Outboard Size

[Rob_Patten]

I have a fairly light displacement yacht - Cal25 - on the west coast of Canada - and currently have a 9hp mercury outboard which I am looking at replacing with a newer 4 stroke. Realistically could I get away with a 5hp (or even less) as I am able to sail into a large protected harbour (Victoria) and to within a 100 metres of my berth before needing to use an outboard for manouvering. I try to use a motor as little as possible having solar panels and a windgen for battery charging.

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[tyse]

i have a 23 foot yacht of average displacement and i use the honda 5hp 4 stroke i sail in a area with tides running at more than 3 knots and it never struggles i rarely use more than 2/3 rds throttle

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[Nikolai]

I am a rather rare visitor to this Forum since I'm a russian, but have some words to add here. We have skipped our old "Veterok-8" (Wind-8) - the most popular 8 hp domestic outboard here and test a new honda-5 now. The weight of that 4-stroke is equal to that of the Veterok, so it isn't the light thing for a small 18ft like mine... But its easy start gives a lot of pleasure. And it is not so noisy as the previous motor, you can even speak to your crew when it works ).

Nikolai, Moscow, Russia

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[coco]

We have a First211 (1700kg loaded) and are using a Mercury 6HP 4 stroke OB (single cylinder). This engine works very well with a remarkably low gas consumption. We achieve 5.5 knots at less than 2/3 power setting. Full throttle brings us above 6 knots. Nevertheless, I would recommend to consider a special propeller for your kind of boat. Also beware that 4 stroke engines have a much higher torque than a 2 stroke. As a consequence your support must be able to support the forces (essentially a torque around the transversal axis) adequately. 2 Months ago we lost the engine (with 100% damage) due to the failure of the support (standard commercial part)! The support plate was broken due to excessive forces, although the support manufacturer says 40kg and 10HP...

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