Outboat motor size and carrying proper weight for trailer

Hi Dear
I want to ask some questions!
I recently got a 14-foot long V-Hull light aluminum boat (unknown weight,around 150-200 lbs). I’m considering getting a 5 or 6 hp short shaft outboard motor because it’s lightweight (about 60 lbs). Will a 6HP motor work fine with this boat? Second question – I’m also considering getting a 9.9 horsepower motor (weighing 92 lbs) for more power. Will my trailer be able to carry both the boat and this motor? Any advice you can give would be greatly appreciated.
Best Regards
Paul Hahn

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There should be a USGC stamp on the interior somewhere that shows max HP and max weight rating.

If that isn’t there, I would try to look up that info online based on the brand and model.

thanks for advisement.
Unfortunately,No inform boat has no brand name

I think a 5, 6 or 9.9 hp motor will move that boat fine, and assuming there is no trailer info on the tongue, the trailer will be fine too. Although the IDO way would have a 115 hp tiller on it, if the prop is the only thing in the water at 3/4 throttle, you have it dialed in! Just Kidding!

Paul Hahn wrote:

thanks for advisement.
Unfortunately,No inform boat has no brand name

Unless the boat is very very old, it is required to have a hull ID tag on it with a code for the maker and date of manufacture.

In your photo there appears to be a tag near the right rear corner, which is the proper location for this tag. That will give you the code for the manufacture.

There is also an online booklet the Coast Guard provides, for calculating the maximum allowed HP based on the dimensions of the hull.

Thanks so much your advisement.
Title has baot information are,
make – FL Homemade boats
Model – unknown
year – 2017
Once again your advice makes me feel reassured.
God Bless you

thanks so much for your advise.
I have a title and j]has information boat are,
make – FL Homemade boats
Model – Unknown
Year – 2017

Sir
Once again, Thanks for your advisement and found trailer information.
It said that trailer Max Tongue weight is 300Lbs.
One of friend lifted Boat on trailer by his one hand and said boat and trailer weight is less than 200 Lbs.
Therefore I believe that 9.9 hp outboat motor which has weight 92 Lbs should be fine for my boat on trailer.
Would you consider it and advise me again
Best Regards
Paul Hahn

Depends on what else you intend to put in there.

If you start adding a gas tank w/ gasoline, an anchor, tackle, etc, all of that is weight too. Just something to be aware of.

Had a very similar hull a few years back. That hull was rated only for 7.5hp but a 9.9 two stroke would’ve been fine in terms of transom strength. I had a 6hp Yamaha on it and I could get up on plane fine and run about 18mph when running solo. With my kid in the boat I could still get up on plane but it took longer.

Hi Dear
Thank you very much for your thorough advice,
it has been very helpful to me.
I’m considering purchasing a 7.5Hp or 8 Hp outboard motor.
Best regards,

dirtywater wrote:

Had a very similar hull a few years back. That hull was rated only for 7.5hp but a 9.9 two stroke would’ve been fine in terms of transom strength. I had a 6hp Yamaha on it and I could get up on plane fine and run about 18mph when running solo. With my kid in the boat I could still get up on plane but it took longer.

18 mph on a 14′ boat with a 6 horse?

slough wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>dirtywater wrote:</div>
Had a very similar hull a few years back. That hull was rated only for 7.5hp but a 9.9 two stroke would’ve been fine in terms of transom strength. I had a 6hp Yamaha on it and I could get up on plane fine and run about 18mph when running solo. With my kid in the boat I could still get up on plane but it took longer.

18 mph on a 14′ boat with a 6 horse?

Maybe it was 16, but I think 18? The hull was very light, 1960s Alumacraft with minimal flotation, no extra junk on board.

It’s been a few years maybe I am not remembering correctly.

If the max tongue weight is 300lb then I would assume the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating of the trailer would be around 2000lb.
The tongue weight is usually recommended to be 8% to 15% of the total weight of the loaded trailer.

I had a 14 foot A1. I had to put the motor midship when trailering to get any tongue weight.

One thing no one has mentioned is your intention to get a motor with a short shaft. That choice may be fine, but let’s make sure.

Maybe you already know this, but a short-shaft motor is only for boats with short transoms. Standard transom height on a boat of that size will either be 15 inches or 20 inches (or some height that is really close to one of those two figures). The transom of your boat has no “cut-out” that’s lower where the motor is mounted. I can see that this boat does not have very high sides, but even low-sided boats commonly have a “cut-out” to lower the transom at the motor location when designed for short-shaft motors. Since there’s no way to determine scale in this photo, I can’t be sure what transom height you have.

If you have a 20-inch transom, you need a long-shaft motor. If you run a short-shaft motor on a boat with a 20-inch transom, the propeller will suck air like crazy at medium and higher power settings. But if the transom height is 15 inches, go ahead and use a short-shaft motor, and in fact, a short-shaft motor would be the best choice.

Transom height is measured 90 degrees to the bottom of the boat, rather than being measured along the slant of the transom, so it’s best to use a big carpenter’s square to make the measurement. Even without a carpenter’s square, you can eyeball your tape measure to orient it pretty close to 90 degrees compared to the bottom of the boat, and your measurement will be good enough.