Hey everybody, one of my buddies has a long tail mud buddy with the 24hp honda motor on it. he is trying to sell it and has offered me a really good deal on it. my question is do any of you have this motor? if so how does it run? I've been looking for reviews on it but they seem to be scarce.

the boat i will put it on is a 1548 war eagle

anyone know about how fast it would run? speeds and handling?
how good does it do in the shallows, as well as open water?

and input on the subject would e greatly appreciated.

thank you.

Bro in law is running one. The only issue he has had with it, is the muffler is rusted to shit. He's fabbing a SS one for it now. Runs great.

I got one from a friend last year. Motor ran good for me this season. Have you ever run a longtail before? Takes a little getting used to for sure.

I don't use mine in open water but does great in mud and shallow hard bottom

I've got two on pressure cleaners that was use commercially for 15 years. Have change the plugs once I think, oil three time a year. Muffler s rusted out in the first year. Loud as hell but run great.

Can't speak for the MB frame, but the engine should be solid. I ran one on a GD longtail for a few years and it worked great. Good cold and hot weather manners.

One spot to watch for in them is the fuel shutoff solenoid in bottom of the carb. They have a tendency to corrode as ethanol separates and general debris collects. You can cut the tip off with a pair of dikes to eliminate that problem.

Sorry mine are 18 hp, sooo...never mind

Have one (a MB) that's been running since i was in high school, has been through a few props, one drive shaft replacement (bearings at the same time), and a few spark plugs and oil changes. The first time i ran it was 1998. It lived it's first 15 years on a 1546 express and ran good with 2-3, but slow with that 3rd person. Not sure what boat it's on now, but the guy we sold it to broke a prop on it and borrowed our current rig to go pick up some decoys Saturday, so it's still running pretty strong, just needs a prop lol. Never had any major mechanical work done (never pulled heads or anything like that). Muffler got a yearly paint job, never had to replace it. Carb occasionally had to be cleaned, but only after it sat for a while with gas in it. That frame and motor was ran by teenagers and college age kids (us, i admit it) for a few years, then we grew up and still ran it hard. Never stranded us, never had to do anything but change a spark plug or reconnect a wire we ripped off while out on the water/mud, in the trees and bushes, etc.

Yes, I want it back lol

Edit (i didn't really answer your question completely): I always wanted another foot on the boat, but with 2, it would run in almost no water with hard bottom (if the boat floated at all, or would float with us standing beside it, I could get in and it would go). Never worried about actual speeds (and i still don't care), so someone else will have to estimate those for you.

I love my 24 Honda, much better built motor than a Briggs IMO.
Ive had a few problems from the MB frame (bent up the skeg and mounting brackets from 180 hrs of hitting stumps, had problems with the prop shaft/prop/nuts all over tightening and dang near rurning a shaft, again from hitting stumps. The throttle cable set up is pretty chicken shit, and the customer service is pretty bad too. MB is about to discontinue longtails, so I don't know how hard it is gunna be to get parts from here on out.
I've had it on a 14x42 ribbed boat and a 18x42 custom, We have changed up quite a bit on it to fix MB's problems but I'd probly buy it again for the deal I got. They are a decent motor.

First boat: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=23987
New boat: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=45193

I have the same engine in the 20hp flavor. Really strong running setup. Only issues I've had out of the engine has been some fuel delivery issues but they're not really engine related, I'm having issues with long fuel lines etc...

The engine it's has been rock solid. Seems well built like most other Honda small engine stuff.