Aquabug surprise!

[factory 487]

34 minutes ago, CNew said:

Finally getting a chance to open up my Aquabug. Recall when I bought it the recoil was spring from being yanked too hard. I think it just needs a good cleaning and re-assembly. Now that I have the cover off I’m starting to think this engine may not have been used much, if at all. It certainly doesn’t look as though it’s ever been worked on. It needs some cleaning but it looks to be in really great shape.  The gas tank doesn’t have any odor whatsoever and is about as clean as it could be, makes me wonder if it’s ever even been gassed up.  I should probably Pull the flywheel to clean and adjust the points while I’m at it but I kind of hate to do anything to it but clean it up. It even still has the oil sticker on the prop housing. I would suspect that would have been long gone if it had been used much.

 

Wow that is one of the nicest Aquabug's I've ever seen, doesn't look to need much cleaning at all.

David

[CNew 404]

I finally got the spark plug freed up, it was in there way too tight.  Now that I can see inside I can confirm the engine has been run before but I still don’t think it’s seen many hours of use. I’ll keep adding photos along the way.  I’m still convinced that by looking at the condition of all the screws, bolts and nuts in various places that this engine hasn’t been opened up or monkeyed with which is nice. The main top cover has a few scratches and rub marks and a few hairline age cracks on stress points like corners or where someone probably stored it laying on its side but overall it’s pretty nice. The decals cleaned up nicely too except the one on the recoil housing which is faded from the sun and age.

[JUST O&R 237]

Very nice unit look in perfect shape . Does that have a three blade prop? Most of the ones I’ve

seen have a two blade.

 

 

[CNew 404]

Yes indeed, it has the 3-blade prop.

[Wallfish 698]

Nice. The exhaust manifold starts to discolor from the heat when they are run for long periods of time and that one is still nice and clean.

Leave the little air vent on the gas cap open when storing it if the location you keep it has large temperature swings. Had one crack the tank when the cold at night created vacuum pressure inside of it and the tank buckled in a little, It was enough to crack the seam. 

[CNew 404]

Great pointer on the tank. I hope to store this inside the house but if it does end up in the garage I’ll definitely pop the top to keep the pressure stable. Sorry to hear you had one split at the seam, that really bites.

 

There definitely isn’t much in the way of discoloration due to heat on the exhaust but there are some little tarnish spots probably from moisture or something. Has anyone had success with chrome polish or other method to help clean those up?

[CNew 404]

Curious to see what others would do... given the overall nice and clean condition would you keep the original faded decal on the starter housing or replace it with a new one?

[Webhead 95]

Absolutely keep it. I don't really see a problem with it at all.

[factory 487]

Yes I would keep the original decal too.

Just be careful with cleaning those later decals as they can be easily damaged, they look to be made from plastic film coated paper.

 

19 hours ago, JUST O&R said:

Very nice unit look in perfect shape . Does that have a three blade prop? Most of the ones I’ve

seen have a two blade.

 

 

 

I've seen three (four if you count yours) so far with a three blade propeller, most of these have a blue starter housing too, I wonder if they are slightly newer as they have a more robust looking throttle control too.

 

David

Edited November 29, 2019 by factory

[pmackellow 2,738]

4 hours ago, CNew said:

Curious to see what others would do... given the overall nice and clean condition would you keep the original faded decal on the starter housing or replace it with a new one?

 

In my humble opinion... keep it !

 

[CNew 404]

Thanks everyone for sharing your opinions on the decal. I was leaning that way as well and will keep it original.

 

David- I agree with your observation on the throttle. This unit has a more rugged handle, especially where the cable mounts. The ones with the yellow plastic connector seem to get damaged easily. I have one of those too and it’s stripped out the cable doesn’t slide smoothly inside the housing.

 

Got the recoil spring all done this morning. It was being way more cantankerous than usual. It is smooth as a whistle now. 

[CNew 404]

David, if it helps for dating this as a later Aquabug it has the carburetor with the little rubber plunger instead of the steel ball.

[CNew 404]

I’m in the process of cleaning the carburetor and replacing the diaphragm. This version has the little metal disc that contacts the plunger arm. What is the best way to glue it to the diaphragm? Is a small drop of gasket maker sufficient to hold it in place?

[JUST O&R 237]

In the carb thread I think they said to use seal-all adhesive 

[Wallfish 698]

8 hours ago, CNew said:

Is a small drop of gasket maker sufficient to hold it in place?

That's the fuel side so it needs to not dissolve in gasoline

[CNew 404]

Anyone had success with the Seal-All that JustO&R referenced? It looks to be a fuel resistant adhesive.

[factory 487]

On 11/29/2019 at 10:43 PM, CNew said:

David, if it helps for dating this as a later Aquabug it has the carburetor with the little rubber plunger instead of the steel ball.

 

If you want help with the engine production date, then the first three numbers after 13A246 will help date it to the year/month it was made by O&R.

Note: this only applies to engines made after June 1967, which your Aquabug should be.

 

David

[factory 487]

On 12/1/2019 at 1:03 AM, CNew said:

Anyone had success with the Seal-All that JustO&R referenced? It looks to be a fuel resistant adhesive.

 

@tackdriver56 was the first to post about the carb diaphragm with the bonded disc, he used Seal-All to reattach it to the new diaphragm.

 

David

[CNew 404]

I’ve got some Seal-All on order to give it a try.

[CNew 404]

1 hour ago, factory said:

 

If you want help with the engine production date, then the first three numbers after 13A246 will help date it to the year/month it was made by O&R.

Note: this only applies to engines made after June 1967, which your Aquabug should be.

 

David

I’ll look up those numbers later this week. 
Thanks David!

[JUST O&R 237]

Found this on ebay today

https://www.ebay.com/itm/OHLSSON-RICE-RARE-VINTAGE-SMALL-Canoe-Boat-Motor-Engine-AQUA-BUG/283695700182?hash=item420d94d8d6:g:9VwAAOSwOzld5CBE

Edited December 3, 2019 by JUST O&R

[pmackellow 2,738]

6 hours ago, JUST O&R said:

Found this on ebay today

https://www.ebay.com/itm/OHLSSON-RICE-RARE-VINTAGE-SMALL-Canoe-Boat-Motor-Engine-AQUA-BUG/283695700182?hash=item420d94d8d6:g:9VwAAOSwOzld5CBE

 

That makes mine look very cheap !

 

[factory 487]

That price seems excessive to me, it doesn't have any extras like the manual, original box.... or the required (a spark).

 

David

[factory 487]

I've moved the post about a Lancaster pump here;

 

 

David

[CNew 404]

Cleaned up and back together.