Bought a kicker... need a lower unit tho
 

sooo I went to look at a "'86 merc 7.5" today and bought it... I believe it's a 1975 model tho... The lower unit is munched but the engine runs great.
I gave $100 for it so I think I did pretty well.
Now on to the details.... My engine serial number is:
4132901

If I run the number it comes in as a 1975 merc 7.5 hp model 75......

How do I determine whether a certain lower will fit or not?
Looks like the part number on my lower is IIRC 1630 3916 and I found a 1630 4407 for $50

wish i knew you needed one, I have a couple real nice evenrude 9.9s id sell cheap. Not sure how much they would cost to ship though ??

shoot, I'm prolly goin right past you on the way to mass but my idea of real cheap is bout what I gave for this one

Post a pic of the engine. The shape of the cowling and the color of the letters on it will tell what year engine it is.

Acording to Master tech Marine web site serial # 4085865thru4314384are of 1975 vintage.

yep same thing I came up with... I don't have a pic of it yet but eventually....

About my idea of cheap also...LOL

But Kevin, that's more than you paid for the entire V, isn't it?

like $100 more LOL

I have a nice sailboat prop 5 Pitch elephant ear prop for that motor if you get it going. Check the wires on the switch box and make sure they are not falling apart before you invest in a lower unit. The switch box costs double what you paid for that engine.

sweet.. that would be perfect for a kicker duty... the wiring is in pretty fair shape, I'm sure it's brittle but If undisturbed it should have some life left in it... the kill switch wires were done for tho so I pushed the contacts out of the plastic housing and soldered new wires to em...

I got the engine running the first night but haven't picked up a lower yet. I still haven't narrowed down for certain which lowers will work.

I am king of cheap too, but think about this. You main engine has problems and that kicker is what is gonna keep you off the rocks or get you out of the way of an barge/ship. Do you really want to depend on something brittle that may or may not have some life left . . . when you need it or would you rather tell your family and friends to put on flippers and swim for it :) If you do your boating in lakes your probable fine, but just something to consider. You really want the engine to work like a swiss watch when you need to depend on it.

Send me a PM if you are interested in the prop.

My whole boat is old and dilapidated but I don't get in places where being stranded is any more than an inconvenience.... I'm a river boater and I stay far away from the barges and tugs and I always have a VHF... I DO appreciate the input but for the time being, it's a dirt cheap kicker or no kicker... So far, over the last few weeks, I have spent around $3600 on parts to get my broken down truck back together and will likely top $4000 by the time I'm done... PM on the way tho

ps I WILL look closely at the wiring next time I mess with the lil engine... I have all new wiring on my main engine which is also a 35 year old merc.

picked up another yesterday... guy claimed it was a 73 but I think it's late 60's... Best I can tell the lower will work on mine but I don't have to strength to lift it out of my jeep yet so will have to wait till I heal more.

I gave $150 for it which was more than I wanted to spend on a lower but I should be able to break even or even make a little money parting it out on fleabay

Next I need a kicker bracket and to rig up steering