My father in law just aquired a 56 mark 25 Hurricane. We are going to try to get this old gem going. He is an auto mechanic, so he has a pretty good knowledge base. I am no mechanic, but I do own two small 1960's Johnson outboards, that I have worked on, mainly simple stuff like carb rebuild and water pump replacement. He says it has good compression and good spark. He also said the only thing wrong with it is a broken pull start. I know that it will also need a carb rebuild, and a new impellar. I have not even seen the motor yet. The research that I have done so far tells me that parts are a little hard to come by, and you need some special tools, that are no longer availabe, to work on these mercurys. What are your thoughts, can some of these special tools be fabricated. Are these motors similiar to the Johnson/Evinrudes of that same era, I mean as far as dropping the lower unit, shift dicconnect, to acsess the water pump. Any info would be greatly appreciated.
