they felt and how the sale went.<br /><br />the www.smalloutboards.com guy lives right near me, about 5 miles away. he always has lots of smaller motors. call him, his name is mike. he usually has more than what is on his web site at the time.<br /><br />by the way, my ebay name is " myoutboards" if you have any more ebay questions<br /><br />hope this helps

 

[reka12]

Re: EBAY

Thanks again Phatmanmike. I am up around G'ville all the time. Does this guy have a shop?

 

[winoandino]

Re: EBAY

Small outboards would be OK on Ebay I guess, but I would NEVER buy a newer technology larger (40hp an up) engine that has to be properly set-up by a qualified dealer. If you do-it-yourself you could void your warranty if it is not properly set-up.

 

[jim dozier]

Re: EBAY

What size you looking for.

 

[phatmanmike]

Re: EBAY

reka, his name is john layman. he owns and operates "john layman outboard repair" , or maybe its" john layman marine repair" . he is in bronson, fl off highway 24 behind the big motor speedway race track. about 20 miles west of G'ville.<br /><br />look him up in the yellow pages. or email him through ebay.his name is" jtl1939"<br /><br />WINOANDINO - what is there to set up? a wire harness, two controll cables, 4 bolts and a fuel line. lots of people buy and sell motors on ebay every day. have you done a search for outboard motors. there are usually a thousand or so listings each day. its a big business.

 

[reka12]

Re: EBAY

JimD: Look around 20-25 hp, remote. Phatman: I'll look him up. We'll be at the Itchetucknee in two weeks. Mike

 

[swist]

Re: EBAY

I sold a 2 HP Suzuki on eBay and got what I consider more than what it was worth - not that I'm complaining, but it's amazing what auction bidding frenzy can do. I would not expect to find a bargain there. eBay has an audience of millions of people and since new outboards are very expensive - everyone is looking for a deal.

 

[odie]

Re: EBAY

I bought one once. It ran but the lower unit could not be removed. It seems that the shaft splines had frozen to the power head over time. I tried a long time to remove the lower unit to replace the impeller. No luck. <br /><br />I would say bid very carefully. Lots of outboards have not been treated right. Are you getting somone else's problem?<br /><br />Why would someone want to sell a good running outboard anyway? If he couldn't sell it locally it probably does not show well.

 

[jim dozier]

Re: EBAY

Sorry, I'm getting ready to put an 85hp up for sale.

 

[reka12]

Re: EBAY

I know that you have to be super careful. I will likely look at local options the most. That is a lot of money to spend sight unseen. Maybe better if it was a collectable or special motor that would otherwise be hard to find.

 

[reka12]

Re: EBAY

Just an update to this old post. I did what I said I would not do. I bought a 25 '03 merc 25el remote off of ebay. Got it from a guy in Jersey. Had a friend run the numbers through Mercury to make sure it wasn't identified as stolen. The guy was kind enough to meet me as he was picking a storm damaged boat in the area so no shipping. The motor is spotless, runs like a jewel, everything is just fine. We are now rebuilding our little boat, converting it to a center console (more work, time and money than I calculated) and should have a fine little boat in a month or two. Paid $1500 with controls and all.

 

[roscoe]

Re: EBAY

Good deal, best of luck with the remodel and summer fun.

 

[reka12]

Re: EBAY

Thanks Roscoe! I am sure you know that a seemingly simple thing such as converting a tiller steer to remote, adding floors, casting deck, etc. should only take a couple of weeks, right? Well, I sure have been enjoying the time with my son!

 

[lewkster]

Re: EBAY

I purchased a 2 horse evenrude 1983 model. I found one within a 100 miles, met the guy, ran the motor and looked it over. It looked new, was basically never used by older person. On my second season with it as a troller motor. Still looks new and idles along endlessly. I over paid a bit to end my search and was well worth it compared to a new purchase for my needs.

 

[SeaHorse]

Re: EBAY

I've bought four. The only crook was from the Left Coast. Beware. Buy only from Red States or the "country" parts of Blue States.

 

[pwiseman]

Re: EBAY

I bought two motors off ebay. A 72 Rude 6 HP fisherman and and a 68 Rude 3 HP lightwin. <br /><br />The six turned out to be in excellent shape and with some very minor adjustments it starts on the first pull everytime. I did not have to do anything to this guy. Based on heavy grease on every zirt, I think the previous owner took care of it.<br /><br />The 3 hp had been sitting awhile so it needed lower end seals and I put in a new impeller as well. Ran it this weekend and it was like a sewing machine.<br /><br />I would say ebay has some deals from time to time, but I would always plan on doing some work getting them to dependable status. I tend to look at old twin cylinder OMCs because they are easy to get parts for and they are easy to work on. There are a lot of super ebay sellers that take in items for listing. They don't spend a lot of time on them, or know too much about what they are selling. As long as you know what you are looking for, and have paitence I would say ebay is a decent choice. I would be wary of Crating fees and excessive shipping fees.