Outboard change options?

[RoyL]

Three years ago, I bought a used older 14' Starcraft, (wide and deep) aluminum with a 25hp Merc tiller (probably late 80's). Bought it from an acquaintance who only owned it for a couple of months before discovering it didn't suit him (He couldn't get in an out of it -- had a double hip replacement at the time I bought the boat from him -- he did fine with his pontoon boat instead). He got the boat a few months before from a "home mechanic".

 

I think I got a pretty good deal, and I absolutely love the boat and trailer. However, I soon discovered that the motor doesn't really suit the boat, and I am thinking of making a switch. And here is where I'm looking for some discussion of my options.

 

Here are the issues:

 

1) Initially, the boat pulled to port, BIG TIME. i.e if you let go of the tiller it would make a 90 degree turn and flip you out. Took MUSCLE to hold it on line. Lots of experimentation showed that the shaft was too long -- cavitation plate was 2 inches below the bottom of the boat. (adjusting the movable fin didn't help much.) Fixed this by putting a 1.5" piece of wood under the clamp, effectively raising the transom height by that amount. The transom is 16" (without the block) and I measure the shaft length at about 18", making this (I guess) a long shaft, where this boat should have a short shaft with a 16" transom. Anyway, that work-around works, and it handles ok now, although the clamps are a little higher on the inside of the transom than I'd like.

 

2) It appears that this motor has been suped up, probably for use on a Sea Flea. There haven't been any changes to the power head, but the bottom end has been drilled out (very well done) just above the cavitation plate on both sides for additional exhaust ports. This gives an unmuffled exhaust when at planing speeds -- makes me self conscious on quiet Sunday mornings on cottage lakes!

 

3) the reverse lock has been removed. (Probably part of the suping-up) I can idle in reverse, but anything more, the engine will kick up.

 

Other than that, it's running great (started this morning in the driveway --yes, I had the water muff on it -- after winter storage on the third pull), and it's got lots of power.

 

So bottom line, pros: runs great! Cons: Noisy at planing speed, uncertain reverse, and work-around necessary for handling due to shaft length.

 

So, what should I do?

 

1) live with it?

2) try to swap for a short shaft 25hp?

3) replace bottom end housing and reverse lock if I can find someone with a motor with a dead power head? (How much labour involved?)

4) something else?

 

I don't want to spend a ton of money. I suppose I could justify $500 without getting a second opinion from the better half (she would undoubtedly choose option 1 for any price tag bigger than that!

 

Your ideas appreciated and welcomed!

 

RoyL

[2 tone z71]

plug the exhaust holes ,its not a 2.4 L bridgeport making 280hp @ 9000 RPM why they tried to make it have offshore exhaust makes me lol,see if ya can tap the holes and put some brass plugs in it ,if she pops up in reverse find the parts there probably reasonably from a outboard graveyard or hold it down with your other hand,how often are you in reverse ???,build up your transom to fit the 20 inch longshaft,the exhaust housing transfer , possibly different gearcase ,driveshaft lenghts ,labour involved is more than the engines worth ,id live with it or sell it and buy something more suitably to fit your craft