Max hp

[Vader809]

I've heard this from plenty of people. To get the results from your outboard and boat, max the horse power the boat is rated for. Is this really something that I should consider? Or the fact that most of the lakes in my area are limited to 10 hp, is more of a hindrance?

 

[Pappy]

For legal/safety reasons mainly, the Coast Guard regs on powering boats are pretty conservative. Watch some videos of boaters and you can see why!
For this reason boat manufacturers have to place a max recommended hp sticker on the boat. That too is a bit conservative in most cases.
From this you can probably already figure that going to the max allowable is not a bad thing. They do make throttles after all !

 

[RaisedByWolves]

This subject is a tricky one for various reasons, especially in looking at the 25ish rated hills using tiller steer motors.

In a tiller steer you tend to sit higher than a console, but you are usually better balanced when riding solo.

Running a 25 hp motor vs say a 35hp of the same make/model may make your boat faster, run the same speed or even go slower, this has to do with WOT RPM, prop and lower unit gearing.

The 35 Johnnyrude motors are geared and propped differently for different sized hills, so putting a 35 on your boat may not get you much unless you start changing props.

The 35 motor will not work as hard and may have a better hole shot, but that doesn’t always equate to more speed.

There are a lot of variables to this, your personal skill and boating style included.

Personally I want top speed when fully loaded (within reason) as you may need to get back to the launch if bad weather surprises you.

 

[Weldorthemagnificent]

The answer is that depends.. If you want to fish those 10hp lakes, I guess 10 HP is what you should put on it. You didn't say what kind of boat or 2 stroke vs 4 stroke. New or older. Older hulls are rated by hp and not engine weight. For example an older 14 footer may take a 25 2 stroke just fine but step up to a 4 stroke and the extra 50lbs makes the water just that much closer to the top of the transom. The newer 4 strokes are lighter and the weight difference is getting negligible. On a larger hull such as the 17.5 ft Lund I fish out of, the max 115 is great and it will pull a skier up with 8 people on board or go 45mph with 3 guys and fishing gear. But it is a heavy pig and with the rear livewells full waves sometimes make their way into the splash well.If all you wanted to do was fish and 35mph is fine then a 70 would do just fine, use less fuel and give a little more freeboard. Although since you mentioned 10 HP lakes I'm assuming you mean a smaller hull. The max HP will always give you better performance out of the hull.

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