These days, your average fishing boat owner probably has an outboard. And today’s outboards, be they two or four stroke models, run smoother, quieter, and more efficiently than ever before. But in order to keep them running this way, you need to treat them right. Here are five tips that … Continue reading
Category Archives: outboard engines
Clogged Carb? This is How You Fix It
Surely by now you’ve encountered an ethanol problem or two. Maybe your lawnmower has become finicky, your chainsaw never seems to run right or – horrors – your outboard’s carburator seems to continually become gummed up and fouled. We briefly mentioned in Duck Boat Blues and Outboard Motor Maintenance how to avoid … Continue reading
Outboard Motor Maintenance: Back to the Future!
I spent several days last week in Virginia at Norfolk Marine, filming outboard engine how-to videos with a Yamaha Marine Master Tech. The Yamaha Master Techs are cream of the crop mechanics, and there are only four or five dozen of them in the entire country. I’d hoped to learn a bit … Continue reading
Tiller Steering vs. Forward Controls
Since tiller steering is usually found on lower horsepower engines, only, many people mistakenly assume it’s inferior to having forward controls. Hold on a sec, pal – appearances can be deceiving, and in many cases, tiller steering it a better choice. How do you know when to go for the … Continue reading
Miami Boat Show Preview: 3 Awesome Boats that are About to be Unveiled!
The 2013 Miami International Boat show is coming up, and this is the time and place where many boat manufacturers unveil their latest and greatest creations. Here’s a sneak-peek at three awesome boats that will be on display at the show. Sea Born FX 25 – This is an all-new bay boat, … Continue reading
1,050 Horsepower on a Center Console – Seriously???
Yes, seriously – last Saturday, I spent an entire day aboard a 35 Everglades powered by triple 350-hp Yamaha F350 outboards. We ran, we trolled, we ran some more, and then we trolled some more. We were one the water a half-hour before sunrise, and didn’t pull back up to … Continue reading
Did your Outboard go Overboard?
It is the nightmare of every outboard-owning boater: you’re tooling along when you hit a log or the bottom, your outboard motor mount isn’t as tight as you thought, and suddenly the engine hops right off the transom and goes overboard. Yikes!! Or, maybe you got a bad case of butter-fingers while walking … Continue reading
3 Common Ways we Kill our Outboards
“Oops” is a dirty word when it comes to outboard engines, especially if you’ve just made one of these three common but deadly mistakes. You want your boat to run trouble-free for years on end? Of course you do, so make sure to NEVER: 1. Run the engine without a … Continue reading
Do You Need a Jack Plate?
The hydraulic jack plate is one of the most mis-understood items aboard many bay and flats boats. Many people see them and think about draft, draft, and draft, but truth be told, there’s a lot more to this story. While the concept is simple – raise the outboard without tilting it … Continue reading
