Evinrude 50 cooling issues

[Crownline230]

Hi all! Just got this clean new to me 1990 Evinrude 50 that has a cooling problem. I dried the lower unit and the grommet between the water pump and water riser leg(if that’s what it’s called) was deformed, so I ordered a water pump kit. I positioned the grommet and held a hose to it to check the water flow and water started coming out of two holes from the inside leg as evident in the photo. Water isn’t coming out of the pee hole and when it seems to fill water comes gushing back down. Is this normal or do I got a problem to solve? Thanks in advance for any input and suggestions!

 

[racerone]

Sounds normal.-----Make sure the pee hose and fitting are NOT plugged.-----Assemble this and put it in the lake and see if it cools properly.-----With a plugged tell tale hose the motor will cool itself with no issues.

 

[Crownline230]

So the two holes leaking water on the side where I’ve circled them red is normal? Initially there was no water rising to the head, it was overheating. I confirmed the water wasn’t rising by removing the thermostat. Just wanted to make sure everything so I don’t mess anything up. This is my first go on an outboard motor.