motv8tr Posted June 7, 2012 Report Share Posted June 7, 2012 Good morning all, I have an outside chance at getting a motor for my boat at a great deal....well it would be if I can get it to work . First question, I think the one that came with my boat is a long shaft, can I replace it with a short shaft motor and just make adjustments to the back end of the boat? The second, and really key part, I am told by the person who currently has it that he is unaware if the electric starter works as it' hasn't been tried, if it does, is it easy to hook up and what are the chances the cables I have now will fit the other motor? My motor is a 79 Johnson, and this one is apparently an early 80;s Johnson. Thanks for any help Maureen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GYPSY400 Posted June 7, 2012 Report Share Posted June 7, 2012 You can buy a kit to convert the short shaft motor to a long shaft.. Don't modify the boat, that's a big can of worms you don't want to open! The electric start is not a big deal, you could jimmy rig up some wiring to make it work, Johnson's of that vintage don't change much year to year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fisherman Posted June 7, 2012 Report Share Posted June 7, 2012 Conversions can be done however a lot can be really cost prohibitive. If it was a recent motor maybe, something from the 80's probably not worth sinking that amount of money into it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smally21 Posted June 7, 2012 Report Share Posted June 7, 2012 is there another option? fisherman speaks wisely on this issue..investing any kind of money or taking any kind of chance to go from a 33 year old motor to a 29 year old motor..i certainly wouldn't modify my boat to accomodate this change.. not aware of the circumstances of course just first impression Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beans Posted June 7, 2012 Report Share Posted June 7, 2012 Good morning all, I have an outside chance at getting a motor for my boat at a great deal....well it would be if I can get it to work . First question, I think the one that came with my boat is a long shaft, can I replace it with a short shaft motor and just make adjustments to the back end of the boat? The second, and really key part, I am told by the person who currently has it that he is unaware if the electric starter works as it' hasn't been tried, if it does, is it easy to hook up and what are the chances the cables I have now will fit the other motor? My motor is a 79 Johnson, and this one is apparently an early 80;s Johnson. Thanks for any help Maureen I think the motor you have is a short shaft...!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motv8tr Posted June 7, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 7, 2012 (edited) ok, how do I tell if it's a short or long shaft??? Is there a measurement? What about the electric start? Maureen ok I took a look at it again and Beans you could be right....now to confirm it....here's hoping this could work.... Edited June 7, 2012 by motv8tr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DRIFTER_016 Posted June 7, 2012 Report Share Posted June 7, 2012 Measure from the spot where the motor tests on the transom down to the cavitation plate above the prop. Short Shaft=15" Long Shaft=20" Extra Long Shaft=25" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motv8tr Posted June 7, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 7, 2012 Thanks Drifter, with those instructions it measures to 15" which is a short shaft, so now I just need to see if the electric start works. Here's hoping!!! Oh, also is it easy to hook up the cables? I would imagine there shouldn't be that much of a difference between the two? Thanks Maureen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Cliff Posted June 7, 2012 Report Share Posted June 7, 2012 Maureen, I would re-think this one. A motor that old is going to be hard to get parts for. The money you spend on that motor now is going to be gone in a couple of years at best. Wait another year, save, and get something newer that you can depend on, it will be time and money well spent. You don't get that many chances to get out fishing every year, when you do get the chance you don't need to be worring about repairs to an old motor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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