Motor mounted electric

[Tacklewasher]

I am looking for a decent electric for my 18 foot Starcraft and see that they have electrics that mount on the main motor.

http://www.boatsalvage.com/Minn_Kot...6312087--**********.374085133--view_id.238076

Anyone have experience with these? How easy are they to remove to prevent theft etc.?

I've be looking at the 24V setup to maybe replace a trolling motor. I troll at 1.5 - 4 mph and find my 10hp Honda is a bit fast for my liking. Having something like this looks pretty cool.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Motor mounted electric

Do you like to troll from the helm seat? That's what you would need to do. No -- they are bolted to the antivent plate so they are not a snap to remove. They also put a lot of extra weight on that plate. There is no substitute for a good bow mount troller. You need two big batteries for either rig but with bow mount you would likely have room up front whereas with an engine mount you either mount the batteries in the back to keep the power wires short, or you need to run very long lines to the motor. If you plan on trolling at 4 MPH with this motor, you will be running at near wide open which will drain the batteries rather quickly. If you Honda 10 trolls too fast, install a prop with less pitch. Much cheaper solution. 10 HP on an 18 foot boat should troll down nicely so check the idle in-gear RPM. It may simply be set too high.

 

[Tacklewasher]

Re: Motor mounted electric

Thanks.

I do like to steer with my main motor when trolling, but am concerned over the battery life.

I'll keep looking.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Motor mounted electric

Man, in your case I would stop looking at electric trollers and make the Honda work for you. You eliminate the two extra batteries and the problem of keeping them charged (an on-board smart charger is required) as the engine can't do it unless you run for several hours at wide open throttle. At the cost of gas that's not feasible. About $60 - $80 gets you a low pitch prop for the Honda. Your done. Link it to the big motor and steer away.