Is the difference between 40/50hp negligible or significant?

[Signaleer]

The biggest install I've heard about was Billy's 145 HP.... is that the biggest?

[Signaleer]

Ok, well for the record, I've purchased for 40hp model as I was able to negotiate a full $5k between it and the two other 50hp models. In addition, the 40hp has a new aluminum tandem axle trailer, while the others have the single axle steel trailers, so I'm comfortable in that price and if I end up having to purchase a 60hp down the road, i'll be ok with it. In fact, my bay boat has a 115 that I feel may be a little undersized, so I may buy the 150 for it and move over the 115. That'd be quite the site, huh? Ha.

You did very good imho. Motor is not the only thing. Trailer matters (mine sucks). Hope the rest is in good condition too!

[dustoff]

I would go for more horsepower. I have a etec 60 on an M, and when I have it all loaded up for the season it tops out at about 16 - 17 knots. It plains at about 10-12 knots, which is about 70 percent throttle. I don't have a lot of heavy mods either. Two batteries, spare anchor, tv, 15 gallon fresh water, fishing tackle/rods, one small tube, extra dock lines, four large fenders, stern rail seats, dodger, & tool boxes w/ spare hardware are the only heavy ones. I also use my engine at hull speed most of the time, but when you want to be able to get up and go, 18 to 20 knots is a lot more satisfying than 16. I've actually taken to lightening my loading a lot, so I got rid of all overnight stuff like fridge, drinking water, cooler, cookware, bedding etc, unless specifically planning for overnight trips. My main purpose for planeing the last couple of years is getting to fishing spots on the Chesapeake, and I find it nicer to be able to get up to 18 knots. Just me.

[Herschel]

I've purchased for 40hp model as I was able to negotiate a full $5k between it and the two other 50hp models. In addition, the 40hp has a new aluminum tandem axle trailer, while the others have the single axle steel trailers,

Just stumbled onto this tread, but thought it might be helpful to add a thought or two. The aluminum trailer in this deal sounds really good. I have maintained the original steel trailer for my X which is now 18 years old. Having done one major sand and paint plus a whole new set of brakes and a new actuator plus tires, of course, I think your trailer makes this deal particularly sweet. As far as the 40 h.p. is concerned, I would think that you will find a way to make that work. The major challenge I foresee will be getting it up on plane when you have several adults onboard, and they are hanging out in the cockpit. I have a relatively new 50 h.p. Yamaha HT, and with full ballast and four adults in the cockpit, my WOT starts out at not much over 8 knots. I typically only do this when starting to drain my ballast tank prior to going into my slip. I just ask two of my crew to move to the V-berth, and the boat pulls right on up to plane at about 10-11 knots. The ballast tank drains in about 6-7 minutes, and we top out at about 13 knots with that load (ballast empty), 14.5 knots with 1-2 adults. I carry two batteries forward along with two fresh water tanks, and a holding tank amidships for the head, so there is some additional weight aboard full time. I would expect a 40 h.p. to bring in about a knot less in each situation. Just guessing based on previous discussion in this thread and others. Best wishes on your new boat. I know you will like it.

[Signaleer]

Yeah, I was trying to be supportive of a new owner But if you are going to motor at all, 40hp is not going to do it.... Plan for an upgrade.

However, if sailing, that's more than enough to get in and out of the marina. So, may be ok for the application.

[sailboatmike]

Personally I cant see the point of a 40Hp, no really big enough to get you on he plane but will suck juice if working at hull speed, but at $5000 less than the 50Hp on a new Aluminium trailer who can say that isnt value.

I think if I was going small Hp motor it would be a 15 or maybe 20Hp just to give some maneuvering grunt.

Generally one of the positive things you can say about the 40Hp is they are much lighter than the 50Hp, but not so in this case.

Who am I to talk I have a 75Hp Saltwater Merc and its the same motor as the 90Hp, so I carry a heap of extra around on the back all 130Kg (300Ilbs) of it

Good luck, go out and enjoy your sailing and what a Mac can do for you, they dont make them any better

[Cougar]

I have a 15 HP Yamaha and am quite happy with it. I can do everything I want with it except get on a plane. That's why I'm pretty interested in this thread. 40 HP are less popular here in the Netherlands than 50 HP, which makes them attractively priced. So I would be very willing to upgrade to 40 HP for the rare occasion, IF I would be sure that I could get the boat on a stable plane with less than full throttle. Some say you can, others say you can't with a 40 HP. I couldn't care less if top speed is a knot more or less.

[dthiesmeyer]

I had a 40hp Mercury 4 stroke on my 2010 26M. I could get it on plane and WOT was 13kn with a light load and no ballast. I was out with two guests when a lightening storm rolled in. We headed in and with the waves I could not get above 6kn and it took forever to get off the lake. A week later I replaced the 40 with a 60HP Mercury 4 stroke Command Thrust (BF). Now, even loaded with ballast, I can get up to 12-13kn. Without ballast, WOT is 16-17kn.

As in your case, the price was right for my 26M, but I knew that a new motor was in the near future. It only takes one scary moment with lightening flashing around you to make that decision.

[Bilgemaster]

Ok, well for the record, I've purchased for 40hp model as I was able to negotiate a full $5k between it and the two other 50hp models. In addition, the 40hp has a new aluminum tandem axle trailer, while the others have the single axle steel trailers, so I'm comfortable in that price and if I end up having to purchase a 60hp down the road, i'll be ok with it. In fact, my bay boat has a 115 that I feel may be a little undersized, so I may buy the 150 for it and move over the 115. That'd be quite the site, huh? Ha.

Looks like someone beat you to it (see Forum thread here):



As for the particulars of "up-modding" a Honda BF40 into something like its sibling near-twin BF50, it appears this also came up in these Forums some years ago. Although it seems you can swap that 115 from your Bay Boat over to your new X, making the whole issue sort of moot, I suppose you could try beefing up that Honda 40 if you found yourself with too much time on your hands. From what I can gather from the aforementioned thread, the Honda 50's head may have slightly bigger intake valves. It may have a different punchier camshaft, different ignition programming, carburetor, or perhaps all of the these. Sure, you could maybe do it...But I probably wouldn't bother if I were in your shoes, with an engine over twice as beefy already in hand...But then, maybe you enjoy that sort of thing more than I would. Me? I'm likely to be pretty happy just noodling around at about 2,000 rpm with the Honda 50 I got with my 2001 26X as-is. I haven't had mine in the drink but 3 times, but still, I don't imagine there'll be a whole lot of "FOTing around" for the Bilgemaster, unless maybe storm clouds are closing in. I'm really pretty happy just burbling along...

Anyhow, congratz on your new boat!...And my hunch is, all things being equal, and certainly in your case with a likely soon-to-be-spare 115 engine anyhow, that lovely duallie aluminum trailer's more important than the engine anyhow. Just sell that Honda 40 with hints to prospective buyers that it can "easily" be modded into a 50, and then put that cash toward the 150 you really want for your Bay Boat.

[Be Free]

I have the BF40 on my X and it does everything I want it to. I can cruise all day at 6kts and sip fuel or open it up and run into the high teens. It never quite comes completely on a plane but lightly loaded on smooth, salt water it comes awful close. Even heavily loaded (my normal mode) it will turn heads when I'm under full power. No one expects a sail boat to be moving that fast!

The BF40 and BF50 are built on the same block and share a lot of the same parts but there are also a lot of significant differences between them (for instance, the BF40 has 2 jets in each carb and the BF50 has 3). It's not just a matter of removing a restrictor plate or tweaking the timing.

Congratulations on your choice.

[sailboatmike]

Does anyone see the issue with the 115Hp motor hanging off the back???

The first thing I notice is that you can no longer get on the boat via the transom, with my 75Hp Merc its a squeeze boarding, maybe not such an issue if you have nice high floating jetties so you can step over the side, but imagine trying to get back in from the water if you go for a swim, voluntary or not

[Gazmn]

Ok, well for the record, I've purchased for 40hp model as I was able to negotiate a full $5k between it and the two other 50hp models. In addition, the 40hp has a new aluminum tandem axle trailer, while the others have the single axle steel trailers, so I'm comfortable in that price and if I end up having to purchase a 60hp down the road, i'll be ok with it. In fact, my bay boat has a 115 that I feel may be a little undersized, so I may buy the 150 for it and move over the 115. That'd be quite the site, huh? Ha.

Great execution & plan. Enjoy

PS it's a great sight...

[Gazmn]

Does anyone see the issue with the 115Hp motor hanging off the back???

The first thing I notice is that you can no longer get on the boat via the transom, with my 75Hp Merc its a squeeze boarding, maybe not such an issue if you have nice high floating jetties so you can step over the side, but imagine trying to get back in from the water if you go for a swim, voluntary or not

If there's an entry way issue it can be solved with a jackplate offset; Which can help in having the motor lift completely clear of the water at rest (up) & out by as many inches as one would care to increase their back yard. My 10" accomplishes both of these most excellently

The next mod you'll want to do - or in tandem is covering the steering bars with 3/4" starboard with traction.



While probably not the best night pic. You can see how entering & exiting is no longer an issue with a jackplate & my 115; swim ladder is in the water on Port side rear.

[Signaleer]

Does anyone see the issue with the 115Hp motor hanging off the back???

The first thing I notice is that you can no longer get on the boat via the transom, with my 75Hp Merc its a squeeze boarding, maybe not such an issue if you have nice high floating jetties so you can step over the side, but imagine trying to get back in from the water if you go for a swim, voluntary or not

If there's an entry way issue it can be solved with a jackplate offset; Which can help in having the motor lift completely clear of the water at rest (up) & out by as many inches as one would care to increase their back yard. My 10" accomplishes both of these most excellently

Jackplates... Crap, now I have learn about something else...

[taylormade]

I really appreciate all the comments, advice and well wishes! Coming from the Airstream travel trailer community, I seem to find myself in familiar territory: passionate folks who are eager to help and that's incredibly inspiring.

I was half joking about slapping the 115 on the Mac... ok maybe 3/4 joking, but it sips so little gas on my bay boat, I can only imagine what economy I'd get on the Mac! I still don't see that happening anytime soon, and so I'll try the 40 out and see what she does for me. We do spend most of our time putting around, taking sunset cruises, etc and if we need to get across the bay, I have the other boat and I also have a great trailer.

Who knows, I may very well be back here in two weeks talking about the swap out.

In the meantime, would you look at this trailer!!!