TOPIC: 1974 65hp merc

hi i just picked a 65 merc, the control box was cut from the wire but it is complete otherwise.i would like to "hot wire" it to see if it will fire,i have enclosed a picture of the switchbox,any help would be appreciated.
thanks
steve d.

You shouldn't need a control box at all to hotwire it. If you hook up some battery cables to the motor and jump the solenoid you should get spark... Not having battery cables hooked up will result in the rectifier popping...

If I'm not mistake, that motor has the funky plastic plug on the side of the motor, under the cowling, does it not? I don't think they used them for long before going to the more common cannon plug...
- Scott

Steve,
See attached photo for details.
Thom

Glad to see you here Thom.

thanks for the replies and yes that does have the oddball plug on it. when i got home from work this morning i looked a little closer at the engine and i found some wires hanging near the distributor, looks like there should be a little box mounted there.i did turn the motor over by hand and it the top cylinder has no compression and it binds slightly when it reaches tdc on that cylinder.which cover should i remove to take a look at the piston, i'm wondering if it is something i can fix.

The easiest cover to remove would be the intake port cover on the starboard side. It's the cover that the fuel pump mounts on. No compression is not good, but not uncommon on those motors - especially the top cylinder. They actually issued a service bulletin to move the telltale outlet to the top of the cylinder block as they were cooking off due to a steam bubble forming inside the cooling passages. The top-mounted telltale outlet allowed the water to circulate fully...

- Scott

ok, i pulled the intake port cover and i found what appears to be part of a reed valve. the piston seems ok, it doesn't look like it overheated, it still has oil on it and it doesn't seem discolored.it does bind at tdc when i turn it by hand, i'm thinking maybe it is binding up on the rest of the reed valve. so i guess my next step is to split the case? i did get the motor for free so i have nothing but my time to lose and i might learn something in the process.
steve d

Hi Steve,
Ouch! I've seen a few of those over the years. Definitely means a tear down. Let us know what you find!
- Scott

hi, just an update on my cylinder with no compression, i removed the water jacket cover and i did see scoring on the cylinder wall. so for now that is as far as i am going to go with it.
enjoy the week-end