Changing a Suzuki four stroke 30in to 25in

[haro274]

Just wondering if it is possible to change a 30in 250 four stroke to a 25inch?
Is it just a matter of the leg or is ther a bit more to it?

[FNQCairns]

Do not know the zuks. If the zuke doesn't have a leg spacer you can remove then it becomes a real problem. There is the shift lever which will now be too long. The driveshaft will need shortening or replacing or an entire new leg obtained.
It is possible to mount an outboard with a long leg onto a shorter transom with a fabed up design of adapter plate, if you do a bit of offshore work the extra powerhead height above the water has it's advantages.

cheers fnq

[haro274]

Do not know the zuks. If the zuke doesn't have a leg spacer you can remove then it becomes a real problem. There is the shift lever which will now be too long. The driveshaft will need shortening or replacing or an entire new leg obtained.
It is possible to mount an outboard with a long leg onto a shorter transom with a fabed up design of adapter plate, if you do a bit of offshore work the extra powerhead height above the water has it's advantages.

FNQ what about if the transom is 25in on the boat wont the motor be to long?

[FNQCairns]

If you get an adapter fabed up this effectivly raises the transom engine mounting height 5 inches (or whatever suits) then the engine bolts to this, if the bloke doing the adapter is trick you can get away with only 2 inches (or less) of set back as a consequence, this is the best way to go because the adaptor bolts to the boat using the original motor mount holes then the outboard bolts to the adaptor only.

Another way is an plate/adapter that can fit directly over your outboard mounting area and raise it the 5 inches needed. less appealing because although the outboard is now at a height that suits with minimal extra setback the two lower engine mount bolt holes will need thru bolting so 2 new holes in your transom so not the best but fast and easy for the fitter I guess unless these 2 new holes align with a internal structure that can make it unworkable.

Just need someone with an eye for this and the interest for you to walk away happy with the result.

Another idea is to purchase a jack plate these use the original transom bolt holes so no bodgee extra holes as above, these have 5 inches of upward travel but the setback can be large - horses for courses depends on what you have to work with.
The shortening of the outboard leg would be a last resort IMO.

If you include some info on your boat, sometimes extra setback is not a workable option (esp with 4 strokes) as it may take a more indepth approach to a final setup which most never bother to do or it may simply never work well, all is dependent on the hull in question.

cheers fnq