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I just picked up a 1933 Johnson J-65. It turns over and all the parts seem to be present. It even has what may be the original pull rope and handle.
After ascertaining that it turns over nicely, I tested the compression. Cold, of course, it was around 70-75 pounds. I assume that’s pretty good for an 89 year old engine.
Next I checked to see if it had spark. None. The plug wire was quite bent and torn and thus suspect where it came out of the stator plate. I got the fly-wheel off and all the parts seemed to be present. After removing the coil I could see that the plug wire was not making sufficient contact with it. It basically checks out with primary showing no ohms to ground and the secondary showing the proper resistance to ground. That was good news. Who knows where I’d find another. I buffed up the secondary button on the coil. A major question I have: Is it a good idea to solder the plug wire to that secondary button. I understand the original had some springs or other devices to hold the plug wire on the secondary “button” but could find none. I saw some, but not too much amounts of the “tar” I’ve read about elsewhere.
I’ve ordered a length of copper core 7mm plug wire I’ll use to replace the original, which was cracked and shortened because of the break I mentioned above where it came out of the stator plate. The motor had what looked like an original Champion 7 plug which cleaned up nicely. I assume the plug ought to be gapped to .30 .
The condenser appears to be an original with the wire to the points attached by a little nut holding the wire coming from the points to the threaded portion coming out of the end of the condenser. I checked the condenser’s uf reading and it came in at a lowly .136 uf. Is that within specs or hopelessly low?
Any suggestions or other cautions would be appreciated.
The odds are it will run. Most of these old motors
never got used enough to be worn out but often
weren’t stored well. Gas left in them, water in the
gear case. Knocked over a few times denting the
gas tank. And worst of all a damp, humid
environment. I haven’t run mine in several years
but the last time I did I ran it several times a day
for a few weeks. Never let me down. I decided to
sell it as I wasn’t using it. Got it all cleaned up and
shinny an fell in love all over again.
You know about 105 or Corn Head grease for the
Gear case?
Tubs.
Tom beat me to it but I spent so time on this so
this is what I can offer.
The cooling system is a pump.
A piston operates from an eccentric on the prop
shaft gear. You’ll find some wear on the bottom
of the piston but unless its extensive you should
be ready to go.
You’ll probably find some pitting on the eccentric.
Someone once told me the pits carry grease
providing lubrication. As most don’t have the
equipment to repair this we just run them as is.
It works for me. If the pitting is really severe
check the bottom of the piston from time to time.
You don’t want to wear a hole in it. You can solder
on a piece of copper or brass as a repair.
Most of us can handle that.
There are 2 check valves that should be looked at
to be sure they are not stuck or dirty. You can just
stick the pump in some water and work the piston
to see if it pumps. If you need to remove the caps
I suggest you clamp them in a vice and twist the
pump to remove them. They are often very tight
and the soft brass is torn up easily.
Tubs.
Ok, some success to report. I got it started this morning and it ran. Had it hanging down from its stand into a garbage can full fo water (no prop, obviously). The carb needle adjustment is REALLY fine. A 1/8 turn either way will start to kill the engine. But the sweet spot ran strong. But there wasn’t much water coming out of the hole on the side of the shaft so I shut it down. It was getting more than warm.
I’ve now taken apart the pump. The plunger seems to be in very good condition, no hole and not any bad scoring. I”m lucky. It moves freely. I’ve taken out the plugs to inspect the two valves. Do they operate simply by gravity to close? I’ve blown air into the lower line attached to the pump (now disconnected, of course) and it seems that the line is open and I can hear/feel air coming out of the discharge port on the end of the line that’s on the power shaft. Is there supposed to be a screen over the open part of the pump that has one of the check valves in it? Mine has one that has been soldered in. I’ve cleaned that well since whoever soldered it was a little to aggressive with the solder and covered up probably 20% of the screen holes. Maybe that was my problem.
I’ll try posting again. I was able to start the J-65 today. I noticed that the needle valve adjustment was very sensitive. A slight turn either way would cause the engine to lose power, but the sweet spot seemed to work well. I’m not sure about the water cooling pump, however. A little water was coming out of the outlet on the shaft, but not much and it was clear that the engine was heating up, so I shut it down. I had been running it on it’s stand with the power shaft in a garbage can of water (no prop, obviously).
This afternoon, I removed the water pump and examined it. The piston is in very good condition it appears. No holes and the spring action seems good. I know from turning the engine over manually that it does move up and down smoothly. I removed the plugs and examined the check valves. They seemed to be clean as did the pump assembly in general.
I did notice that the screen on what I assume is the pump’s water intake was a little dirty and whoever had it soldered it in place and seemed to overdo it a bit, perhaps obstructing 20% of the screen. Perhaps it’ll do better now.
Do these engines water channels often plug up in the lines and in the power head? I tried blowing some compressed air through the lines and I think it was moving through, but the results were not conclusive.
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