>In a message dated 11/26/98 4:09:25 PM Pacific Standard Time, hlg@pacbell.net
>writes:
>
>> Yet these "modern" engines are breaking shear
>> pins right and left!
>
>Whoa there, Harry!
>
>All modern engines are not breaking shear pins left and right. There is a
>problem here with this motor and it must be addressed, but to say all modern
>engines break shear pins is a little over simplistic. I had a Tohatsu 3.5 for
>several years, I now run a Honda 2.5. Had it for several years. I have
>never, ever broken a shear pin. I have hit rocks. I have turned the rudder
>into the prop, but I have never had a pin break. Shear pins are a safety
>mechanism and if they are breaking, there's something wrong. Either something
>is bent on the motor, the motor is running too high an idle RPM, the clutch is
>not functioning properly or something. The pin will only break when there is
>sufficient force to damage the prop or lower drive. If they are breaking all
>the time, I would keep a pocket full aboard and find out what is causing them
>to break. Putting in a harder metal pin or in any other way circumventing the
>shear pin is like by-passing the fuse in your house. It will work, but it is
>not a good idea.
Whoa there, Geoff!
I never said all modern motors are breaking shear pins. I said "these"
motors. I was trying to say the same thing you are saying - that something
is wrong, and that it should not be happening to a modern outboard. It
should not be necessary to start the motor in gear just to avoid breaking a
shear pin.
>As far as the Seagull being advanced, I imagine at the torque of the Seagull,
>the spring on the prop should be more than sufficient. A Seagull is very
>simple and has little need for too many safety mechanisms. It also pollutes
>worse than the Exxon Valdez, pound for pound, makes the owner's crazy
>listening to the vibration and noise and may or may not get you home when the
>seas, current and winds are against you.
Whoa there again!
I would never say the Seagull is advanced. It's 1940s technology, maybe
1930s, and is primitive by any modern standard. If you read my past posts,
you will find that I'm the one who has referred to the noise that will turn
your brain to mush in a half hour, and I've joked about the "oil slick"
(that was an exaggeration). I hate the gearbox, which is apparently
designed to exude grease - a major nuisance when storing and handling the
motor.
The motor has been low maintenance, a tribute to its simplicity, not its
advanced design. Perhaps someone did have a good idea when they put the
shock absorbing spring on the propeller since I've never needed to carry a
spare shear pin, and i've struck things occasionally, including the rudder.
Seagull apparently did choose the right materials, which has allowed the
motor to endure years of saltwater use.
I don't know where you got the idea that the Seagull was underpowered
though. My Forty Plus seems to put out an honest 3 hp or so with satisfying
acceleration. On a two-day, three-night trip down the Sacramento I drove
it for hours against the wind and chop with no problems and no difficulty
staying with other Potters. It never quit or failed to start on that trip,
although it has been troublesome on other occasions, probably because I
tended to leave old fuel in it for weeks. Strangely, it has been totally
reliable for the past couple of years. I'm still using the original oily
old pull rope also, which has to be manually wrapped around the pulley for
each start attempt. There was a smaller Seagull, the Featherweight, which
might be the one you're familiar with. There were also larger, more
powerful Seagulls like the Silver Century.
>I give you and others who keep older machinery and technology going and going
>a ton of credit, but I don't think you honestly feel that modern engines are
>less efficient, less dependable and inferior to the older Seagulls, Evinrudes,
>etc. Model A Fords and a lot of earlier automobiles where well thought out
>and brilliant for their time. They were also worn out by 60,000 miles, had
>constant flats, had radiator boil overs and where not much more comfortable
>than the horse drawn buggies they replaced. My first car was a '56 Chevy
>sedan. I wouldn't trade my air conditioned, electric seats, electric mirrors,
>four wheel drive mini van for that Chevy in a zillion years.
You're shooting down a strawman, Geoff. I never said the old machinery was
better. On the other hand, I don't need any credit for keeping the old
Seagull running all these years because I rarely did anything to it except
hose it off and give it an occasional spray of WD-40 and, once in a while,
a new sparkplug. The motor's never been disassembled or in a repair shop,
and there is nothing to adjust so it doesn't require tuning. I have
continued to use it all these 32 years because it was what I had, I use an
outboard as little as possible, and I didn't want to spend the money on a
new one. I do drive old cars, but I would be happy to swap them for newer
ones.
I've finally invested considerable bucks installing an electric outboard on
Manatee because I wanted to mess around with electric propulsion and enjoy
the quiet, control, and nonpolluting features it offers. I don't expect to
use the Seagull much anymore, but I may carry it occasionally when I need
more range and won't have anyplace to recharge batteries. Or I could add a
couple more batteries.
>Now that I've seen the new Hondas for this year, I am impressed. Technology
>keeps going forward.
Yes. If I were to buy a new gas-powered motor I would look first at the
Hondas. I'm looking forward to when more efficient batteries,
nickel-hydrogen and such, are affordable so electric propulsion will be
more practical. And maybe we'll have internal combustion engines powered by
abundant, nonpolluting hydrogen.
If you get the impression from all this that my feelings about the old
Seagull are ambivalent, you would be right. Incidentally, Seagull no longer
manufactures the classic, primitive Seagull. The new Seagulls are like
other modern outboards. The old ones may be in demand now for people who
want them for classic boats. I saw an ad recently from someone who was
apparently buying up Seagulls.
Happy Thanksgiving,
Harry