Brand new 1648 alumacraft jon boat

I'm going to delete my post then....wouldn't want anyone to try it.

As a rule of thumb I rig the highest HP (Or more) allowed by the manufacture. Three reasons, You rarely have to work the engine really hard, an engine rarely worked hard lasts much longer and cruising at mid RPM achieves optimum fuel mileage.

The 35HP/40HP Johnrudes are legendary for their longevity and dependability. I would just find a good used one for beer money and be done with it.

So here she is (25HP 4STROKE SUZUKI JUST OUT OF THE BOX)after 2 weeks of back order,now i'm just waiting on my boat to get welded,they are taking their sweet time.It's been 3 weeks already and still not done.If i don't hear anything on monday then i am calling alumacraft and demanding a refund or for them to get a chop chop.It's not even that big of a project and the dealer said their waiting on some type of special riveting tool from the company.I don't know but i'm getting a bit impatient.This is insane for just a welded jon boat.

Here are some pics i just took,let me know what you think,thanks.It looks like a monster compared to the 20hp efi suzuki i had but man is it light at 136lbs.I picked it up with no issues and put it on the stand,then again i am not a small man either,lol.

Had 2 more pics that i couldn't fit,so here is the rest.I can wait to start it tom morning,this think should make the boat just get it.I used to have a 25hp 2stroke merc and man the power on that outboard was sick.That outboard weighed near 118lbs and this motor is only a bit heavier and much,much better technology even know i loved the merc.This thing according a ton of videos i have watched only burns near 2.2 gallons of fuel at wot,that is awesome.I believe propped right this boat could easily do close to 30mph.I'm just so happy i can mod the boat now and the weight added won't be a issue.

I have seen people here just do wonders to their boat,it's amazing what we can accomplish if we put our imagination to work,lol.Sorry i'm a bit excited as i have never had a 25hp outboard.

Ok,so after looking over the motor a bit I decided to play with the new toy for a bit. So what I noticed was when I was pulling the pull rope the engine would pull smoothly and then sometimes it would lock itself like I was trying to pull it in gear but it was in N the whole time,I found that odd. I put engine oil in it and I just was pulling it in my living room to see how hard it was to pull and it was difficult. I don't know if new outboards do thst till gas is in them then maybe it pulls easier,I don't know but I will find out today when I go buy 3 gallons of gas. From every video I have watched this motor was so easy to pull start. Is this normal? It says pull till you feel tension then pull firmly,I did that and a few times like I said it would like the rope and just wouldn't pull. I will have to put it to the test in about a couple hours. I will update how it runs and shifts.

I'm also draining the lower unit oil and replacing it with royal purple synthetic lower unit oil so the lubrication is superior right from the start. I know it must be changed again at 20hrs but I want the best protection on those lower unit gears as I can get from jump street so this is what I'm going with. I know,no matter whatit needs changed in 20hrs and it may seem like a waste to people to use expensive oil on break in but it's only 12oz of oil were talking here and I have 4 full bottles which is a gallon so I have near 12 lower changes worth of oil which is like 6yrs worth at 2 times a yr so to me it's fully worth it and I have a ton of oil so why not go with the best protection from the get go. Ok I will update the pull rope saga to see if that goes away when I fuel it up,man I hope so.I

scoobeb said:

Ok,so after looking over the motor a bit I decided to play with the new toy for a bit. So what I noticed was when I was pulling the pull rope the engine would pull smoothly and then sometimes it would lock itself like I was trying to pull it in gear but it was in N the whole time,I found that odd. I put engine oil in it and I just was pulling it in my living room to see how hard it was to pull and it was difficult. I don't know if new outboards do thst till gas is in them then maybe it pulls easier,I don't know but I will find out today when I go buy 3 gallons of gas. From every video I have watched this motor was so easy to pull start. Is this normal? It says pull till you feel tension then pull firmly,I did that and a few times like I said it would like the rope and just wouldn't pull. I will have to put it to the test in about a couple hours. I will update how it runs and shifts.

I'm also draining the lower unit oil and replacing it with royal purple synthetic lower unit oil so the lubrication is superior right from the start. I know it must be changed again at 20hrs but I want the best protection on those lower unit gears as I can get from jump street so this is what I'm going with. I know,no matter whatit needs changed in 20hrs and it may seem like a waste to people to use expensive oil on break in but it's only 12oz of oil were talking here and I have 4 full bottles which is a gallon so I have near 12 lower changes worth of oil which is like 6yrs worth at 2 times a yr so to me it's fully worth it and I have a ton of oil so why not go with the best protection from the get go. Ok I will update the pull rope saga to see if that goes away when I fuel it up,man I hope so.I

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If its a brand new engine I would leave the factory lower unit oil in there until its time for the first change. I know in other small power equipment the manufactures use a "break in" type of oil

I understand what your saying but there is no such thing as lower unit break in oil,they use good old reg bulk oil no different then the super tech lower unit oil at Wal-Mart,plus there is nothing to break in on the lower unit,there is no rings or pistons or cylinder walls,etc.... all there is,is gears meshing together ,that's all,in my opinion the oil they put in is just fine but fully synthetic oil is superior to lubrication of the gears compared to reg mineral oil. Now yes to most it may seem like a waste because yes royal purple lower unit oil is pricey and I will change it in 20hrs anyway but to me the first 20hrs of gear meshing is the most important part of the process and I believe full synthetic oil will lubricate the gears much better and help the gears mesh much easier and much less friction due to how much more slippery the oil is. I told my dealer I bought the engine from and he actually said that was a great idea but I didn't have to do it. He did agree due to how superior the synthetic oil is the gears would and should mesh much easier and with much less friction. I'm only doing it because I have so much royal purple lower unit oil so I may as well use it. Less friction on the gears =better meshing and will last much longer. Like I said this is just imo. I'm sure the oil in there is ok,I just know from everything I have read that synthetic lower unit oil is so much better then reg oil,why use it later rather than from the start so you know your gears will have the best protection possible. I'm sure any synthetic oil would work just fine I just like royal purples product. I have actually heard so many people on tons of forums claim gaining rpms from just switching over to royal purple lower unit oil,who knows if that's completely true but allot of people saying that makes you wonder how good this stuff is. By the way,in no way shape or form do I sell this suff,I'm just voicing my opinion that's all. To each their own and there is no wrong or right way, I just like the best protection for my motor.

Zum said:

Those are really good numbers.
My 1652 only weighs 360 and with a 30hp only gets 27/28 mph..it does have a jet tunnel though.
I'd be interested to know what his rpms are, going that fast with a smaller pitch prop.

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My Lowes 1652 with a four stroke 30hp EFI Merc, does 31mph by GPS loaded light with a 13" prop @6.1K

John

I love my ETEC 40. I was surprised how well it pushed my 1752 with 4 people in it. These engines are light and incredibly powerful. Go with the ETEC 30. You won't have to worry about power.

scoobeb hurry up and give us a review of this new Suzuki.How does it compare to a 2-stroke mercury?

I'm so sorry guys,the dealership still has my boat.Ups lost the rivet tool needed to re do my rivets in the boat.It's been one month so far and nothing has been done.If i don't hear anything by the end of the week alumacraft is getting a call this monday and i'm demanding either a refund or a discount on this boat.I have owned it for less then a week and the dealership has had it for over a month.This is insane.They need a special rivet tool that only alumacraft has i was told and some how it got lost in the mail.It was sent to the dealer march 10th and still is lost.

If the boat was correctly manufactured from the start this would not have been necessary.Alumacraft has cost me a month so far on the water so they need to get this crap going.I buy a 1236 or 1436 and it's welded and riveted awesome and they are both under $1000,then i get a 1648 top of the line boat for near $2300 and i get a sh^& box.This has got be be one of the messiest welded boats i have ever seen alumacraft do.Even know the welds are sloppy i know they will be fine and hold up but the one that wasn't done close to right along with the rivets is no excuse and i'm losing my patience with these people.

As soon as i get my boat i will give you numbers.I have a 11 pitch prop on it stock but i'm going to run a 12 pitch because i know the 11 is way to small and will over rev extremely easy.

If it's an alumacraft dealer, one would think they would already have the specialty tools necessary to efficiently service the product they sell. That'd be like taking your truck to the dealership for a check engine light and the service manager telling you they have to order the diagnostic software. Something doesn't add up. To me it sounds like they're trying to buy themselves time to correct an issue they don't want you to know about.

I apologize for the negativity. I used to work at a shop that installs public safety equipment on law enforcement vehicles. My manager would make up outrageous stories to tell the customer in order to buy us more time to finish a vehicle. He didn't possess the scheduling skill necessary to run that shop effectively. I'm glad I left that place...whew! We did some awesome work though!

Yes,100%. I would think the same. They told me they usually never have issues with these boats so they don't have the rivet tool specifically made for the rivets they use on these boats. I don't know anymore. I should have bought a lowe or g3. If I can get my money back which I doubt I'm going with a g3 or lowe. I actually called alumacraft and they are the one who told me the tool was lost,the dealer has nothing to do with what's going on. Yes as you stated they should have the tool being a huge boat dealer and the only alumacraft dealer in the area but if alumacraft wouldn't of screwed this up in the first place I wouldn't be going through this.


Like I said,this is the only alumacraft boat I have ever had a major issue with,every other boat has been perfect from them. I'm only waiting till the end of this week andI'm demanding a refund or a new boat. I'm missing the best fishing of the yr here in Florida.

I hear ya. What part of Florida? I'm down here in Vero Beach.

West coast,Clearwater area. I gave up on these people,I told them just have my boat ready by September if that's possible. Never again will I buy an alumacraft. This is going on a month and a half now. I just keep getting the run around from both alumacraft and the dealer. One freaken weld and two rivets. G3 or Lowe for me down the road if I go bigger.

Go w 25! How much u get new 1648 for?

Well,good news. I think they will finally have it done by the end of this week to early next week. I can't wait to get this boat on the water. The 25hp with a 12 pitch prop should move This boat like a rocket ship. I bet with just me I can hit near30-32mph so I'm hoping for anyway. If I can get near 30mph,that's pretty darn fast for a jon boat,scary fast at least from my experience with my original 25hp 2 stroke mercury I had yrs ago. That motor was a beast. This suzuki should have similar power if not a bit more being a 3 cylinder. As soon as I get on my local lake to test it and do a bit of a break in I will post the stats.


I break in my motors hard,not abuse but these 4strokes need to be ran in hard to set the rings right. Some people follow what the manual recommends,key word is recommends. It can be broke in the way you want. I just vary the rpms up and down with some good wot bursts in the mix,the most important thing is never baby a new outboard,that's the worst thing for it because you will never set the rings right and it will never run at it's full power range. The manual is for protection of the motor just in case their was an issue it could be caught before a major catastrophe happens. I actually called suzuki about it and I asked if I break it in as I mentioned earlier,my way will that void my warranty,they said absolutely not,the manual is just a recommended guide and that's all.

Well,I guess it's next week because I didn't get a call to pick it up yet. I'm hoping to get it on my local lake by next week to play with the tilt and trim. I am going to adjust everything in a calm body of water so I can get perfect accurate readings on my gps. I'm hopeful to get near 30mph or better with the new 12pitch prop I got. As soon as I get it in the water I will post all the gps speeds,how it runs,how fuel efficient it is and how quiet it is. When started on the muffs it was so quiet,the throttle is I mean very touchy,it responds instantly. The efi I'm sure us the reason for that. If I achieve anything near or over 30mph with 3 people that will just amaze me. This is the boat I hope to keep for a long time. I wished I would of held out though a bit more as alumacraft just came out with a new 1848,the extra two feet could of came in handy.

Well no call still yet. If I don't hear anything by this Thursday then I'm calling. This is going on 2 months now,unbelievable if you ask me. Never again will I buy a alumacraft jon boat,unless it's a 1236 or 1436,they seem to build their smaller boats better if you can believe that. Ha,the less money spent = better boat,go figure.

scoobeb said:

If I achieve anything near or over 30mph with 3 people that will just amaze me.

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X2, might be hard to get to 30 w/ 1.