On Fri, 18 Mar 2005 11:33:52 GMT, bo jangles wrote:

On Thu, 17 Mar 2005 10:53:22 GMT, Short Wave Sportfishing
wrote:

On Thu, 17 Mar 2005 03:05:26 GMT, bo jangles wrote:

~~ snippage ~~

I guess I won't completely give up on the idea of getting a boat but
it is getting pretty frustrating.

And you shouldn't.

After reading the your last post, I'd suggest that you first find what
you want in a boat, how much you can tow, cost, etc. That will
determine what your engine choice is going to be anyway.

In any case, don't get discouraged. I've settled on what makes me
happy, Tony has done the same as have a lot of contributors here.
Your eventual choice is not going to be a bad one - it will be yours
and that counts for a lot.

Trust me on that.

If I, a lay layman, can summarize what I've learned from this thread
it would be: For this moment, given a relatively small/light boat I
intend to buy (19'-21') I can use a 115 to 200 HP motor. Given I
won't be traveling long distances to fish or recreate (at least in the
boat), fuel efficiency is not critical (nice maybe). Then I should
consider a carbed engine (will work reliably) which may not be the
fastest per pound or the quietest or the least expensive to operate
(fuel plus oil) but may be cheaper in the long run if I get a lemon
EFI/DI. Considering the initial cost of 4 strokes I may never make up
the difference on a new purchase but it would be OK if on a used boat
for a decent price. Just because of the controversy surrounding Merc
these days I may be better off avoiding them if I can but if on a used
boat I like for the right price, a carbed Merc sal****er would be OK
(resale be damned since this is intended to be a 10-15 year boat and
after that there isn't any resale value for my type of boat. In my
case I think I'll stick with my initial thoughts which were to buy
Yamaha if possible. While they may not have a great nationwide
network, they have a good presence in the areas of Florida I will
fishing and they do have shops near where I live Plus that's the brand
of motorcycle I own. Makes as much sense to me as most of this
thread!.

Well, you are well on your way to getting a boat - you seem to have it
all together with one exception.

Don't discount DI engines. They have an unearned reputation as being
junk and they aren't. That includes Yamaha engines. Their DI engines
are great as are the Evinrudes.

One suggestion - if you buy used, and it's a carbed engine, ask to
take a test ride for an hour - pay for the oil and gas, top off the
tank and run it at trolling speeds, cruise, WOT, then fill it again.
That will give you a good measure of what that engine is going to use
in terms of gas. I think you will be surprised.

In any case, have fun with it. Don't let the little brand loyalist
spats around this place ruin the search process for you.

That includes any advice I might give you - it's your decision and
what makes you comfortable is the way to go.

Later,

Tom