Thanks for the rapid replies, everyone!
Panope, there is actually an interesting story behind it, but in essential terms, the inboard was not running when I purchased this boat in Daytona Beach,
Florida, and the PO had used the outboard to move the vessel from his
purchase location in St. Augustine to Daytona via the
ICW. I simply utilized the same outboard to move her from Daytona back north through St. Augustine, to
Jacksonville, then into the St. John's River, and from that juncture, back south to Palatka, where she is currently moored.
It was quite the trip I can assure you, as the running
rigging was all missing, and though I had
sails, I had no way to hoist them. Sailing the
ICW would have been less than fun anyway. Motoring was the only way to go for most of it in that section as it turned out.
In any case, I have yet to get the inboard running, due to what turned out to be a broken valve spring, something I am still attempting to locate (seems out of state folks refuse to sell them into
Florida - something about Yanmar's dealer licensing I guess). If anyone has a lead or a couple spares, I am likely interested!
As far as an 8 HP outboard on this vessel, however, I can offer some insight after that trip.
First, you get lots of cavitation at higher throttle. The prop and foot were clean, but cavitation was common in ANY wave over perhaps a couple feet. If you get low to the bottom, you pull up sand/mud and cavitate as well, surely not good for the
water pump.
This outboard
motor gives the 7000 plus pound
displacement Hunter 27 between 4 and 5 kts. at full throttle, measured via multiple
GPS devices. Theoretical
hull speed for a 22.5 foot waterline is only about 6-7 kts., by my math, so I am not sure if it is reasonable to expect more from only 8 HP in a cavitation situation and currents (as the
GPS measures speed over land, not over water that is moving against or with you). If I had the option, I would opt for higher HP (perhaps a 20?) and use it at lower throttle, because I think speed would have been higher, and
noise and
fuel consumption would have been less with the 20 at a lower throttle setting.
Second, an outboard sips fuel at this HP level (relative to the 200 HP I once had on a 23 ft. Scorpion), and is danged convenient to not have to keep turning around to steer the outboard (like on my jon boat), just using the Bonus' tiller was perfectly acceptable in all but the tightest quarters at headway speed leaving the outboard aimed forward. Now in tight quarters, the direct
steering of the outboard was far superior, and I could pivot Bonus on her fin in the St. Augustine marina we visited for an overnight.
This was good because we had to thread our way between many a million-dollar yacht in there (the same scary issue was in Daytona as well, as it was Speed Week, and the drivers were there with their massive vessels in droves). The damage that would have been caused by an impact with one of those exceeded the
price I paid for
Bonus, so that would have been pretty upsetting on all sides. The snag is that it is a little tricky to steer with the outboard tiller cocked up against the transom because of the proximity of the powerhead to the stern.
Another situation I noticed is that the outboard, as it is mounted outside the transom, does not add to the clutter of the
cockpit, but the
fuel cell sitting on the lazerette and the associated fuel line is a pain.
I will likely install an
overboard vented tank someplace that will hold gasoline and a transfer line aft, because I like the idea of having access to multiple forms of
propulsion, especially given my experience with the inboard to date. The Yanmar is reputed to have
parts availability all over the planet, but here in the good old US of A, in a state surrounded by
salt water, no less, I cannot seem to locate valve springs. Just sayin'...
Possible engine driven watermaker or washdown option?
to include a washdown 
Linear Mode
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