Motors

[Marc]

So, as most of you know, I will not have the capabilities of an inboard engine.  I did get my old Johnson 9.5 running but will it be reliable?  I would like a Tohatso 9.8 25" shaft electric start and it also comes with a 12V alternator and is a four stroke.  What I'm wondering is can this motor run for long lengths of time?  Like thru the Erie canal and the ICW?  So many questions with so little time and the weather isn't exactly cooperating with me.  Lots to do but just can't.  I really do have the get the boat on the water fever.  Marc

[maxiSwede]

Marc -

with an outboard, it's not a big deal to just change it if it REALLY gives up, or??

I am not familiar with the ICW but if the d**n thing acts up on you, there are plenty of ports to get a new one. That 'new' one could obviously be a used one aswell...

After the somewhat sad story of having to change our inboard diesel engine abroad last summer, I really appreciate the simplicity of outboards. I've had them on all my boats during 30 years of sailing on 'my own keel'.

[s/v Faith]

I find an outboard to be a perfectly acceptable form of motive power when there is no wind or in conditions of restricted maneuvering like the ICW.  I would not trade my outboard in a well for an inboard.

  You may want to consider your choice of HP though, not so much saying you should not use what you have but rather that you may find something less then 9.9 to be acceptable and even preferable when you factor in the weight.

  Here is a good thread to take a look at; Discussion of HP required to move sailboats....

[Marc]

Okay guys, the way I understand it is maybe a 6-8 HP motor would be fine, but I'm also looking at battery charging capabilities, remote setups etc. I really need some help with this subject.  I'm tentatively planning on a voyage from Chicago through the great lakes to Buffalo New Yor then motoring through the Erie Canal and I want a motor not for speed but for dependability at cruising idle.  Charlie, if an 8hp is what you use on your boat and you're happy with it maybe that is the route I will take.  I'm not sure of the hp rating on my boat notr the weight capabilities of my mount but I do know that there was a 9.9 merc 2 stroke on it before I got her.  Man this is really confusing.  Marc

[skylark]

I have a Tanzer 28 which is a large boat with a lot of windage.  I run a 6hp Tohatsu longshaft 4 stroke on an outboard bracket.  It is plenty of motor.  The key is to mount the bracket as low as possible.  I have a piece of pvc pipe with a slot cut into it which slips over the throttle tiller so I can control motor speed from the cockpit no problem.  I do not have the thrust prop, I wanted one but found that the standard prop did fine.  The thrust prop might give better gas mileage and reduce cavitation.  The one cylinder does vibrate a bit and is quite loud in the cabin due to resonance.  Leaving harbor with a stiff onshore breeze and 6 foot waves, it starts to cavitate a bit but still makes good way even running low rpms.  I usually try to motorsail in those conditions so I can tack upwind to eventually find a course which is all sail with the motor just helping along, it is much easier.

Next time I would add throttle and shift controls in the cockpit, it would be a little more convenient.  Electric start would be nice as well but the Tohatsu is an easy starter and idles well without quitting.  Its mainly when starting and I have to lean out over the transom to move the outboard bracket down, pull the choke and pull the start cord that it is inconvenient.  Sometimes I worry about losing my glasses, but I never have.  Eventually you learn to start the motor ahead of time and just let it idle until you need it.  It hardly takes any gas. The ideal system is an outboard in a well in my opinion, but my boat didn't have room for a well and it has a nice flat transom which was easy to add a bracket to.

I went the other way on electric power: conserve and don't install high power usage appliances, and put a 30W solar panel as the only source of power to the batts.  My outboard has no electric output and is hand start. The biggest user of power is the autotiller.  After that it was the ham radio if I transmitted, but I was mostly a listener not a talker.  Fans would be heavy power users but I rarely used them.  Lights and depth sounder are pretty low users.  I usually keep music radio and vhf on when in the boat.  I have an LED anchor light and use a kerosene lantern.  I have a couple of LED lights in the cabin for low power situations but the color of the lights are bluish and not pleasant so I usually use incandescents together with the leds.  I would go with LED nav lights if I replace the ones I have.  I have never run out of power but if you were using power during a week or two of cloudy skies it could happen with a 30W system.

[Bill Reichert]

The comment about losing glasses brought back the loss of a watch in 60' of water.  I should have had a sport band that is leather.  If one of the pins is pulled out, the other will keep the watch on the wrist. :-[

It was a Seiko database watch for the Apple II that had my customer database on board.

[CharlieJ]

Yep- we have the 8 HP Yamaha on a boat we figure cruises at around 7000-7500 pounds loaded displacement. It's more HP than we need, but the 6 HP Yamaha is the exact same engine, weight and size wise, so we got the 8. It's a manual start and cranks so easily Laura can crank it from a seated position. We LOVE the gearshift on the tiller handle of the engine. That was THE reason we got the Yamaha rather than a Tohatsu.

VERY happy with the engine.


We have something over 3000 miles running the ICW with that ( and the previous) outboard, with absolutely zero problems due to not enough power. I will say that if you can fit it, a 4 stroke is the way to go. The engines are so much quieter and SO MUCH better on fuel that it isn't even a comparison. For example- ICW fuel usage at 5.5 MPH cruise- 2 stroke - 5 MPG; 4 stroke- 15 MPG .That's going from 2 hours 40 minutes ( or so) per 3 gallon tank to 7.5-8 hours per 3 gallon tank. This was confirmed over a pair of 30 plus day cruises on the ICW between Texas and Florida, through western Louisiana where you MUST motor 90 % of the time.

Outboard power was one of my requirements when looking for this boat- that and tiller steering. We have no alternator on the engine since it runs at such a low RPM the alternator would be useless. Remember- those alternator outputs are at full RPM- you aren't gonna be running wide open pushing a sailboat, so that 5 or whatever amp alternator is going to be MAYBE putting out a half amp or so.. We use a 32 Watt solar panel, will be adding a second before we depart full term. We also are frugal with power usage. we tend to keep the boat simple, and like it that way.

[Marc]

Thanks Charlie I respect your opinions, I will take a look at the Yamaha.  Marc

[Lynx]

I suggest that you go with the 9.9 hp with a big, low pitch, prop. Your trip will take you through some 3+ knots ticlel currents in the NJ ICW, SC, Ga and North Fl. It is a long trip down and you will want as many miles per day as you can get without layovers for weather and tides. You need to be in Ga by 1 Nov, some may disagree.

I did not unstep my mast until Fl Keys and did not go outside execpt fron NY, NY to NJ ICW which is a must.

If you really want to get fancy with your motor put a stearing linkage on it to help turn the boat during dockage or connect it to the rudder.