Doel Fin vs. Stingray, to put a wing on a Tohatsu 15HP's cavitation plate

[FamilyMan]

I'm looking at a stingray like this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...K%3AMEWAX%3AIT

and also looking at a much cheaper Doel Fin like this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...K%3AMEWAX%3AIT

Anyone want to give some guidance on which might be better on my motor, mounted to my Scott Albany?

[mainer_in_ak]

Hello there ole friend,

I ran the dole fin on my 9.8 Tohatsu in conjunction with a prop protector, it worked out pretty good. The other one is designed for a higher level of speed, and wouldnt do too well on a canoe.

The dole fin is two piece and you just drill a couple holes on each side of your cav plate.

When I was barging up a 4-5 ft. wide creek, the dole fin actually deflected the motor off of sticks, logs and stuff on the sides of the little no-named creek. I went up the creek so folks wouldn't know my camp location on the river because I was calling in a spot that had massive rubs. So the dole fin is a good little device.

[FamilyMan]

So the dole fin is a good little device.

And its a lot cheaper! Thanks, as always.

[Rick]

Mine is actually a StingRay Jr ... a single piece item. It works very well as speed increases past 10 mph. My Rockhopper, with the motor tilt unlocked, deflects the motor so that it tilts up and over obstacles and then returns to normal drive position - as long as it didn't tilt all the way up, and lock in top tilt position. I had to epoxy a piece of aluminum bar stock to block the tilt notches other than the bottom or top notches; the unlocked motor can tilt freely as the 'Hopper' rides over an underwater obstacle. I removed the 'wing' from the bottom of my RockHopper because of the vast amount of grass it collects, and its tenancy to get stuck in the silt on the rivers I frequent. The RH wing does protect the prop from rocks, but doesn't fair well in shallow silt. In life there are always choices.

[La Pine]

Didn't like the Doel Fin had one on a 90 hp Merc.

[Rick]

What did your Merc 90 weigh? My 15 Yamaha 2 stroke weighs 78#. On my 19'er canoe, the StingRay Jr and Yamaha work well. A light motor and a light boat may be the difference.

[La Pine]

Yes, thats true. Lots will come into play here. Hul design, length and weight of the boat. What I found was that when my boat was up on plane if I turned hard the boat felt like it wanted to carve to deep into the turn. Kinda unstable.

[Sid]

they do have there place, all depends on the water you are traveling on/in , will bring the back end up but if you are running small streams where you are running up next to the bank, log jam or large rocks , it is just one more thing to get caught in the logs or sticks, or turn the eng the way you don;t want to go,
I did try a fin a few years back on the Little Willow an it got caught in a log sticking out from the bank an it stopped everything, as a reselt the fin did not make it home,
saying that if you are running big water it will help, not sure about it is small streams,
I took the one off my rig as when I am rinning small streams, it is one thing less I have to think about getting caught
my 2cts
SID

[FamilyMan]

Amazon is cheaper than ebay for this item

I got outbid on ebay, and amazon had it cheaper anyway, shipping included:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00..._ya_os_product

[FamilyMan]

Doel-fin bought, received, and installed

Got it here the cheapest:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0014490TS

And it really does install in a half hour or so. below you can see my Mac's River Runner (bent, which means I did need it) together with my newly installed Doel Fin on my tohatsu 15 HP:





Plus, look in the background on the second picture, and you'll see 6 new coats of spar varnish on my gunnels and cross supports in my Albany. She's looking the best ever!

[kk alaska]

I have used a dole fin & a stingray I am sold on the Hydro Shield it keeps bow down and protects prop.

[KCB]

Familyman, you must have a "Gumby" drill bit or you used a carnival mirror to drill your holes in straight. I need to take the lower units off my Nissan 18 and my 50 Tohatsu to drill the holes in straight. The Tohatsu will still have a slight angle. What's your secret? 90 degree power drill? A secret weapon named Mainer? I also wanted to put one on a 9.9 Mercury 2 stroke but the fins hang off the back a good ways. There's a lot of open slot where they slide on that may cause a whistle when this thing goes airborne. They just look too big and I don't have a pilots license. Couldn't find a size on the box so I figured one size must fit most. Maybe I should skip the fins and try to convince my daughters that I can't go anywhere unless one of them rides the bow.

[FamilyMan]

Long drill bit, plus hand sanded down the washer (it ain't a circle anymore), plus tons of red loctite. I'll let you know how it holds.