Will a 2.3 HP outboard do?

[Dave22q]

Attachment 121906 I also had concerns about getting back aboard my dinghy as I generally single hand. My cheap but not elegant solution was a simple 3 step ladder for entering from the stern. The old weight in the photo was necessary as wood treads float and are a problem in the water. The 2# weight holds them in position and by holding on the transom I avoid rotating under the boat.
Hopefully you can see the attached photo.

[Joyful Noise]

I have a 25+ year old Carribe 10'6" that I use to get to and from my mooring and push it with a Honda 2hp 4 stroke and have carried 3 large men and 2 schedule 31 wet cell batteries . We don't plane. I have a cutter so there is no room on the foredeck to stow a Rib so I bought a Dyer midget which I hope to use as a tender while travelling and also hope to push it with the same Honda. I am not comfortable sailing my relatively narrow aft section boat with davits in a seaway) I can't imagine using the dinghy and 2 hp to pull my 20,000 lb boat off of a grounding and haven't needed to fight a fast sea but am plenty happy with my Honda 4 stroke 2 as I have used it to date. (It weighs 27 lbs and I can lift it easily)

[nortonscove]

I use an eight foot inflatable bottom dink with 2.5hp 4-stroke Merc and have not had a issue in the past four years. I'd say dump the heavy dink as it is stressing your davits and your boat as well no doubt. What's the hurry and how much wind are you getting caught out in? I truly have no issues with wind.

[RichandHelen]

Originally Posted by HopCar

If you can bring your dinghy up the Miami River to my dock, you can try my 2.5 Lehr on it. I power a 12 foot inflatable with it but the boat is very narrow and much lighter compared to yours.

Thanks for your kind offer. I'm planning a bottom job up the Miami River soon and may take you up on it!

Rich

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

Obviously you are in the land where 2 stoke engines are banned. 2 stroke is much lighter.
I had a 3.5 Mercury 2 stroke and that had plenty of guts, wouldn't get near a plane.
Isn't there a Honda 4HP?
I just wonder if 2.3hp is enough?



Sent from a stupid phone that replaces words with weird stuff.

Ditto on all of the above! If you can get a two stroke go for it. If we were speaking driving a boat not a tender four stroke.

[RichandHelen]

Originally Posted by peter loveridge

I have an 11' Achilles RIB. As my real boat is only 30', I tow it everywhere, including Nova Scotia to the Bahamas and back. My wife and I can just about lift the thing. We use a 2.5hp 4stroke suzuki . It's plenty of power for anything we want, I've towed quite heavy disabled boats with it. Have to say its a lot heavier than the 2hp 2stroke it replaced, a little noisier, occasionally a really vicious kickback when you start it. Doesn't go any faster than the 2 but its is better on fuel. Once was broken down with no transmission and, by lashing the dinghy alongside my sailboat, got the 100 miles home without assistance, admittedly it was flat calm, but we did make 2.5 knots pushing a 13000lb boat and only used 2 gallons of gas

Wow. That's quite the story!

Did you mean that the 2-stroke was quieter than the 4-stroke or the other way around?

[stevev]

I have a 10.5 foot hard bottom dink and a honda 2.3 hp outboard with a long shaft. I find the engine ideal for the boat. I remove the engine and place it on the rail before I pull the dink up on the davits because its so lite that its virtially no effort. Also love the honda. It starts on the first pull, has the integrated tank that goes a full hour at full power and its air cooled.
I Highly recommend it.

[Scout 30]

Originally Posted by Scout 30

We use a Honda 2.3 on our Avon 304 air floor & our Bauer 10. It pushes both boats fine for us but we don't care about planing. In 15 years there's never been a time that I was worried about it getting me back to the boat. Most of the time we've got the Honda at low rpms so it's not too loud but if you open it up it is quite loud because it's air cooled which can be a plus because you don't have to worry about it pumping water. I'd keep the motor you have on a motor davit for when you need it & get a small 4 stroke for normal use.

This post should read Avon 340.

[RichandHelen]

Originally Posted by stevev

I have a 10.5 foot hard bottom dink and a honda 2.3 hp outboard with a long shaft. I find the engine ideal for the boat. I remove the engine and place it on the rail before I pull the dink up on the davits because its so lite that its virtially no effort. Also love the honda. It starts on the first pull, has the integrated tank that goes a full hour at full power and its air cooled.
I Highly recommend it.

This is exactly the question I was asking. Thanks!

Why did you opt for the long shaft? Rich

[RichandHelen]

Originally Posted by nortonscove

I use an eight foot inflatable bottom dink with 2.5hp 4-stroke Merc and have not had a issue in the past four years. I'd say dump the heavy dink as it is stressing your davits and your boat as well no doubt. What's the hurry and how much wind are you getting caught out in? I truly have no issues with wind.

Not sure the weight difference is enough to justify dumping the 10.5' vs. an 8' RIB? But I can save 50 to 90 lbs (and my back) by using a small outboard. My 15 Merc weighs 111 lbs! I think I'll use the dink more and not stress the davits/boat as much, as you say.

Rich

[Training Wheels]

Originally Posted by peter loveridge

I have an 11' Achilles RIB. As my real boat is only 30', I tow it everywhere, including Nova Scotia to the Bahamas and back. My wife and I can just about lift the thing. We use a 2.5hp 4stroke suzuki . It's plenty of power for anything we want, I've towed quite heavy disabled boats with it. Have to say its a lot heavier than the 2hp 2stroke it replaced, a little noisier, occasionally a really vicious kickback when you start it. Doesn't go any faster than the 2 but its is better on fuel. Once was broken down with no transmission and, by lashing the dinghy alongside my sailboat, got the 100 miles home without assistance, admittedly it was flat calm, but we did make 2.5 knots pushing a 13000lb boat and only used 2 gallons of gas

Wow! 40 hours of motoring and only 2 gallons of gas.


Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[SailFastTri]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

I was going to comment on weight and 2 stroke vs 4 strokes, but instead will weigh in on the plane vs non planing.
In my experience if you can't plane, then HP isn't that important, by that I mean 2.3 may push you almost as fast as an 8, if the 8 won't plane, but if it will, then of course it is WAY faster.

snip

Bingo you nailed the issue! Anyone else who talks about not being able to motor to windward with a 2.3HP either hasn't used one, or used one that was in bad shape.... or used one in a hurricane and should know better than to try.

I made the switch last year, to a 2.5HP Suzuki 4-stroke (30 lbs.) from a Nissan 9.8 2-stroke (59 lbs.). Dinghy is an AB 310. It made a huge difference in ease of dinghy deployment, and my wife and I didn't mind losing the ability to plane (she doesn't like it anyway unless conditions are glass-smooth).

I kept the Nissan because it's a great motor and I can't replace it (in the US) but I plan to stay with the Suzuki for now.

I chose the Suzuki over the Honda because it's a bit quieter and I prefer the control/reliability of a manual gear selection. The Honda advantage is it's about 2 pounds lighter and there's no water pump/impeller maintenance, plus you can run it out of the water while it's mounted to the taffrail and use it to mix your umbrella drinks.

[SailFastTri]

One more thing to add -- the difference between 30 pounds and 59-100 pounds is the difference between one-handed carrying and two-handed carrying.

One-handed carrying lets you use the other hand for the boat and steadying yourself. Much less risky and strenuous.

No doubt some of you are macho weight lifters, but being able to lift without strain is a huge plus for those of us approaching our senior years.

[Classicsailboat]

We had the 2 hp Honda and weren't happy with it except we could lift it as required. If I were to do it again, for coastal cruising, I would have a dinghy that would plane and get us to wherever, and that gives you a lot of options for exploring and keeping your big boat moored.

[Kiwi.]

Originally Posted by RichandHelen

I was really looking for the low-end of weight and I've read that the 2-strokes are LOUD. My question as well - is this enough HP to push the AB and the two of us? And will deploying/retrieving be changed enough to make a major difference? "Is the juice worth the squeeze?"

I've had a Honda 4hp (4 stroke air cooled) and a Mercury 3.3hp (2 stroke water cooled) and would choose the Mercury 3.3hp every time. It's quieter, lighter and has a gearbox with a neutral but no reverse. The gearbox is a leg saver when coming off a beach with some waves coming in. You can start the motor whilst standing alongside the dinghy without risking a nasty propeller cut on the leg.
The Honda is more noisy because it's air cooled; this also means the outside of the motor can get very hot. Not a problem if it stays on the back of the dinghy but it can burn you lifting it off. Both motors have integral fuel tanks. I certainly never noticed the lower horse power of the Mercury.
The only possible advantage of the Honda is the ability to store it lying down immediately after using it. This is because it's air cooled; the Mercury needs to be left upright out of the water for 15 minutes or so to ensure the cooling water does not run back up the exhaust into the motor.
Personally I would never store an outboard with a built in fuel tank on its side. That's putting too much trust in the filler cap.