Which 30-ish footer

[Cariadco]

From what I have seen of outboard motors on our moorings they require more maintenance and can be a far bigger pain in the butt than any inboard. If you have a later model 30 ft boat space becomes less of an issue & that taken by the inboard will only become a junk storage area. Only badly maintained engines have oily bilges & one can change the filters in the winter when the boat is not used much. I had an oil collection sheet under my last Volvo engine & when it was replaced, at 5000 hours, the bilges were clean, needing only a wipe with some wet wipes. If one has a vibration issue then look to the engine mounts. Most inboards of later construction run beautifully if used regularly.
I have not had an out board driven boat for 60 years & that was in a well in the cockpit. Never again thanks
I would question how they work in short sharp chop when the prop continually leaves the water. Even with a long shaft model. last year I went to Ostend & even my saildrive had a few sudden revs where it cavitated near the surface approaching the harbour. An outboard would have had no chance

I've always said, if ever there was a chance to dump the diesel engine in my boat and replace it with an outboard, I'd jump at it. 125kg's for 28hp (when it was new) plus the Saildrive/Gearbox weight? no brainer. Except the pain in getting hot water, and having to go down the Solar Panel route for enough Eleci.

 

[Daydream believer]

One is less likely to get an inboard stollen than an outboard. We have had a few go missing on the River Blackwater over the years. mainly from RIBS but a nice juicy 20 HP one on the back of a cruiser would be fair game.

 

[Blueboatman]

Other points of view are available :

I have removed the inboard engine from one small boat( and all the ancillaries that went with it)
And subsequently used to sail my fin n skeg 28 with a mere 10hp long leg outboard slung low on the extended walk through transom .
An absolute win win in so many ways .
Vibration
Noise
Smell
Clean interior
Maintenance a doddle in the cockpit
No fuel down below
No tanks, no bug
Weight
Simplicity
Manoeuvrability like having a stern thruster
Brilliant for getting off the mud when you touch
No getting a prop rope wrap that’s unreachable
Straightforward ‘ worst case’ replacement of the whole engine would be a 10 minute job- and any old generic motor would do anywhere in the world

And the best, bestest bit of all ? When you lift the motor up you have a sailing boat.

 

[doug748]

I've always said, if ever there was a chance to dump the diesel engine in my boat and replace it with an outboard, I'd jump at it. 125kg's for 28hp (when it was new) plus the Saildrive/Gearbox weight? no brainer. Except the pain in getting hot water, and having to go down the Solar Panel route for enough Eleci.

An outboard has a lot of attractions on a smaller boat as Blueboatman has said. For a day sailor particularly things have swung in their favour over the last few years.
Petrol is now found more regularly in marinas, LED lighting takes far less power, engines are running with reduced smoke and a 20 watt panel can often keep up with the modest loads of weekend sailing.

.

 

[Chiara’s slave]

An outboard has a lot of attractions on a smaller boat as Blueboatman has said. For a day sailor particularly things have swung in their favour over the last few years.
Petrol is now found more regularly in marinas, LED lighting takes far less power, engines are running with reduced smoke and a 20 watt panel can often keep up with the modest loads of weekend sailing.

.

And outboards are now just as reliable as an inboard diesel. They won’t catch on for blue water sailors of course, you can’t just motor for 2 days with one, or not with the kind of installation most people have. But for the more performance orientated coastal cruiser they make a lot of sense. A lot of you would go at leadt half a knot faster with the drive lifted out of the water, sometimes a lot more than that. Which means you sail more and motor less.

 

[capnsensible]

Outboards have a lot of advantages. Until they get swamped in a little bit of sea.

Happened to a friend of mine going round Europa Point, Gib. Boat got smashed up on the rocks, he survived rather bruised.

 

[gaylord694]

Anything other than a catamaran or trimaran

 

[MisterBaxter]

It's not just the improved speed when you tilt up an outboard, it's the feel of the boat too - more responsive to both helm and wind. But a good folding prop would give similar benefits if not more, given that you wouldn't have the leg of an outboard in the water in the first place.
Nonetheless, I would personally favour an outboard for any boat under 25-26' or so.

 

[Daydream believer]

An outboard is a lot of weight hung on the stern, as opposed to a more centrally placed inboard (which probably adds to stability)
The fuel is more volatile & one might ask if consumption is higher for an outboard. Where it is stored has to be considered.

 

[MisterBaxter]

An outboard is a lot of weight hung on the stern, as opposed to a more centrally placed inboard (which probably adds to stability)

Yes, especially if you want a larger engine. The current fashion is for quite large engines, powerful enough to drive a boat to windward at hull speed against a decent breeze and a choppy sea, and an outboard isn't ideal if that's the aim.
It used to be normal to put much smaller engines in sailing boats, though. In the 70s and earlier, 1.5hp per tonne was considered adequate by many.

 

[Egret]

I specifically looked for another boat with outboard in well, easy/cheap to replace when time comes, or if in for servicing - just for getting off the mooring and pointing in the right direction -( Also bilge keels and transom hung rudder) Depends where you are and what you want to do - my interest is sailing, wouldn't ever intend to motor far. Definitely not intending to sail around Gibraltar. Electric outboard can be good - a couple of hundred watts helps pointing to windward and would last about 5 hours.

Outboards also a good way of extending life of an old boat where new inboard would be uneconomic, although probably marginal for a 30 footer.
,
Our boat has sculling rowlock, needs a long oar but might work as the big oyster skiffs were sculled ashore - will have to try.

Would be interesting to know the OP's budget for 30' boat, as the question could cover everything from the selection on Clarke and Carter for under £10,000 to a Dragonfly at £200,000 +

 

[Chiara’s slave]

An outboard is a lot of weight hung on the stern, as opposed to a more centrally placed inboard (which probably adds to stability)
The fuel is more volatile & one might ask if consumption is higher for an outboard. Where it is stored has to be considered.

Quite true. Though I have never owned a boat with an inboard, obviously I have sailed and motored on many, a fair few as skipper. Consumption is indeed higher. Weight on the transom is a consideration, but of course the whole damn issue is way lighter, the transom may well not be at a different load line, maybe the pitching inertia is higher. Our 15hp motor weighs about 50kg, its electric start and power tilt/trim. More of an issue re the pitching is the possibility of the prop coming out of the water. This happens to us sometimes off Egypt Point, a particularly difficult place for big pointy waves. Quite rare though. Fuel wise, we normally have our 20 litre tank and 10 litres in a can, and it’ll last us a fortnight of usual cruising at least, bearing in mind we’ll sail if there’s 5kn of wind, maybe a bit less, and probably go to the pub if there’s less. You adapt, then wonder why you ever did it differently.

 

[DownWest]

Intetresting exercise of various peeps and their tastes... No sign of the OP...
I do remember an uncomfortable night in the Alderny race, with the OB racing in fresh air half the time... an inboard would have got us out of there a lot faster...

 

[seeSimon]

And outboards are now just as reliable as an inboard diesel. They won’t catch on for blue water sailors of course, you can’t just motor for 2 days with one, or not with the kind of installation most people have. But for the more performance orientated coastal cruiser they make a lot of sense. A lot of you would go at leadt half a knot faster with the drive lifted out of the water, sometimes a lot more than that. Which means you sail more and motor less.

Have you tried running a small (say <5hp?) Outboard on E10 petrol lately? Even as a Marine Engineer, I've given up the impossible fight , and brought an Eprop for my tender.
My Honda 2.3 is currently on its 3rd carb. Rotted out by water/Ethanol in the rubbish fuels they now pass off on to us.

 

[dunedin]

Have you tried running a small (say <5hp?) Outboard on E10 petrol lately? Even as a Marine Engineer, I've given up the impossible fight , and brought an Eprop for my tender.
My Honda 2.3 is currently on its 3rd carb. Rotted out by water/Ethanol in the rubbish fuels they now pass off on to us.

Why not use E5 petrol then. Our 3.3hp outboard is running fine, and uses so little fuel each year a few quid extra for E5 is not an issue.

 

[nevis768]

Best not to leave petrol in them for long.

 

[annie1003]

Which sailing cruiser of around 30 foot LOA has all the following features:
Fractional rig
Tiller-steered
Transom-hung rudder(s)
Twin-cylinder outboard motor

If all that's too easy, add any one of
Lift keel
Self-tacking jib
Carbon rig

All common-enough features per se, but finding them in combination on a boat of this length... I like the look of the Swallow Bay Cruiser 32, but so far as I know it's not yet been built; it's also wood, which I don't fancy.

Hi from another new member. We have an older Dufour Arpege which we brought from France last year. Great boat.

 

[Chiara’s slave]

Have you tried running a small (say <5hp?) Outboard on E10 petrol lately? Even as a Marine Engineer, I've given up the impossible fight , and brought an Eprop for my tender.
My Honda 2.3 is currently on its 3rd carb. Rotted out by water/Ethanol in the rubbish fuels they now pass off on to us.

Our boat would be awfully slow with less than 5hp. More to the point, hard to steer and stop! We use fuel additive for ours, and use an electric motor for the tender.

 

[doug748]

Hi from another new member. We have an older Dufour Arpege which we brought from France last year. Great boat.

Did you bring it back as return goods? Or did you buy there and import? I ask because of this imbroglio:

Importing a boat from Europe, Trading Standards Response

I fully understand if you do not want to touch this matter with a bargepole ( ) or want to give me a confidential PM.

PS

Welcome to the forum.
.

 

[SaltyC]

Have you tried running a small (say <5hp?) Outboard on E10 petrol lately? Even as a Marine Engineer, I've given up the impossible fight , and brought an Eprop for my tender.
My Honda 2.3 is currently on its 3rd carb. Rotted out by water/Ethanol in the rubbish fuels they now pass off on to us.

Must admit after having had tge same problem I now turn fuel off and run carbon dry if not using for a few days. No problems since.