"JoeSpareBedroom" wrote in message
...
"Paul G." wrote in message
oups.com...
I have a 12' fiberglass boat that is rated for "up to 14 hp". What's
a practical size outboard for this boat? Should I go for the max or
what? Thanks,
-Paul


I've got a 14' aluminum yacht rated for 25 hp, but my motor's 15 hp. I can
hit 22 mph on flat water with two adults on board. The boat itself weighs
about 400 lbs. Check your boat's weight and that should give you a useful
guideline.

Also consider who will be in the boat much of the time. I often fish
alone, and my motor's a tiller model. So, I'm in the stern along with the
battery. That raises the bow (affecting visibility) under certain
conditions and no amount of motor angle adjustment helps. I usually put a
couple of 50 lb sandbags in the bow. Even so, this nixed the idea of
upgrading to 25 hp a few years back. That, and the fact that flat water
almost never happens around here.

A while back here, people would buy a 9.9 hp outboards to avoid the need to
license their boat.
I have a 25 hp on a 14' 6" aluminum boat now and found the licensing
procedure to be free and relatively painless.