Which brand/number of cylinders 25 HP?

[Guest]

I am looking at repowering my 14' Aluminum boat with a 25HP. It is very heavy as the previous owner had the boatworks from out in stillwater put a floor, livewell, seats, etc. in. This is all really nice, but when it gets loaded down for a week into basswood, I can't get it up on plane. I currently have a 86 to 89 Mariner 20 horse running an 11 pitch prop.

I thought there were some 3 cylinder 25HP engines out there that looked nice, but have heard no opinions of them, what they were marketed at, and what would be gained over the 2 cylinder. I guess I haven't considered the four stroke because of weight, but maybe should for torque since I already have a whale on my hands, what is another 20 lbs.

Also, should I try a different prop pitch? How would the 13 pitch help/hurt my current situation.

Any general thoughts/advice/brand advice would be great. I was always an omc fan, but now would be pretty much open to anything and was leaning toward yamaha until I noticed on their HSOforum the 3 cylinder 25hp is no longer there for 2003.

Thanks.

[Guest]

Three cylinders; Gives you a smoother idle and slightly lower idle for trolling.

Twins wind up slightly quicker from my experience, and are slightly lighter.

What is the boat rated for? If it is rated for more then a 25, I would go with the MAX H.P allowed.

PCG

[Guest]

The boat is rated for 30 I think, but I am limited by the BWCA rules for a maximum 25 horse.

This is the same dilemma faced by Alaska fishermen along the Kenai river. They have a max of 35 hp I think it was, but sell "detuned" 40's to get more power.

[Surface Tension]

Since Your using the boat in basswood a 25 hp is the limit. You have an 11 pitch prop now and need more power. You should go down in pitch to a 10 or 9. This will give you more power with your heavy load. With a normal load go back to the 11 pitch to lower your RPM's at WOT and also to increase your speed. I dont know what you mean by heavy load but if your boats loaded down like my 16 ft. with a 25 hp with 3 guys and all the camping gear for opener it wont plan out either.