Outboard mounting problems

Omineca

Seaman
Joined
Aug 22, 2021
Messages
60
I have a 1984 Starcraft Islander 191V with a Tohatsu 9.8 4-stroke kicker. I inherited the whole setup from the Previous Owner. Due to Covid and teething problems we have only just got her going, and in a recent visit to a shallow rocky shore I wanted to put her on a shallow water setting/angle.

I am not an observant or boat-knowledgable person, to say the least, and it took me a while to realise that the outboard, though vertical, is already in the shallow position. As the picture shows, the heavy block that the cantilevered OB mount bolts to runs parallel to the transom, so is tipped back considerably from the vertical. Also, as you can see, the OB mount is in its highest position, but the OB leg is as deep in the water as it needs to be for running. There was no way I could get it shallower in the water.

What do I need to do? Is it a matter of relocating the mounting block higher, and possibly cutting it to form a wedge? Is there anything I can do with the cantilevered mount? Is the mount wrongly assembled or is there some angle adjustment I could make on it?

Thanks in advance for any advice.20220629_212605.jpg20220629_212642.jpg
 

Omineca

Seaman
Joined
Aug 22, 2021
Messages
60
I want it up not down. And more to point, I want it vertical, not canted rearwards.
 

racerone

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 28, 2013
Messages
38,435
Remove bracket from boat.-------Mount it where you want it.-----Perhaps modify bracket so motor is vertical.
 

Omineca

Seaman
Joined
Aug 22, 2021
Messages
60
Thanks racerone. Yep, no magical solution. I hate drilling new holes and filling old holes in a boat hull, and I was hoping to avoid it, but guess I cannot.

Is a 9.8hp the right kicker for this hull? Seems like a heavy weight sticking out a long way and dragging my stern down, and maybe 5hp would be enough.

There are 2 other Islanders in this same marina, and they do both sit stern down, but mine more so, and I have the heaviest kicker.

Screenshot_20220630-160045.jpg
 

roscoe

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Oct 30, 2002
Messages
21,753
Remove motor and bracket.
Add a wedge to that black block on the transom.
reattach bracketed motor.
 

airshot

Vice Admiral
Joined
Jul 22, 2008
Messages
5,378
Relocate the weight in your boat....just sold my 83 Islander, it wasvthe 22' model. Previous owner replaced the steel tank in the floor with an aluminum tank and moved it further forward. Excellent move, also relocated batteries and other items to make the boat more level. Had a 9.9 kicker on the back, much easier to get up on plane!!! Unfortunately the shorter 19' models have always been more stern heavy from my observation.
 

Omineca

Seaman
Joined
Aug 22, 2021
Messages
60
Relocate the weight in your boat....just sold my 83 Islander, it wasvthe 22' model. Previous owner replaced the steel tank in the floor with an aluminum tank and moved it further forward. Excellent move, also relocated batteries and other items to make the boat more level. Had a 9.9 kicker on the back, much easier to get up on plane!!! Unfortunately the shorter 19' models have always been more stern heavy from my observation.
Thanks airshot. Yes, there's a lot of weight aft and not much forward. Moving batteries into the cuddy would be great, but sounds like a major project. Maybe if I just add ballast near the bow?

My marina neighbor with a 22' Islander has a 4hp kicker, but that is only 30 lbs lighter than my 9.8 so maybe not likely to make much difference. He also has the GM 4.3 litre unit, which I understand is maybe 200 lbs (?) lighter than my aq145a..... that would be the big difference! But there's not much I'll be able to do about that.
 
Top