J/30 Class Association Forums J/30 Forum The Boat, Sails and Equipment Repowering 2QM15 to Beta 16

The ole Yanmar is being replaced. Beta looks great & has great reviews. Has anyone used the Beta 14 or 16 as a replacement? It's a Kubota two cylinder marinized with a heat exchanger, oil change pump, etc. Looks pretty neat. It's also 120 pounds lighter than the Yanmar.

Hi Rick,
If you're planning on racing One Design you might want to check with Charlie Stoddard (Class Measurer) to verify that that's an OK engine per Rule 5.13.1/2. I'd suspect that since it's lighter you coud probably add ballast if needed for one design, but I'd verify it first.

Correct you will have to ballast to the same weight to stay class legal the weight will have to be in the same location

surprised you havn't looked at a Yamar which would just drop in

My father has had a tough time getting a mechanic to repair the original Volvo MD7A in his Albin Ballad 30. It needs pistons, rings, valves... Diesel boat mechanics are pretty rare in Nashville. The nearest guy is 100 miles away. He never returned calls or emails. Long, long story short, I gave my dad my Yanmar to get him back on the water. I have great experienced help (we call it talent).
About 5 hours to remove the Volvo & gauges with two of us. About 2 hours to remove Yanmar from the J/30 (halyards bracing boom, main sheet, and an out haul rig).
As for buying a Yanmar here, no luck. I had a hard time even getting parts last year due to sales territories. Farron and Lisa at Beta marine answer phone calls and emails. Excellent service and technical support. I will be engine-less, less than a week.
Like I said, leaving out lots of a long story...
If you still have one, take care of your father!