Help with outboard bracket design

Noosa Coastguard will tow you in no problem from 50 miles out to sea in a gale .....$50 a year...... only joking you have to have 2 engines in South Africa to go offshore...

 

I think we can all agree on that. I have nothing against twins in certain circumstances but most of the boating world can get along just princely without the added expense and complication. Good maintenance will trump redundancy for most people. I haven't had an, on the water, outboard failure not related to external causes in 40 years. Earlier mechanical blown engines were the result of pushing too hard for speed.

Oops, Almost lied here. Was on a small uninhabited island off Culebra a few years ago in a borrowed Whaler 13" with a brand new Yamaha 9.9. When the cord was pulled to start back, it came out in my hand although the engine started. With no tools, I was a afraid to stop it and we made it back to Culebra ok. Turned out that there was no way to repair it anyway and the whole unit had to be replaced. Of course, I don't know where you might place a second engine on a Whaler 13.

 

There is No Debate.

 

Still two mouths to feed, not bad if you can afford it...

Are we talking boats here....

 

Makeover

Based on my experiences with similar projects I’d think about updating the windows clean out all the inboard engine junk and give the old girl a quality coat of paint. I’m sure that if you have a significant other you’d have to admit that she looks a lot better dressed up with fresh makeup. Boats are females too.

Unless you are very experienced doing glass or aluminum work buy an good quality bracket and add proper structure inside the original transom to support the bracket/engine.
As for the engine package, buy a new 4 stroke 200 and invest in a new fuel tank, the best fuel filtration system you can find, a heavy duty starting battery plus a house battery that can act as battery backup for starting.
The money saved by just having one engine will enable you to update the interior to better then new. Remember first class preventive maintenance is a better choice then just more or bigger.
Happy boating

 

I second, go with one power unit. redundancy is great and makes total sense in certain applications or where major amounts of power is needed. Look at single prop airplanes for instance, there are thousands flying around without worry and if they fails the consequences are much greater than in a boat! Keep the fuel few from water, the batteries and charging system up, and tune as recommended and you will have no worries.

 

Now when its really critical to get across the water.
http://www.hoax-slayer.com/drug-runner-boat.shtml

Taking redundancy to a new level.

 

It's okay Mr. Efficiency, you don't get it, you don't want to and you're not going to. Carry on.

You can get off your high horse about me putting some "poor sucker" at risk rescuing me, it's never happened. Further more, I am the "poor sucker" who drives the rescue boat...

-Tom

 

Ouch !

 

My vote goes to a single main and adequate power in an ancillary to make hull speed ( a 10 horse would be minimum in this case ). It's been mentioned that a large percentage of the problems with modern outboards is fuel and battery related. I'd like to I add that in the Pacific Northwest ( as our friends from BC will agree) a large percent of our propulsion casualties are a result of driving over logs and rocks and when a twin does either of those it generally takes out both engines.

My experience has been a little different than yours, I generally go half of an inch of lift for each 12 inches of setback and on the faster projects sometimes have to come up another half of an inch per foot.

I don't know why you'd suggest that bonding new to old poly would be problematic, I do it all the time with great success. If it's not working for you you might have a procedural problem.

I also believe that the boats styling isn't bad nor would it likely be improved by the infusion of far more money than it's worth.

I'm also one the "poor suckers ( an accredited search and rescue team)" that hops in the boat in the middle of the night to assist somebody in trouble and most often I'm at the helm of a single engine powered boat with an ancillary although I would prefer a triple ( twins and an ancillary )for rescue work as efficiency is less of a priority .

I've been towed before ( weather conditions prevented the ancillary from being practical ) and it could happen again....
Gerald

 

poor ol Jack Savage would not be happy with the mess you plan on doing to his nice boat...just restore it as it was made, they are an excellent boat as it is...single engine.

 

wet on wet poly is a chemical bond ...old and new poly only mechanical so you need to do it right....one or two nice aluminium brackets /pods and internal re inforcement ....

 

Thanks everyone for the advice. I have decided to keep the original hull design as it is (possibly look at changing windows) and throwing on a single engine. Looking forward to getting stuck into the project.

Really appreciate the advice.

 

Good on ya mate, there are plenty of boat window makers that can supply the right ones for you.

She is a nice boat, well worth looking after and restoring. I am sure that you will get a nice engine at the right price too with a bit of "scouting"...all the best mate.

 

I dont do fibreglass boats so this is not a sales pitch but can I suggest that before you do anything you pay a naval architect a few hundred dollars to do a weight study and tell you what effect your plans will have on trim and stability. (or at least attempt it yourself with a spreadsheet and freeship)

I only say this as a while ago I was asked to help out when a modified boat had its deck under water at re-launch. New cabin, new engines and it sank like a rock. It was too late, the mods had been done at a 6 figure cost.

Moving engines and extending the hull could be ok or it could be a disaster. Get it checked out and find out how it will trim before you spend any serious money.