1974 Mercury Outboard - 65HP

[anewton]

I looked at an old 65HP 3-cyl. Mercury Outboard this weekend. Mercury tells me it is from 1974 based upon the serial number found. The cooling system seems to be operating properly. A strong steady stream of discharge water, however there is a tiny amount of water seeping from the heads through the opening where the spark plugs are threaded in. This happens only in the top two spark plug openings. Is this typical of these older engines? Is this something to be worried about or will cost me alot of money down the road? I'm assuming that water is not getting into the cylinders, otherwise the engine wouldn't run, correct?

Just curious.

-Aaron