Outboard - 5hp "saildrive" or 6hp standard? I am torn!!!!

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daysailer newbie

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Hi there, I am torn between getting a 5hp Mariner "sailmate" OR the Mariner 6hp standard outboard and fitting a high-thrust prop... the latter would give me a bit more heft to push my 22ft displacement hull, but I would miss out on the charging coil... I guess I am asking how useful people find the charging capability that comes with a saildrive/sailpro version? I will only be daysailing, and my battery is kept topped up by a solar panel, so would I realistically ever need the charging capability?? so am I better off going for the 6hp instead?

The outboard will sit down in a well, so I don't need along-shaft, although that wouldn't be the end of the world.

I know this comes down to personal choice, but I'd really welcome some thoughts and guidance from people with experience as I am, as I said, torn between the two options.

Many thanks
 
If the 5hp has a much larger diameter prop and a coarse pitch compared with the 6hp I would go for the 5hp.
I have a 30hp outboard with a high thrust prop but would prefer a a larger diameter and coarser prop. If only Honda would allow you to select a gearbox for a displacement boat.
 
I managed to get a both a high thrust prop and a charging kit for a Tohatsu outboard. I would be surprised if this is not common to the Mariner. Charging kit installation just required pulling the flywheel off. Unless you use your engine for longer than a few minutes a weekend it is not worth fitting. Cheaper and more effective to add Solar.

The high thrust prop makes the difference between having the equivalent of a useless egg whisk or a responsive lower rpm outboard. The saildrive props are a compromise and not as good for use on a heavier boat IMHO.( fine for a lightweight dinghy with a lid)
 
I've retrofitted charging to my tohatsu - my logic being that a single panel has no back-up, and if the proverbial hit the fan you can run outboard + tiller pilot +all instruments +vhf for ages, as long as you have fuel
 
daysailer newbie said:
Hi there, I am torn between getting a 5hp Mariner "sailmate" OR the Mariner 6hp standard outboard and fitting a high-thrust prop... the latter would give me a bit more heft to push my 22ft displacement hull, but I would miss out on the charging coil... I guess I am asking how useful people find the charging capability that comes with a saildrive/sailpro version? I will only be daysailing, and my battery is kept topped up by a solar panel, so would I realistically ever need the charging capability?? so am I better off going for the 6hp instead?

The outboard will sit down in a well, so I don't need along-shaft, although that wouldn't be the end of the world.

I know this comes down to personal choice, but I'd really welcome some thoughts and guidance from people with experience as I am, as I said, torn between the two options.

Many thanks
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I have a 6 hp Evnrude Yachtwin

Compared with a standard 6hp it has a high thrust prop, long shaft, battery charging coil and rectifier and a modified exhaust system that discharges the exhaust gases away from the prop.
Being mounted on a transom bracket the long shaft is the most useful attribute because it puts the prop 5" deeper.
I cannot comment on the prop performance because I have not compared it with the standard prop but because, for the same speed , the engine revs are higher it is probably a little noisier.

The charging coil is not very effective because the engine running times are usually short and the revs normally low .
A small solar panel is my main battery charging source. Before I fitted it I had to take the battery home from time to tine to recharge it.

The modified exhaust prevents excessive back pressure making starting difficult. Because the gases are not drawn into the prop I get full thrust in reverse.

In your case I would opt for the 6hp fitted with high thrust prop
You don't need the long shaft. The charging coil will probably be as useless as mine. The improved reverse thrust, if that applies to the Mariner, is not that important.
The extra power wont hurt but probably too little difference to ever notice.
 
4yrs ago I bought a Tohatsu 6hp sail Pro with high thrust prop, charging circuit and long shaft. They don't sell it with a standard shaft. I use it in the well of my 23ft cruiser. It has worked very well. I believe it to be a Mariner with different stickers. As you say, Mariners version is 5hp.
 
I own a Mariner 5hp 4T and a 6hp 4T Sailmate Mariner's.

The charging facility is tiny and of little use. As mentioned, I went for solar.

The only difference between the two is the carb and high thrust prop for the Sailmate. There is no difference in the gearbox ratios or propeller apertures.

The engines have been very reliable and easy to service with good mpg.

I much prefer the hand start . Both are easier to pull than my trusty 2hp Honda.
 
Do they call them charging coils now? Used to be referred to as lighting coil and was designed to run just the single white steaming light while motoring. I disconnected mine on my old boat as I'm pretty sure it did more harm than good. A modern 4stroke might be better but check exactly what output it's likely to give.
 
VicS said:
I have a 6 hp Evnrude Yachtwin

Compared with a standard 6hp it has a high thrust prop, long shaft, battery charging coil and rectifier and a modified exhaust system that discharges the exhaust gases away from the prop.
Being mounted on a transom bracket the long shaft is the most useful attribute because it puts the prop 5" deeper.
I cannot comment on the prop performance because I have not compared it with the standard prop but because, for the same speed , the engine revs are higher it is probably a little noisier.

The charging coil is not very effective because the engine running times are usually short and the revs normally low .
A small solar panel is my main battery charging source. Before I fitted it I had to take the battery home from time to tine to recharge it.

The modified exhaust prevents excessive back pressure making starting difficult. Because the gases are not drawn into the prop I get full thrust in reverse.

In your case I would opt for the 6hp fitted with high thrust prop
You don't need the long shaft. The charging coil will probably be as useless as mine. The improved reverse thrust, if that applies to the Mariner, is not that important.
The extra power wont hurt but probably too little difference to ever notice.
Click to expand...
Thanks Vic. I don't need the long-shaft, but the 6hp I'm being offered is also a long shaft... so they would be identical options with same prop except 5hp with charging coil, 6hp without... no harm in getting a long shaft, right??
 
If the electrical charging is important to you then look for the outboards that offer a higher output as an option. I think it was Honda that offered a doubled electrical output power on a few models.
 
lustyd said:
Do they call them charging coils now? Used to be referred to as lighting coil and was designed to run just the single white steaming light while motoring. I disconnected mine on my old boat as I'm pretty sure it did more harm than good. A modern 4stroke might be better but check exactly what output it's likely to give.
Click to expand...
Evinrude and Johnson actually call them "stator coils. The battery charging coils and lighting coils have different part numbers but I don't know what the real difference is .
The AC lighting coil can supply up to 60 watts of power. A plug in rectifier was available as an accessory for battery charging
The Yachtwin had a built in rectifier and could supply up to 4 amps for battery charging.... according to the sales brochure.

The term " charging coil " often refers to the coil powering he CDI ( ignition) system.
 
Just around not needing a long shaft for the outboard well. You think a short shaft will manage ok on your set up ?
 
QBhoy said:
Just around not needing a long shaft for the outboard well. You think a short shaft will manage ok on your set up ?
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Hi QBhoy, I have a friend who has a standard shaft in the well and it is fine... I know people with short and long and am just wondering which would be optimal - or is there not much in it for what I am wanting?????
 
daysailer newbie said:
Hi QBhoy, I have a friend who has a standard shaft in the well and it is fine... I know people with short and long and am just wondering which would be optimal - or is there not much in it for what I am wanting?????
Click to expand...
Ah. Got you. Was just wondering if the prop would be low enough to be in the flow of water below the hull or not.
 
Personally I would got for the 5hp. It's made for it and whilst you can change props and add coils it never seems to work out same.
 
I have a 5hp 2 stroke Mercury with 7" pitch prop for my Anderson 22 and it goes in the well. This happily drives the boat at 6 knots with just over half throttle in smooth water , and not much faster at full throttle . With 40W of solar panels the batteries don't need coil charging.
Being 2 stroke it is light so I can lift the engine out of the well and into it's locker once sailing and that gets rid of drag and sloshing noise.
 
I had a short shaft 4hp suzuki in a well on my Anderson 22 it gave.more than enough power And charged the battery.
 
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