Outboards on big Searays?

I looked up the test on the 3 outboard 37' behemoth. It has 3 engines because it takes all that the 3 have to put it on the plane. Then it goes 50 mph at 50 gallons per hour. Does sound like fun.
 
Arminius said:
I looked up the test on the 3 outboard 37' behemoth. It has 3 engines because it takes all that the 3 have to put it on the plane. Then it goes 50 mph at 50 gallons per hour. Does sound like fun.
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1 mpg for a behemoth ain't too shabby. A similar sized boat with twin I/Os will get about half that.

I realize that there are marine dealer / mechanics named Bubba in many places. Nevertheless, my local (and preferred) dealer has a staff of 30-something year old professionals with college degrees. Sure, they have to use a computer for diagnosis, but that's the advantage of modern technology.

I just don't get the towmotor / bathtub / parking lot reference.
 
My brother is trading in his 05 24’ deck boat, with a Suzuki 150, 4 stroke. 1600 hours, 0 repairs, just standard maintenance. Not a single repair. Never stranded. Super quiet. Mix of salt and fresh water...
 
Todd320 said:
My brother is trading in his 05 24’ deck boat, with a Suzuki 150, 4 stroke. 1600 hours, 0 repairs, just standard maintenance. Not a single repair. Never stranded. Super quiet. Mix of salt and fresh water...
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That is amazing. I’m convinced. Again my concern as I said in another thread. I can find a bazillion guys to work on a 454 merc and a bravo, we have an outboard shop on premises marina can’t keep up with demand. I sure it will catch up but for now you are getting an I/o repaired (in my area) a lot faster than an outboard.
 
Pirate Lady said:
That is amazing. I’m convinced. Again my concern as I said in another thread. I can find a bazillion guys to work on a 454 merc and a bravo, we have an outboard shop on premises marina can’t keep up with demand. I sure it will catch up but for now you are getting an I/o repaired (in my area) a lot faster than an outboard.
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In my area Mercury dealers outnumber the others about 10 to 1. My preferred shop sells a variety of boat types, some outboard and some I/O. Their mechanics are all Certified Masters. The dealer has a wait list that varies depending on the season, but its all FIFO.

Some other dealers are only I/O, some only OB. You might just have to drive a bit farther. Now, if you have a Yamaha, Suzuki or Honda, you might be in for a VERY long wait.

Nevertheless, the reliability of the new generation of OB makes for awesome service requirements. No gimble bearings, U-joints and the gawdawful bellows. I'm getting too old to be crawling around an I/O any more, but routine things like oil changes are a dream. I threw away my oil sucker pump.....LOL.
 
My views are pretty much irrelevant as I am not in the targeted age or income group. I wish!

I do recognize Diana, the Huntress. "The Warrior," Joan Jet, plays in her head as she considers the killing field. Young, hung, rich, and stupid; will he be "just another notch in her lipstick case" or a plaything she will torture for years before throwing him to her lawyers. "He can have the ridiculous boat," said disdainfully!
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paulswagelock said:
I have become a big fan of outboards over the past few years, to the point I an not sure I will buy another IO. Until the EPA requirements for emissions require catalysts on outboards, you will see most R&D going to them, which leads to more boat designs utilizing them. The designs are getting much better for swim platforms, but I agree a dinghy is still a problem.
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Ask and ye shall receive:

https://boattest.com/article/new-ca...gn=boattestcom-newsletter&utm_content=Mon+3.8
 
Pirate Lady said:
WOW. just wow. so my lil 2.5 HP Coleman that i bought for $600 will be worth $6000 in ten years. Bidding starts here, $3000 up front now, will ship in 10 years, balance due before shipping.
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The C in CARB is Kalifornia. Knowing how they operate, your motor will not be grandfathered and you will have to PAY $6000 to dispose of it in a secure landfill.
 
If it’s anything like my last o/b, it will get stolen out of my shed before that time. 2hp Mariner, thing weighed maybe 15# and would push a 7’ zodiac with 4 people. 2 cycle. Can’t get those no more.
 
Pirate Lady said:
If it’s anything like my last o/b, it will get stolen out of my shed before that time. 2hp Mariner, thing weighed maybe 15# and would push a 7’ zodiac with 4 people. 2 cycle. Can’t get those no more.
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I doubt anyone is stealing a 600-hp V12 outboard from your unlocked shed. But if you want to give them a hand, leave your wheelbarrow nearby :D
 
Phil S said:
I doubt anyone is stealing a 600-hp V12 outboard from your unlocked shed. But if you want to give them a hand, leave your wheelbarrow nearby :D
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Not in the conversation. They can be catilicized.

We're talking about little guys that will be completely outlawed by big brother.
 
Jane Fonda saw rainbow colors on the lake water at her place on Lake Tahoe and 2-strokes were forbidden unless they had a CA low oil emissions sticker; later they were simply banned. Evinrude and Merc came up with novel 2-strokes but the Covid economy seems to have killed them. 2-strokes had high torque and hp per lb., were mechanically simple, and could be hung way back behind the center of buoyancy without ruining the hole shot. Somehow conventional 4-stroke technology has evolved to make the current generation of monster outboards which are relatively light and have remarkable reliability. I imagine they will be built with converters. It will be remembered that autos turned into hopeless dogs in the 70's but converters proved a work around the original really bad emissions tech. They required the removal of lead and octane from gas and hp continued to lag until the last 5 years or so. Now we see 11.5:1 on the street on unleaded and blown Dodge Demons. My various philosophical enemies have replaced the villain of future oil scarcity with the villain of future bad weather and are nurturing electricity which could be the true long term enemy of boating. All I ever say is "Did you ever vote for a Democrat or taxes or a bond issue?" We has met the enemy and he is us.
Catalytic converters have been added to inboards to convert the poisonous carbon monoxide fumes to suffocating carbon dioxide to avoid killing any passengers on the swim platform. Outboards don't have swim platforms.

BUT BACK TO BIG OUTBOARDS: The hole shot is my biggest concern. You hang more than a ton of motor/drive way back there, behind the transom and your vessel is seriously down by the stern. Helicopters, especially Ospreys, can go down rather than up when full power is applied in a phenomenon known as Vortex Ring State. I see our young enthusiast at the helm of his brand new 37'er firewalling all three 500hp OBs and patiently waiting to go "over the hump" as his bow rises and continues to rise but then he backslides into the hole his churning props have bored behind him and sinks ignominiously w/o benefit of adequate flotation.
 
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