What is the max size of engine that can be fitted to an Enterprise dingy

[PhilCole]

Why bother with the faff of dinghy cruising then?

Excitement and exhilaration.
Have a Kayak also. On YouTube search for a P H Delphin, see what fun that can offer.

 

[obmij]

Looks great.

I see you can put a sail on it - which makes sense!

 

[oldbloke]

I don't think there is room to run an outboard with the rudder still fitted, but I might be wrong. Not a deal breaker , you just steer the outboard.
Unless you are going mob handed you will need a good long extension handle so you can sit well forwards.
You will only want 2 to 3hp to get to hull speed

 

[RunAgroundHard]

I don't think there is room to run an outboard with the rudder still fitted, but I might be wrong.

They get fitted offset, similar arrangement to many Wayfarers. Wayfarer MK2 - Boatscrapyard Market Place
Sure, the Enterprise is narrower at the stern than the Wayfarer, but a small outboard would still fit in the space.

 

[Sea Change]

We routinely use an outboard on our 11ft plywood dinghy. It's designed as a multi-purpose rowing, sailing, and motoring tender so compared to an Enterprise it is fairly chunky and with quite high freeboard.
We use a 3.5hp 2 stroke and I don't really see the need to try anything larger. We'll do about 5.5kt fully loaded, 6.5kt with just one person. I usually put the outboard off to one side so that I can swap to sailing more easily.

 

[DownWest]

Way back, I often used a 4 hp Evenrude 2T on the back of our Fleetwind 12ft and the Cadet (though that drew some unpleasent flak from the sailing club 'worthys')
Mackeral fishing in Falmouth bay, left the rudder at home, along with the sticks and canvas. The transom was solid on both boats. But had to cut a bit of stern deck out of the Cadet, which enraged the worthys.
I also used a 5hp Clinton on the back of my little 6ft sailing pram, but that was not such a good match, esp three up...

Go for it. Sounds like something quiet would in order, so not a Honda. The assorted versions of Tohatsu 3.5 4T are good. Friend has the Mercury version, very good.


Edit: Have a look at the Dinghy Cruising Association. You might find some kindred minds. Quite a few about here and all gearing up for the Semaine Du Golfe in Brittany next May.

 

[Sea Change]

Another option is a cheap little trolling motor paired with a suitable lithium battery... very quiet and civilised, much cheaper than a new outboard (likely not as cheap as a used one though) and potentially fairly capsize proof. Better weight distribution, etc etc.
I've tried it and whilst it didn't make the cut as a 'daily driver' (it kind of fell apart... next time round I would swap out all the metal components like bolts etc for stainless) it was a pleasure to use and a fraction of the cost of a proper Torqueedo etc.

 

[C08]

We had a Seagull outboard as a "get home motor" sailing the broads, Milford Haven, Welsh and Lake district waters on a wooden GP14. It was only a small outboard but pulled down the stern noticeably but there was quite a problem with the mainsheet catching on it and which nearly had me capsized with wife, daughter and dog also aboard! Something to think about.

 

[Daydream believer]

We had a Seagull outboard as a "get home motor" sailing the broads, Milford Haven, Welsh and Lake district waters on a wooden GP14. It was only a small outboard but pulled down the stern noticeably but there was quite a problem with the mainsheet catching on it and which nearly had me capsized with wife, daughter and dog also aboard! Something to think about.

I had a 12 ft clinker Walker super 12 gunter rigged dinghy when I was 11. I used to strap the seagull across the thwart in the middle of the boat ready for use if needed. It helped keeping the weight amid ships