Personally I think this is a really interesting discussion. I am an engineer at Honda R&D near Columbus, OH. At my location, there are over a thousand white collar workers, mostly technical. Within a hundred mile radius of me, there are a 4 Honda assembly plants, employing around 10,000 people. At other sites in the US and Canada, there are probably another 15,000 workers. Each of these plants is turning out thousands of new Hondas per day. Nearly every Honda/Acura sold in the US (by volume) is made in the US. The engines, transmissions, every major component. Furthermore, Honda actually *exports* cars from the US, something that the Big 3 can barely talk about. Sure, there are niche cars like the S2000 roadster that are 100% Japanese, but that is a tiny part of our market. I think these are pretty impressive numbers, especially if you consider that Honda is only something like the 7th largest market share in the US. Its been here since 1979, I'd wager that in those 27 years Honda has contributed significantly to Americans and their way of life. There are a lot of secure $25/hr plus full benefits jobs available in Ohio because of Honda. The US auto industry lost their way in the oil crises. They haven't been able to turn it around since then. They concentrate too much on short-sighted markets like giant fuel-guzzling SUVs. Its not that the Big 3 makes bad cars, its that they make cars that aren't in demand. Compare a Focus to a Civic. A Taurus to an Accord. Sure, those Fords might last 200k miles, but I'd much rather spend that time in a nice Accord than a hard plastic Taurus. I would rather support the thousands of American workers who build Hondas than support a few suits in Detroit and drive a Mexican Dodge. That said, my garage: 1980 Lawn Boy 7229 1996 Stihl trimmer 1997 Honda Accord (shocking, right?) 2002 Triumph Speed Triple (mc) 1976 Honda CB400F (mc) 1976 Suzuki GT550 2-stroke (mc) 1948 Johnson Sea Horse (outboard) 1949 Evinrude Zephyr (outboard)

Jim: Iam an Old OMC. Fan have always swore by Envinrude . Raced Dirt Bikes and Snowmobiles for Yrs. I have found that Religious use of Premium Oils and Plug Checks to ensure proper lubrication will ensure long efficient Engine Life. I always do Plug Checks to determine engine performance . My Old V-4 90 would troll all day and cruise at 35 MPH all day . Never bought into the OMC vs Yamaha Manf. Oil issues , just made sure the oil was TC-W3 Rated. Eventually with the Amsoil Product I introduced it into my Snowmobile , Chainsaw then Outboards @ 70-1 . As for the Yamaha 70 , great outboard . I assume you are talking mid 80's vintage since early 90's they went to Oil Injection. I would buy it in a Heartbeat , can't kill the bottom end of any OMC (Stinger) but the Power and fuel conservation of the Yamaha would be like night and day lol . All the Best with your Trial , keep a eye on your Spark Plug Colouration , they don't lie !

Hum, I read there to be some improvements in 1990+ vintage Yamaha, maybe a CD electronic ignition like the one I just replaced. Oh, on rethinking the $2,500.00 USD was for 9.9 HP 4 cycle, I'd bet a 20 HP would be at least $3,500 - a guess only. I got the boat/engine out for a test run this afternoon, it was a little hard to start, started and died when the choke pushed in.. got better. Ran well a both partial and wide open, but wouldn't idle at low rpm without dieing. I recalled I had screwed the idle jet screw on the carb before determining the engine had no spark. So, when I got back to the dock I stood in my hip boots with the engine in the lake and adjusted the idle screw... seems best at about 4 turns out ... much more out than any past engine I've worked on. It now seems to idle well at low rpm. I took sandwich and beer (not allowed, so I didn't really do the beer part if this post is read by a NJ Ranger :( ) and fished for a couple of hours, mostly trolling with a large swim-bait. I got nothing and didn't see much on the sonar either. I didn't use a down-rigger so the swim bait was likely no more than 20 feet down, the fish I saw were mostly 35' or more down.. also threw a jig several times. Any tips on a web site that give good advice on best hooks and rigging for swim bates?

Thanks Walt! I am beginning my reassembly now. By the way, I did all of the cutting on the pulley with a Dremel tool. Actually a black and decker wizard with the wand attachment and a 1.5" as well as a 1" cut off wheel. It might have taken a little longer, but I was able to get closer to the sump without worry of cutting into it. I had to bend open the pulley in places to get the tool deep enough to cut through the thicker middle section of the pulley but that was eased by the cutting to the holes the guys at the machine shop drilled in order to use a wheel puller on it.