Volvo MD5 vs. Beta 10

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kirielad

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I am weighing up the pros and cons of selling my 9.8 outboard and installing a Beta 10 into my Feeling 720. As with a lot of craft from the mid 80's the boats layout permits either (plenty of room under the cockpit floor).

As an option from new these boats were fitted with a Volvo MD5a or b, and I would be interested to find the weight of this engine and also if anyone has a dimensioned drawing for one?

I expect (hope) the Beta will be lighter and possibly slightly taller. I have googled every which way I can think of but no luck so far on the Volvo specs.

Thanks
 
Physical space is unlikely to be a problem, but unless the boat is already fitted with the beds and sterngear this is not a project for the faint hearted. Likely to end up costing between £4 and 5k, which is roughly 50% of the value of the boat. Unlikely to increase the sale value significantly so probably only worth doing if you intend keeping the boat for a long time.
 
The MD5 was a 45% inclined single so was quite wide, it was not quite as heavy as the MD1 but was still quite a lump. By now they are getting on a bit. The Beta is unlikely to be much taller And will be much more compact all round, they will make the feet to match your existing beds. As to cost whs.
 
Have just done a conversion I would watch out for the height difference. a VP D1-13 only just went in (vertically) where the MD5B had the best part of 9" space.... Width wise was obviously not an issue.

Jeff.
 
Thanks for the replies. I was also going to say regarding costs although it doesn't really 'add up' on a small boat, I intend on doing the work myself, as well as sourcing the parts, to keep the price down.

I was thinking about trading up to a bigger boat, but figure I would be better off keeping what I've got (would need to move to a more expensive mooring for anything longer) and spend some money on it - not really fussed about 'seeing' the engines value in the price when eventually I come to sell.

My outboard (new in 2006) is a 9.8 2 stroke which has some value to offset the costs.
 
A good project, but installing the beds and glassing in the stern tube and P bracket is no easy job!
 
Just so.
There will also be the fitting of the tank, fuel supply and return, filters, engine controls, cooling water filter and supply, and electrics, as well as the exhaust and syphon break system.
No insurmountable problems but it will need a good thinking about.
I considered this once and decided to keep the outboard.
 
It's not all that difficult.If you look at it as a series of small jobs it's not a daunting prospect.The hole for the shaft doesn't have to be accurately cut because it can be corrected with fiberglass and the engine beds are little more than shaped lumps of wood glassed to the bottom.A simple jig wil ensure accuracy.
I've done it and as I said it wasn't hard.Just a bit of work.If you do it all yourself it's not even expensive.
 
Sorry for answering a question you didn't ask, but there's an excellent series of articles about fitting an inboard to a corribee which will give you a good idea of what's involved.

web page (No connection)

Andy
 
Thanks again to all for the responses.

The standard Beta 10 weighs in at 93kgs including gearbox (which is less than twice the weight of some 4 stroke outboards)- and is quite a saving over the Volvo at 128kgs. An important factor when looking at sailing performance on a 'big dinghy'.

Also the weight of an inboard will be much closer to CoG and the keel rather than the outboard at the back of the cockpit.

I appreciate there are some 'technical' bits which will need careful thought. As I'm an electro/mechanical engineer by trade and really don't mind getting my hands dirty, overall I consider this to be an interesting project. Also lucky to know a guy who runs a small boatyard who could supply the engine and provide advice.
 
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