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Doug
Captain

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USA
457 Posts

Initially Posted - 02/06/2004 : 19:59:23

I just pulled my brand new T8 Yamaha out of the car. It's on a hand truck in the garage. For now it's shiny, silver, and scratchless. I don't think I've been this excited since I bought the boat.
Went down to Noeta this morning. The old Honda was sitting there, unstarted since last Fall. I hooked her up and pulled the cord. She coughed a bit and fired right up. We pulled out of the slip, turned around, and pulled back into the slip. Lot of good hours with the old Honda.
The two happiest days in a boat owner's life.....

Doug - #1913 Noeta

Edited by - on

lcharlot
Master Marine Consultant

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Antigua and Barbuda
1301 Posts

Response Posted - 02/06/2004 : 22:37:34

Doug-
Let us know if the new motor presents any difficulties with tilting it up out of the water. I expect to use the proceeds from the sale of my old boat (hopefully will be sold soon) to buy a new outboard for the new boat. Right now I am leaning towards the Yamaha, as I have heard a rumor that the 2004's will come with a recoil starter standard, in addition to the electric start, same as the Honda. There are a couple of Catalina 25's and a 250 in my sailing club that have the Yamaha 9.9HT and all owners report they are first-rate for reliability and power, particularly in reverse gear when you need a lot of stopping power to make a controlled downwind approach to a dock.

Edited by - on

Douglas
Master Marine Consultant

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1595 Posts

Response Posted - 02/07/2004 : 13:24:12

Doug. Glad to hear you have a nice new motor. We are having a jump up cruise to Docton on the 21 if you care to drop by. Latitudes & Attitudes group. I hope to be back in the water myself soon. Would have been long ago if I still had a C-25. Just cant haul 5.5 tons home on a trailer. Hope to see you on the water this year.

Edited by - on

basecamp97
Deckhand

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USA
2 Posts

Response Posted - 02/10/2004 : 19:03:11

Doug:

I am trying to decide whether to replace my current two stroke outboard with a Honda or a Yamaha. I was wondering why you switched from your reliable Honda to a Yamaha? Your response may help me decide which I should get. I only sail in salt water and need a reliable engine for long cruises away from civilization (and repair shops). I was also wondering if Yamaha's more limited warranty was any indication of reliability?

Thanks for your insights.

Philip

Edited by - on

Doug
Captain

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USA
457 Posts

Response Posted - 02/10/2004 : 20:36:24

The Honda was getting on in years and growing increasingly unreliable. It left me standed or drifting half a dozen times last year, so it was time for us to move on.
**Mechanically the Honda wasn't bad. My biggest there was the small cooling pipes. The thing would clog very fast and I'd have to bring it home and clean it out with Salt Away. When I test ran the Yamaha in the tank I was amazed at how big the stream shooting out of it was. The Yamaha appears to have larger passages.
In my looking around I was also told that the Hondas and the Yamaha 9 are the same basic engines they've been making for decades. The new Yamaha T8 is an entirely new engine.
**I really don't like the Honda dealer network. Tight distribution means higher parts prices and makes them harder to find. It's my impression that Yamaha parts are more widely available. In the area I live and work (Tacoma & the Olympic Peninsula) there are 8-9 Yamaha dealers and 3 Honda. That doesn't include the extra Yamaha items at places like West Marine.
**Misc Bits- I didn't even look at the new Honda, but the new Yamaha has nice touches like a fresh water flush, get home feature, you can change oil in the water, etc. Yamaha is also starting to get a more raves than Honda. I know when I walk around my marina there are more new Yamahas than Hondas. I also really don't like the looks of the new Hondas. They're a few pounds lighter, but they look like a cow. Of course, that's a personal opinion.
**I personally don't think I'd ever buy another Honda Outboard. realisticaly, they're both fine engines, but I do that Honda gets away with a lot because of their reputaion.

Edited by - Doug on 02/10/2004 21:53:17

Doug
Captain

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USA
457 Posts

Response Posted - 04/20/2004 : 23:35:35

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Doug-
Let us know if the new motor presents any difficulties with tilting it up out of the water.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Used the new Yamaha T8 a few times now. here's a brief report:
The motor starts and runs perfect. At first I thought the boat was slower, but checking logs from last year shows otherwise. The XL shaft and mount put the Prop down deep. The Long handle and shift levers just lay on top of the transom. Very easy to use. The only problem is at the mount. I put on the new heavy duty Garhauer mount, and a new motor lock. The combination of the big lock and bigger handle of the mount make for a space a little too small to get my hand in. It's a little snug to un hook the mount when the motor's down. The motor itself is top notch. Love the flush out on it.

Edited by - on

Douglas
Master Marine Consultant

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1595 Posts

Response Posted - 04/21/2004 : 01:15:41

Doug have you thought about putting a lanyard with T handle on it. I had the same problem on Wind Lass. I use to reach over with my foot and push the mount down and off of its latch. Perhaps it will wear in a little.

Edited by - on

ClamBeach
Master Marine Consultant

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3072 Posts

Response Posted - 04/21/2004 : 10:24:04

"....and a new motor lock...."

One of those locks that fastens the clamp handles in place?

I use a heavy-duty cable lock designed for securing bicycles... passed through the motor mount, the rail and the traveller bar. That frees up some real-estate down by the lift handle. Also I have the motor through-bolted to the mounting plate... if you used torx head bolts or left-handed threads for the thru-bolts, you'd confound 'em for awhile.

Thieves used to overcome the clamp locks by simply breaking off the handles with a heavy hammer. Sounds like on your mount that might be difficult to get swinging room to do that.

Another approach to stealing a motor secured with a clamp-lock is to simply un-bolt the mounting plate from the motor mount. Remove a few bolts and you're gone.

Of course, nothing is completely secure... if somebody wants your motor, all you can do is slow 'em down. The development of battery powered saws-alls renders almost anything vulnerable.

Edited by - on

dlucier
Master Marine Consultant

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Virgin Islands (United Kingdom)
7583 Posts

Response Posted - 04/21/2004 : 13:00:01

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by ClamBeach
 ...I use a heavy-duty cable lock designed for securing bicycles...passed through the motor mount, the rail and the traveller bar...<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

A couple of years ago some outboards were stolen from boats in the dry storage lot at my marina. Coincidently, the motors taken were ones that had either no locks or just cables to secure their outboards. The thieves simply used bolt cutters to slice like butter through fuel lines, battery cables, steering cables, and the above mentioned cable locks. Motors with hardened locks through the mount handles were left behind.

Edited by - on

Doug C.
Navigator

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USA
146 Posts

Response Posted - 04/21/2004 : 13:12:38

Another good reason to just keep my Johnson Sailmaster. It's not nearly as attractive a target as those nice shiny Hondas down the dock. (sure would like a new motor though)

I also through bolt to the mount. I think it discourages the casual thieves or the ones looking for quick and easy targets. I don't think you can stop a determined motor stealer, just makes them do more damage.

It is nice being on the dock with the fleet 7 folks, lots of eyes that know who should be messing with our boat, and a few live aboards to increase the 'get caught' risk factor for thieves. (although I guess we are going to lose the live aboards eventually)

Edited by - on

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