Merc opti vs 4 stroke

Any help on which is better for back trolling in the 115 hp range. I am hearing the new opti beats the 4 stroke for fuel economy, but what about noise and speed? Thanks for the help.

Lots of factors here, but my Yammie 115 four stroke only trolls down to 2.1 – 2.3 at the slowest. 19 pitch stainless prop. I bought a T8 for this very reason. As for fuel economy, I love it. I also love the fact I don’t have to remember to buy oil every other time I go fishing. Just my two cents. Lots of opinions when it comes to picking motors.

I agree with Kooty. My Merc 115 4 stroke trolls down about the same installed on a 1775 Pro-Vee. I bought a T8 to both solve the trolling speed and to not have to run the 115 at idle for long periods. Good enough reasons to convince the wife.

This is just my opinion and also things I have heard that may not be 100% fact.

I agree with the others. I would still buy a kicker motor to go with the big motor. I bought the new 9.9 Mercury Pro Kicker and absolutely love this motor . Is it better than a T8? Of course, it is a Mercury

Just Kidding. Have never ran a T8, but this Pro Kicker was put out by Mercury to compete/beat the T8. I think they have a gold mine in this motor, as far as I can tell right now .

Now to answer your question more direct. Again this is off what I experienced and have read/heard. The Optimax is better on fuel economy than most 4 strokes. It even has just as good or better emissions than most also. Is it as quiet as the 4 bangers, NO it is not. Is it more powerful, Yes it is. Also Mercury has “Smart Gauges” and you can set/program your trolling RPMs in, I believe.

If I had to do it all over again and go Optimax or 4 stroke in the 115 to 150 hp class, I would definitely go OPTIMAX 100% NO Questions. I’m not sure if there is a price difference, but I would have to believe they would be in the same neighborhood.

Hope this helps.

Lip Ripper, would you put a kicker on a tiller boat? I do run an electric back there, but not sure I want the weight of a kicker. You are right about the Merc kicker though. I went out with Steve DeZurik on saturday and he ran his all day. Wow, what a motor. Anyway, thanks guys for the input.

I would see why not put a kicker on a Tiller. If you are putting a 115 hp motor on a boat, I’m sure the boat is big enough for a kicker. I also have an electric on the back of mine. I use the electric for backtrolling at times, depends on the sitaution. I used it this past weekend in some pretty decent wave action on Mille Lacs. I have also used my Kicker on Mille Lacs when there was a lot of wave action and I found using this was the difference of catching fish. So yes, even with an electric on the back, I would still get a kicker on the boat. Especially if you spend anytime at all trolling. If you were out with Deezee this past weekend, I’m sure you are at least thinking about trolling .

Good Luck with your decision!

I have actually been playing around with boards for the last 2 years and wanted to get some tips from Steve. Heard he was the best. I still think he is, but we did not have real good luck. Did learn some things though. I will keep the kicker in mind and it sounds like the opti is the best choice right now. Thanks

That is who I learned from also. I did the same thing on about the same weekend last year, ith the same results. 3rd Week in July I went on a trip with Steve and the fish were not jumping in the boat, but the knowledge that I gained from those 10 hours on the water is hard to put a price tag on . I just sat there like a sponge soaking up the information Steve was willing to share! Good Luck!

Before going the kicker route, I would try trolling with a drift sock..

Eye-guide, that’s what I do now with the 90 Merc and it works well, Thanks. What is your opinion on opti or 4 stroke?

I am an E-TEC guy, and really love it! Right now I am running a tiller 75, so it is not an apples to apples comparrison for your situation. But, I ran a 175 Opti the year OMC went under. It had “Smart Gagues” that I really liked. I could set the speed based on RPM or speed. A very nice option. Two strokes (Optis, Ficht, HPDI, E-TEC, EFI or carbed) will get you out of the whole faster, and probably offer you better top end. If trolling is a big deal for you, and the motor will see a lot of trolling, then I would lean E-TEC. If your options are with Merc only, I would opt for a 4 stroke. You are dealing with a proven Yamaha block design. It seems that sooner or later most Opti guys are having trouble with one thing or another. What I like about the E-TEC is that I get great low end trolling, out of the hole, and top end performance out of the same motor. Plus I get the fuel economy and quietness of a 4 stroke. Did I mention the weight difference? Wow!
Tuck

Eye guide, thanks, that’s good info. I am actually looking at the 4 stroke Johnson vs. the Opti. I will look into the E-tec also.

One thing to note about the Optis – they are underrated as far as power goes. I’ve heard the 135 actually equals around 142 hp or so. Just a FYI.