TOPIC: Just bought a 33hp Johnson -Missing pieces? Help!

Hello, just bought an outboard for a 1961 MFG I'm trying to restore and need some help. It's a Johnson with model no# EL33-70M

I FINALLY found one in my budget, but now I'm afraid I'm in over my head. I was already an hour from home and didn't want to go back empty handed..

He said he pulled a plug on the lower unit, but turns out it wasn't for the gear oil, it was a connecting pin? And the shaft inside dropped down. older gentleman, said he did the same thing to a nearly identical motor a few years ago, and was a relatively easy job with a helper to keep things in place? I only see one empty hole, which I think is gear oil too. It's right below the fill level screw. Pic attached of the area and the screw provided. He also said it was in good shape, but when I got there said they had swapped the carb with another one from a boat they needed to sell, and this carb is missing some pieces...not happy! Not even sure what I'm missing though. Something about the idle screws.

I'm good with cars, but small engines seen to be pickier...and very little experience with marine.

I did a compression test and both cylinders were 90psi - any idea the spec?

Any help would be appreciated! they said they found a used carb at local marina and would call ahead for me, but it was $75 and I'd rather try and find what I'm missing if possible.

GIJordan07,

1st, WELCOME ABOARD.

Also, I sometimes deal with a "boat junkyard" near The Alamo City & MAY be able to find you a complete carb for DIRT CHEAP (like 10-15 bucks), if I knew for sure which one yours is & you want me to look out there.

What is the exact Model number, serial number & any data off the body of the carb??
(Send the info to my email address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)

You may also want to look at the SIERRA PRODUCTS catalog at your local NAPA auto parts store, as they have nearly everything fore the OMC Big Twin outboards.

yours, satx

Lay the motor in its side. Using an awl and some gentle movement of the shift handle, align the hole in the shift fork into the hole in the gear case. That screw is the pivot for the shift fork that operates the clutch dog. Make sure the o-ring on the screw is in good shape.

I don't see anything missing in the carb photos - looks more or less correct, too.

Okay, so its been quite a few months...I live in Michigan and the garage was WELL below 0 for most of January and I didn't feel so rushed, but now its finally spring and Ive left my project alone too long!!

It was the shift pivot pin, which I ordered a new seal for just in case. I've had this thing on its side for a week now fiddling with it, but it seems there's something binding up.

I have the parts manual with exploded diagrams, which may have made me dangerous.. I took the side cover plate off to separate the lower shift rod from the upper in the hopes I could manipulate the prop with one hand while the shift rod the other long and then have my son put the screw in when holes inside lined up. It got 3/4 of the way threaded, but then was VERY tight.

I'm considering dropping the lower unit so I can open the gearcase and inspect, but then I'm in this engine for quite a bit more... I'm not looking to rebuild a lower unit just to even see if the damn thing works at all...

Any advice? I hate to let this one little screw get the best of me

There's a chance that the fork has come out of its cradle. I'd open up the skeg and take a look. Get a tube of 3M 847 sealant to reseal the halves together.

Use the 3M instead of the rope seal?

And are you saying I'm able to take just the very lower portion off without removing the entire lower unlit? Is it difficult to get the gears and clutch dog and everything lined back up afterwards?

Sorry, no. Use the 3M in addition to the spaghetti seal and the o-ring at the prop shaft end.

Yes, you can remove the siege eithout pulling the gear foot. Tip the motor upside down, though. Put the powerhead on a thick rag on the ground. I lean it against my workbench to give a little stability.

Got the motor upside down (man did that feel odd) but you were absolutely right and it was simple!

A few observations:
1. Little bit of water in there, and blue permatex has been used. There is some cruddy orange buildup on the shift fork

2. I'm guessing the shift pin was a little stripped because there's a definite off center lean to it now that I can install it in the removed and empty (skeg?). There's a spot ground in the opposing side where it was screwed in too far. I think I can run a tap through the hole, but maybe not. JB weld, drill, and tap again?

3. The shift fork had definitely been lodged on the wrong side of the (clutch dog?) Mechanism that moved the gears between forward and reverse. I flipped it up and gave a beautiful "neutral" now that wasnt there. Now I know to check the operation of that when buying!

4. The inner most bearing, which has a tapered cone and race is moving smoothly, but the outer most where the prop is it's a cage and ball bearing, and definitely has a grind to it. I'll order a replacement tonight. The "u-shaped" retainer, similar to inside a differential at the carrier, seems to be a little scored on the faces. Will that be reusable with the shifter fork CORRECTLY placed into it? There seem to be pockets for its little "feet" on the u clip, but it was upside down in there.

The gears themselves look fine. I will try to attach pictures, sorry it's so long!

Thanks for all your help! I'm really hoping to save this one. Its needed for my Edinboro restoration (or resuscitation lol)

The service manual references "perfect seal #4" as being used on the screws on skeg during reassembly, can anyone tell me a current equivalent?

Should I use the 3M #847, or something more like a Permatex #2 or a liquid PTFE?

I'd use the 847. That's my go to sealant.

Okay, next problem!

Got the lower unit back together, seems to shift okay, although everything is a little gummy. I put it in a full trashcan of water and hooked up 50:1 fuel tank and a fresh battery and I tried to start it up, but must have bad starter because nothing happens. Run power straight to starter terminal and ground and it kicks out, but not enough to spin up and engage flywheel.

I also suspected solenoid, so I checked that, but it clicks when enegerzied like it's supposed to. Started checking all the the grounds per the troubleshooting guide in my original service manual, and I have small voltage at almost every single place I check. Got to ignition switch and I have voltage in every single key position. Sent the brand new key switch back to my ebay seller and they sent me a new one - SAME thing. .I know the odds of two failed switches out of the box are bad, so what else could be going on? I walked away for a few hours frustrated, and came back to find the entire engine block very hot because I forgot to disconnect the battery. Somehow, voltage is present at all times, and shorting somewhere, right? I verified my harness ia connected the same way as in the wiring diagram, but something just seems backward somehow. If the magneto and ground wires, both black, are switched on the key switch I get no difference when trying to start it.

Please help!

I pulled the rope start which is really difficult, but it didturn over and run for a couple seconds. Enough to churn the prop for a moment and kick some 2 stroke smoke.

I suspect you have the switch wired incorrectly or the wrong switch. You should NOT have 12V going to the magneto posts. It sounds like you've cooked the ignition via a direct short through the coils.

Disconnect all of the external wiring and check for spark via pull rope.

Okay...maybe I'm misunderstanding a fundamental here that is skewing my results. My original factory service manual has a troubleshooting flow chart that includes a bunch of tests using their special 12v test light. I obviously dont have this tool, but it's basically a flashlight with alligator clips on it. So my interpretation of the test is to use a multimeter and check for the voltage at these positions. When they say the test light should light, I assume I'll see battery voltage on the DMM. And, when I'm getting 0.2 or 0.3V when it says test light should not light, is that enough voltage to actually light the bulb in their tester, or is that low enough to be considered a "no light" for the testing?

Also, after looking more closely at my switch, the terminals for the black wires on the new one are G and M but the old switch were both M. Looking at this, I think I need to switch the wires from what the original diagram showed, as the one labeled G should be going to the common ground and the M to the magneto lead that comes down from it under the flywheel.

Without looking at any schematics I'm going to say that the "g" is taking the place of the second "M". When you shut the motor off it grounds the magneto(s) to stop them from sending spark to the plugs. Looking at your trouble shooting picture it says common engine ground with arrows pointing to the magneto terminals. I would connect one magneto (black) wires to each terminal B and G.