repower to a tower of power?

[kfouryou]

hi I was thinking of repowering with a" tower of power" instead of the 87 125 force I have now.Can anyone tell me a good yr and hp to look for .I have a 87 18 1/2 ft bayliner fish and ski My max is 150 hp Can I use the same controls depending on yr?

 

[oldgradywhite]

Re: repower to a tower of power?

One with the thunderbolt Igintion would be best. Thats the one with out a disributor on it. They where all ok the 150hp stack six was made after 1978 or 1979 I believe. I had one there awsome I used to like to punch the gas and see how many people I could get to fall over lol. It could move. In the way of power nothing made today can come close to them. I would try to get a 90-115 hp. I had the 90 one my cabin cruser(max hp on that was 200hp. It got it one plane in no time and that was less then half the hp the boat could have had. I did replace it with a 150 johny. It was a BIG mistake I lossed power and didn't run nearly as nice.

 

[kfouryou]

Re: repower to a tower of power?

I wastold they were really reliable because of the six not so much wear and tear on the motor . the only prob I've heard is there a little hard start in the cold.

 

[79Merc80]

Re: repower to a tower of power?

Ok, the Mercury "Thunderbolt Ignition" were from the 1968 1250 - the 1979's (With the distributor). the 150 inline 6 was made from 1973 - 1978. 1/2 way through 1979 Mercury changed to the ADI (Distributorless) ignition for the inline 6's. Mercury rated their engines at the crankshaft until 82-85 then they went to a porp rating. Basically, the 140 crank became the 115 prop, the 115 crank became the 90 prop. the 90 was made into a inline 3 in 1986 and the inline 6 115 was made into an inline 4 in 1989.

Hope this makes sence

 

[daveswaves]

Re: repower to a tower of power?

I wastold they were really reliable because of the six not so much wear and tear on the motor . the only prob I've heard is there a little hard start in the cold.

I would try and get the later 115, with ADI, 1986 or so. The 150,s were great engines but they were distributor only. If you can find a 140 that was ADI (no distributor) and a very nice package. The distributor style is great too, I run one on my boat, however, the parts are getting harder to find and more expensive. The later Mariner engines were also the inline 6, just different color. What part of Ontario are you in?

 

[Chris1956]

Re: repower to a tower of power?

79Merc and Dave have the correct info on the Merc 1500 inline six. It is doubtful that your current controls and electrical will work. The electrical might be adaptable, depending on the target motor. The controls are likely not adaptable.

 

[kfouryou]

Re: repower to a tower of power?

I am in the Niagara region .Wow lot of info ,so is the adi more reliable than carb?

 

[daveswaves]

Re: repower to a tower of power?

I am in the Niagara region .Wow lot of info ,so is the adi more reliable than carb?

Not that far from me, I would check with Nichols marine in Fort Erie to see what they have and they might take your Force in on trade. I know they did for a buddy of mine.
The ADI stands for Alternator Driven Ignition which replaces the distributor. All of the engines will have carbs. I would rate the ADI and the Distributor version equally reliable...its just easier to get parts at a reasonable price for the ADI version.
Is your force dead or just a crappy runner?

 

[kfouryou]

Re: repower to a tower of power?

No there's not much wrong with it (I hope) just had the starter fixed and tuned . My compression was a little off 150 on 1 and 4 - 130 on 2 and 3 maybe just needs a good decarb .Haven't had it out this year yet .Just seeking some info just in case .Only bought the boat last summer.See alot of the inlines for sale.

 

[kfouryou]

Re: repower to a tower of power?

hey dave are near port dover?

 

[daveswaves]

Re: repower to a tower of power?

hey dave are near port dover?

yup, we live right on the Long Point inner bay.
Sounds like the Force needs a decarb, sea foam works great. Make sure you use a low ash, low smoke 2 stroke oil. The force likes to gum up.

 

[kfouryou]

Re: repower to a tower of power?

Nice love to do some fishing down there yea thanks for the info I use Nautilus marine oil and I plan to decarb.