1957 Thunderbird Warrior - 1962 Evinrude Starflite IV - Intro

[indiadamjones]

Greetings iBoaters,

I recently moved near a river and caught boating fever. Today after six months of wishful thinking, I did something rash. I seized the day and bought a '57 Thunderbird Warrior with a '62 Evinrude. Surely, I got bit by the bargain demon, but I couldn't resist this beauty at less than half the going price for a dinged-up jon boat.

Please allow me to introduce myself, and thank you for having me on the forums. I hope you will enjoy following along with me as I embark on this journey, come rain or shine. I've included a few pictures to keep it lively. Below you can see a nice 3/4 view, I hastily snapped after dark this evening. Sitting pretty after the 50-mile trek back home.



Next, pictured below is the glorious Starflite IV. I've got good reason to believe this engine runs, but I can already sense outboards are notoriously difficult to tune and maintain. I don't think water and engines were meant to mix, but I feel somewhat confident as the previous owner had the boat out already this season, and swears by his workmanship. I gave it a once over, and I've already noticed some items for my follow-up post, coming soon...



Finally, a rear shot of this 60-year-old FiberGlassic, seems like pretty decent shape to me...



So, yes...I bought it, and tomorrow I take it to the dry dock at a local marina. Unfortunately, my landlady did not see fit to grant me permission to park on the premises, but even with the seasonal fees, I feel worth it for a shot at vintage freshwater boating.

This engine has an electric start, and Selectric Shift, along with an alternator. It looks pretty clean under the hood, but I'm not counting chickens just yet. After I drop it off at the marina, I'll spin up the road and try for registration. If I can get all that done tomorrow then I'll try for a test launch soon.

One question I do have after browsing the literature and related forum posts...What mix to use? I've seen 40:1, the owner told me 50:1, and the manual says 24:1. This is the 1962 50529B engine rated at 75hp. As stated earlier, it had some work done to it, and I'm still inspecting it. I will undoubtedly have more nuisance questions for the Veterans here, please pardon my ignorance.

So that's all for now, and hopefully, your eyes didn't roll out of your heads balking at my insanity for buying such a relic. Once again thanks for having me, and thanks for reading. I hope to read and reply to some of your comments soon!

 

[racerone]

Why might you say that " outboards are notoriously hard to tune " that s a puzzling statement to me.----You can run that motor at 50:1 mix.

 

[indiadamjones]

Why might you say that " outboards are notoriously hard to tune " that s a puzzling statement to me.----You can run that motor at 50:1 mix.

Sweet, thanks for the 411 @racerone. I've got some mechanical skills, and I can read the diagrams...perhaps, I can soon get this baby purring optimally! Admittedly though, I've got zero experience with waterborne craft.

 

[F_R]

"Notoriously hard to tune". Reckon how much of that is due to the fact that most people just don't understand how stuff works? Especially old stuff? Hey, I was a dealer mechanic when that motor was new. Even way back then, I had to go to school to learn how the electrical system worked. And that was before electronic ignitions, etc., were invented. Stuff is so complicated now, that most service techs have never even been exposed to the old basics that I grew up with. Trade-off is I don't understand most of the new stuff, either.

I agree, 50:1 is plenty of oil. There was no real change to the engine in 1964 when the mix was changed to 50:1. Besides, with the amount of fuel that thing guzzles, how can it possibly not get enough oil?

Just my thoughts, your experience may vary.

 

[racerone]

^^^^ ++++and applause on post #4

 

[Crosbyman]

this site has seen some pretty ugly ones but your rig looks nice &
If it lived so long it was cared for. check the transom for abnormal flex...

if it was run regularly it may just need fresh gearcase oil if no water intrusion detected , a new impeller and a good shot of quality engine cleaner mixed in or carbon guard.

some use SEAFOAM some don't believe in Seafoam up to you

folks at aomci "ask a member" can help also

folks at fiberglassics can help with history of the boat

happy boating !

 

[indiadamjones]

"Notoriously hard to tune". Reckon how much of that is due to the fact that most people just don't understand how stuff works? Especially old stuff? Hey, I was a dealer mechanic when that motor was new. Even way back then, I had to go to school to learn how the electrical system worked. And that was before electronic ignitions, etc., were invented. Stuff is so complicated now, that most service techs have never even been exposed to the old basics that I grew up with. Trade-off is I don't understand most of the new stuff, either.

I agree, 50:1 is plenty of oil. There was no real change to the engine in 1964 when the mix was changed to 50:1. Besides, with the amount of fuel that thing guzzles, how can it possibly not get enough oil?

Just my thoughts, your experience may vary.

@F_R Well, at least I can say I know how stuff works. Is the Evinrude an interference engine, or a non-interference engine. The reason I ask...I notice some chew marks on the distributor belt, and I'd like to avoid a catastrophic failure.

Got the boat to the marina, AND got my registration today! Spent the rest of the day replacing pads and rotors on the sedan. What a knuckle buster. Hopefully, get the boat in the water in the next few.

 

[racerone]

What do you mean by interference on a 2 stroke engine.----There are no valves anywhere in the cylinder !!---But you know ---" how stuff works "

 

[indiadamjones]

What do you mean by interference on a 2 stroke engine.----There are no valves anywhere in the cylinder !!---But you know ---" how stuff works "

That sounds like the motor will just stall if the belt breaks.

 

[indiadamjones]

Thunderbird Warrior Evinrude Starflite IV Update

For those lurking forum members who might enjoy a post update, I got my registration. The task items and purchase list is growing uncomfortably.

I got the boat down the ramp for testing almost immediately with a new battery, and the starter bogged down severely. I thought I might have a bad starter, so on the following day, I removed it for inspection, and low and behold it looked fine to me. I cleaned it up a bit and reinstalled then spent some extra time polishing the terminal ends and got a reasonable-sounding start.

Took it down to the ramp for the second test, and did get it to fire up for a bit, until it died in Idle. After that couldn’t get it to crank again, so I pulled it back to the hangar for more thinking. After a nap, I got back on the internet for more fun.

Now I’ve got a bunch of new stuff on the way. Found a 6-Gallon Dura-Tank setup for Evinrude to replace the metal can. New plugs ordered as per the manual specs. The previous owner had some NGK’s in there, and we’ll be using Champion J4C’s filed down a bit to emulate the original J4J’s, as I found recommended here on the forums.

Also, picked up a battery tray so I can lock the battery to the deck, in case of waves.

Glad to finally lay eyes on a more comprehensive manual, and feeling much more confident I’ll get this baby on the water with a little more work. The new fuel tank setup should eliminate any potential supply problems from using the old gear. The new plugs will help the spark. And...pending any problems with the carburetor, and mix adjustments, I hope to get a reliable idle going here soon. Then we'll do some temperature checks to ensure the cooling system is within tolerances.

It’s slow going, but even with my bargain of a boat, **** is getting pricey for a poor bastard. All the more reason to take it slow. The marina owner is hands down awesome in keeping morale high and making sure everything proceeds in accordance with a carefully measured approach.

That’s all for now, and with any luck, I'll shoot an update out next week after my follow-up engine test with the new gear.