Well, the weather finally settled a bit here so I took the Nissan 6 HP extra long shaft (25 inch) down to the mooring today and installed it. I checked and it fits sideways in the lazarette just fine. I found that the top of the motor barely cleared the top of the lazarette which makes me wonder if the mounting board is higher than other boats as somebody previously reported 2 or three inches of clearance. I think I have less than 1/2 inch clearance.. I intend to visit Orca in the AM and motor around a bit. I think its a bit noisier at low speeds than the 8 HP I took out and it isn't as smooth because it is a single cylinder and the old engine was two cylinder. I'll report back on how it handles with the prop around 10 inches more underwater after I use it a bit.

Very Best, Ed