I had to walk out to my shop to look at my M17 after reading your caution, Dave, because I was nearly positive there is no vapor access from the aft locker to the interior of the boat. There is not, plus there are two large access holes from the locker through the transom--probably 2"-- either side of the rudder, so there's pretty good circulation. I can't speak for other late model jerry-built boats, nor can I speak for those Bob is building. So at least for my '92 M17, I have no qualms about keeping an outboard fuel supply there, though I'd certainly hesitate to store propane anywhere. Regarding OB info, Thomas, search the msog archives--I'd bet there are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of posts on motors there. t t _/\_ On Mon, Jan 13, 2014 at 3:56 PM, W David Scobie <wdscobie@yahoo.com> wrote:
i view gasoline to be as dangerous as propane (or any heavier than air gas/fuel).
remember folks - a stock 1983 or newer M17's aft locker has no vapor barrier to the cabin ... don't store your fuel (gas, propane, butane, etc) in the aft locker unless you modify the boat (i sealed off my M17's locker and installed proper airflow vents).
:: Dave Scobie -------------------------------------------- On Mon, 1/13/14, Thomas Buzzi <thomaspbuzzi@gmail.com> wrote:
Following along, was interested to hear about the 3.5 on the Precision 18. I am leaning in that direction. Tohatsu's (being the first outboards ever produced) have a pretty good reputation for reliability. I have always been concerned about propane in a boat since it is heavier than air the fumes could find their way below and then with a little spark.......... This has been a great string for information. Thanks to all who have contributed. Tom B
On Mon, Jan 13, 2014 at 3:40 PM, W David Scobie <wdscobie@yahoo.com> wrote:
Tom (and others following along):
yeah, the issue is when the motor is cold she will not idle ... you need
to advance the throttle a good amount ... and she sputters and gasps, to keep her running until warmed up. barely wants to run if in gear.
for the pulls it seems that you need have the motor turning over a bunch to get the gas to travel from bottle through the fuel lines. once motor has started she will fire up in one or two pulls after stopping IF you
don't unscrew the fuel bottle.
now ... the instructions for the motor say
to unscrew the fuel bottle if
you are not going to use the motor again in a 'short period of time'. i take this to meaning, as there is no fuel off valve, that they don't trust the motor not to leak gas (you kill the motor like all other outboards with a red button by the throttle lever). again, there is no 'fuel valve' so when the throttle is in idle some gas will leak? there is no 'off' throttle position. is there an 'interconnect' that only allows the fuel to feed if the motor is turning (either running or when being bulled)?
that 'unscrew the bottle' thing i don't like. this means that if you sail all day you shouldn't keep the bottle in place. if you need to get the
motor running quickly you must screw the bottle into place and pull many
times to get fuel to the cylinder. i can fill a Honda 2HP gasoline motor and start it faster than the prior described process. or, just hope the
motor doesn't leak gas all day and you don't find you are without fuel when
wanting to start the motor.
:: Dave Scobie
--------------------------------------------
On Mon, 1/13/14, Tom Jenkins <tjenk@gte.net> wrote:
Dave,
I don't know why a choke would be necessary, as their purpose is to enrich the fuel mixture until the engine is warm enough to vaporize all the fuel
droplets. Propane is of course already a vapor at boating
temperatures (unless you are boating on Mars, which has some other negatives).
As for the 12-15 pulls, that is equally puzzling from a physics
perspective. I wonder if other folks have this problem.
Glad you brought it up for discussion.
Tom
M17 Scintilla
On Jan 13, 2014, at 10:06 AM, W David Scobie wrote:
i don't recommend a
the LEHR 2.5 is only available in a short shaft.
glad you like your
LEHR Steve. i'm not fully happy with the one Sage Marine purchased
short-shaft outboard on an M17 ... cavitation city! sadly, -
poor fit/finish, doesn't run correctly (not running up to full RPM), difficult to start first time (when cold or just after installing fuel bottle 12-15 pulls required), no choke (is needed for a cold start to keep motor running until warmed up), and no fuel cutoff.
:: Dave Scobie
--------------------------------------------
On Mon, 1/13/14, Steve Lindeman <lindeman.steven@gmail.com> wrote:
I switched to the Lehr 2.5 propane
aux power for my M-15 last year. It
should have plenty
of power for the M-17. I haven't used it much yet but been happy so far. No hassle with winterizing or gas spills. It only has F-N so it requires a 180 turn for
reverse. I was concerned about this but it hasn't been
a problem.
Steve Lindeman
M-15 Sadie Lee