Is it Stupid to Use a New Yamaha Outboard on a Dinghy?
- Thread starter GorillaToast
- Start date
You gotta do what you gotta do. If you want to buy an old junker outboard so it won't get stolen, then you will soon find out why nobody would bother stealing it. You'll probably spend more time working on it than using it.
But if you buy a good OB like a Yamaha, then there is the risk that it will get stolen. Down here, we say if someone really wants an outboard, there is nothing you can do to prevent it. Even the biggest chain is but 10 second's effort to cut, with the right tool. You can do lots to dissuade folks from stealing your OB, but none are 100% secure.
Of course, it's the same thing for dirt dwellers. They buy a nice car and somebody will want it without paying for it. No way to stop car theft either. So you either drive crap or you take your chances.
There are no guarantees in life so you make your choices and do your best and hope for a good outcome. Or you could just pay for outboard/dinghy insurance and have the good motor and not worry at all.
But if you buy a good OB like a Yamaha, then there is the risk that it will get stolen. Down here, we say if someone really wants an outboard, there is nothing you can do to prevent it. Even the biggest chain is but 10 second's effort to cut, with the right tool. You can do lots to dissuade folks from stealing your OB, but none are 100% secure.
Of course, it's the same thing for dirt dwellers. They buy a nice car and somebody will want it without paying for it. No way to stop car theft either. So you either drive crap or you take your chances.
There are no guarantees in life so you make your choices and do your best and hope for a good outcome. Or you could just pay for outboard/dinghy insurance and have the good motor and not worry at all.
Get all the rattle cans from your garage and give it a ugly paint job and make it look old.
I have always thought that where dinghy motors are stolen, the idea is to make my dinghy/engine the most difficult to steal, and the least desirable. So I have a big chain and have painted my outboard so that it looks old and clunky. A newish looking dinghy, unlocked, with a new looking Yamaha is a much better looking target. The one thing I haven't done yet is to paint my dinghy day glow orange. If we sailed in a high risk area, that would be my next move.
Well you can always bang up the cowling and give it an exterior home paint job with a brush. Scratch up the leg and paint it in camouflage swamp look. When you take off in the dinghy keep the choke half in so it will sputter and smoke. Make it look and sound like a clunker and they won't touch her.
If somebody really wants to steal your OB, they will no matter what you do short of putting it in your bed and sleeping with it. The goal is to make it more difficult to steal than the one next to it and to make it less desirable to steal.
Crooks want to steal things that are easy to take and quick to dispose of. And, the odds of it actually being stolen are pretty low. And if it does get stolen, file a claim with your insurance company, you do have insurance right?
I've found the guys stealing OB's down here aren't that stupid. Newer OB's may have different features or a differently shaped cowling, so it's not much theft prevention if someone wants a $4000 outboard and has to buy a cowling for a couple of hundred (or steal one). It's big business down here and even a paint job won't stop a thief who knows what he's doing. Most tow the dink away, so safety switches are useless except against some drunk yachtie who is looking to get back to his boat after his wife has left him ashore.
If anyone is that concerned about a new outboard, don't ever buy a new car. Given the statistics of stolen cars vs. outboard motors, you'll never leave the garage.
One day Gorilla Toast shows up at the docks and finds his dinghy and motor up on blocks. Someone stole his prop.
I didn't have the heart to spray paint my new outboard, but the day I installed it, I peeled all those fancy stickers off.
Of course this guarantees absolutely nothing. But at least the motor doesn't scream "I'M BRAND NEW, PLEASE STEAL ME!!" from a mile away.
Of course this guarantees absolutely nothing. But at least the motor doesn't scream "I'M BRAND NEW, PLEASE STEAL ME!!" from a mile away.
Well you cannot secure the engine too much to the dinghy because if you do they will steal the boat and the motor. How big and heavy is the outboard? Anything under 50 lbs. can be easily taken off and secured. My favorite dinghy engine is a 3.3 HP, two stroke Mercury with a built in tank weighing in at a tad over 18 lbs. It gets me to shore and back.
Thanks, fellas, for all your comments.
I hear rowing is good for your health...
I hear rowing is good for your health...