1978 Starcraft Seafarer 12 foot - new motor question

[Courtney_Dallas]

I have a 1978 Starcraft Seafarer 12 foot v-hull aluminum boat. I have attached some photos. I want to buy a new motor (currently I have a 1956 Elgin 5.5) and am trying to determine the maximum appropriate horsepower that I can purchase. The 5.5 doesn't push it very fast (and I would like a less smoky, less loud motor).

I have a couple of considerations, first, I will hopefully upgrade my boat at some point and would like to buy a motor large enough to push a larger boat but not overload the 12 footer. Second, the plate says it can handle up to a 10 hp. Understanding that plate is presumably for motors manufactured at that time, I researched and found that 1978 9.9 Evinrudes ranged from 77 lbs to 82 lbs. Does that mean that any new motor that I purchase should stay in that range, give or take?

I have been looking at some 9.9s that range around 100 lbs. Would that be too much for the 12 footer? What about 90 lbs?

The Tohatsu 9.8 manual is 82 lbs, and the electric is 89. Would these weights be okay? Does Tohatsu sacrifice something to come in at that weight given that other manufacturers are several pounds heavier?

Tohatsu seems to have a reasonable following of folks that like the brand. Any thoughts on their 2016-2017 small outboards? Their warranty seems pretty good.

How would you all go about deciding this question?

Thanks in advance for your input.

Courtney

 

[Watermann]

Nice little Seafarer you got there, are you going to do any work on the boats hull or transom?

I can't say much about Asian made motors, I prefer Merc or Evinrude/Johnson but if your worry is about weight then any electric start is adding a battery to the total weight. There is a cut off in the 80's where OB motors went from a HP rating at the flywheel to the prop but at that low of a HP I don't think it would be a consideration. The only real impact for motor weight is going to 4 stroke, everything that's within 10 Lbs of each other to me is a wash for weight..

 

[Sea Rider]

Plan on getting 2 or 4 strokes 9.8/9.9/10 HP outboards. Same 4 strokes are a lot heavier than same 2 strokes brothers.

Happy Boating

 

[pckeen]

You'll be fine with any 8 to 10 hp motor, and you'll get much better performance. Adding another 10 to 20 lbs won't make any difference. That's only like carrying an extra 2 1/2 gallon gas tank.

 

[DLNorth]

I'd "vote" for a 9.9 OMC, had a 15 for awhile and it was the best motor I've had.
Also had a 7.5 Merc, shook bad and a hard starter.

That boat is pretty small for a 4 stroke - too heavy.

Dan

 

[pckeen]

A Yamaha 9.9 4 strike weighs 87-93 lbs. You should be fine with that much weight.