Some help for a newbie.

Howdy all.

I picked up a 2018 20hp four stroke tiller. It is on a small Carolina Skiff J14. I have had it out on the water a few times and it is a blast. I have a couple questions some more experienced boaters might be able to help with.

First off is the prop. So far the performance is solid as far as I can tell. It gets up and on plane pretty quick. Top speed with just me is about 24mph. Honestly I am happy. However I am curious, I am located in Colorado at about 6,000 feet. The prop I got is the one that came on the motor. Should I try out another prop or is it not even worth the effort?

In my manual it says to trailer the motor in the down position. I have plenty of clearance to do this but I wanted to ask if this is best. I want to make sure it is the right way to do it so curious any opinions out there.

When I do trailer the motor turns due to being in the down position. Is this bad? Is there a way to lock the motor so it can't turn from side to side when on the road?


Motor runs great. However after a couple hours on the water the motor will stall out. I will start it up and when I give it throttle it will bog down and eventually stall. I have to pump the bulb a bit and it fires up and runs fine. It is as if it just looses fuel for a second. I am curious about this and why it does it? Could it really be as simple as having to squeeze the fuel line bulb a bit? Seams odd that once it is all up and running and the gas tank is close to full it would do this. Maybe an air bubble in the line?

Last question is I have been running the engine out of gas when I am done. I pull the fuel line, let it run till it stalls. I won't go long between uses now the season is here. Probably using the boat every week or so throughout the summer. Do I need to run it out of gas?

Thanks all.

If you bought the motor in Colorado it should be propped correctly. You would need a tach to know if it is correct. Yes trailer the motor in the down position. This is because the motor tends to rock on the transom when it is tilted up. It could also have something to do with the oil. Over time this can damage the transom. Try opening the gas cap a little and see if it still stalls out. If it does take it to the dealer you ought it from. There might be a way to adjust the steering tension on the motor. Your owners manual should have all this info.

Everything flyingscott said is right on! One other thing you may want to check if it is not new is the bulb it self, they can go bad. As for your last one about running it dry, I do the same thing with my 40 HP 2-Stroke. Not sure if it matters with a 4-sroke or not but it is piece of mind for me, 2-strokes just don't like the ethanol fuel.