2 stroke or 4 stroke ?

[Broadbill-Pro]

figure you guys are as hard on engines as anyone, so how about some pros and cons on outboards.

getting ready to close the deal on a pair of suzuki 4 stroke 250's this week. anyone have a reason i should rather go with yamaha, mercs or even the E-tecs?

opti max are very fuel efficient and have the torqe, but it's difficut to pass up on how quite 4 strokes are and who needs to deal with the oil.


any advice would be appriciated !!!

[Nick C]

Can't go worng with anything right now. I've heard all good things about the Suzuki's though!

[JR.ANGLER 1]

They are awesome engines, i wouldnt think twice if i was making the decision.

[quack quack]

Just do not put them on a heavy boat :!: I know of a few recurring blown heads when they have been put on heavy boats.I think I would try the Etecs.I run Honda's now and I love them but they only go to 225.You could not give me an optimax!I think most of the kinks are out of the Yammy 250 4 stroke.

[dropr deep]

THE TWO STROKES ARE A FAR BETTER DEAL THEY PROVIDE MORE HORSEPOWER PER POUND OF ENGINE. 1/2 THE MECHANICAL MOVING PARTS IN A TWO STROKE. THE TWO STROKES ARE DESIGNED AROUND HIGHER OPERATING RPMS, IN OTHER WORDS WHEN RUNNING OUT TO THE SWORD FISHING GROUNDS THE ENGINE IS NOT STRESSED OUT.

FOUR STROKES OPERATE AT THEIR LOAD MAX DURING HIGHER RPMS, IN OTHER WORDS ALWAYS WORKING AT PEAK PERFORMANCE.

I HEARD THE NEW EVINRUDE ARE GREAT MOTORS. :lol:

[flatfisher]

YOU'D BE BETTER OFF STRAPPING A COUPLE TWO WHEELED SUZUKI'S ON BACK OF YOUR BOAT, AND DUCK TAPE SOME PADDLE BLADES TO THE REAR WHEELS. YOU CAN PROBABLY SAVE YOURSELF A COUPLE BUCKS ON SOME YZ 250'S. TAKE THE EXTRA MONEY YOU SAVE AND LOAD UP ON STROBES, WEIGHTS, RUBBER BANDS, BALLOONS, AND PLENTY OF SQUID.
CHEERS
I'D GO WITH THE E-TEC'S IF I WERE YOU. :lol:

[Broadbill]

I have Yamaha 250 4-strokes, they have never missed a lick. I have a couple buddys with Suzuki 250 4-strokes and they have done well for them. I am a big fan of 4-strokes. Turn the key and go, no slopping expensive oil all over the boat, and you can't beat the quite. When I live bait my livewell pumps drive me nuts because I hear them over my engines. (No B.S.). Hope this helps, but you asked a pretty loaded question. Engines are like sandwiches, everyones got a favorite.
-Scott

[jerry]

Engines are like sandwiches, everyones got a favorite.
-Scott

Exactly what he said. I have been a Yamaha fan and user for a lot of years. I recently repowered my 35Contender with ETEC'"S. I have close to 200hours on them since September 2005. The good: So far they are all they were cracked up to be. I am saving 20% on fuel, I burn 1/3 of the oil I did with Yamaha 250's. Quiet, I can actually hear them pissing. The power on them, low end, midrange and top end is incredible. No smoke etc etc. The one downside I have found is that they are eating plugs for breakfast. The folks at BRP have a fix, according to them, will be doing the fix this week and see what happens.
I know the 4strokes would have never pushed that boat. I did not want to go with trips either. If I had gone with 4strokes it would have definitely been suzukis.
What kind of boat are you repowering? That will have a lot to do with the choice.

[Broadbill-Pro]

thanks for all the input.

31' ocean master, replacing all the heavy decking with nidacore, removed the tower, adding a stainless marine bracket, moved the fuel further forward, etc., etc. the hull is heavy, but all the changes have lightened her up alot.

owned another 31' ocean master about 10 years ago and a pair of 225 mercs. pushed her as fast as i need to go.

so far the opinion seems to be what i have already been told. 4 stroke suzuki and 2 stroke e-tec

[quack quack]

BP:What size spool are you putting on her.Where are you storing the highflyers and beeper buoys?You moved the fuel forward to make more room for the fish hold right. :lol: Sorry I had to ask.Will you be at the meeting tonight?

[Broadbill-Pro]

had lunch with pete lindgren yesterday, figure we can fit a normal 36'' spool, on nice days i can set +/- 60nm of line. LOL


the lunch part is true anyway.

just got off the phone with mark at ocean master, he says the 31' is heavier than jerry's 35 contender. he is a motor head and gave me alot of info on the e-tec. forgot most of it already. bottom line is that he feels it the best engine on the market. appearenty the fouling plug problem has been cured as of dec/05.


:???: :???: :???: :???: :???: :???: :???: :???: :???: :???: :???: :???:
i'll try and make the meeting tonight

[Whitewater]

I have been in a OM with Yam 225 4S's mounted on the transom. The boat does OK. It's far from a speed demon. Going to 250's will help but with all the weight and the torque curve of the 4S motors, you will find it relatively slow to plane. I have a 28 Whitewater with Yam 200's (HPDI) the boat is very quick to plane, 2.25 MPG and top speed in the mid 50's.
They have 5 seasons on them and only regular maintanance.
Seriously look at the 2S motors.

[RiskTaker]

BroadBill-Pro:

It seems like you are in momentum for Suzukis already but... Just an FYI -You can take it or leave it because it is hear-say, but from a reputable source.

Anyway, I was talking with Joe Neber (owner Contender One - 36' Open) back in January while fishing at the Mayor's Cup. We were talking about the preferences and differences of motors: Yamaha 275 4-stroke and Yamaha 300 2-strokes.... (The 4-strokes are like a whisper: you almost need to look at the tachs or the pissers, or if you are in motion to tell in the 4-strokes are running, even times 3.) He only had comments on the two-stroke 300 though ...

He happened to have triples of the Yamaha 300 2-strokes. (Of course, he needed all of those horses on the transom, :shock: . It hurts his motors to go too slow.) He mentioned that the 2-strokes were previously having some issues with the top cylinder over-heating. And he is the right person to find that out. But at this time those issues are worked out. So new 300s should be fine, whereas older models may have that issue.

Again, I do not have hands on experience with these motors. (A mechanic that works them will know.) But coming from a guy who powers up Contenders with Yamahas, you would think that his knowledge is sound.

P.S. - My neighbor has twin Suzuki 225s - 2 strokes on his 31' Donzi. He liked the price at 2 yrs. new, and he has had no complaints that I am aware of. ( I will double check the next time I speak with him.)

Are you sure that you wouldn't just want to trade-out for a Smith with twin diesels? Plenty of Cargo hold for whatever you need to fill it with.

[Broadbill-Pro]

my head is spinning faster than the props will be.

yes, i have been leaning towards the suzuki 4 strokes, 6 year warranty and props included, also the dealer is a good guy i have know for a long time and local. service is not a problem. but i am aware of the fuel economy and power of the 2 stroke engines and i want the correct engines for the job.

good friend owns midnight express, says he has a boat in caymans now that is on the 3rd set of e-tecs. i did not ask what the problem is, but it must be more than plugs. also stated that local service on e-tecs is less than satisfactory. told me to steer clear of them.

whitewater - thanks for the input. the center 200 gal. fuel tank is 7 feet forward of the usual OM tanks, the deck will be atleast 1000 pounds lighter with nidacore and the bracket should make the boat more responsive with the 250 - 4 strokes. 35kt cruise and 45-48kt top end is all i need.

ever hear the old bull and the young bull on the mountain story?

70 mph boats are for guys who need the extra time to catch'em :lol:

[Nightfighter]

Originally Posted by quack quack

Just do not put them on a heavy boat :!: I know of a few recurring blown heads when they have been put on heavy boats.I think I would try the Etecs.I run Honda's now and I love them but they only go to 225.You could not give me an optimax!I think most of the kinks are out of the Yammy 250 4 stroke.

Everyone I know with Etechs are disapointed with their gas milage. Ask around you will find the same.
EDIT: Other than that, they love them.

[quack quack]

Lets walk down and catch them all :lol:


Stew:I did not know that about the Etec,s.I like the 4 strks but I do miss the torq on the 2strks.I have ran both the Yams and Hondas with out a day of trouble and turn key strarts all the time.

[Whitewater]

BP,
When I was looking at motors 5 years ago I had the same dilema.
The answer lies in what you are going to use it for, how good is the warranty, has the motor been out a few years, what is it's reputation,
and one of the biggest.... What does your trusted local dealer sell.

All manufacturers have good and not so good models. Like in the Yamaha HPDIs, the 250's and 300's had trouble, the 200's are great.
Certain year Opti's were trouble, others (Newer ones) are supposed to be good.

In the end.... Buy what your local TRUSTED dealer sells.

[wackme]

go for what ever motor you like the best. i have twin 250 verdos on my

29 and love them. the response is really good , the fuel milage is around

1.8 -2 mpg at crusing, they arent very good once they move past 5100

rpms on gas though, they push around 6200 and 6300 at max and around

5700-5800 fully loaded and they are so quiet.in my opinion if you are

going to buy a motor get anything but a yamaha 2 stroke i have seen alot

of problems with them specifically the 115, 200, and 250 , not including

saltwater series. but like i said before buy what makes u happy.

[Captain Ollie]

All I gotta say to you about motors is this....Find the thread that starts with , "What happend to everyone?" Read down to my boat sinking story. That boat was powered by a 250 2 stroke yamaha. It sank while running at full throttle. Sat on the bottom in 110 feet of water for 4 days. I recovered the motor, stripped it, and had the powerhead sitting in a 55 gallon drum of diesel fuel within 6 hours. ALL I REPLACED ON THE ENGINE WAS THE COMPUTER AND STATOR ASSEMBLY. ALL SENSORS AND WIRING HARNESSES WERE OK. I let the motor soak for a week while I rebuilt the carbs. I put the motor back together and ran it for two more years putting a total of 3500 hours on it before one of the wristpin bearings failed and put the rod through the block.
If that isn't enough to sell you on YAMAHAS I don't know what will. I've been commercial diving and fishing for 18 years and have run YAMAHA for 12 of those years. I never once had any problems you would not expect to have when you beat the crap out of your gear on a daily basis.
The boat I just bought is powered by Hondas. (Only because thats how it was rigged) Believe me I would rather have the YAMAHAS. So this is going to be a test of sorts for me. I can only hope the Hondas are as good as eveyone says they are, because I have never heard anything bad about them.
With regards to all the other brands such as Merc or Evinrude.....I'D RATHER ROW THAN HAVE ONE OF THOSE ON MY BOAT!
In 18 years on the water the overwhelming majority of boats I see being towed in are, or should I say were, powered by those two motors.
Just my 2 cents...

[Broadbill-Pro]

had 1 set of yamaha's and 4 sets of merc's in the past, all were dependable. the 2S vs 4S is new ground for me.

have a test run tomorrow morn on a 31' OM with suzuki 250's