Need advice on a outboard...

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MikeP123456

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Hey Guys,

Looking for advice for a 2010 Grizzly 1448. I bought the boat, motor and trailer used last year. With the purchase it came with 2 marine batteries, bow mount trolling motor and brand new fish finder still in the box, 2 pedestal seats and fully carpeted. The previous owner used the rig 4 times, everything was new except the older Mercury 200 (20HP) motor which has some issues. The "dogs" or grippers need to be replaced, the motor idles rough and can be somewhat temperamental to start. The transom height is 16" but the motor is a long shaft...I got the set up for the cost of the of the new 1448 grizzly without the extras and trailer. My question is should I bite the bullet and buy a new electric start short shaft Mercury 25HP? Will the short shaft out perform the long shaft.

I look forward to reading the responses.

Thank you,

Mike
 
A new merc 25hp will by far out perform that old 20hp merc. And as far as the shaft length it will also have a significant impact. If you do not have a jack plate on your current old 20hp merc then you have way to much motor in the water causing significant drag. You can easily expect 25-30mph with a newer 25hp on that grizzly. Also if that old 200 merc is pre 85' then it is not putting out a true 20hp anyway. Before 1985 (give or take a year) merc rated hp at the crank, not the prop.
 
Thanks Johnny,

Ok heres the rest of the story. I bought the boat for my son and I when he was 15. He's 17 now. I like to fish but it isn't my passion. With his school and sports he doesn't fish as much as the last 2 years. He has since gotten into duck hunting so the boat will be used about the same or slightly more going forward. The long shaft is a problem with the low water conditions associated with duck hunting. Since his free time will become even more limited in the next 4 - 6 years due to college and work I'm torn on whether not I should put $4000 into a new Electric start OB. A used short shaft 25hp's seem tough to come by. I'm leaning towards saving the money and using what I have....

Mike
 
4000 is a lot to spend if your not going to use it much. If you watch CL much you can usually get one for 400-1000 bucks and sometimes less. I see people even post adds on there looking for a specific HP and shaft length and how much they are willing to spend.
 

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