I took my kaboat out opening weekend for moose and I was using a 1981 mercury 7.5 hp 2 stroke. Last year I was getting 13 mph with a light camp and extra adult. I dropped the motor off and had some work done to make it run better. Went hunting with a 130lb partner and we carried 20 gallons of gas and a 4 day camp. We were getting 6 mph on gps. Stashed 10 gallons of gas and still was only getting 7 mph and after drinking all my water (carried 4 gallons in) and burning through some gas we were able to get 8 mph on the way out. It took us 8 hours to complete the round trip from the launch to the hunting spot and we burned 6 gallons of gas.
Needless to say, I didn’t get the performance I wanted or expected. Might need a new prop but the motor is fairly old. Anyways, I’ve been saving up for a surface drive set up or a long tail for my kaboat, but wanted to keep the weight under 100 lbs which limits the long tail. I’m a school teacher and unfortunately hunting season falls at the beginning of the school year. I started researching outboards and discovered that mercury and tohatsu both have 20 hp motors that weigh less than 100 lbs. I went to a local anchorage mercury dealer and was not impressed with lack of help. I spent 30 minutes in the sales floor with no help, despite the two employees carrying in a conversation in the sales floor. I walked out and called storm chasers in Seward and placed an order for the tohatsu 20 hp that weighs in at 95lbs with a 5 year warranty. Cost me $45 to ship it from Seward to anchorage and I had it delivered to a friends house (member here btw). I drove down and picked it up. It’s fairly easy to maneuver and load, but easier with a second hand. Took it out Saturday for a break it in/hunt trip. Went to same spot.
I hit 20 mph close to 1/2 throttle but just a little more than 1/2. I never went much above 1/2 and tried to stay at 1/2 throttle but it is all guesstimate right? Anyways I was quite happy with 17-20 mph at that 1.2 throttle range. Cut my run time down to 3 hours and burned 3 gallons of gas. Partner was 240 lbs and we carried 9 gallons of gas. The first hour I was running about 1/4 throttle too. I’m impressed.
If if you’d like a little more power, check out the new 20 hp motors. You won’t be disappointed.