1981 Dusky 256 Inboard Diesel to Outboard Conversion

Hey guys Im a newb coming for advice. I inherited a 1981 dusky 256 that has a direct drive inboard diesel in it. The motor is shot and I honestly just want to know how difficult would it be to convert it to a outboard. Ive seen some post on here about inboard to outboard conversion but from what ive seen all are inboard/outboards (I/Os) to outboard conversion which seem alot more simple to change seeing that theres no hole in the bottom of the boat and no rudder to deal with. Is it worth the switch?

 

Not that simple to convert from I/O to out board either, you have a big "hole" where the drive leg joined the hull, but the main thing is, the transom needs to be strengthened to accommodate stresses that were not there before, with inboard engines. There seems to be plenty of these boats with outboards, I would study what kind of pods/brackets they have installed, and copy what is most popular, and speak to owners where possible, there is certainly a big difference in weight distribution between a diesel shaft drive and an outboard in the same hull, but it seems that it is quite OK with outboards.

 

I see you're in the Bahamas, and I'm not familiar with the emissions reg's, so this may not be an option but look at the 5.9L re-man engines from cummins. Probably cheaper than a conversion.