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I found an online dealer selling outboards and I have a question.  Is 3.5hp enough power for the weekender?  I found a dealer selling new 2010 mercury 3.5hp outboards for around $760.00.    www.boats.net

Greetings Mike,

The short answer, ... yep.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, what's a video worth?

These very short videos show a Weekender running under power with a Honda 2hp four stroke.

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hK8G_8DJCKc 0:27 - Columbia 150 Red Weekender - port 1
  
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kk4Qeboo1gM 0:27 - Columbia 150 Red Weekender - bow
  
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztXCp8yoz9M 0:10 - Columbia 150 Red Weekender - port 2
  

A 3.5 hp Mercury will be more than enough and it weighs 38 lbs.
The 2 hp Honda in the videos weighs 27 lbs.

If you listen carefully to the audio, the 2 hp is pushing the boat at 3.5 knots ground speed through the chop generated by 12 knots of wind. Theoretical hull speed is about 5 knots.

Cheers,
Tom

The Honda is a great engine.  4 Cycle with a centrifugal clutch.  Plus if you turn the engine 180 degrees  it functions in reverse perfectly.  About $900, but with a great warrenty.

Dave

You could always go with an oar, they always start first pull.. hahaha 

Two bicep power just doesn't cut it Ryerson. 2HP is plenty of power, 3 is luxurious, 5 is wasteful and hard on the engine, in a Weekender.

Depends Paul on your needs.  I scull for personal reasons (exercise, hating motors etc).  I think too many new sailors think an engine will get them out of trouble, which can be dangerous to assume. If there is any wind at all, my boat will sail, if there is no wind, it sculls along just fine, though slowly.  If there is too much wind, reef, if there is way too much wind the 2hp motor will not get you out of trouble because you have left it too late for your small craft (varies on skill level of course) to run for cover in many cases.  A motor is good if you have to be somewhere at a certain time or in a no wind but strong tide against you situation.

I agree we rely on engines too much, but this is the reality of modern sailing now. I had a 35' yawl that for years I sailed with a dead Atomic 4 in the bilge, because I couldn't afford to rebuild. I backed out of slips, maneuvered through crowed anchorages, etc. and managed fine, though on many occasions, I would have preferred to have had the engine working.

I used to scull an old Crocker, because I had to, not be cause I wanted to, and I think this is the difference. I thinking rowing, paddling and sculling is for people that can't afford engines. Whereas you think sculling is enjoyable. I'd steal and engine off someones dinghy, before I had to paddle anywhere, while you might actually have fun with it. I have a torn rotator cuff that has helped convince me, that this manual propulsion stuff is for wussies that don't have a credit line for an outboard.  :

We started out on the original, prototype Weekender with a 4.5 Mercury (since we had it left over from a 27' fiberglass sloop). As Paul notes, it's way too much for a Weekender and isn't really working at all. 2hp is probably on the mid-to-low end, but would be fine. That said, we've also switched to electric for our boats. The first motor we used back in the '80's was 35# thrust. Kind of low, but worked well enough to keep us happy. We have an 85# thrust motor on the current Weekender and it has PLENTY of power for most situations. I towed a Weekender with a 45# thrust motor and very little drop in speed.

Mike

Hahahaha.  I'll drink to that Paul

I sure will have a motor on the 22 footer I will build in a few years, and a Vacationer needs one as well.  A weekender doesn't unless as above, you have deadlines to meet, although, I have sailed my whole life without a motor and without missing a deadline.

We have a 4 HP Johnson Sailmaster and in our tidal flow conditions it is about as much as we can ask for.  It gets us out and back in normal tidal conditions with plenty of power unused.  But where we go occasionally, we have to deal with 7+ knot currents.  That extra power gets used.  Also have a 55# thrust electric and it is marginal in these currents.