Looking for new outboard advice 4 stroke for a h23

[Reefing]

I haven’t read all the entries but as an h23 owner I can say that 6hp will more than enough. I had a honda 5hp 4 strk and it did the job well even in the strong currents of the intracoastal in Clearwater/St. Petersburg.

I recently came across and bought a 6hp Tohatsu 4strk. The motor runs great and shifts seamlessly. I have not installed it on my boat yet but I can’t see why it would be worst than a 15yr Honda.

Since you have time I would start looking online for the right motor and price.

 

[Benny17441]

While you can probably manhandle a 2 stroke 9.9HP engine I doubt you could the same for a 4 stroke 9.9HP engine. Your motor mount would also need to be rated for the additional weigh. If you are trailering regularly the added weight will be an issue. As far as the horsepower needed it depends on your sailing area; in a calm and protected lake it sounds like a 4 HP will do the trick but if there is need to fight strong currents in a river then you may need all of the 9.9 horsepower. Irrespective of the engine size we need to keep the prop in the water so in sea swells a long shaft would be advisable. A properly matched prop for the engine and boat combination will provide maximum utilization of the available horsepower.

 

[Will Gilmore]

f there is need to fight strong currents in a river then you may need all of the 9.9 horsepower.

While a 9.9hp will push a boat faster than an 8hp or a 6hp. Unless out gets you up onto a plane, the difference in speed is small. This is speed through the water, current is not usually what the extra hp is there to fight. Wind and waves are why you might need the extra power. The bow wave created by pushing past the hull-speed rating of your waterline length makes it very hard to get much more speed out of higher hp because you are trying to drive up hill. This is speed through the water so current is not a factor.

- Will (Dragonfly)

 

[drewsyntax]

Drew,
When and where did you get your 23? I sold mine several years ago to someone not too far from you, in White Lake, NY, and it had a '95 Mercury 9.9 that ran like crap : ) But the topsides were not that nice blue your seems to have.

Hi Brian -
could it be the same boat?!
I picked in up in hamburg ny on the hudson in july 17. The guy Stu I bought from had it in a slip there - I took the slip and the boat off his hands and he picked up a shiney new motor boat and is in the marina - good guy. I can’t recall where he got it from (i’ll ask him though) but it was in 2016. The boat was painted a couple years ago - it was white for sure as all h23 I think were... My first boat and love her lots $$ - except for that 9.9!

 

[drewsyntax]

While you can probably manhandle a 2 stroke 9.9HP engine I doubt you could the same for a 4 stroke 9.9HP engine. Your motor mount would also need to be rated for the additional weigh. If you are trailering regularly the added weight will be an issue. As far as the horsepower needed it depends on your sailing area; in a calm and protected lake it sounds like a 4 HP will do the trick but if there is need to fight strong currents in a river then you may need all of the 9.9 horsepower. Irrespective of the engine size we need to keep the prop in the water so in sea swells a long shaft would be advisable. A properly matched prop for the engine and boat combination will provide maximum utilization of the available horsepower.

Thank Benny - The hudson gets quite rough and the current is very strong at times - the 9.9 on the transom seems ok - the owner before me had a pretty heavy duty metalmount put on to holdthe 9.9 - which does the trick. But it does feel like alot of motor a times (when it is running smooth)

My main reasoning is to do less hp would be the less weight and less cost - the marina thinks 6 hp should do it - but she also has a slew of long shaft 4 stroke 9.9’s sitting in the store room..

I took a couple pics this wkend at the marina - and a not so great shot of the mount is attached.

best u

 

[drewsyntax]

Hi Brian -
could it be the same boat?!
I picked in up in hamburg ny on the hudson in july 17. The guy Stu I bought from had it in a slip there - I took the slip and the boat off his hands and he picked up a shiney new motor boat and is in the marina - good guy. I can’t recall where he got it from (i’ll ask him though) but it was in 2016. The boat was painted a couple years ago - it was white for sure as all h23 I think were... My first boat and love her lots $$ - except for that 9.9!

Uploaded a couple pix from when i got it - anything recognizable?

 

[Will Gilmore]

I would go with 6 HP. You shouldn't trailer with the motor mounted. Your trailer probably has little suspension and bumps act directly on motor mount and transom. Ease of lifting off, alone, should decide it for you. that's assuming you trailer her.

- Will (Dragonfly)

 

[drewsyntax]

Thanks All - Dragonfly 6hp would be a good choice Im feeling. the 9.9 feels heavy - 6hp 4 is going to still be much lighter fromwhat ive read.
That trailer is really just for winter storage at the marina- it needs help otherwise plus I dont have registration so it aint leaving that marina anytime or ever.

True though - I’ll take the motor off when we do finally trailer - i’ll be loooking for a new trailer next or rent one to start.

 

[Brian M H23]

Drew - somebody would have had to be really overzealous - mine had a stern railing, genoa tracks, and halyards ran back to cleats on port side of cabin-top. Great boat though! I moved to Philadelphia from Upstate NY, no longer had a backyard to keep it in, and when I'm ready to keep a boat in a slip it'll be tad larger than the '23 !

 

[JRT]

This is probably the best deal on outboards and includes free shipping. I have a 6HP short on my little jon boat and love it, I"m planning to get this exact model for my O'Day 25 on Lake Guntersville as it is a nice weight and will be an improvement over my old 7.5 2 stroke

https://onlineoutboards.com/tohatsu-6-hp-outboards/tohatsu-6-hp-mfs6csproul-outboard-motor-5131.html

 

[Reefing]

That is the exact one I found on craiglist. It was a 2013 and I got a really great deal. If I recall you can even get it with an alternator kit to charge the battery on the boat. Also, it might include starter kit and controllers. Oviously all of those extras mean a hieget cost but the motor is quiet and light.

 

[JRT]

Unfortunately the 6hp cannot have a starter kit, unless it is some aftermarket one. The Sail Pro model comes with the high thrust prop and alternator. The neat thing about the motor is it is made in Japan and the quality is very good.

 

[isaksp00]

If you want to try to keep your current motor, I echo the comments about carb and jet cleaning. I have a '91 Honda 8 on my 23, and it is more than powerful enough, and fairly quiet. Kind of heavy when I put in on or take it off at the season start/end, but I can live with that.
I have had issue like yours, where it won't idle well, and I have to open the throttle some and choke it to get it started. When it is acting up it stalls when shifted into gear, unless I open the throttle and then of course it slams the gears.
Whenever that happens I remove the low speed jet and clean it. On my Honda 8, that jet screws in to the top of the carb, so it fairly easy to remove. I use a very thin plastic "thread" from a split-in-half floss threader to poke through the center hole, and spray with carb cleaner. That has always fixed it. Why it recurs, I don't know. Could be the fuel hoses shedding particles, though I did replace them about 3 years ago. I put in a new fuel filter at that time. I use StaBil additive. There is a new gas station by us that sells ethanol free gas, and I will be using that going forward.
If your carb's low speed jet is also easy to access, may want to see if that gets you enough reliability and saves like $1500.