Outboards 20" or 25"
 

I got to say,, latelly I have seen so pretty good deals on used outboards on Cragslist/ebay ,,,But they all seem to be 20" shafts and not many 25" shafts ..On my v20 i have a 25" and was wondering if i wanted to go to a 20" do i really have to cut down my trasom the 5" or can i just bolt on a 20" ,,,would there really be that much of a performance differences /handleing differnces

You'd burn it up the first outing.
Cavitation/ventilation.
You really need to either cut the transom or have a bracket.

I've not looked at the possibility of adding a fixed jack plate, mounted upside down (or backwards) in order to accommodate a short shaft on a 25" transom (as opposed to a long shaft adapted to a 20" transom). It's possible the 5 or so inches of setback might work. One definite problem would be the likely inability to tilt the motor up appreciably. The cost difference in a 20" motor plus the fixed jack plate would probably be the same as a 25" engine.

Are you talking about a jack plate 0r something full size like a sea drive

Funny thing, I am looking for a 20 and most of what I am seeing on e-bay are 25's

yeah same here usually the 25" is easiest to find the harder to find should be the 20" and 30"

I wouldn't cut down a 25" transom, just wait for a 25" motor.

Based on what make of motor you get keep in mind that you can also extend a 20 ' inch motor to 25" with a BayMFG extension kit.

I have two that I've used on OMC's with great results. One a on a 235 and the other on the 150 currently mounted on my V - and have had no issues with either. I found two of the three I have on Ebay for almost next to nothing compared to what they cost new. Keep your eye open, its a much nicer way to go - no steering cable issues most run into when adding a jack plate.

Kamikaze