I'm new to this forum, and perhaps this has been addressed in past posts, but if not - is anyone aware anyone else converting from diesel to outboard with this boat? It has the 1986 westebeke 10-two that it came with and I'd like to pull that out, put a motor mount on starboard side and use an outboard. I realize the westebeke is a great little engine but I do primarily lake sailing and I'd love to have a brand new outboard with less maintenance. Specifically I'm wondering if anyone has any ideas on how to rig the motor mount so that it sits flush and at what height to mount it (presuming a 25 inch brand new honda 9.9 hp outboard).... I've looked for pictures and specifications of the 272 that came with an outboard but I haven't seen much in the way of specifics. Any thoughts would be much appreciated.
Oday 272 - Diesel to Outboard conversion
- Thread starter nateinmaine
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I have the same boat and was considering the same thing when my exhaust manifold had to be replaced. I spoke to many experienced people and they all advised me against it. The Westerbeke will outlive you if it is in decent shape. You are looking at many expenses to make the conversion. I love my diesel, except for the glow plug and I'm glad I repaired it instead of hanging an outboard over the stern. The 272 is my favorite boat and I have had many. Good Luck . Steve
Great idea - go for it. Although this view is widely regarded as heresy, I believe that diesels are vastly overrated in many marine applications. I am a former diesel powered sailboat owner. The main use my engine saw was from the dock to the lake where the sails were put up. This is not how diesels are meant to be used. They are meant to run for hours at a time at about 80% load. Diesels are louder than their gasoline equivalents and they vibrate more. Although the engines themselves are reliable they are not bulletproof. Fuel systems, engine mounts and exhaust systems usually end up causing issues. If you live in the north winterization is essential.
I currently have an 8 horsepower electric start Tohatsu and I love it. It charges my battery, uses under a litre or fuel per hour costs next to nothing to maintain and can be completely replaced in 15 minutes.
You may need to reinforce your transom where the outboard bracket is to be attached.
My two cents worth.
I currently have an 8 horsepower electric start Tohatsu and I love it. It charges my battery, uses under a litre or fuel per hour costs next to nothing to maintain and can be completely replaced in 15 minutes.
You may need to reinforce your transom where the outboard bracket is to be attached.
My two cents worth.
Hi, Nate. I don't think you're the first to explore this conversion, heresy or not. My standard O272 is the outboard version and lake-locked and I prefer the outboard to the diesel, for various reasons. It's easy to service, easy to replace, uses a very small amount of gas over the season (Tohatsu 9.8 25in. shaft/elec. start) and pushes a lake boat quite well. I admit, it isn't as clean and sleek looking at the stern as the diesels, but it's more practical for my needs. The local diesel mechanic hits you with about $100 just to travel to the slip, then the meter starts running. The engine access in the 272LE doesn't seem too bad, but an outboard beats it every time from the standpoint of simplicity.
I'm not sure if O'Day did anything to beef up the transom on the o/b models, to accommodate the added weight in a concentrated area. I swapped out an old motor mount for a new model, to take the weight of the four stroke replacement, several years ago, and didn't notice anything unusual on the starboard side transom. The mount is located on a block and appears to spread the load across the starboard transom area But I do wonder if there would be an issue with the pedestal steering system and its exit location on the transom when trying to properly position an o/b mount. My boat steers via a tiller/rudder setup and my only concern is to not turn the motor and rudder into to each other, as they'll make contact (the prop usually wins, in this case). You'd have to send someone small down the starboard side lazarette, because it is tight. Add a gas tank, hook up the motor wire harness to charge the batteries and provide electric starting, and that should take care of things. But, do you leave the diesel onboard or not? Its a lot of needless weight and a clean uninstall would seem to be the way to go. Decisions, decisions. It might be best to try and find someone in your area with an o/b model and study the differences carefully. If mine was at the coast, I'd keep the diesel, but I'm not and the Tohatsu works great. Good luck.
I'm not sure if O'Day did anything to beef up the transom on the o/b models, to accommodate the added weight in a concentrated area. I swapped out an old motor mount for a new model, to take the weight of the four stroke replacement, several years ago, and didn't notice anything unusual on the starboard side transom. The mount is located on a block and appears to spread the load across the starboard transom area But I do wonder if there would be an issue with the pedestal steering system and its exit location on the transom when trying to properly position an o/b mount. My boat steers via a tiller/rudder setup and my only concern is to not turn the motor and rudder into to each other, as they'll make contact (the prop usually wins, in this case). You'd have to send someone small down the starboard side lazarette, because it is tight. Add a gas tank, hook up the motor wire harness to charge the batteries and provide electric starting, and that should take care of things. But, do you leave the diesel onboard or not? Its a lot of needless weight and a clean uninstall would seem to be the way to go. Decisions, decisions. It might be best to try and find someone in your area with an o/b model and study the differences carefully. If mine was at the coast, I'd keep the diesel, but I'm not and the Tohatsu works great. Good luck.
Thanks very much for all of your thoughts. Switching to an outboard does seem the way to go for my particular circumstances. With your tohatsu, can you get it up out of the water when it is raised? Are you able to tilt it, or does it get obstructed? How much elevation drop does the motor mount give you when you put it fully in the submerged position? I'm looking at a panther motor mount that has 16 inches of travel and also at a different mount that has 14 1/2. I'm also wondering whether I'll need to build out the mount a bit from the stern so that it's able to tilt. Thanks again. As far as the tank, I was thinking of draining the diesel, flushing it with gas, and then using the diesel tank (now gas tank) as my tank. Also - in the o/b model of the 272, is there a hole drilled through the stern? I have the tiller/rudder system, not pedestal steering, so I hope to be able to put the mount far enough on the starboard side to not interfere with the rudder.
I have what I remember as a 14.5" lift range mount. Forget who made it. It lifts all but about half of the prop out of the water. Tilting is no problem and this gets the rest of the prop up and out. When lowered, I stop at the next to last notch on the adjustment arm and do not go to the bottom notch, because it lowers the motor too much and makes reaching for the motor tiller/handle a bit difficult. The only drawback is lifting the motor manually. I have to go under the stern rail and heave it up to the top position. Keep the mount mechanism greased or the friction will require increased effort, but its not so bad.
I'll try to find a stern shot of my boat, showing the block between the motor mount and the transom. This keeps the motor off the transom. You'd have to fabricate a similar block and locate it properly, otherwise the potential of the motor striking the transom exists. Since you don't have the pedestal steering, you won't have the problem of the steering exit hole in the transom. There were no holes in the o/b transom models, unless the owner added them to route the fuel line and wiring harness. For now, I just toss mine over the top of the transom and into the outboard fuel locker, but I may change this in order to clean things up, visually.
I suppose using a flushed out diesel tank for gas will work, but I'm not sure if this places the tank below deck (hmm... guess it has to go below). I'm real careful about storing any fuel below, as a potential fire hazard. The o/b model has its own cockpit fuel locker and is isolated from the cabin.
Personally, I wouldn't want to convert my o/b to diesel. My Tohatsu is much quieter than the Yamaha 9.9 2 stroke it replaced and is quieter than a friend's Cat 30 with a 3cyl. diesel. Remember, its a 27' boat and things can get tight. Not to mention cutting a hole in the hull for a prop shaft and box, wiring, adding a prop strut, etc. Now THAT would be a lot of work!
I'll try to find a stern shot of my boat, showing the block between the motor mount and the transom. This keeps the motor off the transom. You'd have to fabricate a similar block and locate it properly, otherwise the potential of the motor striking the transom exists. Since you don't have the pedestal steering, you won't have the problem of the steering exit hole in the transom. There were no holes in the o/b transom models, unless the owner added them to route the fuel line and wiring harness. For now, I just toss mine over the top of the transom and into the outboard fuel locker, but I may change this in order to clean things up, visually.
I suppose using a flushed out diesel tank for gas will work, but I'm not sure if this places the tank below deck (hmm... guess it has to go below). I'm real careful about storing any fuel below, as a potential fire hazard. The o/b model has its own cockpit fuel locker and is isolated from the cabin.
Personally, I wouldn't want to convert my o/b to diesel. My Tohatsu is much quieter than the Yamaha 9.9 2 stroke it replaced and is quieter than a friend's Cat 30 with a 3cyl. diesel. Remember, its a 27' boat and things can get tight. Not to mention cutting a hole in the hull for a prop shaft and box, wiring, adding a prop strut, etc. Now THAT would be a lot of work!
Thanks Rich - The diesel tank is attached to the stern, and can be accessed by crawling through the large lazarette (where the batteries are stored). I could use the smaller lazarette as a fuel holding area, but it may not hold enough gas... how many gallons is your gas tank in the small lazarette?
Jackdaw...phew, thanks for the edit! Funny this would happen on Valentine's Day, haha.
My external lazarette holds the original 6.5 gallon Yamaha tank that came with the boat. The Tohatsu came with a 3 gallon tank (now the backup can). If I fill the big can 3 times a year, then I've been out a lot. Our summers in NC can be brutally humid, hot and without wind, once the Annual Sweat Festival begins, so a nice easy cruise, under power and bimini, gets me my water fix. If any gas spills, there's never a worry about fumes down below. I'm on shore power and keep a 120V fan on all the time, to keep mold and mildew at bay, and it is not happy with flammables.
The most happy I've been with the boat was going from a 2 stroke to 4 stroke engine. The Tohatsu easily pushes it to hull speed and uses about half of what the 2 stroke uses in fuel. No more smell and no more mixing, plus you can lumber along at about 3.5 knots and hold a civil conversation in the cockpit. Would I have this boat at the coast, with the o/b? I don't think so. I tried it on another sailboat, same size and o/b, and found the pitch moment uncomfortable. It was too easy to get onto a wave pattern and have the prop come out of the water repeatedly. Nonetheless, I still admire the clean, smooth look of the transom on a diesel sailboat. Still looking for my stern picture.
My external lazarette holds the original 6.5 gallon Yamaha tank that came with the boat. The Tohatsu came with a 3 gallon tank (now the backup can). If I fill the big can 3 times a year, then I've been out a lot. Our summers in NC can be brutally humid, hot and without wind, once the Annual Sweat Festival begins, so a nice easy cruise, under power and bimini, gets me my water fix. If any gas spills, there's never a worry about fumes down below. I'm on shore power and keep a 120V fan on all the time, to keep mold and mildew at bay, and it is not happy with flammables.
The most happy I've been with the boat was going from a 2 stroke to 4 stroke engine. The Tohatsu easily pushes it to hull speed and uses about half of what the 2 stroke uses in fuel. No more smell and no more mixing, plus you can lumber along at about 3.5 knots and hold a civil conversation in the cockpit. Would I have this boat at the coast, with the o/b? I don't think so. I tried it on another sailboat, same size and o/b, and found the pitch moment uncomfortable. It was too easy to get onto a wave pattern and have the prop come out of the water repeatedly. Nonetheless, I still admire the clean, smooth look of the transom on a diesel sailboat. Still looking for my stern picture.
Nate,
I wouldn't use that fuel tank down below for a gasoline tank. You would be better off constructing a fuel locker in the cockpit that vents out to the air. I posted a picture of a 1986 O'Day 272 block in the other thread that you started before this one. I don't see why you couldn't construct one out of PVC Foam Board. It can be glued up to any thickness with PVC cement. It can even be painted. I'm in the process of using it on my boat right now for a structural mast extrusion. There's a guy who has a boat building and repair blog who is using this stuff on his Bertram 31. Check out the pics in your other thread.
Joe
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Thanks very much to everyone for helping me out - I've got a lot to think about now. Initially I was certain I was going to switch to an outboard... I haven't ruled it out, but I'm continuing to consider my options at this point. One of the major reasons I'd like to switch away from diesel is that the entire cabin smells like diesel - I think i have a leak somewhere in the engine. Is it a common problem to smell like diesel in the cabin (in an almost 30 year old boat)...or is this an odd smell that shouldn't be there?
I've got an O'Day 25 with a small Yanmar diesel in it. There was a diesel smell when I got it a couple of years ago, and I did a pretty thorough job of cleaning the engine compartment and it has mostly dissipated. The boat is sealed up for the winter and I'm sure I'll need to open it up and air it out in the spring, but last summer I didn't notice any significant odor.
If you've got a fuel leak, you need to track that down and get it addressed. Then deep clean everything (especially the engine compartment, interior surfaces and the cushions). For the cushions, I used one of those little green machines to steam clean the cushions; I washed the covers, and then used lots of Fabreze. Also get some odor absorbing canisters as well as some baking soda and eventually you should get the smell out.
While there is some additional expense on the outboard, I like it for Lake Michigan because it doesn't cavitate in big waves and it has a lot of range (30 hours of run time on 10 gal. of diesel). I'm also going to learn how to do some of the basic maintenance work on my own rather than paying diesel mechanics to do things like change the oil and the various filters. I've even seen some engine winterizing kits that could save a couple hundred dollars a year.
Dave
s/v Lagniappe
O'Day 25
If you've got a fuel leak, you need to track that down and get it addressed. Then deep clean everything (especially the engine compartment, interior surfaces and the cushions). For the cushions, I used one of those little green machines to steam clean the cushions; I washed the covers, and then used lots of Fabreze. Also get some odor absorbing canisters as well as some baking soda and eventually you should get the smell out.
While there is some additional expense on the outboard, I like it for Lake Michigan because it doesn't cavitate in big waves and it has a lot of range (30 hours of run time on 10 gal. of diesel). I'm also going to learn how to do some of the basic maintenance work on my own rather than paying diesel mechanics to do things like change the oil and the various filters. I've even seen some engine winterizing kits that could save a couple hundred dollars a year.
Dave
s/v Lagniappe
O'Day 25
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