Wednesday 21 December 2011

Which outboard engine for a 3.4m inflatable boat cont’d


Ok, so you have chosen your application, be it displacement speeds, planing speeds with a light load, planing speeds with a heavy load, or watersports. Next lets look at which brands of engine I would recommend you choose for each application. Now I know we sell mariner outboards, parsun and Tohatsu outboards. But I will try to be as objective as possible - although I will choose these ultimately in some of the applications but for good reason!
For displacement speeds: if you want a VERY portable engine then go for the honda 2.3hp, its light - 13kg, and better built than the Suzuki, we NEVER see problems with the honda 2.3! If you want max power go for the tohatsu outboards or mariner 3.5hp (its the only 3.5 on the market and its very light @ 17kg). If you want the best value 2.5 on the market go for the parsun 2.6hp, don’t be put off by the new name, we sell over 50 of these per season and they are RELIABLE as hell!
For light load planing go for the Parsun 8hp or 9.8hp, its the lightest on the market (35kg) and also very reliable. If you want a premium brand, the next lightest is the mariner outboards / tohatsu 8 and 9.8hp offering, its only 2kg heavier than the parsun, and 3 kg lighter than its other nearest rival.
For fast planing you have a good choice of 20hp engines. The best is the honda 20hp, its light and excellent (although quite old technology). Otherwise the tohatsu 20hp is only 50kg, as is the mariner outboards 20hp.
There we go - in a nutshell, you should know which one you want now, so give us a call for some prices!! 0161 790 7678 bill higham marine.

Which outboard should I fit to my 3.4m inflatable boat?


Its a question that people ask me all the time, so I thought I would address it here!
First of all what do you do with your boat? Is it a family runabout, do you need to pull toys with it? Does it even need to get on the plane? If you have a nice shiny new super yacht and you need a tender boat then you will be looking at 4 - 5 m ribs for sale. But if like the rest of us you just have a little inflatable boat for messing around with the family at weekend. Firstly we will look at the boat owner who does not need to get on the plane. The engine choice for this application is simple in my mind, 2.5hp - 3.5hp is all you need. Any more is over egging the pudding, you wont be going any faster, just using more fuel and making more noise, maybe making a bigger wave too. So stick to 2.5-3.5hp, this will push you at more than the boats max displacement speed of around 6mph.

Next up lets look at planing the boat, now with ribs for sale of the same size you will need slightly less hp, but with inflatable boats for this you will need a minimum of 6hp if you have only one light helmsman, and max 20hp if you want to tow wakeboarders etc. Asa rough rule for a 3.4m inflatable: an 8hp 4 stroke from tohatsu outboards will plane 1 adult and a couple of small kids. 10hp from mariner outboards will plane 2 adults, 15hp will plane 4 adults or tow kid on ringo etc. 20hp will fly and tow wakeboarder/skier as long as they aren’t over 10 stone. I will tell you which are the best engines to buy in my next blog.

Tuesday 13 December 2011

The CMC power trim and tilt system


The CMC power trim and tilt system, after market ptt for outboard engines
There are a few after market power trim and tilts available these day, but the benchmark system comes from CMC in america. There are two models of power trims, the pt130 is rated to 130hp and is the most powerful system on the market rated at over 780l0b of pressure, it is suitable for all outboards for sale and almost any boat application, from ribs for sale to fishing craft. The baby of the bunch is the CMC pt35 power trim / tilt system, it is rated to engines upto 35hp and is VERY well priced and just as reliable as its big brother. The beauty and reliability of The CMC power tilt system is down to its construction, it is manufactured from barstock aluminum, 1/2” thick, there are no ferrous components and it is completely saltwater proofed and submersible. The CMC power tilt and trim has been in manufacture for many years and is the number one choice for racers the world over due to its amazingly fast rate of trim, in most cases twice as fast as those on new outboards for sale today. The system carries a 2 year part and labour warranty and is available from the UK through various outlets. For good efficient service you can buy from bill higham marine, we offer a next day mail order or in house fitting service to suit your requirements. www.billhigham.co.uk

Whats new for the boating market in 2012?

With the new 4hp 5hp and 6hp from mariner outboards launched at the end of 2011, the 2012 will see some new advances in inflatable boat technology also, Seapro inflatables will launch the all new one for all range of boats incorporating a newly designed deep V air hull using technology from the inflatable surf board world, it will also use a new aluminum deck system to allow the boat owner to choose whether they want to use the boat as a pure airdeck, and ALSO to fit an aluminum floor to the boat for extra rigidity and heavy duty use purposes. This inflatable boat should become one of the most popular around next year, and early tests suggest that the new deep V keel of these inflatables is very seaworthy, allowing the boat to corner more like a rib and absorb the chop much better than its flat bottomed cousins. To complement the deep V keel the transom has been made with a deep V also, this should be a new inflatable boat that everybody is talking about in 2012.
Also look out for the new 4 stroke 150hp from mariner outboards to make some waves in 2012, it’s the lightest 150hp 4 stroke ever built!