Peeler Power

For those who have powered the Peeler with a 9.9 hp (vs the 15hp), can you comment on how well the boat can get up on a plane with 2 and/or 4 adults on board?  Does it get onto a plane fairly easily, and quickly, or does it struggle to do so?  Does it maintain a plane pretty well for cruising?

I like the idea of the 9.9, but am a bit concerned about being potentially underpowered...thoughts/comments

Thanks, Mike


12 replies:

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RE: Peeler Power

Mike,

I have a Yamaha 9.9 HP on my Peeler and I'm very happy with it --- it's very economical of fuel.  I use it out on the saltwater and have no desire to beat myself and the family up by planing in rough water (it's not a v-bottom).  It'll plane with 2 adults but it's no speed demon.  I usually have 4 or 5 adults and teenagers aboard which is too great a load for planing with 9.9 HP anyway.

If you're interested in speed, I would suggest installing the console option for better weight distribution.  I'm a pretty big guy and too heavy for the boat to trim well with me using the outboard's tiller.  She planes better with me in the bow and a grandson at the tiller.  To overcome this problem, my grandsons and I are building a midships steering station before this coming season.

If you will be operating in smooth enough water to plane comfortablly and want to do it with 4 adults, I'd recommend the 15 HP motor.

Best wishes,

Dick

RE: Peeler Power

   Thanks for the input.  I am planning on the center console to help with weight distribution, and not reallly worried so much about top end speed, but I would like to be reasonably confident the boat can get up on a plane.

Any further thoughts on the "std" Yamaha 9.9 vs the "high thrust" 9.9.  Based on gear ratios, the latter will certainly have more low end power, but I'm wondering if the slightly higher speed potential of the "std" might be better for planing?  These boats are pretty light, so what, if any, benefits are there to the high thrust version?

Thanks again

Mike

RE: Peeler Power

Mike,

I have the Yamaha 9.9 HP standard, not high-thrust, so I cannot give you definitive advice.  Personally, I'd have chosen the high-thust option if I'd known about it at the time.

It does boil down to an issue of speed.  The boat needs to reach a high enough speed to plane.  The heavier the load in the boat, the more power you need to reach planing speed.  The speed of displacement hull is limited by the waterline length (about 1.34 knots times the square root of the waterline length in feet).  When a boat planes, it is partially lifted out of the water by the hydrodynamic forces (lift) acting on a flat or vee bottom.  Those forces are dependent on the speed of the boat through the water.  Once the boat reaches planing speed and is partially lifted out of the water, its speed is no longer limited by "displacement" hull speed.  Planing speed is also influenced by the bottom's "angle of attack".  That is the angle of the bottom to the water should be a little "up" from level, but not so much "up" that the stern just pushes water rather than riding up over it.

With 2 adults aboard (with their weight distributed evenly fore and aft) the Peeler has no problem reaching planing speed with a 9.9 HP motor.  With 4 adults aboard, reaching planing speed will probably require more power.  It is easier to reach planing speed on smooth (rather than choppy) water.  (The Peeler Skiff weighs around 450-500 lbs with motor, fuel, and gear, and the average adult weighs around 130-165 lbs.)

I do not find planing over waves and chop to be particularly comfortable, so I'm perfectly happy to have the boat move through the water at displacement speeds rather than bounce along on top of it.  One planes to go faster, one moves at displacement speeds to use less fuel and be more comfortable.

Hope this helps,

Dick

RE: Peeler Power

   Dick, let's stay with the "smooth water" scenario and the 2 person load initially....

Curious about your comment about possibly preferring the high thrust option.  Based on gear ratio differences alone, the "high thrust" 9.9 will be turning only 71% of the rotational speed of the "std" 9.9 for any given throttle position, so I think the question I'm trying to get at is "what percentage of Wide Open Throttle" is required with the "std" 9.9 to get the boat on a plan?"  And how much throttle is left in "reserve" once that occurs.

Your earlier note indicated that it easily can plane in smooth water with 2 adults, but it struggled to do so with 4....I take that to mean that you did not have sufficient throttle reserve to acheive it with the additional people onboard even in flat conditions.  Is that assessment correct?

Like you, I probably won't drive the boat hard in a chop, but I'd also like to be comfortable that it doesn't take full throttle just to keep it on a slow plane in smooth conditions.

Can anyone with the 9.9 "hi thrust" weigh in as well for comparison?

Mike

RE: Peeler Power

Mike,

I'm rarely in flat conditions out on Narragansett Bay, though in Wickford (RI) Harbor, it can be pretty smooth.  I really never try to plane. I spent most of my life under sail and I have a strong aversion to people who throw humongous wakes.  I have planed comfortably at a guestimated 2/3 throttle with 2 full-sized (I run about 240 lbs) men aboard in the harbor.  With a comfortable load (4-5 people including women and teenagers) heading out for stripers or blues on the bay, I've never even tried to plane.  I usually run about 1/2 throttle and make a guestimated 6-8 knots.  I'll have GPS navigation this season so there'll be less guestimating.

I've been on the saltwater since childhood and I'll be 70 in June.  My father was a naval officer, so I believe I was trained well.  I've singled-handed a Pacific Seacraft Flicka from Point Judith, Rhode Island to Portland, Maine and back so I'm probably not in too much of a hurry when I'm on the water.  I'm focused on safety and as much comfort as conditions allow.

I built the Peeler Skiff because it reminded me of the fun I had as a kid in "quahog skiffs".  Because I have lots of children and grandchildren, About Time is usually as fully loaded as prudence allows.  Because I don't push her too fast, I think that the "hi-thrust" gearing and propeller would have been more appropriate to her use.  I think that, in your case, the extra thrust might get a Peeler up on plane more easily, even if the ultimate speed might be a little lower.

Cheers,

Dick

RE: Peeler Power

   My two cents -    

Hi-trust models of small outboards are meant to move displacement hulls at displacement speeds. They're used as auxilaries (kickers) for sailboats or trolling motors for midrange bay boats. They are geared low and the cooling is designed for lower speeds. I think a standard at whatever hp. suits your purpose would be a better option.

 

RE: Peeler Power

   Make that three cents - 

Also the props are usually larger and pitched to perform best below planing speed. You may find that you spent the extra money for more noise, higher fuel consumtion and a higher bow.

RE: Peeler Power

Hey Catboater,

Thanks for the info.  Looks like hi-thrust model would have fit my needs well, but not Mike's.  Have you launched your Peeler yet?

Regards,

Dick

RE: Peeler Power

 Hey Dick D. 

With a little luck, by the end of April. Right side up on the trailor and painted pretty. Just need some epoxy weather to finish the inside and stick on the center console. Then rig the remote o.b. - 15hp Merc.(standard) steering, harness, lights, yada, yada. 

Repowered a 16ft catboat with a 8 hp Evenrude Sailor (it was on sale) about 30 years ago. It was about twice the motor needed but even then, once it reached hull speed all it did was raise the bow and make more noise. Don't know what it would do on a flat bottomed boat that could plane.

I checked the specs on Mercury Prokicker 9.9 and Yamaha Hi-thrust 9.9. Both standard models are geared at 2.08 so the prop spins at half the rpm of the engine. The Merc Prokicker has a larger prop with four blades instead of three and is geared at 2.43. The Yamaha has a larger three bladed prop and is geared at 2.91. Not sure the Yamaha, with the prop at 1/3rd the rpm of the engine, could get anything to plane.

Hope to be out harassing the fish too this summer. Like to see what you do with the steering station.

Bob

RE: Peeler Power

I bought the Yamaha 9.9 high thrust based entirely on the fact that it was available with both electric start and power tilt (the boat is intended for use by my wife and granddaughter). It is my first Yamaha after a few Mercuries and Hondas.  I have been impressed - after three weeks on the mooring at the end of the season it started almost instantly.  The Peeler planes easily with two, provided that one is in the middle or front street. I plan to add Doel-Fins this spring to improve trim.

If you plan to take four adults consistently and want to plane I think that the 15hp would be a better choice.  If it were not for the electric start and tilt I would have gotten the 4 or 6 owing to their lighter weight.   

RE: Peeler Power

Jeff,

Thanks for the input.  It's good to have practical experience on the high-thrust Yamaha.  I don't have electric start, but my Yamaha 9.9 HP always starts on the first or, at worst, second pull.

I would have to agree that the 15 HP would be a better bet for planing with 4 adults.

Cheers,

Dick

RE: Peeler Power

Jeff:

This spring, I completed my Peeler Skiff. I have a center console and installed a 15 hp Tohatsu with power tilt and electric start. I like the motor and am glad that I didn't go for a lower hp model.
With two adults and gear on board the top speed is between 18 and 20 mph. Also, I am pleasantly surprised at how slowly it sips the gas. Last weekend, I took a 20 second video on my iPhone of my wife driving the boat on Lake Coeur d’Alene at about ¾ throttle. Let me know if you want me to text you the video.

Fred

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