Mercury outboard troll control vs kicker motor

[ffelrod]

Evening All,

I'm in the process of looking for a new boat. I'd love to hear some opinions of others who know more than I do.

The first question I have is should I go with the Merc Optimax or the 4 stroke?

The second question is do I spend the extra $900 and get the tachometer that allows trolling control on the main motor; or, do I spend $4500 and get a kicker motor? I've heard that the trolling control function works very well, so seems like a no brainer. But, I'm a little concerned of long term damage at low trolling speeds on a 115 HP motor. Also, does it eat gas compared to a kicker motor (9.9 HP)? It's not uncommon for me to spend 8 straight hours of trolling in a day.

Thanks All!!

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Mercury outboard troll control vs kicker motor

Well, we don't where you live, what you want to troll (fish) for, or how big your boat will be, so there's no good way to give any answers.

The best kickers in the 9.9 range are about $2,800 or so (US).

I think if you fill in some of the details you'll get more answers than you'll want.

 

[ffelrod]

Re: Mercury outboard troll control vs kicker motor

Thanks for the reply! I live in Iowa. I mostly fish for walleyes. I also take a trip to Nothern Manitoba regularly. I'm looking to get a bigger boat that can also accomodate my family for tubing and just general fun.

I understand the new 2 stroke engines with DFI are much better than they used to be. They are easier in cold weather, not so cold blooded to start and don't have the same issues from inactivity that the carbed 2 strokes used to have. I also understand that the 2 and 4 stroke engines are both good on gas. I've heard that the 4 stroke tends to be be better for trolling and are quieter.

There is a nominal difference in price, so I guess right now I'm leaning toward the 4 stroke because of the amount of trolling that I do.

As far as the question of the kicker motor vs the tachometer control which allows digital control of the RPMs. -- There are advantages to both either way. It would be nice to have a back up motor if in case I loose the lower unit to a rock up in Canada. But, if the 4 stroke 115 HP with the troll control function works just as well as the kicker, then I could save the money of not getting the kicker motor.

My concerns with the troll control feature is that running a big motor like that at a low RPM rate (down to 650) might cause long term harm on the engine. Additionally, I'm not sure if I'm going to burn gas up tremendously faster in the big motor vs a 9.9 HP.

The cost comparison is $830 for the troll control feature vs. $4,240 for a 9.9 kicker set for remote control and tied to the console for steering. Hope all that helps!

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Mercury outboard troll control vs kicker motor

When it comes to the setup for fishing in certain bodies of water for a particular fish you can get a much better idea of what is needed by looking at the successful boats on that lake. If you will fish many different lakes for different fish and use different methods, then buy the gas Kicker.

I know I would buy the kicker and it wouldn't cost me $4,240.

Trolling with the big motor can work OK, but may be much too fast for many types of fish, especially in fresh water, the electric motor will work well for slow stuff and calmer water. A gas Kicker offers great thrust in wind and waves and will do it at any trolling speed, plus a charging system to keep the batteries up. You can also make it back to the dock easily with it if the big motor breaks.