Add Kicker Yes or No

[izuizme]

I just got a 16 foot wellcraft from the 70's in really good shape.Powered by merc 90hp. and it has a swim platform. Anything wrong with a attaching a 8hp kicker to this boat. I'd hate to get stuck without any propulsion.

 

[andrewkafp]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

You won't even notice it's there. Just make sure the leg doesn't drag in the water when fully up.<br />8hp will be fine for getting you back, although slow.

 

[ratherbefishin]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

look at it this way- your main motor packs it in far from home-now- what price a kicker?Also, for trolling, would you rather idle along with the big motor, or run the kicker?

 

[Link]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

I agree with the above. Plus it's no fun getting<br />stuck at the wronge end of a lake. <br /><br />Link

 

[ZmOz]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

If it was me I'd get one of those trolling motors that mounts on the cav plate of your outboard. When the boat is moving fast they raise up out of the water, so it doesn't effect the performance. I do plan on getting one myself...eventually...

 

[andrewkafp]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

I have a 6hp Suzuki,and I tried her out by turning off main, locking 6hp on straight, using the main to steer. this works fine over a long distance, but the tiller is recommended coming into dock.<br />It pushed my 14 footer with 2 on board no effort.

 

[Boatist]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

If you do any boating in the ocean then a kicker is a must. I would not try to steer with the main motor with kicker lock straight ahead, this will work on a calm day with no wind and higher kicker rpm, but add some wind or waves and you will find can not steer very well at all.<br />If your main motor does not have hydrolic steering then use a EZ Steer or some thing simular. If main motor is hydrolic steering then then go with some type of seperate steering system for the kicker so you can still steer with the main motor shut off.<br />If you go off shore then mounting the motor on back of the swim platform may not be the best idea as when you go over big swells prop may come out of the water.<br /><br />I would not go offshore with out a kicker and a good VHF radio.

 

[andrewkafp]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

Right on Boatist.<br />We don't venture out into the ocean, and a calm day is a MUST.<br />I've put it down to cowardess. <br />The idea of using the main to steer is that the Aux has a tiller and it's hard to see where you're going from way back there, so the wheel can be used.But as you pointed out, strictly calm bays and lakes only.

 

[duck-n-pond]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

I use a 3hp kicker on a 15'2" bowrider. Even a 3hp can push you along 4-6 knots with just me in the boat. I won't be water skiing, but it will get me back. Run the kicker from time to time as I went on several trips, then decided to run the kicker for a while and now having trouble with it. As for steering, I DO use the main motor. I found steering from the kicker tiller very poor and difficult. When I tried using the main to steer it was very easy, even not bad in a moderate wind. Plus I gained +2 knots because my fat *** was not in the back of the boat causing the bow to rise!!!!

 

[andrewkafp]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

My 1986 Suzuki 6, has done very little work and I run it in a barrel every 4 weeks with fresh fuel and additive. When I bought it, it had not been started for years, and with fresh fuel and a few pulls, off she went. Ever since, it's just a few tugs on the rope. The Japanese make nice little motors. (And BIG ones too)

 

[Kilgore Trout]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

I have a 3. 5 on my 26 foot sailboat. Pushes a 5000 lb boat, with 5 people effortlessly. Its not fast, but gets you into the dock, and around the harbor when you don't feel like dealing with the sails.<br /><br />I also have a 15hp which I never bother to use.

 

[NOSLEEP]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

I use a 5hp honda kicker on my 17 ft. Even in high<br />winds in the mountians I have been able to get <br />back 20 kms to dock. I use an ez-steer to connect<br />to my 120 evinrude, So I can stear from the helm.

 

[airman]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

Make sure the kicker sits low enough in the water. On my 21' I need a longshaft to get the prop into clear water below the hull. I borrowed a short shaft to try out and I had much less power in fwd and virtually nothing in reverse. I'll never leave the dock without a spare motor. Steering with the main has proved fine for me, I don't even lock the kicker straight. I've never had a breakdown in really nasty stuff though. If I did I guess it would be a long ride steering from the back. One of these days maybe I'll get around to linking the motors together but in the meantime I'm always confident that I'll make it home.

 

[walleyehed]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

airman, I put a 7.5 jonny on my 18ft starcraft w/115. I made a tie rod between the 2 with rod-ends, and brackets attached with SS clamps to the back side of the mid sections and with a little math, you can figure how long the arm needs to be on each eng. to stear fully in both directions...

 

[izuizme]

Re: Add Kicker Yes or No

THANKS FELLAS IBOAT FORUMS RULE..!!