August 28, 2026

Pointer 1

Friday

A boatowner for whom I’ve done several projects over the years brought this 1987 Pointer 17′ skiff to me for a couple small jobs.  He obtained the boat from a relative, and the boat had been in the process of having a secondhand outboard installed; unfortunately, the person installing it ran into some problems and poor health, leaving the installation unfinished and in need of additional work.

After repositioning the boat indoors, I temporarily hooked up a battery and lowered the engine, then inspected the installation.  The owner told me that he wasn’t sure the outboard was actually a Honda 40, as marked on the cowling; indeed, researching the serial number (and model number) shown on the outboard, I determined it was actually a Honda 50, model BF50D.  Note that the internet also confirms the model info based on the serial number (not shown here).

The outboard had two bolts securing it to the transom, at the top of the bracket, but the two lower bolts were not installed, and the one hole previously drilled for the purpose had run directly into an internal stiffener.

Access to the inside of the transom was afforded by a small deck plate located in the engine splash well, and for the moment I was limited to placing a camera in the opening to inspect the situation within.  I thought a larger hatch might make final engine installation easier.

The owner had pointed out, with the engine in its tilted-up position, a potential problem with the steering arm:  the nut on the arm where it attached to the steering cable interfered with the transom, so the engine wouldn’t turn completely to one side.  But when I lowered the outboard to operating position, the steering arm and nut passed just by the transom cleanly, and I didn’t see any way that the arm and bolt  could be repositioned that would allow clearance when the outboard was tilted.  But it worked as intended with the engine down.

Here is a short video showing the steering arm and a discussion of the steering:

I quickly decided that the best and only way to do the job correctly was to remove the outboard and start fresh.  This would give me access to the partially-drilled holes for repair/filling, and allow me to position things better for the real installation.  So I hooked up my gantry crane and chain hoist to the lifting eye on the engine, and removed the two existing bolts, easily pulling the engine from the transom.

I didn’t want to go to the effort of completely unhooking the engine–all the control cables, steering, and harnesses were hooked up–but I found that if I removed the steering cable, it would allow me to get the engine far enough away from the boat to more easily work, so I did so.  It wasn’t difficult.

With the outboard removed, I could see several old bolt holes from previous outboard installations, so my first step would be to fill any unnecessary or obsolete holes.  I ordered new hardware and sealant for the outboard installation, and left additional work for next time.

Total time billed on this job today: 1 Hour