Honda 2.3 hp

T

TA Smith

Active member
Everyone,
Many of you have years of wisdom and knowledge, so I thought I would tap in to it.
Has anyone had and experience with the Honda 2.3 outboard engine?
I want to use it on a small boat.

Thank you in advance for your input.
 
What would be the intended use of this small boat? To me an engine like that is very well suited to going on a canoe. Something with a wider profile like a small jon boat would really be chugging along with anything more than just you in the boat
 
You'll be just fine with that. I ran an OLD air cooled 2.5 Johnson on a canoe and it worked very well.
 
Used an older Honda 2 hp on a square back canoe for a couple of years. Don't know about yours but the one I used had a centrifugal clutch on the prop and it was a real pain for trolling or low speed operation. Very quiet, very clean, very annoying to operate when fishing.
 
TA,

I have been through the same analysis for a small outboard to be used on canoes. I chose not to go Honda because of the centrifugal clutch, and worry about noise because it is air cooled.

Weight is a big issue in the newer four stroke small motors, and small two strokes are no longer sold in the US for emissions regulation reasons I believe. But, I found a used two stroke Mercury 3.3 hp that weighs about 27 lbs I think. A similar four stroke is much heavier (around 40 lbs?). On a canoe or a kayak, ten or twelve extra pounds is a big deal. I'm not sure when Mercury and others stopped selling low hp two stroke outboards in the US. 2006 maybe?

Hope this helps.

Matt
 
That Merc is a rock solid motor and it is awesome on a canoe. Light, strong, fairly quiet, just have to watch the shear pins. Had to go to a stronger alloy as they are really soft from the factory.
 
Paul,

Yes, I had heard that if you don't idle all the way down prior to putting the little Merc in gear, it can break the pin.

Where did you find harder pins?

Matt
 
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