Need opinion on motor purchase

[rosscopeeko]

Hello guys,

I currently have a 2005 yamaha 25hp 2 cylinder 2 stroke that is in great condition with maybe 70-100 hours on it. I found a 2005 yamaha 30hp 3 cylinder 2 stroke that appears to be in great condition. Owner estimated it has 250 hours on it, and he's the third owner. He bought it last year with the boat, and had it gone through by a mechanic. He's selling because he's older and can't start it due to it being a pull start. It's $2200 obo. My boat is rated for a 30hp. I've read a lot about the 30hp and have heard it's a great motor. We use the boat for river fishing, and boat camping, so i occasionally cary heavy loads. I'm i better off staying with my current 25hp because i know it's in great shape, or is this 30hp a worthwhile look? It appears near mint from the pictures.

[TownsendsFJR1300]

If the engine is mounted on his boat, why not "road test" it?

If not, and the engine is easily swapped to your boat, mount it up and again test it.

Besides a compression test, I DEFINITELY would want to hear it run, preferably under a load to make sure the carbs aren't clogged, (especially if it wasn't used much or sat a bunch)...

How much heavier is it than yours for 5 hp? Between the extra weight, slight extra HP and additional hours than yours, you might be best to keep yours..

You know your engine doesn't have any issues...

[rosscopeeko]

The 30hp weighs about 30lbs more than my 25hp. 136 vs 106. I would definitely hear it run before i buy it, but i'm not sure a test run in water is possible. I could ask i guess. I read the 3 cylinder motors have a little more torque compared to the 2 cylinder models. I'll try to attach a picture.

[panasonic]

I would keep the engine you have and most importantly know. It may be a great motor to buy but you never know when buying somebody's else's stuff. Five more HP is not going to make much difference really.

[TownsendsFJR1300]

The pic came thru...

As (unless it's changed) it's mounted already on a boat, sea trial it. Won't take long once you get to open water where you can run it good.

Also, any maintenance records, WP been done, etc?

It looks clean from the outside but inside is what counts...

30lbs for 5 HP seems pretty much like it'd even out.

As you said, likely more lower torque on the bottom end. If that's needed, the sea trial should give you an idea vs yours..

[rosscopeeko]

Spoke with the owner tonight. He spoke with the mechanic that did the compression test and he remembered the compression all being within 3-4 lbs, with an average of 134/ cylinder. Is this plausible and sound legit? Says he stored it by fogging it and changing leg oil with no water in the oil. Also said he figured it has 150 hours on it now. He did mention it has a few scratches on it, but he did paint up the prop. It sounds pretty good. I asked him about a water run and he seemed reluctant. I guess it would be a bit for someone to drag their boat down to the lake for a potential buyer.

[panasonic]

If top speed is not an issue for you then you could try a slightly higher pitch prop on the motor you have. This can give your boat better bottom end/midrange proformance. Help with the heavy loads you sometimes have.

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Spoke with the owner tonight. He spoke with the mechanic that did the compression test and he remembered the compression all being within 3-4 lbs, with an average of 134/ cylinder. Is this plausible and sound legit? Says he stored it by fogging it and changing leg oil with no water in the oil. Also said he figured it has 150 hours on it now. He did mention it has a few scratches on it, but he did paint up the prop. It sounds pretty good. I asked him about a water run and he seemed reluctant. I guess it would be a bit for someone to drag their boat down to the lake for a potential buyer.

The engine info sounds good but it doesn't mean anything. I can tell you that from here... .

Now the hours have changed suddenly, WTF????

As the engine is mounted up, I personally (as you seem set on this engine) would insist on a sea trial or walk.

Maybe showing up with a cashiers check / cash (to show your serious) would
push him towards a sea trial.

You and him are going down to the lake. You offer to "do the work". I would need to know that it operates properly, no overheats, no clogged carbs, etc.

It can sound great on muff's but with a load, carbs can show issues. I'd also make sure YOUR THERE when starting from dead cold... Bring a compression gauge to verify the compression (won't take 10 minutes to check)

IMO, If you can't test it, run away or be prepared and have the $ to fix it if necessary.. He's not giving anything away...

[99yam40]

If top speed is not an issue for you then you could try a slightly higher pitch prop on the motor you have. This can give your boat better bottom end/midrange proformance. Help with the heavy loads you sometimes have.

I do not see how increasing pitch would do what you say

[panasonic]

I do not see how increasing pitch would do what you say

My mistake, I meant to say DECREASE the pitch slightly may help. Thanks for pointing that out.

[rosscopeeko]

Thanks for the great replies guys. That all makes great sense. When he stated the hours on the second call i immediately thought that's strange. Also, the compression numbers after me googling for hours seem like they are really high and probably not legit. The motor i have now is good mechanically because i've owned it for the majority of it's life. It has a piece of the skeg that has broken off, but other than that, it is fine. I have maintained it and know it's history. I thought of going with a different prop.

I'll speak with the owner again an mention a lake test, and also a compression test. If he doesn't like that, i'm not driving the 1.5 hours to go and see it. Thanks again guys.

[panasonic]

Here is a good resource if you decide to try a different prop.

Yamaha.net

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Thanks for the great replies guys. That all makes great sense. When he stated the hours on the second call i immediately thought that's strange. Also, the compression numbers after me googling for hours seem like they are really high and probably not legit. The motor i have now is good mechanically because i've owned it for the majority of it's life. It has a piece of the skeg that has broken off, but other than that, it is fine. I have maintained it and know it's history. I thought of going with a different prop.

I'll speak with the owner again an mention a lake test, and also a compression test. If he doesn't like that, i'm not driving the 1.5 hours to go and see it. Thanks again guys.

Good luck and post back how it goes...

Also, your broken Skeg is easily fixed with a Skeggard:

[rosscopeeko]

I've been looking at 30hp yamaha's ever since i bought my boat, a Princecraft resorter. It's a super wide 14' square chine boat that i looked for a while to find. It came with the 25hp 2 stroke yamaha i have now. It goes pretty well, 30mph with just me in the boat. When i load it up with my wife, dog, camping gear, i work it pretty hard to get on plane at times. We camp at a boat only accessible location where we run 30 miles each way to get to our spot. We now have 2 kids, so the boat will see heavy loads regularly. I have a tiny tach on it and i've played with 2 props. I'm using the factory prop right now because it gave me the best performance. I read a bunch of posts on forums where many say you should run the recommended maximum hp on your boat for performance. I never thought about how adding the extra motor weight might factor against performance with going with a 30hp. I've watched a bunch of videos of the 30hp yammies on youtube, and they just flat out fly. Once my kids are older, i might pull them behind the boat on a tube. Anyways, i love the motor i have now because it's reliable. I'm a yamaha outboard guy, and won't go any other way. As i mentioned, i won't replace the motor i have now with one that isn't in great shape. I have that already. I guess i'm just chasing performance, which probably shouldn't take priority over reliability. Thank you guys for all your insight.

[99yam40]

sounds like you need a bigger boat.
brother had a 16' deep and wide flat bottom with a 25 and it ran well. more surface area to help get up on plane and you could haul a lot of stuff in it. he pulled his wife and kids no problem