Old Mercury . . .

[Bill Huson]

Today Milady decided we were going to be tourists so we visited the newly refurbished NC Aquarium in Pine Knoll Shores and then drifted over to Beaufort, NC and visited the Maritime Museum. I found the workshop first and Milady had the drag me outta there. Cool museum with lots of local boat history and replicas. And then . . . I discover a display of antique outboards . . . HOT DANG!

There it is, off in a corner of what appears to be a workshop, a 1955 Mk 25 Mercury painted the exact cream and coral colors of the one I bought new back in the good ol' years !!! I wuz so excited Milady clipped my leash back on for fear I would vault the counter and hug that engine.

Later I'm thinking, jeeze, pretty pathetic when the 3rd outboard I owned is now an antique!

[BentRod]

Nostalgia

You hit it Bill. I remember the first rig I ever owned. A KG4 on a SU Speedliner. I bought them both used and wished for a 20H. Now after having several boats and motors over the years, I find myself wishing I still had my first race boat and motor. I had some great rides with that rig.

[Fast Jack]

found my first boat

I had a B hydro with a 9.8 Merc on it when I was 12. I found the boat 4 years ago after a 10 year search. Its now safe and ready to restore in my shop. The boat had suffered many bad paint jobs and the deck was replaced with fir plywood. And it had been abused with an 18 hp evinrude clamped on for power. Hopefully I will get time to restore it soon, and put my 20 H conversion on it.

[Bill Huson]

Correction . . .

I snorted the dusty cobwebs outta my tiny brain and recalled the Mk 25 was the 4th engine I had owned. #1 a 5hp Merc. #2 a 71/2 hp merc which like the 5hp had no gearshift. #3 a KG-7 which was sold to a racer seeing as how the KG-7 back in `55 was a decent B runabout engine when bolted to a Quicksilver lower unit. Make a nice collection if I still had all those engines!

To BentRod & Fast Jack: yep, seeing that old Merc has me thinking of the good ol' days of wood boats. Might have to build one . . . (hear a snort and toe-tapping from lady of the house)