Thread: Installing outboard motors

Hey Andrew,

I don't know what you do for a job, but I work in the marine industry and I have noticed that people who don't know about boats shouldn't dick about withy them. It's a long way to swim home , I have Fitters at work and they take about 3-5 hours to fit a motor and connect all the bits. There is always a different bit for different steering connections and doing a retro fit, the same size motor that is 5 years different has always got a different thing some where, A new motor on a new boat, needs to have a heap of measurements decided so that the cables and wiring harness are all the right length when ordered. My experience is do what you do best and pay someone to do what they do best.

Hope this helps, Normal Marine Hourly rate over here is between $95 - $120 per Hour.

HazzaB

Andrew, you're not going to put a trolling motor on the front of your little cruiser are you? If you are, consider putting it on the transom instead. You'll be able to easily steer with the same gear that handles the main engine and it's a lot less fuss.

HazzaB is onto something, but to clarify a bit. Some people are well suited to these types of installations, others not. Their general "handiness" should be obvious to most that know these people. If you are known to do the repairs on your garden tractor, car, truck, etc., if you boss will likely call you when something in the shop breaks down, then you're probably the type that can install the trolling motor mount.

These types of mounts aren't very difficult, but some people literally don't know which end of a wrench to use, while others will happily cut a wrench, weld it to a piece of bar stock and make something that works much better for that particular application.

As to which type are you, well ask your wife. She'll probably tell you the truth. It's just a fiddly deal, assuming you have sufficient gauge wire to drive the motor. The wire gauge thing is the biggest and usual hurtle most novices get hung up on. The rest is pretty basic, smack it with a hammer kind of stuff. I say go for it.

Sorry, there was a typo there. I'm asking about how hard it would be to install a forward control, electric start 60hp motor with tilt and trim, not an electric trolling motorr. HazzaB, I'm a GP professionally, and a hands on practical sort of person who will have a go at anything and generally manage to get a good outcome, however my mechanical and electrical skills are not anywhere near my woodworking/ planning/redesigning skills, and I was trying to dirt out whether the 3-5 hrs installing a motor required much in the way of mechanical and electrical skill or was just a lot of simple buggerising around that most people with half a brain could do. The steerings already in. I was hoping the motor could just be bolted on, and the cables "plugged" into it and it would then be ready to go, but if there are all sorts of subtle adjustment and wiring things in, then I'd be better to let someone else do it.
A

It's fairly easy once you've done it a few times correctly, usually with assistance. You don't have a choice with a 60 HP, it's not a tiller steered or control-ed engine, so shift, throttle and electrical will all be remotely mounted.

Each brand and engine type (family) will have application specific connections at both ends of the spectrum (helm and powerhead). To the novice these will appear daunting, but it's not so bad with familiarity. If you had a buddy with some real boating knowledge, it would be helpful, other wise, you'll need to look things up, assemble a parts list, arrange to lift the heavy engine, drill the transom at the proper height, etc. In other words, if you want plug and play you'll need to use same brand controls or you'll have to employ brand specific connections, but there's still quite a bit that is "engineered on the fly".

It would be nice if this was a "plug and play" type of thing and cable ends and electrical umbilicals has been greatly standardized, but you still need a fair clue about how they attach. It's possible the transom holes are where you need them, but don't count on it. It's possible the steering cables will not need to be modified or a new engine arm bought (or made), but don't count on getting lucky here either.

The only sure fire way is to have the parts on hand and a good familiarity with them. You can gain some familiarity by looking at exploded views on line for the year, make and model engine you get.

I would strongly urge you to toss the cable and pulley system in the trash. They're not legal here in the USA and clearly you're heading in the same direction down there. It's the logical and safe choice, as these systems have caused enough deaths and mishaps to warrant removal from the market. They never break when sitting in the car port. The cable (or whatever part) breaks when you're farther from shore then you can swim (or row) back to, usually while traveling at high speed and in the middle of a turn. You jump off a wave and BANG something parts, usually violently, then the boat goes hard to port or starboard, possibly tossing crew members into the drink, where the prop can have it's way with them. Naturally this happens at wide open throttle conditions, so everything happens in an instant.

If you insist on risking it, replace the cables, check the pulleys, fairleads, connectors, etc. You'll find that replacing the parts to a cable and pulley system is more costly then just buying a rotary or rack style helm and push/pull. It'll have the end that directly connects (without adapting or modifying) to the engine arm too.

Any half decent installer will do the following work for you:
Line up the motor on the transom so the cavitation plate is in the correct position in relation to the keel and the leg is at the correct angle.

Instal whatever steering system is required (if its a mercury/mariner 60hp then its the basic Morse push-pull cable system). The controls may have to be changed too, it all depends on what brand and system you're using now and what you want to use with the new motor. Any new parts required will be identified and discussed prior to starting.

Carry out a complete check on the engine and gearbox.

Bundle all the cables together in a tidy package.

Touch up all the little knocks in the paintwork that are an unfortunate side-effect of most installations.

Take the boat for a spin to ensure the motor is sitting correctly and performing as it should.

Additionally the mechanics should be treating and preserving all the fasteners used and sealing up any gaps. All this takes time and this labour charge is what raises the price.

By all means have a go yourself, but take the time to study what is involved. It's not brain surgery by any means, but if you stuff up any part of it a band-aid and two asparin won't work

Intersting financials, this one. As a GP in Oz, to produce the "after practice costs and after tax" dollars, it would take me about 5-6hrs work to produce the income required to pay for a motor installation. Hence the question. If it doesn't require much brain input, then it's at that threshold whereby it's worth doing myself, but if I have to spend "x" hours researching the topic first, then it's not. Irritating as it is, i'm thinking I'm better spending time earning the $ and getting someone else to do it!
A

The problem solving skills, earned while you home install will pay dividends later on when you need to tackle something else. It also brings on a level of systems, equipment and parts familiarly that you'll not get if someone does it for you. Knowing what you've got and how it's installed, are very important advantages to diagnose and understand future issues.

From what I've seen so far mucking about in boats, if you are doing complex maintenance or installs yourself purely because of the cost, then you're probably better off paying for it to be done. On the other hand if you are doing it for fun, a challenge or to learn how - then make sure you spend an equal amount of time researching the task first.

Remember, professionals make stuff look easy coz that's what makes them professionals in the first place. I'll show you how to tune and align a double superhet satellite receiver (simple) if you show me how to tie a reef knot using sutures.. damned if I can do it.