On Aug 6, 10:37?pm, Dave in Denver wrote:
Not sure if it is still true, but when I bought my 2 1/2 HP Nissan
several years ago it was identical to the Mercury 2 1/2 HP at that
time. The Nissan/Tohatsu outboards have a lot of fans, including
Mercury, who does- or has- purchased them and rebadged them as their
own brand.

Thanks... Yes my searches have bumped into the Mercury/Nissan/Tohatsu
connection too. Sure do need a score card to keep up with who owns
who and using what label. The point of course it to find a good
product.

Have you been happy with your Nissan? Is it a 2-stroke?

I have 5HP Tohatsu 2-stroke now that is a dozen years old. It can run
really well.... but it also is a moody thing and will go through weak
spells on the same day. I have spent the usual $100 or so for a few
tune-ups in the past... does not make much performance difference...
just PM I suppose.

Since I really need a long (or extra long) shaft I thought I would
spend my next $ on the future and not on the past.

Thx
Dave-in-Denver

Yes, my Nissan outboard is a 2-stroke. I think a 4-stroke would be a
better choice, but when we bought ours 4-strokes weren't commonly
available and/or were out of $ight.

I have to confess that I haven't even started the outboard for the
last couple of years. For the short distances we need to cover, it's
more convenient to row. We can't be counted among the crowd who get
some huge thrill out of scooting around the harbor in an inflatable,
so less than 100 strokes with even the miserable aluminum oars that
fit the inflatable will usually get us ashore from a mooring buoy or
anchorage. It's more work to mount the outboard, get it started, use
it, dismount it, and (since most of our boating is in salt water) wind
up putting it away for the day without adequately flushing it.

Sometime in the next 5-7 years we might step up to a larger boat. At
36-feet, there isn't enough length in most designs for a functional
boat deck. On the list of "features nice to have" for our 39-40 foot
retirement boat would be a decent davit and chocks on a boat deck.
With a more substantial dinghy it might make sense to rely on an
outboard more often- but with a 9-foot Zodiac there's no need for
outboard power to travel short distances in protected harbors.

That reminds me, though. I should freshen up the fuel supplies for
the
Honda portable genset and the Nissan outboard before getting underway
on Friday. :-)