On the subject of Outboards

LittleSister said:
Yes. Assuming there's nothing wrong with the engine, it's usually just knowing the correct starting drill - the order of things, and the right amount of choke and throttle, etc. - and getting the 'swing' of how hard or gentle and fast or slow you need to pull the starter on that particular engine.

(Those who rode old motorbikes with kick-starters, especially big singles, will understand the point. You'd sometimes see an inexperienced owner busting a gut jumping up and down repeatedly on the starter to no avail, when an experience owner would stroll up, get on an identical model bike and take a leisurely swing at the correct (sometime quite leisurely) pace and it would immediately rumble into life.)

Handy tip, make sure Mrs. W's face especially, or other obstructions, are not in the way of the trajectory your elbow is going to make as you follow through the pull.

If it is regularly difficult to start, get it properly serviced and mixture etc. adjusted. Don't over-economise on new spark plugs.

Understand how to recover if you flood the engine with petrol - e.g. choke off, full throttle and repeated pulls to try to 'blow-dry' the plug, and if that fails take the plug out (you will, of course have a suitable plug spanner and other relevant tools to hand?), dry the plug and maybe even heat the electrodes it with a lighter, before re-inserting (don't over-tighten it).

If all else fails, don't get in a strop (the engine will then know it's won!). Relax, leave the engine on the naughty step, put the kettle on, accept you're not going anywhere in the next 20 minutes, enjoy your cuppa, and come back to it when you're less rattled and out of breath, by which time the engine might well have seen the error of its ways and decided to behave after all.
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You mean Zen and outboards!…….my outboarding has included two Seagulls and an American Evenrude,as regards spark plugs I recall my father heating the plugs of his Morrisover the gas …..no wonder I am traumatized!
 
Dellquay13 said:
I think your best option would be a 4stroke 8-10 hp with electric start and remotes. Next best thing to an inboard.
With that you will always be able to get back to your berth, whatever the weather and wherever you are coming back from, not struggling with something too small for anything but benign conditions.
If you have remote controls on an outboard, don’t consider easily taking it off the boat, whatever the weight. Disconnecting the remotes isn’t a quick job if you are mechanically challenged. It will stay on the boat all year round, and get serviced by a professional if you have any sense!
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Our motor is remote and electric start. I guess we could leave it on board all the time and service it in situ. It has just become habit to take it off and bring it home for that.

Disconnecting the remotes is not too difficult just a little fiddly.

It has a backup manual start but that requires the plastic flywheel cover to be removed, so the essential tool kit is a spanner to do that and of course 2 spare spark plugs and a plug spanner.
 
ProDave said:
Our motor is remote and electric start. I guess we could leave it on board all the time and service it in situ. It has just become habit to take it off and bring it home for that.

Disconnecting the remotes is not too difficult just a little fiddly.

It has a backup manual start but that requires the plastic flywheel cover to be removed, so the essential tool kit is a spanner to do that and of course 2 spare spark plugs and a plug spanner.
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Is your outboard also fitted with tiller controls? They can be easier to unmount from remotes if the attachments are on external points like gear shift levers.
If the outboard is remotes only then the remote cables can be more involved and deeper under the cowling.
(My background in outboards is mostly 30-90hp so I keep forgetting about external remotes)
 
I don’t think a 24ft boat warrants a sophisticated setup. Wansy will get used to whats there. We’re on our 4th outboard powered boat, and the only one with remote controls. 2 of them have been electric start. The DF 920 has remote throttle, and power tilt/trim, and the tiller removed, replaced with a link plate to couple it to the main tiller with a removable arm. The steering would be jammed if you didn’t uncouple it when the engine is raised. Our DF800 has a Mercury 2 stroke twin, 8hp with none of that, but what a fantastic engine. If your motor is a 2 stroke twin wansy, have it serviced by the finest engineer available and lock it to your bracket with the best lock you can buy. You will never see another like it.
 
I am waiting for the fans of electric outboards to join in,

Meanwhile iirc the OP has an old seagull century kicking around at home?

Now, we all know that this will start at the first (or hundred and first) pull and also put out an audible ‘ we are manoeuvring’ sound .. and even a smoke visible tracking trail if you’re lucky
( tongue in cheek, it’s the perfect simple motor for what the OP has in mind ). And no one Is going to nick it
 
Wansworth, I feel you and not getting the best advice. If you look at all the small day fishing boats with outboards, they have a big outboard and a small one for when the big one does not start. Why not keep your existing outboard and add a smaller one on the other side of the transom. 🤣🤣🤣
 
Concerto said:
Wansworth, I feel you and not getting the best advice. If you look at all the small day fishing boats with outboards, they have a big outboard and a small one for when the big one does not start. Why not keep your existing outboard and add a smaller one on the other side of the transom. 🤣🤣🤣
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The plan after reading forum advice is to start the existing Eight hp engine with help of previous owner who is ultra confident it will start.Will then see if I can start it .Ifnot investigate installation of remote starter and control or buy a smaller engine ,four hp ……….or a sculling oar😂
 
For 4-strokes, from all the manufacturers I can think of - Honda, Mercury (re-badged Tohatsu at this size), Suzuki, Tohatsu, Yamaha - the 4, 5 and 6hp outboards within each brand are all the same single cylinder engine and weight (25-27kg ish). The different horsepower ratings are achieved by use of a different carburetor and/or higher/lower max revs.

The next size up is 8 and 10hp (or 9.8 or 9.9), again same base engines (now two cylinders) with quite a jump in weight at 37-40kg. BUT some of these (I think only the Tohatsu and Tohatsu-based ones so far) now have EFI instead of a carburetor. EFI models should be easier to start because for example there's no choke to fiddle about with and you can't flood them. In my experience this is true - they are a bit easier/more willing to start - but none of the EFI motors at this size have been around long enough to be neglected (lack of long-term neglect helps!). With EFI there's also no carb to "gum up" and they should be more efficient, although not many would accuse the carburetor ones of profligacy. At this size you can often have electric start and other luxuries (or complications and extra weight, depending on how you look at it).

On the water a twin cylinder 8/10 is much nicer to use than a single cylinder 4/5/6. Quieter, smoother etc. But if you need to be able to lift it on and off frequently then 26kg is "just about OK" for many people, whereas 40kg is not.

Electric options exist in the 6-10hp size and of course they're really easy to start/use, and quiet, and won't choke you on their exhaust fumes. The outboard part is quite likely to be lighter than a petrol one too, depends on model but definitely lighter than a 8/10hp petrol. But depending on how much range you want the batteries required may put the price out of contention, and possibly be too heavy, although battery weight doesn't have to be on the transom (it may even be beneficial weight if you can get it low and central in the boat).
 
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