Mac advice - N. Houston / Spring / Conroe

[Jolly Dodger]

After neglecting my Mac for 4 years, I have finally committed to moving her up to where I am (Spring TX). I have a ton of work to do to get her ready to sail, some of which I will do myself, but here are my most pressing that need outside assistance:

1.) New outboard

I know that I will get a barrage of comments for this but I have decided to replace the OB with a brand new 15 HP. I want to use the Mac as an RV on water with sailing (with the sails) in the fairest of weather only, on lakes, with a kiddo and wife - so no need to power up and plane and I thus definitely can't justify the +$10k on a new 50 HP. The old Tohatsu is pretty shot and 22 years old and my wife won't get on the boat unless the OB is reliable despite my promises to YouTube any repairs needed...

Question: anyone in the N. Houston area that can recommend a decent boat shop to have a new OB fitted?

2.) Lake Conroe

I searched the forum and could only find one (2006) reference to sailing on Lake Conroe - anyone on this forum that has/does sail on Conroe? I'd love to hear your thoughts / tips / etc. on what the sailing is like and where are good places to launch a Mac.

Thanks!

[Strange]

After neglecting my Mac for 15 years, I've retired and decided to retrieve mine from behind a barn, between a goat farm and chicken pen.



1. I'm in the same boat except that mine seems to be in working order. Have a fuel restriction issue I'm looking into . . . in my spare time. Very low mileage but you can't get critical parts anymore. My plan was to use this one, try a few "Dealers" with "Service" departments first. Then after the excitement of a complete system failure, decide which one I wanted to let overcharge me.

2. I have only been on this lake once and that was about a week ago. Working on getting my boat reliable and Conroe is handy. I launched at "830 boat ramp" (That's how Apple Maps finds it ) That looks like it'll be pretty packed in season. But the lake looks great for sailing and appears to have some "attractions".

So while I have not really helped you directly, I will be watching for you!

[Jolly Dodger]

Thanks and appreciate the help - just seeing that pic helps me feel the lift is not impossible!

I think my old OB is the same or similar Tohatsu - when I replace it feel free to shout if you would by any chance want it to cannibalize for spare parts.

If you do get out on Conroe again do share the intel.

[OverEasy]

Hi Jolly Dodger!

Welcome back to the water!
If I might suggest something to think about when looking for a new 15 hp outboard.
You might want to look to see if it’s rigged for electric start, remote throttle/shift, electric engine lift and wheel control.
A majority of engines in that size range don’t have those features which can make the functional use considerably less enjoyable, awkward or even somewhat hazardous. I would just like to make the suggestion to really think about the actualities of usage and do some ‘dry runs’ in-situ before buying.


I think you’ll find that many of these features are more common on the 25 hp class and up range.

It’s one of the reasons that we held off on our original idea of getting an auxiliary kicker motor for Over Easy that we could also use on our inflatable dinghy. We found that it would be nighnearimpossible to use a kicker on a swing up corner mount given that one would have to be a triple jointed contortionist with three hands and eyes on stalks that swivel 180 degrees. This assessment was confirmed by watching another boat with the nearly identical setup that we had been contemplating … swing up bracket… pull start…extension handle… it definitely would have been a challenge for even with someone in their prime! (I’m past that sell by date by a wide margin )

Just a suggestion… Your Boat / Your Rukes.

Best Regards,
Over Easy

[Strange]

Jolly Dodger,

I’m bettin’ your boat was originally sold by Captain Frank, with a steel trailer (right here next to the salt water OCEAN ) and a Tohatsu 50 HP TLDI 2 stroke. In that case, and assuming the compressor is serviceable, I’d PAY you for it. Want it in any case!

In terms of dealers, I looked up local Tohatsu dealers on their site. First one is just a few blocks from my house. But they do NOT service Macs because, “They are too tall to fit in the shop.” So currently I’m on a 3 to 4 week waiting list to get into Kevin’s Boat and Motor Repair LLC just to have someone with more experience take a look/listen.

My current issue is fuel restriction. I had help (that I didn’t need) from a swabbie (my son) who didn’t understand why the fittings were different. Some pins and some balls. He changed them to ALL PINS and threw away the balls. Sometimes it works. Mostly it doesn’t. Having some difficulty locating all the correct parts and so is Kevin.

But the most exciting thing for me is to MEET other Mac owners from the area. Yeah, gotta drive an hour or more to get TO some water around here. But, there are some great times to be had and it’d be nice to have comrades to run into on the water if for no other reason than to have each other’s backs!

At the moment, I’ve got the mast off and otherwise stripped down to essentials while I scout locations and work out motor issues. Let me know if you are interested in any of those “adventures” while you sort out your motor issues.

[Jolly Dodger]

You might want to look to see if it’s rigged for electric start, remote throttle/shift, electric engine lift and wheel control.

Yes, great advice. My docking is less than elegant to begin with so wrestling a wheel and an opposing OB won't help. I'm definitely going to get remote - I've seen a few 15 HP with this feature but definitely more prevelant in the bigger sizes and not too big a price shift to a 20 HP or 25.

I’m bettin’ your boat was originally sold by Captain Frank, with a steel trailer (right here next to the salt water OCEAN ) and a Tohatsu 50 HP TLDI 2 stroke. In that case, and assuming the compressor is serviceable, I’d PAY you for it. Want it in any case!

But the most exciting thing for me is to MEET other Mac owners from the area. Yeah, gotta drive an hour or more to get TO some water around here. But, there are some great times to be had and it’d be nice to have comrades to run into on the water if for no other reason than to have each other’s backs!

I got the boat off of another sailor who had had it for a few years and had not done a great job on the upkeep - I'll get full OB details for you @Strange - as I said - if you want it it is yours (the OB - not the boat!).

It is GREAT to meet a fellow Mac sailor. 5 years ago when I was on the boat it would have been very helpful to bounce a few ideas off of someone. I can definitely do with some pointers on trimming the sails once underway again. It would definitely be worthwhile to see if we can meet up at Conroe some time.

NOW for the naive question: How difficult would it be to install the new 20 HP myself? If someone on here has done their own install I'd love to hear the war story. Going with a smaller OB, I'm thinking the biggest challenge is going to be getting the old OB off but I could be mistaken.

[Strange]

Getting the old one off is easy. I’ve got a cherry picker that’ll pluck that thing off and drop it in my truck no problem.

But I’ve no experience with installing one.

[Jolly Dodger]

Great! Let me do some homework on how exactly to install and send you some info on the 50 I have. Then we can sync up and get this done! What side of Houston are you on? (We can move these details to direct messaging).

[OverEasy]

Hi Jolly Dodger,

strange is right! An engine boom lift /cherry pick is what I used to lift my old Tohatsu 50 hp off of our Mac26X when we we’re transitioning to our new Suzuki DF60AV a couple of years ago.

Two bolts are in the motor well and two bolts are underneath in the aft berth.
I found it useful to have a slap-hammer or dent puller with hook plate jaws to get the bolts out single handed instead of trying to pound them out from the inside. You’ll find this approach can also save potentially deforming the bolt threads (so you can use them later if you choose). As our utilization includes a substantial amount of time in saltwater we opted to utilize mounting the new engine with Stainless Steel.
The engine mount plates are generally fairly standard nowadays.
My personal perspective is to use the through mount bolt approach rather than the dubious screw clamps that some smaller engines may have as an option. They with tend to loosen with use and are generally awkward to tighten sufficiently. Utilizing the four bolt approach virtuall eliminates the possibility of engine theft as the bottom two bolts will have the nuts on the interior of the boat only accessible via the aft berth. Too much bother for most would be thieves.

Best Regards,
Over Easy

[Jolly Dodger]

Thanks OverEasy.

I took a trip out to the boat and can confirm that no-one has done anything strange with mine in the past so I should be good to go on getting the engine un-bolted.

As per a few above discussions I'll go with a wheel controlled unit - a few questions to those who have done this replacement previously - is the pinion mount plate fairly standard - i.e. I don't need to make a new one myself or is it something Mac specific - I'm referring to that arm that conveniently links wheel steering to engine.

Also, do engines ordered online typically come with an electrical harness or do I need to order that separately?

Lastly, @Strange - I got some good photos of the OB - Tohatsu 50 HP TLDI that I'll send over to you.

@Mods - let me know if I should split the OB discussion into a separate thread. Most probably makes sense.

[Strange]

Firstly , Yep. 50hp TLDI. Same motor. Yes, quite interested!

I believe that any outboard motor which does not come with a handle with a throttle on it will have a point to connect the steering linkage. How else would you steer them?

If a boat motor doesn’t come with everything needed, except maybe a remote throttle, no matter WHERE you buy it, they would not be in business very long.

Myself, I buy a lot of things online. An outboard, ain’t one of them.

[Ixneigh]

Hi. If you have not bought the 15, DO NOT.
I just did this same downgrade but to the 20 which is based on the 9.9, and 15. Same basic engine. The 20 is the lowest HP I would go on a Mac power sailor. I was going to order the boat from a dealer with one, but ended up getting a demo boat which had the etec 60, which lasted me 14 years. I have a four blade 7 pitch prop on the new engine, which was installed by a local outboard dealer (4 month saga) the 20 barely get up to around 6 knots. Maybe 6.5. I think this is just enough to empty the ballast tank. I have not tried that yet.
I like the engine, and I'd install it again in a minute but NOT AT A DEALER. ( RIP factory warrantee)
The dealer charged 2000 to rig the motor and I ended up doing the hard part, designing the control mounting and building that.
The tohatsu control unit was much larger than the west marine unit the etec had. It needed to be on the left side of the helm, not the right. Ill spare you the gory details. But it could have been a disaster the let the dealer do it. I later learned that there are several options for the control unit. Not sure how to procure them, but they do exist. Including one that goes on the right side of the helm.

Ix

[Jolly Dodger]

Thanks Ixneigh, I had read somewhere here that you had replaced the outboard with a 20HP and was hoping you'd chime in. Yup, I'm convinced on the 20 HP. A week ago Suzuki had a great deal but those are no longer available. Now I need to decide if a difference of $1,200 is worth it to get a white one vs a standard black one. I'm thinking no...

I am also thinking to go the DIY route - hopefully not biting off more than I can chew.

[Strange]

just seeing that pic helps me feel the lift is not impossible!

So, on that note I have:

The first focus was the motor. Does it still run? When I parked it, it had an overheating issue. Run fine at idle but increase the throttle and overheating indicator would come on and engine would stop. Turns out that if you leave one setting for a while, you MUST disconnect the oil linkage arm so that it is wide open and run it for about 20 minutes. Did that in a barrel of water. Even was able to run it at a few extra RPMS for several minutes at a time. No overheating! As I’ve said, some of the parts for the 200x Tohatsu 50HP TLDI are hard or impossible to get. But you have already decided to get a new motor!

Cleaned it up quite a bit. Inside looks great! Outside still needs a lot of work to make her shine again. Need a better wintering spot before I go through (or pay for) all that. The cushions need their stuffing properly cleaned.
Custom aluminum trailer in great shape . . . Except for the lights. Repaired and replaced.
Replaced all the standing rigging . . . Just to be safe. Wasn’t paying good attention raising the mast, twisted a shroud at the chain plate and bent the spreaders. Ok fixed that too.
Replaced all the running rigging. Those old lines have hung on this boat for 22 years . . .
The Bimini was shredded. Couldn’t find replacement canvas. Finally called and Carver DOES still make the replacement cover for my 5’ long Bimini. It is simply a “special order”.
Took her out to Conroe just to test the engine. Fuel restriction. I now believe I have fixed that. Fuel line issue. Needs another test.
The Mermaid A/C is toast. Took it out and closed the water lines. (I’ll be getting another one of these later!)
Inverter, chart plotter and old Interphase sonar still work. VHF needs an antennae. I may need a replacement transponder on one side for the sonar but I know where I can get a couple of them if needed. Chart plotter can’t be updated. Openplotter?

I’ve already rented a slip at Seven Coves. I’m just waiting for a fuel filter from boats.net. Should be here Monday. So I should be IN THE WATER NEXT WEEK!

And maybe I can take some pics as I (hopefully) won’t be struggling just to keep the engine running.

So, understand that it has taken me almost a year to get to this point. But that is due to 6 months of some health issues. And the fact that I’m 69 going on 90 prevents me from doing things quickly. Yesterday, I worked to put the mast back on the boat. Today EVERYTHIHG hurts.