I am rebuilding a 14ft flats boat and trying to decide on the motor. I’ve decided I am going to run a tiller but not sure if I should have a 25hp / 30hp or 40hp. Originally thought I would get a 25hp 2 stroke but worried if I have gear and a 2nd person it may run slow.
Is there any place in town that would rent an outboard so I can test a few different setups? Or other options for figuring out what the best motor size is?
Boat probably weighs around 500lbs
go with max hp rating on the boat ID plate
J Ford
There is no ID plate that I can find. Boat is from 1974 and titled as a Queen Craft. I checked the Hull ID online and couldn’t find anything regarding Max HP.
The wisest advice I’ve ever received from anyone when picking a motor for a boat, “The max is the minimum.”
Don’t under power. Chris V is an excellent source to discuss this with; he can tell you the pros and cons on each available motor for your application.
Redfish Baron Extraordinaire
Had an under powered boat once… NEVER again… Max or no less than 80% of MAx
Boat doesn’t have a max hp listed. Previous owner said he ran a 25hp but i’ll probably look for a 40hp. If anyone has an extra 25hp they would be willing to let me test on the boat let me know. Just don’t want too much weight in the back.
How fast do you want to go?[:0] Put the biggest motor you can afford on it! You can always throttle back !
If the hull was designed to carry typical 2-stroke motor weight, and if the hull is fairly flat in the back half, putting a much heavier 4 stroke motor on her can induce significant porpoising.
A new 4 stroke 40 can be as much as 100 lbs heavier than an old 2 stroke 40. On the transom of a small boat, that can have a dramatic effect.
17’ Henry O Hornet w/ Johnson 88 spl
26’ Palmer Scott project hull
14’ Bentz-Craft w/ Yamaha 25
My last boat was a 14’ CrappieJon with a 25 Merc 2 stroke and it weighed ~320lbs. That boat would run ~25mph fully loaded with 2 people and gear. This was a great motor for this boat. If I still had this boat, I would let you test it…
With that said my current boat is a 95 polar craft Eagle 17 bass style boat and it weighs ~580lbs. I think it is a little under powered with a 40 on a boat rated for a 75. I am running a much higher RPMs for cruising speeds and with a load I burn a good bit more fuel.
Take those examples for what they are worth. If it were me and I knew I was already at 500lbs dry, I would be looking at at least a 40 and I would stay with a 2 stroke. The weight to power ratios at those low hps just don’t make sense to me.
Thanks for the advice. I really don’t know what the boat weighs, 500 was a guess but I could be way off. I’ll keep my eyes out for a 30hp or 40hp 2 stroke. I think i’d rather have the extra power and not need it.
All of them are pretty much the same. In normal use a 25hp will be fine, but sometimes that extra hp is needed. For example a few weeks ago I was up the lake a ways from home and all of the sudden my Mexican dinner from the night before started talking to me. There were too many folks on the water for me to hop on the bank and feed the snipes. I have a 17’ Carolina skiff flat bottom with a 90hp on it. I’d say it is way more hp than needed, but that day I let her EAT! HAHA all the guys in the jon boats with the 9.9’s where evil eye’n me. I’d say 90% of the time I never get my boat fast enough to get on plane. (Don’t want to spill my beer)
Got it. Either get a 40hp or don’t eat Mexican food before I head out.
All good advice. I have a 25hp 4 stroke on my whaler. With just me it goes real good, max at around 30-32 mph.
But, put another angler (or two) and performance suffers greatly. I wish I had a 35 hp. You will definitely want a 40 IMO.
2000 SeaPro 180CC w/ Yammy 115 2 stroke
1966 13’ Boston Whaler w/ Merc 25 4 stroke “Flatty”
www.ralphphillipsinshore.com
Feed the snipes. Lol
“I am not involved in this thread, only helping Fred understand who he is dealing with.”