Not being a “motor-head” by nature, I have been surprised at how much I enjoy working on older,  vintage outboards. They were built before the days of “planned obsolescence” came into vogue. Back in the good old days a company felt its reputation hinged on providing affordable, quality products. Boy, how times have changed.

Always curious as a child, I spent a lot of my formative years watching and “helping” my dad keep his trucking company running. My duties ranged from sitting in the cab and pumping brakes to bleed them off, to holding wrenches and screwdrivers at the ready for when they were needed. I rode with the truck drivers on their routes, including my dad when he was the only driver. Yet in all of this, my brother was the “motor-head” not me!

My big brother was always interested in hot rods and had a carburetor in his bedroom that he had rebuilt and was “saving” for his first car. I watched him rebuild that carb time and time again, hoping for the big day when he would own a car of his own. What my brother did not know was little brother was sneaking in his room when he wasn’t around and tearing down and rebuilding that same carb too. I was mimicking my big brother, whom I looked up to.

Mom and Dad never spent much time telling us kids “No! You can’t do that!”. Quite the opposite! If we said we couldn’t do something Mom would say “Can’t never did do nothing!” I hated that! So off I’d go to prove her wrong, and have been doing so ever since.

Advance ahead several years, following stints at Radio Shack, Disc Jockeying weddings, getting a first break into radio at one of the biggest stations in town, spending many years in broadcasting with forays into working as an electrician, railroad conductor, Assistant Broadcast Engineer, Operations Manager for a broadcast network, back to the railroad as a part-time bridge tender and sales for a hardware company my wife and I bought a small wooden boat to restore.

This wasn’t exactly a dream come true, but I’d always dreamed of owning a boat…a Chris Craft. We bought a 14 foot Thompson! We stripped and restored her in 60 days. She has been a source of pride ever since. Then fate stepped in.

Being naive, a motor was purchased for too much money on “the internet auction site”, I paid too much money to have it tuned up by a local man, but it gave good service for that first season.

Then lightning stuck again. We unveiled her at the Toledo Antique and Classic Boat Show that is put together every year by the men of Ramsey Brothers Restorations. A fellow came up and offered me two 1956 Johnson 30hp outboards. I had no knowledge of two-stroke motors, and wasn’t too interested, but decided one evening to go look at them. 

Upon arrival, there were two pretty derelict motors hanging on a welded steel rack. One couldn’t be turned over as it was stuck. The other was a Johnson Javelin! I knew these were pretty rare motors. The guy kept offering me more “stuff” to sweeten the deal, including the complete Johnson Shop Manual – Sixth Edition. This alone cost a lot of money. I finally asked how much, and he said “200 bucks takes it all?” with a question mark in his voice. I said “Where’s the nearest ATM?”

My wife was not happy about this little purchase, but after looking at the manual that came with the deal, I felt I might have some success

 getting this thing running using parts from the other motor. As time moved on, I ended up getting both motors running and completely restored. They are great runners too! I replaced everything in them! Bearings, seals, gaskets, pistons and rings, clutch dogs. These were new motors for  all intents and purposes. They purred and got lots of nice comments at the ramp.

I found I rather enjoyed working on these motors. There was a real satisfaction in getting an old derelict running and seaworthy. I later joined the Antique Outboard Motor Club, a group of wonderful enthusiasts who spend their days, nights, and weekends collecting, restoring, and running these old discarded motors that never die.