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I DO NOT have lag bolts screwed directly into wood Geo. My lower bolts enter from the splash well and go into threaded holes in the mounting bracket of my motor. I believe this is the reference to "Blind Bolts". I would bet if any of our members were Marine Mechanics back in the days 1960's through the mid 1980's they would tell us there was a template guide provided by OMC that would hang on the back of the transom and act as a guide for drilling. I think mine and many other Johnson/Evinrude motors were mounted all the way down as a standard practice by most dealers as conventional wisdom of the day. It appears the invention of much better propellers and instant adjustment of trim and tilt is what has given rise to the current wisdom of raising the motor to achieve the optimum performance.

Back as a young boy my Dad always had ski boats and there was basically 2 props available for most motors, Speed or Power. At one point I remember he even had a very special prop that has adjustable fins that allowed for a number of changes in the pitch angle. These days there is a lot more geometry to setting up a motor to match a particular hull design as well as power trim and tilt adjustable on the fly and even trim tabs so we can match engine RPM at Wide Open Throttle and dial in the speed and handling characteristics to suit our needs.

I remember very well the trials and tribulations my Dad went through back in the early 1960s getting each of our boats set up with the correct propeller and the tilt pin in the correct slot so as to achieve the desired performance. It was amazing that a simple change in the tilt pin position on the motor could produce a vast difference when pulling a skier out of the water. Today we can usually just push a button or two once we find the right prop and best motor mounting height.

Gary