What outboard engine on Sun Cat?

[bruce]

The second mod was for times when I didn't want to just rely on the friction of the clamp. I fabricated a mounting bracket out of 1/4" aluminum and installed a twist-to-lock spring plunger that can locked retracted to allow the motor to pivot freely, or unlocked so the plunger is extended and will engage a hole in the bottom of the battery pan to lock the motor centerlined. I used a flat lanyard that readily indicates the position of the plunger lock. Aligned fore and aft the plunger is in play, athwartships the plunger is retracted. McMaster-Carr has a bunch of spring plungers to choose from, this one is 316SS, part #8691A41. The ring style with a lanyard is easy to grab. The battery tray bottom has a nice gradual slope, I added some Teflon tape for the plunger to slide on when as it is depressed as the plunger swings in to engage the hole. Once the plunger finds the hole it pops up, locking the pivot, until I reach back and retract the plunger.

[Renae]

Fess up.  You were the original MacGuyver, weren't you.  We won't tell anyone...

[bruce]

I do enjoy finding solutions to problems, or improvements that make things better, but, in this case at least, the manufacturer should have done a better job testing basic functionality. These things aren't cheap.

[Jim in TC]

I, too, am always impressed with the stuff you can fabricate. This is indeed one of the design flaws in both major brands of the electric motors. As a simple and less elegant solution to the pivot issue on our Torqueedo I put the tiller arm on when coming in from a sail, and have a couple blocks on the back of the boat to hold it in place if the waves and wind are high when dousing sail (which can result, as you pointed out, in an annoying potential for the motor to turn, spinning the boat at the worst possible moment - not just theoretical). This does have the added advantage of having the tiller available for the tricky turn into our slip. The remote throttle remains connected, so we don't have to change the wiring for the tiller.

[Renae]

I, too, am always impressed with the stuff you can fabricate. This is indeed one of the design flaws in both major brands of the electric motors. As a simple and less elegant solution to the pivot issue on our Torqueedo I put the tiller arm on when coming in from a sail, and have a couple blocks on the back of the boat to hold it in place if the waves and wind are high when dousing sail (which can result, as you pointed out, in an annoying potential for the motor to turn, spinning the boat at the worst possible moment - not just theoretical). This does have the added advantage of having the tiller available for the tricky turn into our slip. The remote throttle remains connected, so we don't have to change the wiring for the tiller.

With the eProp, you are either/or, but not both.  It's something to consider before purchasing an electric, and part of the reason I might buy a Torqeedo next time I am in the market, although really it's more about the available features at the time.  When I bought (and Bruce did), I think the offerings favored the eProp.  They have both updated significantly since then.

[Cpy23ecl]

The friction clamp isn't just a problem with electric outboards.  My Tohatsu 6hp Sail Pro has the same problem.

Fred

[Roland of Macatawa]

Fred:

Be careful to not over tighten the Tohastu friction 'clamp' handle.
The mechanism can be permanently damaged.
I have tightened mine as far as I dare, but the motor still rotates in it's collar.
Especially at idle in neutral.
Otherwise, it has not been a problem for me.

It's not really intended by Tohatsu to be a 'lock,' but only a 'drag.'

Fixes to make it truly a 'lock' have been discussed elsewhere.
I have not done so, and as a result cannot vouch for it, but you may find this informative.
https://www.sailnet.com/threads/tohatsu-4-5-6-hp-tiller-lock-fix.160553/#post-2111401

Like yours, mine is a Tohatsu 6HP Sail Pro, now several years old.

Regards, Roland

[bruce]

Interesting Fred. My Honda 2 and Lehr 2.5 had a thumb screw to tighten. Crude, and even with a compression spring tended to vibrate loose, but it did firm it up so the motor would hold a course.

[Roland of Macatawa]

Hi, All:

No one has mentioned one of the advantages of the Tohatsu 6HP outboard which is valuable to me.
It, and only it in their lineup, is available with an 'Ultra-Long-Shaft' of 25 inches, which is standard on the SailPro model.

With it, I am able, on my SunDayCat, to eliminate moving the motor mount parallelogram linkage up and down while on the water.
I can use the same position with the propeller well submerged for motoring but tilting up and out of the water for sailing.
The motor tiller is at a convenient height at the transom. No reaching over and down.
To achieve this, I modified the motor mount plate of the motor mount bracket.
I made the motor mount plate slightly taller, essentially becoming a compromise between the two prior positions which I had used.

But, I agree that 6 HP is more than necessary.
Typically I use only 1/3 throttle or less, usually less.

Yes, it is heavier than the Tohatsu 3.5HP outboard, and that is a disadvantage.
Yet the Tohatsu 4HP, 5HP, and 6HP are all essentially the same engine and essentially the same weight.
But only the 6HP is available with the ultra-long-shaft.

Regards, Roland

[bruce]

Hey Roland, similarly I tried using the motor shaft length to eliminate a step. The Lehr 2.5 only came in a short shaft, so I modified the motor mount so I could use all four settings. That entailed shimming it off the transom an 1 1/4", so the full up position was in play. Unfortunately, I still had to tilt the motor on a starboard tack to clear the water.

For me, on a PC, the third position, one up from the lowest, was good for routine motoring. If it got choppy, the full down position helped keep the motor from cavitating. That's been true with the long shaft motors I've used as well.

[Cpy23ecl]

My sailpro definitely "wanders" if motoring more than a very short distance.  Not a big deal for the way I'm using it as I only have about 1/2 mile from my dock to the draw bridge and another half mile from the bridge until I'm in Lake MI.  If I had to motor any distance I'd definitely need to come up with a way to make sure it doesn't move.

Wasn't aware that the lock could be damaged by over tightening.  Good to know.  Thanks.

Fred

[Renae]

I'm not sure why the trapezoid mount is problematic.  If it's oversprung, that can be (carefully) fixed.

[rogerschwake]

  Roland and anyone else that is having a problem with your motor not staying locked in place. The lock is a band of metal wrapping  around cylinder of cast aluminum, metal on metal just doesn't work that well. Some leather belts are made of two layers and sewed together on both sides, also glued. Take one of these belts and with a screw driver open the glued together pieces apart for about six inches. Slip this over the band for your motor clamp cutting the belt of until you can just get it around the cylinder. The belt works like a brake shoe instead of having metal against metal. This has worked for me and a couple of other sailors.

ROGER

[Christopher]

"Tohatsu Friction Clamp Fix"   Roger told me about his fix for his engine probably 5 years ago or so and I did it to my Tohatsu and it has been working great for me since then.