Home › Forum › Ask A Member › Question regarding a 57′ Feathercraft 12′ Cartopper › Reply To: Question regarding a 57′ Feathercraft 12′ Cartopper
I have a 12′ Starcraft — it normally has a Merc 110 on it, which will put 3 people on a smart plane. Occasionally, for test purposes, I’ll put a Johnson 20 or Evinrude Fastwin on it and it becomes downright dangerous. Going in in a straight line is fine, but the issue comes on a turn where it ceases to be a full craft turn and instead throws the stern into a vicious swing. That swing is accellerated when centripetal force kicks in and tries to tighten the turn . I have to be very sensitive to when that’s about to happen so I can put a lot of force on the tiller to ease straighten the craft before it rolls over. That doesn’t work so well when there are passengers are on board — they could lean in the wrong direction. The bigger motor moves the center of gravity of the entire boat much higher.
The first time it happened to me, the boat rolled and dumped me — I lost my glasses, coffee cup and a good deal of my dignity. My brother had to jump in another boat and force my empty boat to shore so it wouldn’t run me over.
If you want some occasional thrills, the bigger motor will do it, but in my experience it comes at a price. I used to run my ’56 Mark 25 on it. It was sexy and oh-so-fast, but it also damaged the transom — started elongating the rivet holes and shortening the life of the boat and possibly me.
Not sure what state you’re in, but in NY, where I am, the DEC will confiscate your boat if it has a motor over the manufacturers rating.