How heavy an outboard off the transom of a Pearson 30 ?

[Coops]

My vote goes for OB power in smaller sailboats as well. Dislike the smell and the heat of a diesel down below. Owned a 24' Spacesailer quite a few years ago and it has a V cut into the transom for the motor. Dead centre and down low, i had a 9.9 four stroke on it and used to sail it out into the Pacific from Sydney and never had a problem with it cavitating. May even buy another one soon, was a good little boat.

For those at all interested, here is the design.
Spacesailer 24

Coops.

[slowpoker]

From experience, on a 36' Catalina, deep keel, tall mast, against a 20k head wind and steep chop, bad diesel so the 3 blade prop. was dragging below; trying to make way out of a main ship's channel onto open water, all these things creating drag on the water and the breeze; using as a temporary mount, a heavy duty swing bracket to mount a 9.9 HP Yamaha, 4 stroke, high thrust, weighing over 120 lbs. at that point, including the bracket; hanging out and away by about 12" which multiplies the force of that 'moment arm', (weight x those 12" or more extension away form the stern because of the bracket, multiplied as well for the length of that long shafted foot on the motor with the propeller pushing in many pounds of thrust creating '' foot /pounds" at that point on the stern) ,specially with all the hobby-horsing back there because of the other ship's wakes and chop, and the full throttle being applied, there was no perceived flexing because of a wide backing plate behind the bracket when installed and best of all....... We were actually moving forward at 1 1/2 knots or 2k at times and were keeping our bow to the wind. This wet ride lasted over 2 hours and even when the sound of the motor was constantly changing, never did the winding propeller come out of the water .
Outboard motors make a very good choice of propulsion, or emergency power, even in reverse, for even a medium sized and beamy cruiser, giving much manuverability in tight quarters because it can swing the thrust to the right direction and with the propeller out of the water, no drag or barnacles! Can you beat that!.
Just flush the insides with fresh water each time, change the impeller once a year, check the oil level everytime and use a water separating filter for the regular gasoline it seeps.

[tropicalescape]

Originally Posted by David M

The other consideration of putting an outboard on a 30 foot boat is that when it starts pitching in a chop there is no long shaft that will be long enough to keep the prop in the water. So really, it will only be useful in relatively calm to moderate conditions which may not be a good thing when it is rough out and you are in a situation where sail power is not an option.

This is what I would be concerned about ...

[Hillbillylad]

I have a honda 9.9hp on the back of my Centaur. A centaur is roomy already for a 26 footer, but with an empty engine bay it is like a tardis. The chap I bought mine from had one before and had lifted some of the cockpit and converted the engine bay and a quarter berth into a double bed.
Oh, it sails better too without all that ironwork in it's belly.

[RabidRabbit]

What a bunch of junk this is. Inboard props are way lower, never pop out of the water, diesel is way cheaper to run, and last forever. This is turning into a "I dont happen to own a diesel but let me tell you why they suck" thread. Sure some small boats work with outboards, but dont play it off like its better by any means. Its like the guy with a kayak tender telling me my $10k dinghy suxs cause it planes, and you dont get wet, hauls to much gear. You guys have "diesel envy" bigtime.

[boatsail]

I was picking between my cal 27 and a cal 30

I picked the 27. A couple things were that it had on motor and encapsulated keel. The 30 had keel bolts and diesel. If I picked that one, I would have ripped out the diesel and sold not to cover the cost of getting an ob.....I hate ib motors....wife cannot stand it even when we charter. Close my boat up and it smells fresh. Clothes, nothing smells like engine

Also, I know nothing about engines. Ob aware easier to maintain and fix if they break.

[boatsail]

Everything is a compromise, so it comes to what you are willing to sacrifice for what you want.

[Coops]

Originally Posted by RabidRabbit

What a bunch of junk this is. Inboard props are way lower, never pop out of the water, diesel is way cheaper to run, and last forever. This is turning into a "I dont happen to own a diesel but let me tell you why they suck" thread. Sure some small boats work with outboards, but dont play it off like its better by any means. Its like the guy with a kayak tender telling me my $10k dinghy suxs cause it planes, and you dont get wet, hauls to much gear. You guys have "diesel envy" bigtime.

I have owned many boats, mostly keelers, and yes nearly all have had diesels, including a 3cyl 75hp lister, so i do not have "diesel envy". I stated that for a small yacht i would personally have an outboard for the reasons that i said. That would be my choice, and that makes it right for me. It is not "a load of junk" purely because you disagree. Neither does it make it gospel if someone else agrees with me. As correctly posted already, you makes your own choice, just as it should be.

PS. I have also found out to my cost, that diesels do not last forever.

Coops.

[mr-canada]

this is an interesting and topical question

i have an older mariner 8HP 2 stroke outboard that has been giving some issues and maybe needs a lot of new parts to make it new again and I have been trolling the for sale boards looking for outboards on the cheap during the winter to replace it

I found a 40HP long shaft in pretty good shape but I've been concerned that would be way too much for my mount so I've not really chased it. I have an 8HP now of course and even at 30% throttle it gets the boat to hull speed. Might be more fuel efficent to run the bigger motor at 10% or maybe not. I havent chased the idea much given the difference in size

total pros of the outboard are that you can remove it to fix it or get it fixed, that came in as a godsend seeing as marine motor mechanics are far and few between in the area where my boat is (anyone with a marine issue in squamish, PM me I will give you the # of a great mobile mechanic I managed to find) being able to throw a problematic motor on the mechanics' truck and have them bring it back a few days later was a godsend as parts arent easily available where my boat is.

cavitation is an issue in rough weather though. But where my boat is is a major windsports area and I mostly get cavitation when disengaging the sails and getting ready to head down channel to the slip. otherwise there's enough wind I'm hanging rags and barreling around with the engine up. I could imagine cavitation being a big issue heading upwind in a chop as you would lose thrust and you might slow to a crawl. If this becomes a problem a deeper transom mount may just be a must if you have enough freeboard

on inboards like has been said by others I definitely do not have diesel envy. for me in buying a boat having it powered by outboard was a must because if the motor failed I would rather be able to just buy a replacement and sell the old one for parts. I am no mechanic and while I can do minor maintenance on a gas engine diesel kind of scares me because of the compression

no prop in the water also means less drag. Sure you can get props that bend back but thats just another thing to break.

My boat has the in cockpit motor well and I dont use it. I couldn't imagine the stinky motor revving away inside there blowing exhaust into our faces. No cavitation I'm sure but I'm glad its on the transom. Makes it easier to service too.

[boatman61]

I did an owner assist on a Waq'z Chance 37 in 2011 from Seville to Figuerra da Foz and the Westerbeake had died... after 6 days in vain the owner and his mechanic gave up and followed the suggestion I'd made day one..
We bought a second hand 8hp Suzuki 4stroke and fitted an outboard bracket to the transom and set off down the river... its a long way (50miles) and the last 3rd was punching into the tide going through the estuary, but she managed 4.5kts according to the GPS.
I've had diesel and OB boats and in anchoring/entering/leaving harbour they're pretty even.. same when motoring in slight sea's... diesel comes into its own when it gets moderate and is a definite advantage if caught in a sudden blow on a steepish lee shore...
But then if one use's an outboard one is not stupid enough to be there in the first place... hopefully..
Go for it mate it'll do you under 10hp... it can push a 37 so mores a waste as she'll never plane..

The 37's in the pic.. nice sail.. Oh... and the Westerbeake's re-built and fitted.. I got the O/B... lol

[MarkSF]

I just rebuilt my 89 Yamaha 8hp 2 stroke - new block, pistons, rings, main bearings, carb, exhaust manifold, thermostat, and every gasket it in. The parts cost me about $800 but now it's like new. It wasn't a very sensible economic decision, but it kept me busy for a few weeks and I learnt a lot! I also turned it from a 6hp to 8hp at the same time (carb and exhaust manifold)

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Coops

I have owned many boats, mostly keelers, and yes nearly all have had diesels, including a 3cyl 75hp lister, so i do not have "diesel envy". I stated that for a small yacht i would personally have an outboard for the reasons that i said. That would be my choice, and that makes it right for me. It is not "a load of junk" purely because you disagree. Neither does it make it gospel if someone else agrees with me. As correctly posted already, you makes your own choice, just as it should be.

PS. I have also found out to my cost, that diesels do not last forever.

Coops.

+1

Everything is a trade off, of course. I have a diesel (naturally, on a 25 ton boat), but outboards have a number of very persuasive advantages for smaller boats. If you need less than maybe 25 horsepower, outboards start to look really good.

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by barrett bondon

How heavy an outboard off the transom of a Pearson 30 ?

Have a 1973 Pearson 30 (atomic 4 needs to be pulled) ; how heavy an outboard can I hang off the back given how thin the fiberglass of the transom is ?
When I installed the OB bracket 10 years ago ( in fear of the A4 failing ) I fiberglassed in a backing plate and a 2 X 2 foot piece of fiberglassed plywood “front plate” on the outside of the transom. So the screws of the OB bracket go through the outside plate, the transom and then the backing plate. I still worry about 40 to 80 pounds of static outboard engine weight pounding on that transom and stressing the whole structure of the back of the boat.

(I'm working on the Atomic 4)

I would use bolts not screws , but a decent sized backing plate onto a well secured stern (and no waterskiing!) would cope with anything a sane person would hang on the back! - and anyway I see no need to go above a 9.9hp, and likely could get away with less (6hp?). My decision would be based around whatever engine I could lay my hands on at a decent price.

Obviously an outboard does have limitations over an inboard, but those can be worked (and sailed!) around. and in some cases the outboard is a better solution, including on cost.......but sounds like the O/b will (hopefully!) be a stop gap.