Is a 15 hp motor too big for CAL 25?

[sailguy40]

Just wondering, was looking at a good used 15 hp honda but its only a 17" shaft, I also wonder if that is too short? I am really wanting a 6 - 8 hp long shaft but have not found any yet

[sailingfool]

Keep looking, 15 is too much.

[Faster]

15 HP is more than you need, but more importantly you need a long shaft (20") at least. Agree that an 8 HP would be as high as you'd need to go. If all you need it for is in/out the harbour for daysails, then 5 or 6 will be plenty.

[sailguy40]

Thanks guys, I just decided to pick up a 90hp evinrude. Its big but it runs great. j/k of course. I am actually still looking for an outboard, I am planning on buying a good used one.

[tager]

I would consider the new Tohatsu Sail Pro 6hp. It has a high thrust prop, 25" shaft, and an alternator to charge your batteries. It's a pretty good deal at under $1500, and half as heavy as the comparable Honda. It has zinc coated water passages, sacrificial zincs, 4 stroke with fuel injection, low oil alarm, all the good stuff.

That's what I am thinking about for my Haida 26. I am satisfied with 3kts cruising speed, it saves on gas. The 6 is totally capable of hitting hull speed, just at high RPM, which shortens the engine life. I currently have a 2001 Honda 8hp that has seen better days. PO was in a hot and salty marina with no zincs and less maintenance.

[TohatsuGuru]

Tager,

Do you work for us?

[tager]

Why don't you hire me?

[jdsackett]

15 horse is a little big. mine had a 6 on it and to me was underpowered. i would go with an 8 horse with a high torque prop. a cal 25 is a nice sailing boat, with a pi$$ poor location of the tiller in relation to the motor. if you singlehand at all, you cant reach the motor controls and the tiller at the same time. makes thing interesting. i ended up rigging up remote controls and attached them to the tiller, life was good. have fun, once out of the slip they sail great. regards, j.d.

[NCC320]

Why couldn't a 15 hp be used. It seems that he OP has found one at a good price. Our 15 hp jon boat engine is the same size and weight as the 9.9 hp engine of same brand (Older Evenrude). It is about 14 lbs. heavier than a 8 hp Evenrude 2 cycle. We have have used both (8 & 15 hp) on the jon boat, and at low speeds they behave similarly. It's only had the high throttle end that we see the difference, in that the larger engine will push the boat faster. Since the sailboat is a displacement vessel, you will not be running at the high speeds in any case. As I see it, you don't have to use the extra power, just keep throttle in the lower range. I wouldn't expect much difference in gas consumption either. So if he has a good deal on the engine, why not use it?

The issue of shaft length is a separate question. A long shaft vs. a short shaft will definitely be better.

[sarafinadh]

Ok. Your Cal 25 weighs in empty at 4500lbs.
Our Cal 28 weighs in at 9000.

We started with a 6hp and it moved her but windage was a problem when docking her. But it moved her fine. Not fast but we hauled thru 15' swells at really close intervals once for 6 hours, and it was enough for us to climb and slide, climb and slide the whole time.

We have just moved to a 15hp. Oh man she handles like a dream now, docking in a high wind is no longer the impossible feat it was. But we never crank her up to full throttle. I can just feel that it would be alot of pressure on the lazerette outboard hole. So we are not using all of that 15 horse and we weigh twice what you do.

Based on that I suspect the 6 hp is fine and 8 might be nice in heavy weather, but I couldn't tell you if it was worth the expense to upgrade.

and yeah; a long shaft is the ticket.