What brand of outboard?

[Ranger520vx]

Have ran Mercs , OMC and Yamaha by far the 225 Yamaha OX66 VMax on my last boat was my favorite. Now I’m running a Yamaha SHO really like the motor but have only had it little over a year hopefully holds up as good as the OX66.

[MrGiggles]

I've had a few but don't usually keep anything for the long haul.

Like Wrench says Merc's parts availability is annoying. I suspect that stems from their outsourcing of powerheads. They had a partnership with Yamaha going way back that dissolved in 2006, and their recent small motors are made by Tohatsu. You see the same thing with other companies that outsource.