jps wrote:

On Fri, 23 Oct 2009 20:42:00 -0700, Jim wrote:

jps wrote:
On Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:06:03 -0700, Jim wrote:

jps wrote:
On Thu, 22 Oct 2009 19:55:39 -0700, Jim wrote:

jps wrote:
On Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:20:17 -0700, Jim
wrote:

I have a 2 stroke 18 horse Nissan on my inflatable. If I
didn't own this thing it's the outboard I'd think I wanted.
18 horses, only 80 pounds.

I want to buy a new 4 stroke, but the additional weight has
me concerned.

Any recommendations on what I should look at to replace my
noisy 2 stroke? Weight is a concern because it gets dragged
up on the beach, and taken out of the water every night.
What's the size of the inflatable and what horsepower is it
rated for? It's a Caribe C-12 (RIB), rated for a 35 horse.

All the responses so far tell me I should be happy with what
I've got. I want a smoother, quieter engine.
When you say it comes out each night, do you mean you have to
dismount the motor?

If you're not having to take it on and off all the time, those
Honda 20 and 25's are a good choice albeit spendy. I think the
25 is between 135 and 150 lbs (can't recall exactly) which is
substantially more than you've got now but I think your Caribe
would handle it well.

I was considering replacing the Merc 25 two-stroke with the
Honda but like you I was concerned about extra weight, even tho'
it was rigged for an electric davit. It was for an 11' whaler
and the 120 lb merc was just about right. With a 25 the thing
flies.

Do you have a steering station?
I do have a steering station and remote throttle. The steering is
one of those really light aluminum bar devices that straddles the
boat. It works out really well and is easily removed or
installed. Most of the time I don't use it. The boat can be a
challenge with the 18 with the tiller steering. With one person
in the boat it's a bit unstable at high speeds. If I'm traveling
any real distance the remote steering makes it much more stable.

The engine comes off several times a year. I live where it's
always boating season, so there are seldom winter issues.

I have a trawler and use the mast/boom to lift the 80 pound motor
on and off because it's very easy. I can lift it fairly easy
with out the cargo mast, but it's awkward. I'm sure the cargo
mast would lift a much heavier engine.

The problem is when I store the boat without removing the engine.
I looked at every possible davit system and the best solution is
to put the boat on my swim step and use the mast/boom to tilt the
boat up, almost vertical with the engine on it. Just sitting on
pads on the swim step, lashed to eyes on the transom. It sits
nicely even with the steering and remote throttle.

I believe that a much heavier engine would not allow me to store
the boat in such a manner.

I'm looking for something a little heavier, maybe a little over
100 pounds.
You may have already seen it but there's a system made by a
company up in Vancouver BC called Sea Wise. They have a davit
system that rotates with the engine on a plate that, when stored,
remains in a verticle position outside the boat.

I liked it but was concerned about being able to get from one side
of the swim platform to the other. The sea wise system makes it
nearly impossible.

Did you look at Roskelley Olssen and Nick Jackson Davits?

I did, and liked them but they are expensive and leave me with an
over length boat for my slip. Putting it on the swim step works
very well, saves money, and eliminates a bunch of additional stuff
that it turns out I don't really need. But if I had a 150 pound
engine that might all change.

With the dinghy inflated, and the engine on it, it sits at a pretty
good angle. I can flush the engine and run the fuel out in that
position. An additional thing to tilt the engine isn't needed.

I thought about building an aluminum frame to support the boat, but
after all is said and done, what I'm doing now works.

When I remove the engine and deflate the boat, it pulls up tight to
the transom and with the cover on it, it looks like it belongs
there. Deflated it does not sit on the swim step, it is suspended
by the lift eyes in the dinghy.

The bow curve leaves the ladder accessible, so I can use the corner
of the swim platform. It takes 10 seconds to launch the dinghy,
and a couple of minutes to winch it back up. Any davit system I've
seen looks like more trouble than not having one.

They're definitely a bit of a hassle. I installed weaver davits on
the dink and the swimstep so I could just pull up and secure even
modest seas. Then lower the davit, hook it to the rigging release the
weavers, pull the transom plug and winch it up. Had the drill down to
a few minutes after a season.

I had the davit footings mounted 2/3 of the way up the transom so I
could have full access to the swimstep. It was a good implementation
but I had to replace one of the stantions on deck with a solid steel
rod so I could use a higher pull point for the winch.

Pulled the Whaler even with the sundeck in height so I could pretty
easily use the dink for stowing stuff when cruising. I'm missing that
boat now but not the maintenance. Still have the dink.

You might take a look at the Nissan 4-strokes. We have a 5 horse on our
12' Quicksilver and it work really well for us. Jim

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