outboard motor

jeepyjman

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Joined
Sep 22, 2007
Location
Concord
I have a 24 foot 2004 pontoon with a 50 hp mercury 2 stroke. runs great and low hours but wish it went faster when towing a tube. I have a buddy that has a 120hp force outboard that I can have for free but has not ran in awhile. Whats the major things to look at quickly? shaft length? bolt pattern? obviously if it does not have good compression I am not worrying about it. I figured all this boat talk lately y'all might be able to give me some insight.
 
They should both be the BIA Standard bolt pattern. Shaft length is important, yes, especially if the Force didn't come off another pontoon.

Things like gauges may trip you up though, and I don't know enough about either engine to know what that's going to look like. I doubt Mercury was using Smartcraft (CAN-based) gauges on a budget 50HP 2-stroke in 2004, so they're probably some semblance of analog gauges on your boat already. Same with that Force outboard probably.

There will likely be some rigging differences for steering, etc., that will have to be changed, and maybe larger fuel system/lines for the higher HP engine. Always, always, always, get an OEM primer bulb (any OEM brand is fine), because the aftermarket are garbage and not worth saving a few dollars for. May need a different throttle too because of the different brands.

Re-powers are not my field of expertise, I'm just throwing a few things out there.
 
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I had a force 120 on a deck boat it sucked ran fine when you where running but was just never liked to idol or run slow I was not a fan at all I would keep the 50 if it runs well


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Force where the absolute cheapest built motors and are known for blowing up.

Also what is your boat rated for? Pretty sure you get stopped and your over the max hp rating your getting a fat ticket.

Have you looked at props? (That said not much pro change options for smaller motors but my be worth a look)


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Loganwayne said:
Force where the absolute cheapest built motors and are known for blowing up.

Also what is your boat rated for? Pretty sure you get stopped and your over the max hp rating your getting a fat ticket.

Have you looked at props? (That said not much pro change options for smaller motors but my be worth a look)


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Not to mention, an oversized motor will make it impossible to insure.
Around here, its common to see stupid big motors on smaller boats. I call em squatboaters, since the added weight makes it unplanable.
On a pontoon, I dont see why a 125 could ever hurt anything. Depends on what the man says, and how bad OP wants to go fast.
 
nothing’s gonna match up more than likely. You’ll need throttle cables, steering, gauges, and so on. I ran into this myself. Wanted to swap my 90 Yamaha. Realized it’s much more than just swapping the engine once I started digging. Nothing I found would match up other than another Yamaha around the same year model.
 
Should be a plate or sticker on the toon that shows the max. hp for it. I would imagine a 24' could prolly run a 150 or more. There are online prop selection tools that compute what prop pitch (in inches) that would be best for your toon. You need to find the weight of the boat and all the passengers etc. and the tool will select the proper pitch for the size of the engine.
 
Force was not know for Quality, but I had trouble mine & a Evenrude that replaced it. Last engine was a later Johnson. I had no problems using original Force steering, on all 3 engines. Maybe I got lucky. I Did use the throttle/ignition box that came with each engine. Maybe Hard to find Force parts anymore. Wait till December, if your hunting used motors! I bought a complete boat in a February, just for the motor! Cheap, & parted it out, & scrapped the hull. Recouped 40% of my cost!
 
I was already on the fence and after reading all of this I am not going to mess with it. If I need to go faster I will buy a different boat. My motor runs great and has under 100 hours. If this was easy swap then that would be different. Thanks everyone for the information.
 
Loganwayne said:
Also what is your boat rated for? Pretty sure you get stopped and your over the max hp rating your getting a fat ticket.
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Is this a thing? My 17’, very sturdy welded aluminum boat is rated for 25 hp or something stupid like that, but the 60 two stroke performs just fine. It’s definitely not too heavy, and planes easily. I’m in SC, but I bought it from a boat place in NC. I’ve never heard of anyone being ticketed for too much motor.
 
There Should be a "Rating" plate riveted on the inside of the hull, visible in the seating area. Or that's where mine was. I too had a 17' V hull Aluminum outboard. Came with a 50 HP, but plate said it was rated "Too 90HP", & 6 passengers & or so much weight. I guess the HP rating is what they figure the transom can safety carry.
 
i figure I might as well update the thread. Went and looked at the motor. Turns out it is a 1987 125hp force. everything seems to be intact just hasnt ran in 15 years. I might still yank it off and tinker with it this winter in the garage. Worse case scenario it is worthless and I junk it.
 
Red_SC said:
I think you’re right, I just didn’t know they ticketed people for exceeding it. The saying around here is “The max rated HP is a good starting point.”
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i got stopped last weekend with two people on the boat first thing he wanted to know was where was the coast guard plate, im assuming it was to check i wasnt over max hp. i havent been ticketed for it because ive never ran a boat over max hp. I do know my insurance company wont cover my boat if it is over the max rated Hp.
 
Loganwayne said:
i got stopped last weekend with two people on the boat first thing he wanted to know was where was the coast guard plate, im assuming it was to check i wasnt over max hp. i havent been ticketed for it because ive never ran a boat over max hp. I do know my insurance company wont cover my boat if it is over the max rated Hp.
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Just change the stickers on the engine cover and derate the HP
 
A pontoon boat will never pull a tube the way you will be happy.

A tri-toon would, or a deckboat would definitely.
 
Loganwayne said:
i got stopped last weekend with two people on the boat first thing he wanted to know was where was the coast guard plate, im assuming it was to check i wasnt over max hp. i havent been ticketed for it because ive never ran a boat over max hp. I do know my insurance company wont cover my boat if it is over the max rated Hp.
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Good to know. My boat runs 36 mph with a 60, it would be a slug with a 25.
 
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