Dufour 24

Depends if just to get in and out of the marina or long distances in rough weather and whether you have very strong tides. If just in and out of marina 6hp should be OK but may be noisier than the 9.9. Most cruisers up to 25ft with outboards had 6hp's originally.

Make sure it has remote fuel tank and controls - and maybe a slidy bracket to be able to lift it out of the water by pulling a string.
 
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Wansworth said:
Thinking about changing the marina 9 for a smaller outboard like a 6 hp so Ican lift it off the boat and take home for servicing etc

DUFOUR 24 - sailboatdata


Welcome thoughts and observations,thanks
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You shouldn't need to remove it often for servicing.

Could you get someone to help you off with it on those rare occasions, either out of the kindness of their heart or for some money/a few beers? Could you lift it off using the boom with mainsheet tackle reattached to the end of it?

As I've suggested in relation to various potential changes to your new boat you've mentioned, I'd say try what you have for a while before rushing into changes. You might well find you are imagining problems to be greater than they are, or haven't yet appreciated the benefits of the current arrangements, and if not you will at least be more confident in eventually making the change anyway. In relation to potentially changing the outboard, you will at least have more of an idea of how comfortable you might be with 2/3rds of the power.

p.s. Whether 9hp or 6hp its important to have the correct propellor type for your type of boat. Most outboards of that size will be fitted as standard with props design to power something much lighter and more easily driven at high speeds, and probably wouldn't ever reach full power revs driving larger displacement boats such as yours. Different outboard brands have different names for such propellors (or did back when I was suffering outboard propulsion).
 
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I had a 5HP outboard on my first Sadler 25 and it was adequate for motoring in benign conditions, but any amount of wind/sea I had to sail! It was mounted on a transom bracket offset to port.
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LittleSister said:
You shouldn't need to remove it often for servicing.

Could you get someone to help you off with it on those rare occasions, either out of the kindness of their heart or for some money/a few beers? Could you lift it off using the boom with mainsheet tackle reattached to the end of it?

As I've suggested in relation to various potential changes to your new boat you've mentioned, I'd say try what you have for a while before rushing into changes. You might well find you are imagining problems to be greater than they are, or haven't yet appreciated the benefits of the current arrangements, and if not you will at least be more confident in eventually making the change anyway. In relation to potentially changing the outboard, you will at least have more of an idea of how comfortable you might be with 2/3rds of the power.

p.s. Whether 9hp or 6hp its important to have the correct propellor type for your type of boat. Most outboards of that size will be fitted as standard with props design to power something much lighter and more easily driven at high speeds, and probably wouldn't ever reach full power revs driving larger displacement boats such as yours. Different outboard brands have different names for such propellors (or did back when I was suffering outboard propulsion).
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Ok,thanks!……now if I had a sculling oar
 
The quote below is from Jamie N's post (#80) in another thread*, and might be informative was it refers to a similar sized boat with a 6hp, seeming to suggest it's not much good for motoring into wind and waves, for which beating to windward under sail is used.

'My GK24 has a 6hp outboard, great in flat water where I can get hull speed, but against any sort of wind the speed drops in a fairly linear fashion, and with waves even more so. However the GK24 is a lightweight sailing boat, which isn't too arduous to sail, so I'm granted more opportunities to sail, rather than motor, which is really why we're here.

Moving slightly further on, there was the case where the RNLI were called out to tow a boat that had lost its engine near Inverness last year? Not so unusual, what was difficult for me though was that they did the call from where they'd anchored, a long way from Inverness rather than sailing closer in as "the wind was from the dead zone"; a F4, on the nose.

This does seem to be the case that so many people eschew any sailing into a head wind. If there's any prospect of beating at all, the motor's on, which is part of the reason why the engine power issue is so frequently mentioned.
Each to their own, this is only an observation, not a criticism.'

* Re-engine 28 foot boat - 14 hp enough?
 
A quick look suggests a 6hp Yamaha with long shaft , sail prop etc is 37kg!

The Mariner 5hp 4stroke long shaft equivalent spec weights in at 26kg

And your(? 9.9hp?) Mariner is 38kg?

Whatever happened to lightweight 2 strokes ( we all know of course)
I had a long shaft mariner 2str with charging coil and a good propellor weighed in at 17kg..

Might be cheaper to buy someone a couple of beers if and when you want the existing “ it works fine” 9.9 carried to the car?
 
In the marina there are many small yachts like mine and countless fishing weekenders so a mine of info ,hopefully I can find a outboard repair shop to put me on the right track …….I didn’t unfortunately have a miss spent youth tinkering with cars and bikes hence my mental blockage with anything enginey
 
Fixing duff cars and bikes in one’s youth was over rated I reckon with uk weather.

Have you had a chance to go for a test sail and motor speed test yet?💨💨😎
 
Blueboatman said:
Fixing duff cars and bikes in one’s youth was over rated I reckon with uk weather.

Have you had a chance to go for a test sail and motor speed test yet?💨💨😎
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Still under doctors orders regarding cataract op we had a sail about under the control of the previous owner …….not so much “speed” more stopping before reaching end of berth!
 
It’s all a compromise with engines. I’d rather have a heavier 9hp for the times when you need the extra 3hp in poor conditions, and accept it is a two man job lifting it off the boat for servicing while the boat is afloat. A 6hp may be lighter but you might struggle with it in conditions you would rather not be out in.
How often are you thinking about servicing your engine? Servicing anything above the gearbox like spark plugs, fuel filters and even engine oil changes can be done afloat, the only thing you can’t really do is the gearbox oil.
Most people only service it once a year so the annual haul out would be a good time, and you may be able to service it on the bracket ashore so no reason to lift it off.
When I had a mobo with 70hp outboard, it was always serviced in the yard on the transom, never lifted off.

You already have the 9hp, unless someone is willing to do a straight swap for a 6hp, changing the motor is going to cost you.
OTOH people might be queuing up to get your 9hp in return for their 6hp and consider you muy loco for downsizing just to save weight once a year.
 
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