Whaler Central - Boston Whaler Boat Information and Photos

Posted by tyler1101 on 07/19/11 - 5:33 PM

Hi everyone,

i am new to this site and recently purchased a super sport that had a 1985 60hp evinrude on the back. The boat has been restored for a project, but the engine was scraped. I am looking to get a brand new engine and thinking a four stroke with enough power to pull waterskis and have 3 or 4 people onboard at the same time. Would a Yamaha F70 four stroke work well? Would the transom be able to support that much weight of 260 pounds. If not could someone suggest another motor for my needs?

Thanks everyone,

Tyler Swaim

Posted by DoubleHaul on 07/19/11 - 6:44 PM

I recently completed a restore of an 87 Sport. I put a 60hp Mercury 4 stroke on it turning a Mercury Trophy Sport 4 blade 15p ss prop. I mounted the motor on a Bob's Machine Shop 4 " set back bracket. This set up was more than I could hope for! Fantastic hole shots and a top end of 51mph (on GPS) @ 5800rpm.
Check bass Pro Shops for left over prior year stock. I got a 2008 model motor which is the same as the current 2011 for $2K less than a 2011 model.
Good luck with your project!

Posted by dgoodhue on 07/20/11 - 3:35 AM

The weight of the F70 is fine. If your 60hp Evinrude was a 3 cylinder like mine, it would have weight 260#'s.

The F70's is really the only 70hp motor that fits these boats, otherwise you will need to use one of the 60hp's motors. Most of the new 75 are too heavy if you want to over power the hull. My recommendation would be the E-Etec if doing so, I would actually do a 90hp E-TEC. The Evinrude 75/90 are the lightest of the over powered motors at 320#'s.

I haven't water ski'd behind my whaler so I have no insight on that.

Posted by tedious on 07/20/11 - 7:31 AM

Hi Tyler, and welcome to Whaler Central! I put an F70 on my 15 last fall. I posted a thread on it - you can find with the search function and there are also a couple of pics on my personal page. I am very happy with the motor so far, although work and kid's schedules have kept me from getting a ton of time on it.

Although the classic 2-stroke gang continues to parrot the "4-strokes are heavy" refrain, the F70 is only 3 pounds heavier than the OMC 60 / 70 that many folks have on their transoms. If that really matters, skip lunch!

Overpowering a 15 really only needs to be done by speed demons (like my friend Dave!). With both my old OMC 70 and the new Yamaha, going wide open is a rare experience, at least where I boat. Even a few inches of chop and it's tough to keep the light 15 on the water. Or maybe I'm just chicken.

I have not skied with the F70, but I have skied behind another 15 with a Mariner (Yamaha) 60 and with just the observer and driver, it worked OK, but was pretty slow out of the hole - I was on 2 skis and I don't think there's any way I could have deep-water started on 1. If you really need to ski with 4 people on board, the 15 may not be the boat for you - guess it would depend on how big the people are.

Tim

Edited by tedious on 07/20/11 - 8:33 AM