Hello all. 

I am very close to purchasing a 1996 Cajun with a Yamaha 150 on the back.  The previous owner has said that the guy before him was "afraid of the speed" so he took the jack plate off and now the boats top speed is 45 or something.  He has said that he has the jackplate and it needs to be installed by someone who knows what they are doing so the motor can be set at the right height.

From the reading I've done, this make sense but I would like to know how labor intensive it is to install said jack plate.  Should I just pay someone to do it?  How much should I expect to pay for that to be done?

I also might ad...I am not very interested in making it crazy fast in the beginning...i just want it to run well.  Can I bypass the installation of the jack plate and have the motor height adjusted to fix the low speed problem?

Motor height is only part of the equation.  The jackplate serves a couple of purposes.  It provides additional setback of the engine to increase the leverage so the motor can lift the bow easier.  It also moves the motor back away from the hull turbulance so the prop is running a better water.  Then it provides and easy method of adjusting engine height.  Getting the right setback and engine height and prop for optimal performance is what they call, finding the sweet spot.

If it was once on the boat, the control and steering cables should be long enough.  All you should have to do is unbolt the engine bolt the jackplate in the same holes the engine was mounted, being sure to seal them with plenty of 5200 Sealant.  Then just bolt the engine back to the jackplate.  Depending on the prop as to what you would start with for propshaft height, somewhere between 4 and 2 1/2 inches.

Just be sure you have a good, working water pressure guage before you start, it's a must have piece of equipment when you start messing with engine height.