[Rhodes22-list] Outboards

[Lou Rosenberg]

Bill, Ron
   I received a Merc 7.5 electric start when purchasing my boat and 
was hoping it will keep up with current and wind conditions around 
Sheepshead Bay, Bklyn.  I gather from your discussion of  2 vs 4 
stroke  models I have enuf horsepower for the R22.
  The Merc 7.5 definitely weighs in more than 53 lbs .. more like 70.
  Lou



>
>Here we go again, but...
>
>My electric starting 8 hp Tohatsu (Nissan) weighs 53 pounds, I 
>think.  Whatever it is, I carry it around by myself.
>
>It is 14 years old, totally reliable, and maybe has 150 hours of use. 
>
>It is a 2-stroke, and I'm sure you could get one like it for a song.
>
>Why spend $1,000, consume valuable resources, and pollute the 
>environment by encouraging the manufacture of unneeded outboards, 
>when you can pick up a completely reliable, low mileage, used 
>2-stroke outboard for a fraction of that cost.  
>
>The 4-stroke engines have not proved to be reliable on Rhodes-22s 
>because they are so seldom used.  People on this list pour massive 
>quantities of "additives" (read that to mean oil) into the gas tanks 
>of their 4-strokes to keep them properly lubricated.  The way we use 
>4-strokes on our sailboats, they are no cleaner than the way we use 
>2 stroke engines on our sailboats.
>
>(There has never been a year when I used more than a quart of 
>oil--some people with 4-strokes are dumping that much oil into every 
>tank of gas.)
>
>I would highly recommend the Tohatsu/Nissan 2 stroke 8hp electric 
>starting engine with the Tohatsu remote throttle/start mechanism 
>(which can be purchased separately, and is easily installed.) 
>
>Bill Effros
>
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: Ronald Lipton
>To: The Rhodes 22 mail list
>Sent: Saturday, September 11, 2004 11:14 PM
>Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Outboards
>
>
>Thanks for all of the advice and comments.  I am mulling the options
>over.
>My Mercury 9.9 has electric start
>and an alternator.  I hardly ever use the batteries except for running
>lights and
>my solar panel does fine in keeping the batteries charged, so I think
>that the
>alternator is unnecessary for me. The electric start is a real
>convenience but
>I would rather have a lighter engine that I can carry without a back
>injury.  The
>Honda 8 and 9.8 are about 100 pounds.  The Nissan 6 is 55.
>
>I sail from a mooring and, if possible
>I try to leave and return so that if the engine fails I can sail in
>without panic.
>That has happened my last two  sails.  The harbor has a north
>and a south entrance, so that can be done fairly easily.  It
>helps if the wind is light, sailing in a crowded mooring with a stiff
>breeze can
>be a challenge.  The easily adjustable sail area of the Rhodes helps
>control,
>and I usually use the main only and furl it down as I approach the
>mooring.
>
>thanks again for the comments
>
>Ron
>
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