Kicker motor necessary

[ziggy]

I’m sure this may have been covered but I can’t find the thread. I’m looking at perhaps purchasing a new 18-20’ boat. I notice many, particularly those like Hewecraft not only don’t have a kicker but also no bracket to mount one. Has this always been the case? Is it fairly straightforward to get a mounting bracket? Is the added weight a problem? I’ve always had a kicker so this is new to me, I like the idea of a backup motor and a separate motor for trolling. Maybe I’m missing something.

 

[Eden Island]

Our first boat was a 16' Skookum Sealer [think Oak Bay, Pedder Bay rental boats] with a 15 hp and later a 30. When we started making bigger trips, we added a 5 hp kicker. We only needed it a few times [eg. west of Bella Bella] but were very glad of the extra weight and separate fuel tank. The extra weight was not an issue.

 

[scott craven]

I see the value of having a kicker as a backup motor although I have run my boat for 20 years without one.
If your new boat has a 4 stroke main, you'll find it easy trolling with it from the helm.
Modern 4 strokes are fine to idle for hours.
Good luck with the search.

 

[tubber]

It depends on the conditions you fish in. I wouldn't put a prop guard on a main and like having one on my kicker. It's pretty easy to get turned in the waves in a smaller boat. Plus redundancy.

 

[Pineapple Express]

I fish with a main engine only. No kicker installed. There's a safety aspect that a second engine offers in case the main breaks down, but that is largely mitigated with modern fuel-injected 4-stroke engines which are very reliable and tolerate idling and trolling perfectly well. Trolling with the main is quieter than a kicker, usually less vibration, and you have better steering authority with the larger propeller.

You'll hear people saying that they use a kicker to avoid putting hours on the main. Unless you're a full-time charter captain I think this is a non-issue. Outboards deteriorate mostly due to age and corrosion, not hours. You'll hear many many stories of commercial operators with 7500+ hours on 4-strokes. There seems to be some notion with recreational fishers that outboards are wornout once they hit 1000hrs which I think is false.

 

[King Crab]

Give Sherwood a call. I’ve seen them bolt on an “L” bracket to mount kickers.

I always have to have a second reliable motor on my boats. I recall having to come home on a kicker more than once when I was a kid on my dad’s boat.

 

[Sharphooks]

My Yamaha T25 just had the power tilt motor die (2 year old motor… wtf????)

I just tried trolling on a Suzuki DF300 for the first time in my fishing career…I’m sure the flasher and hootchie or flasher and spoon crowd are happy fishing that way and at that speed but for me….way too fast for fishing bait!

I’m not going back out in the water until I get the tilt motor replaced

Just my .015 cents