New motors, old technology

[Hank49]

About two months ago I was cruising along with two buddies and two sons, 25 mies out and thinking about where the fish were, where to drop in the water etc etc, with two out of town friends who had come to dive. All of a sudden, blah.....my 2006 ETEC 90 died. Dead. We were less than a mile from the dive site and, as mentioned, 25 miles from home.
Lucky we had 8 gallons of drinking water, food for a day or so and cell phones. Problem was we were about 6 miles out of range. But, we had a nice easterly breeze which would take us right back to the reef. I dropped the bimini top, tied it in a vertical position and "sailed" my 25 foot panga back towards home. We got within cell range and a buddy came and towed me home.
So...after spending $1800 on a new electronic management module (fancy names....) and then having a shifter cable break on my next trip out, I decided to go backwards in technology and get two brand new, 40 hp, Yamaha Enduros. Pull start, no auto trim and tilt. As basic as you can get. I had to cut two small pieces of 2x4, tack on old wetsuit material and use them for my "auto trim" which holds them in an up position to get me in and out of our canal.
Note in the pic, the "twins" are not identical. One appears to be a 2010 model and the other a 2011.....Belize....

There is a lot to be said for modern technology. The Yamahas are LOUD. I need ear plugs, seriously. Coming in and out of a shallow canal with no auto tilt is a bit more work. Mixing gas and oil, pull starting the engines when they're cold. BUT, I can sleep so well now the night before we do the blue water trips.
It's also nice having a son around who finished Marine Mechanics Institute in Orlando.

And finally put on hydraulic steering. It all worked out. The boat is now luckier. haha. And the two Yamahas are about $2000 cheaper than one new ETEC 90. Not bad....

 

[captain]

I am not a fan of the new electronic engine technology on the water. My boat has a single Chevy inboard with a carburetor and an old type point ignition distributor. For about $200 I can have spares for most systems such as starter, distributor, alternator, fuel filter and carburetor and can solve almost all problems on the water.
The weakest link on any boat is getting bad fuel, one way to minimize it is two tanks filled at two different location.

 

[Hank49]

Simple is best especially down here. It's harder to find good technicians to service the new motors and you're right, fuel here can be a problem. Tanks aren't kept full here and water in gas and diesel is pretty common.
The carbureted two stroke Yamahas burn about 20% more fuel then the ETEC (80 hp vs 90 hp) especially if I'm running slow into rougher water. But, it's worth it knowing I have a much better chance of getting home that night.
I do have one fuel tank per motor and keep two other 6 gallon spares. Getting fuel from different sources doesn't help much here. It all comes from one big holding tank in Belize City, so i've been told.

 

[cool_hardware52]

I always kept a spare ignition module and the tools to change it for any outboard that was mission critical.

My experience has been that the "electronic" ignitions were a net boost in engine reliability over conventional magnetos and mechanical points, but when they go to sleep all you can do is replace the module.

Full electronic engine controls OTOH seem to a net negative.

Pull start seems like a very good idea.

Tobin

 

[emoreira]

I am not a fan of the new electronic engine technology on the water. My boat has a single Chevy inboard with a carburetor and an old type point ignition distributor. For about $200 I can have spares for most systems such as starter, distributor, alternator, fuel filter and carburetor and can solve almost all problems on the water.
The weakest link on any boat is getting bad fuel, one way to minimize it is two tanks filled at two different location.

You also need to have the battery fully loaded. Even an old Chevy needs a battery to start, no matter if the ignition is of the old type.

 

[captain]

You also need to have the battery fully loaded. Even an old Chevy needs a battery to start, no matter if the ignition is of the old type.

I have two isolated by a selector switch, run out on one in on the other.

 

[cool_hardware52]

I have two isolated by a selector switch, run out on one in on the other.

Smart man.

Tobin

 

[Tom Winters]

Hank in Arabic is شل.
The loose translation of شل from Arabic to Garifuna is "King".
You need to ditch the motors except for ceremonial occasions like "Presentation of the Now-of-Age Virgins to the King" and have your people paddle you around. Maybe get a couple of Elvis suits from eBay so you look the part when you address the United Nations.

 

[Hank49]

You know Tom, believe it or not, I gave that a lot of thought before overextending myself financially and discovered that the Arabic word for Yamaha is . ياماها Kind of like "La LoLy...". Fearing that the Garafunas might uncover my play on words and attempt at becoming their undeserving new king.... and also the fact that I may have ended up in the Belizean history books as the equivalent of Magellan at the hands of Chief Lapu Lapu, I decided to go with Yamaha since the Arabic translation sounds like the title to a song....which the Garafunas here appreciate. La lo ly....(hum those words along with a punta rock beat) I am now in spiritual harmony here.

 

[Tom Winters]

Some of the strangest and most interesting days and nights of my life took place in Lapu Lapu City and the surrounding waters and environs of Cebu. Fortunately this and the events leading up to it are classified until 2033. I did get to stand on the exact spot where Magellan took one for the team after I blew off lunch with the US Ambassador to the Phillipines to go party.