Article by Danny Casey
Today I was extremely fortunate to pick up no fewer than three (3) inline-6 cylinder Mercury “Tower of Power” outboards: a 1977 150 hp Merc 1500 (the absolute zenith of the distributor-ignition “Tower of Power” era, with high deflector pistons, enhanced-performance reeds and aggressive porting and ignition timing), plus 2 x later 115s (ADI – no distributor) circa 1984 and 1987 respectively. I will soon post an image of all three motors, but as they’re still sitting in a trailer in my garage minus cowlings etc. and not yet photo-worthy, we’ll unfortunately have to make do with a teaser for the present.
Of the three motors, the most significant and, to me, valuable – although probably not in a monetary sense – is probably the 1977 1500 (150 hp). Quite irregular for Mercury, who normally used to change their decals (albeit subtly) every year, the ’77 model year retained the blue/red/silver graphics they introduced for the US bicentennial in 1976.
I have attached an image of the motor’s face plate complete with the contents of the owner’s pack – highly unusual for an owner’s pack to be retained with an old car, let alone a nearly 50-year-old outboard. This T.O.P (Tower of Power) was top spec, having the external bolt-on power trim kit with a remote hydraulic pump (also used in aviation for the nose wheel of a light aircraft, I believe) that was mounted in the boat and connected to the motor by piping – not dissimilar to the piping one would see on a mini excavator.
You must bear in mind that, even in the mid-late ’70s, electro-hydraulic power trim was still a newish, “performance” fad, and many pleasure boaters had no idea how to use it to trim the boat effectively. In that era, Mercury also enclosed a separate (pink-coloured) fold-out booklet regarding maintenance of what was quite a complex power trim system and I have duly attached a nicely patinated, authentically soiled image of that booklet here.
Whilst technology, refinement and innovation have all advanced in leaps and bounds over the last 4-5 decades, I think, for warm, fuzzy sentimentality, nothing beats a nod to the halcyon, golden years of outboarding when the horsepower wars were in full swing. Not to mention the delightful, heady brew of high-performance 2-stroke fuel/oil mixture wafting intoxicatingly in the breeze…!
Danny Casey is highly experienced, undoubtedly idiosyncratic, and immensely knowledgeable about things mechanical, new or old. His knowledge and passion are as a result of spending his whole life in or around anything power-driven – especially marine engines. His passion for boating is second to none, with his life a montage of fabulous memories from decades spent in or around water and boats, both here and in Europe. Danny has spent myriad years in the recreational marine industry in a varied career in which he has bamboozled colleagues and competitors alike with his well-honed insight.
His mellifluous Irish accent, however, has at times been known to become somewhat less intelligible in occasional attempts at deliberate vagueness or when trying to prevent others from proffering a counter-argument or even getting a word in. Frank and to-the-point, but with a heart of gold, it can be hard to convince Danny to put pen to paper to share his knowledge. Marine Business News is grateful for his contributions. Connect with Danny through LinkedIn.
