Downsizing to a 9.9 Opinions

[bahama bound]

My 9.9 was a Nissan .still have it in my shed ,bought a bracket and thought about putting on a bracket for our Bahama trip just in case ??? Wish I could use it as a dingy motor .the man I bought my mac from bought the mac in Michigan and retired south and he bought the motor separate and had not ever mounted it .it was electric start but the controls were not there or had been lost ,so I bought a universal control of eBay and rigged it ,used it 2 years like that .but I didn't put 5 hours on it .we would mostly just leave the dock and set sail .only one 1 time it scared me ,we were motoring under a draw bridge and the tide was running really strong and it was tough to get through ,we looked at some 30 plus cats that had single 9.9 Yamahas but they look like they had a bigger foot and prop .my friend says his cat burns 1 litre a hour at 6 knots ,but is a 32 cat easier to push that a 26 mac with ballast ???? You can google fuel consumption of what ever motor and that cool tach comes up and shows you consumption at what rpm .great tool ....

[Tattoo new]

Thanks Robert.

[Catigale]

You will do quite well (15% error or less) with a simple estimate of fuel consumption at:

1 gallon per hour per 10 HP of motor output.

And 6HP of motor output will take an or white to hull speed.

Blue hulls need 25% more gas.

[Tomfoolery]

If downsizing to a 9.9 or 15 hp, I would at least try to find a high-thrust prop for it, if they still make such a thing for small outboards. I used a high-thrust Mickey Mouse-eared prop on the Evinrude 9.9 on my Aquarius, and it made a huge difference, especially in reverse, or when fighting breaking waves. A 9.9 can push a very small boat at relatively high speeds, but a Mac is slow (regardless of color, though blue is slower ) without a monster motor, so a prop designed to push hard at low speed can make it feel like a bigger engine.

[Seapup]

If downsizing to a 9.9 or 15 hp, I would at least try to find a high-thrust prop for it, if they still make such a thing for small outboards.

Absolutely. Solas makes both a 4 blade and 4 blade HighThrust that will fit. The 4 blade HT has larger round fins, larger diameter, larger exhaust hub for reverse, & smaller pitch than the standard 4 blade. I am thinking the 7 pitch HT prop. http://www.rubexprops.com/prop-info/201 ... propeller/


I am happy with the X and if I decide to change boats would go with something drastically different since I don't trailer. I can get another large motor but with cost aside am not sure I really want one. I have been reading a lot of good stuff about the 20efi which is the identical motor to the 9.9 with a different ecu program. Portabote has the 20 manual tilt for a few bucks less than the 9.9 power tilt and a 4 blade HT prop would bring the price about the same. I am now thinking try a 20 manual tilt and that the few extra hp would be more useful than the power tilt on a 100lb motor.

Any opinions for 20hp with manual tilt vs 9.9 with power tilt?

20 with power tilt jumps way up in price.

[Tomfoolery]

Any opinions for 20hp with manual tilt vs 9.9 with power tilt?

20 with power tilt jumps way up in price.

Power tilt is just another thing to break, at least for a motor you could lift off the boat if you wanted to. Not a luxury on my BF50 Honda, but unnecessary for such a small motor as you're contemplating, IMO at least.

As to the HP, I just don't know. I was thinking 15, but that's because back in the day, the 9.9 and the 15 Evinrude and Johnson were all the same engine, so the extra HP didn't cost anything in weight. Extra power is always nice when fighting a headwind and breaking waves, and for the reverse capability, but doesn't do anything for you as far as speed in calm water. And may hurt fuel mileage. Or not.

But I wouldn't waste money on power tilt if it wasn't a necessity. Especially in a salt environment.

Oh, and I have a 4-blade Solas for my BF50 that I use for pulling a wakeboard. Much better reverse thrust, too. But not as efficient as the 3-blade, which I use most of the time when not pulling toys.

[EZ]

I don't know much about Suzi's. Why not make the switch to a 26C? As I understand it is a fun boat to sail (fast) and is lighter to trailer.

Well, that is a novel approach. Kind of like buying a new house to replace the furnace. Thinking outside the box.

I dont agree on the buying the house to change the furnace. The x/m is a powersailor and a compromise boat. If you take away the power why then why keep the x/m? Why not get a boat that sails well like a 26c? Although I guess cabin space might be a good reason to stick with the x/m. To each their own.

[Ixneigh]

Re above I don't know why people keep saying that. I think my M sails great. There was a learning curve to the boat and good sails are a must as is a clean hull bottom, and proper weight distribution. A 10 hp motor would be perfectly fine for making up for the macs M X close quarter deficits. I think it's a bit small for all day slogs upwind in bad conditions, where, everyone in small boats motors no matter how good the boat sails. That's why I think a 20 is where I might end up.
Ix

[Catigale]

If downsizing to a 9.9 or 15 hp, I would at least try to find a high-thrust prop for it, if they still make such a thing for small outboards.

Absolutely. I did both 3 & 4 blade on the 50&90. Solas makes both a 4 blade and 4 blade HighThrust that will fit. The 4 blade HT has larger round fins, larger diameter, larger exhaust hub for reverse, & smaller pitch than the standard 4 blade. I am thinking the 7 pitch HT prop. http://www.rubexprops.com/prop-info/201 ... propeller/


I am happy with the X and if I decide to change boats would go with something drastically different since I don't trailer. I can get another large motor but with cost aside am not sure I really want one. I have been reading a lot of good stuff about the 20efi which is the identical motor to the 9.9 with a different ecu program. Portabote has the 20 manual tilt for a few bucks less than the 9.9 power tilt and a 4 blade HT prop would bring the price about the same. I am now thinking try a 20 manual tilt and that the few extra hp would be more useful than the power tilt on a 100lb motor.

Any opinions for 20hp with manual tilt vs 9.9 with power tilt?

20 with power tilt jumps way up in price.

Mercury has a Sailpro kicker 9.9 with a high reduction case and big prop...perfect for the 26 Macs

[bahama bound]

So how would the gear reduction affect fuel economy ?

[Catigale]

its probably more economical than the standard box when moving a Mac..

[Sumner]

I have a Tohatsu 9.8 extra long shaft..

http://www.onlineoutboards.com/Tohatsu- ... 3EFUL.html

... on the very heavy 26S (probably weighs as much as a lot of X's or M's) and it has worked great even in high current situations in Florida. It came with a 8.7" Dia. X 5.0" Pitch 4-Blade (High Thrust) prop that I never used as I felt it was for boats that were much larger in the 5000# plus range. I keep it as a spare but changed to still a 4-Blade High Thrust prop with a 7.0 pitch. It has worked very well when needed. I motor about 5 knots at partial throttle and seem to be getting around 10 mpg with this combination. I'd bet this would work great on the X also.

The motor also comes with power tilt and remote controls if you need or want that. Since the S is a tiller boat I extended the controls on the motor and move it a little higher where if you are sitting back at the tiller you can control it and ...



.... also have a quickly attached or detached connector, shown above, between it an the tiller for times when you want to have the outboard swing with the tiller for greater control (not needed if one has wheel steering). I don't use the connector for other times, just position the motor so neutral tiller is straight ahead.

All of that here down the index page a ways ....

http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner ... index.html

Sumner

============================
Our MacGregor 26-S

Our Endeavour 37

Our Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida

Mac-Venture Links

[Catigale]

It is always nice to hear from you, Sum. Hope life is treating you well.

[Seapup]

Power tilt is just another thing to break, at least for a motor you could lift off the boat if you wanted to. Not a luxury on my BF50 Honda, but unnecessary for such a small motor as you're contemplating, IMO at least.

As to the HP, I just don't know. I was thinking 15, but that's because back in the day, the 9.9 and the 15 Evinrude and Johnson were all the same engine, so the extra HP didn't cost anything in weight. Extra power is always nice when fighting a headwind and breaking waves, and for the reverse capability, but doesn't do anything for you as far as speed in calm water. And may hurt fuel mileage. Or not.

But I wouldn't waste money on power tilt if it wasn't a necessity. Especially in a salt environment

Enough to convince me I went ahead and ordered the 20efi manual tilt. It should be here next week. Its only 106 lbs so should be easy enough to flip up. It will be interesting to see the effect of cutting 300+lbs off the back. Talking to the dealer they said the manual tilt remote option was only available in 2014 and they dropped it for 2015, which is why the 2014 20hp was less than the 9.9hp.

... on the very heavy 26S (probably weighs as much as a lot of X's or M's) and it has worked great even in high current situations in Florida. It came with a 8.7" Dia. X 5.0" Pitch 4-Blade (High Thrust) prop that I never used as I felt it was for boats that were much larger in the 5000# plus range. I keep it as a spare but changed to still a 4-Blade High Thrust prop with a 7.0 pitch. It has worked very well when needed. I motor about 5 knots at partial throttle and seem to be getting around 10 mpg with this combination. I'd bet this would work great on the X also.

Sumner I was just reviewing your website and some of your older posts on the other forum about when you were planning on getting the tohatsu and prop selection. Your posts are always very helpful. I was sorry to read about your setback on the way down to FL. Solas makes a high thrust 4 blade in 10" diameter 5 or 7 pitch for this motor. I will probably try the 7 pitch, but am thinking it may be a little low. I am guessing/hoping the extra displacement and hp will keep the boat at hull speed with midrange RPMs flatwater and enough reserve to keep moving when needed. The lean burn EFI program thins out the mixture in the midrange rpms which is where I would like to cruise. Supposedly the 20EFI uses about 20% less fuel than a carbed 9.9 throughout the midrange RPMs. I am thinking it should be around .5 gph in the midrange, but could not find the actual numbers. I may hook it up to the plotter via NMEA for kicks to see. It comes with a 9.25" 10 pitch 3 blade. I am thinking this may be an OK flatwater or backup prop. The solas 4 blade for it comes in pitches from 7-11, but you take a hit on the diameter at 9.25" vs 10" of the HT. Depending how it turns the 9.25x10 3 blade I may try a 4 blade in the 9-11 pitch range.

[Tomfoolery]

A quick calc based on the 2.08:1 ratio of your lower, and 6300 rpm max engine speed, gives a 20 mph boat speed with zero slip. Hull speed puts it at around 50% slip, which is high(ish) for small boats, but not for work boats. I'm not sure I'd go higher than 7" pitch unless you really want the engine to run slow while noodling along at less than hull speed.