TOPIC: rebuild or not

Im thinking about rebuilding or having my 1978 evinrude 55 rebuilt, what kind of pricing should i expect. Mechinic said i had worn out bearings and low commpression on one cylinder. Or should i just look for a new motor... Man it sucks to dumb on these things, thought i got a good deal and didnt.. Please help me out

If you cannot do it yourself then I would get a person who really knows what he is doing to rebuild it and then you know what you have. If you go buy another one off somebody you should test run it and take a compression test at least. But you will be buying an unknown condition outboard. Just because somebody had it ten years with no problems does not mean it is healthy. If you can run gas without ethanol use it and if you have to run it use a conditioner for it. Make sure your rubber is compatible with today's gas. I had a ton of trouble because my primer bulb was breaking down.

yeah im not going to rebuild it my self. way above my skill level

What part of the country are you in noboatguy? (Where are you located) Maybe we can find somebody close to recommend you to.

PS - Did the mechanic who checked it out quote you a price for the rebuild? You didn't leave the motor with the mechanic did you? Not trying to insinuate anything, but you just never know..... A compression gauge is fairly inexpensive, and one of the real mechanics on here can clue you in on how to check the bearings.

im in maryland and no he came to my house, he said 120 on top and 90 on bottom, he also was pushing on the flywheel and it does move ever so slightly.

If that was a three cylinder, I would go for it, but being a 2 cyl. they were not very highly though of engines to begin with.
If your boat can handle a 75 HP, look for a good cond. three cylinder 1973 and up. Buy a comp. tester and spark tester, and keep trolling ebay, craigslist etc.
There are some reputable rebuild houses, but they need to be local as shipping is a killer. Also the rebuild house would need to find the root cause, not just rebuild it.

My 1979 Evinrude 55 was a lemon. The gears in the lower unit wore out. Evinrude admitted, they were machined wrong at the factory. They made changes in the manufacturing of replacement gears. My power head was recalled and replaced just months after the motor was new. I've gone through 2 coils and one electronic ignition module. The ignition would cut out one or the other cykinder and then sometimes work properly. That was hard to figure out what was wrong!

I've never had compression issues. After all that, the motor works fine now, but it is much louder than our identical 1991, 48 Special. Who knows why?

The motor is on my 1957 Larson Falls Flyer. If I replace it I'll go with a 35HP 1959 Evinrude Lark. Unless your motor is the same vintage as your boat, I'd find an older motor that matches the boat. In my opinion, those OMC motors in the late 70's and early 80's are not as good as the ones older and newer.

any info on someone who could rebuild my outboard close to me would be great, there are so many out there i dont want to get hosed. Please help maryland or delaware..... or in you know where i could buy a reman powerhead for this year or even one that would match up

just pulled the head major scoring in the bottom cyclinder, guess im looking for a motor...