Thrust of a newer 2hp, 4 stroke, vs older, 4hp, 2stroke

[ali'i]

The only reason I want a kicker on my 14ft fiberglass runabout is to get back to a populated shore line, or if possible, the boat ramp where the trailer will be incase the main engine fails for whatever reason. The waters I boat in are subject to wind and currents, and could be a very hard, if not impossible paddle by hand in some instances. I don't want a 50+ pound, 6hp+ kicker, mainly due to the 220+ pound Evinrude, 50, 4 stroke I already have on the back. I already have a 30 ish lb, 1969, 2 stroke, 2 cylinder,4hp Johnson with the "weedless" shaft, but its a 2 stroke, so means having to carry a tank of mixed gas, plus the prop is angled down, so a lot of thrust is wasted as it tends to force the bow down, and the 3 blade, stock prop is very small, (under 6"). I have a chance to buy a 2005, 1 cylinder, 2hp Honda, 4stroke, with a bigger prop, and weighs about 28 lbs. I don't care about speed, but more about whether the 2hp Honda will push the boat any better than the 4hp, older, heavier Johnson. They rate electric motors by thrust, but not gas ones? And I can't try the motor on the boat before I buy it. Any opinions on this,? Thanks

 

[nwcove]

the honda will not push the boat better . and dont go adrift thinking a bigger prop is better, both motors were propped to work quite well from the factory. in wind and strong currents....id choose more hp all day.

 

[steelespike]

I believe the OMC 4 hp has a shallow water drive setup that puts the prop at a more normal attack angle.
The Honda I think has a 2.42 gear ratio the could do well with a heavy load but its hard to believe it could out push the 4 trimmed at the right angle.
The big prop should help with control. As far as fuel the 4 should run over 2 hours on a gallon of fuel at wot.
At 28 lbs I wonder if the 2 is air cooled?

 

[hardwater fisherman]

I also have a 14ft fiberglass runabout with a 4hp 1978 johnson with weedless gearcase.And a 40hp evinrude as the main motor. My 4hp has only a 2 bladed plastic prop. When used on a lake i can reach around 4 mhp, but when used in the current of a river my speed is greatly reduced. When Im faced with current and wind I would not want any less hp. Some days on the St Lawernce river I run it at half throttle or more just to rest in place for jigging.

 

[Sea Rider]

The way to go would be to try any of them in harsh wind conditions. But definitely a 2-4 HP engines are poor performers against hard winds, currents specially if heavily loaded.. Probably, engine won't push your boat forward nor wind push boat backwards.

Happy Boating