Making an Outboard Surface Drive

[east texas hunt]

Does anyone have any pics or parts info on making an outboard surface drive from a horizontal shaft mower engine? It is for a 15ft flatbottom.

Thanks for your help.

[sandhammaren05]

Why bother? You'd have to run the shaft straight out the transom parallel to the boat bottom, would need gears because the motor is elevated, and gears eat up hp. Also, you'd need a prop designed for surfacing. Simply buy any 2 stroke outboard of hp range you want, you could cut off the skeg if you want (I wouldn't), relocate the water pickup underneath the gearcase hub, and buy a cleaver prop of right dia.x pitch for the motor. Mount the motor as high as you want to, modulo that it still pumps water. If you contact Ron Hill in Calif. then he can probably respline a small cleaver or appropriate round eared surfacing prop to fit your propshaft. He does that all the time. E.G., resplines Yamaha cleavers to run on an OMC 35.

I'll be back in Tx. in Aug.

[Erich_870]

You want to build a short tail mud motor I take it?

There's been a little discussion on the forum, but most of the surface drives on here are racing machines and use highly engineered compenents and props.

Here is a very imformative, DIY thread about home built short tails. Small Hp Surface Drive

Erich