I am purchasing a new motor for an O'Day 23 and am considering a 9.8
four stroke Nissan extra long shaft, 81 lbs. This will be used for coastal
cruising in MS. Do I need extra long or will long do? I have a motor
bracket that raises and lowers the motor. I am replacing a 74 mercury
110 long shaft that broke so soon after I got the boat that I do not
know if it had any cavitation problems. I have a partner in the boat
who is not yet comfortable sailing and may be motoring quite a bit.
I had originally thought an 8hp long shaft two stroke would suffice.
Most of the dealers I talk to advocate four strokes, but allot of
boaters are skeptical of any thing but two strokes. My partner wants
a new as opposed to used motor. Any Ideas on this?

hi
no problems as long as the propeller doesnt go deeper than the keel ? Lift
keels etc. I use a long shaft and sometimes in a swell the prop kicks out of
the water.

Four strokes are far more fuel efficient but a little less powerful for the
same cc.

richard

"nortyler" wrote in message
om...
I am purchasing a new motor for an O'Day 23 and am considering a 9.8
four stroke Nissan extra long shaft, 81 lbs. This will be used for coastal
cruising in MS. Do I need extra long or will long do? I have a motor
bracket that raises and lowers the motor. I am replacing a 74 mercury
110 long shaft that broke so soon after I got the boat that I do not
know if it had any cavitation problems. I have a partner in the boat
who is not yet comfortable sailing and may be motoring quite a bit.
I had originally thought an 8hp long shaft two stroke would suffice.
Most of the dealers I talk to advocate four strokes, but allot of
boaters are skeptical of any thing but two strokes. My partner wants
a new as opposed to used motor. Any Ideas on this?

Thanks for the replies, I decided on a nissan 9.8 two stroke XL. I
was already spending more than I wanted getting the 9.8 vs 8, in order
to get XL shaft. I added the four stroke and new motor mount cost, to
the weight issue, and two stroke won for my situation.

On 26 Aug 2003 05:51:51 -0700, (nortyler) wrote:

Thanks for the replies, I decided on a nissan 9.8 two stroke XL. I
was already spending more than I wanted getting the 9.8 vs 8, in order
to get XL shaft. I added the four stroke and new motor mount cost, to
the weight issue, and two stroke won for my situation.

If it's not too late, get a price on a Tohatsu 9.8 two stroke XL. They
build the Nissan engines and generally are about 10-15% cheaper. They
are identical down to the hare and tortoise on the throttle.

As a general rule, you need at least 2 hp per thousand pounds of displacement.
Most O'Days are relatively light, I'm guessing your 23 footer weighs in at
around 3,500 lbs or less. An 8 hp outboard would be more than enough power. A
9.8 hp engine is more than you will either need or take advantage of.

The 2 stroke vs 4 stroke issue is almost not relevant in these size motors.
The 2 strokers are cheaper, lighter, and more powerful per pound. Fuel
consumption is hardly an issue with a sailboat kicker engine. In my mind, the
lighter weight of the 2 stroke is the most important factor when such an engine
is bolted onto the stern of a light boat.

The question of shaft length is a function of how the motor is mounted. In
most cases, you are not going to go wrong with a long shaft, as long as you
follow the advice that someone gave about not having a shaft length that
exceeds that of the keel. As you know, it is easy for an outboard to cavitate
in heavy sea when on the back of a sailboat. So the longer shaft will help.
Also, you do want to be able to get the shaft up and out of the water when you
are not using the boat (unless you want to go to the trouble of bottom painting
it with a special paint for aluminum).

I ordered the 9.8 XL only to find it was'nt avilable till mid-october,
changed to 8 hp two stroke nissan LS $1245 delivered on thurs. The
cheapest Tohatsu was from a dealer in my state and with tax was $50
more.

8 hp two stroke nissan LS $1245 BRBR
This is a great price for a 2-stroke 8 hp. I bought a 2-stroke 8 hp Evinrude
in 1997 for my last boat and paid about $1300 for it -- and I thought that was
a good price!

Good luck.

(IamAeolus) wrote in message ...
8 hp two stroke nissan LS $1245 BRBR
This is a great price for a 2-stroke 8 hp. I bought a 2-stroke 8 hp Evinrude
in 1997 for my last boat and paid about $1300 for it -- and I thought that was
a good price!

Good luck.

FYI if anyone is interested http://www.porta-bote.com/nissan.htm is
where I ordered it.