adding a trolling motor to a canoe

[news_watch]

Guys,
I fish the Swift Creek Reservior out of a canoe quite often.
Paddle only up till now, so I limit my travel to the shallow side I put in on (west of Woolridge).
This spring I want more moblity without the work[excited], so I'm considering adding a trolling motor to the canoe.
It is a 16 ft Mohawk.

Questions:
1. Anyone have plans for building a side mount? Looks like one can be made from treated lumber without too much effort, based on pictures of units sold on the internet.
2. What about thrust limitations? I was blindly thinking I could put just about any size motor on the canoe, and go speeding along, but I've seen horsepower limitations on some of the mounts.
I was considering about 40 pounds, give or take.

thanks for all replies.....


nw

[Linstad]

Look at the http://www.kayakfishingstuff.com forums in the DIY section for people who have added motors to their yaks, it can be done....you need to register the boat though if it is under power.

Chris from ND...

[Cory ruthless Routh]

Mad River makes a Trolling Motor Bracket for their canoes.

[Juke]

I used a 30 lb thrust Minn Kota for years in the intercoastal waters of Jacksonville Florida. I just used a piece of wood on each side of the canoe to hold it in place. That worked with my canoe. Put the battery up front so you don't have much weight in the back. Several companies have made some mounts I think Bass pro even sells one.

[news_watch]

Juke,
That is what I'm considering.
Squeeze clamp type arrangement, gunnel to gunnel, using a couple of large bolts and wingnuts to clamp it down.
Contour the ends to the bend of the canoe and have a deadman come up into the end of the canoe and hold it in place with another wingnut/bolt.
Mohawk has a 1/4 inch or better drain hole in the end of the canoe that would work.

nw

[HJS]

news watch - I've been using a 35# Motorguide (Stealth model) troller with a 30" shaft on my 16' Oldtown Camper for years, maybe 100 launchings. Mostly use the troller when fishing big lakes and the Chesapeake's side rivers like the Patapsco, Magothy and the Susky Flats. Works GREAT!!! I bought the factory side mount from Oldtown and it works very well. I always take two Power Series Deep-cycle 175 batteries I bought from Bass Pro Shops, (~55# each). The one in use sits under my seat and the spare is stored up front as far as it will go to balance out the load. I highly recommend two batteries. I mostly go solo, and when I do I sit in the "front" seat but facing the other way... but you probably already knew that. My son and I agree that theres must be at least a 1000 paddle strokes stored in each battery... thats a lot!!! One battery going full speed takes me about 2.5 miles. I've never worn out both batteries, but I've come close a time or two. When I need to travel a fair ways I'll paddle at the same time. I estimate my top sustainable speed, motor with paddling, is roughly 4.5 to 5mph.

I've often wondered what a more powerful troller would do for me. But, I've had a couple scary moments early on with the one I'm using now. My Motorguide has 5 speeds forward plus an on/off switch. I mostly use the on/off switch. If by chance I hit the "on" switch while my motor is set at top speed AND turned to the side 90 degrees to the boat, the motor makes a dang good effort at rolling the canoe. Its never has rolled me but has scared the bejebbers outta me once or twice. Now I'm VERY aware of where the speed control is set before I hit the "on" switch. A 45# troller might have been enough to rolled me over.

I might also add that I only go solo in my 16 footer. I found that 2 people plus 2 batteries, motor and a ton of fishing gear is a bit much and the canoe becomes uncomfortably tippy. When I want to take out another person, with all the gear, I use my 18' aluminum Grumman canoe, its much more stable with all that weight.

Years ago, when I bought the troller, I made a wooden side mount out of pressure treated wood. I used 1" thick decking to span the canoe and, using big assed bolts, attached a small piece 1.75" thick stock as an attachment point for the motor. Used small stainless bolts with wingnuts to attach bracket to the canoe. Worked OK but took too much time to install each time... kept dropping the wing nuts in the mud. The Oldtown side mound attaches in 20 seconds tops, I've never looked back.

And last, with a motor attached you will need to register it and put on numbers. In MD, my 16 footer is free (must be under 16 feet... OK, so I lied a little) but my 18 footer cost about $12 annually (I think). Plus if you use the troller at night then you also need red/green running lights and a white light. I never go out at night, never really wanted to.

Heavy weed growth gets all caught up in the motor... royal pain! I mounted a FF transducer on the bottom of the motor using a little bracket I bought from BPS.

Go for it, you won't regret it.

[Capt.Nick]

Like HJS said,be careful with the throttle,go easy.I had the same problem with a 17'coleman canoe.vVery unstable.If I were going that route again,I'd get a square stern canoe.I have a 55# thrust Minnkota that is the largest 12v.you can buy..around $225 and it has good power for a 12v.

[Juke]

This morning on Basstech they dressed out a 14' Heritage Redfish with a 54 lb trolling motor, and outriggers. Looked like crap. Really defeated the purpose of having a kayak. Hauled tail though.

[moc]

I have a canoe with a trolling motor and I have a Tarpon 120 Angler too. My canoe is an old 16 foot Scanoe by Coleman. It has a metal flat back to add a trolling motor or small engine. I have a Minnkota 50 lb thrust trolling motor and it works great. It can move (according to a GPS) at 3 to 3.8 mph with two adult males, fishing rods, cooler, crabbing gear and 2 to 3 marine batteries. When one battery gets weak, we just switch out anotherone. The 50 lb of thrust I find move stronger and faster when you have to move against current. I have taken the canoe on the Choptank River, Rhodes River, Potomac River, Fished out of Point lookout and fished the Tangier. Caught lots of fish and never had to spend money on gas. It is better than paddling since you can cover more distance in a faster time. I never really use more than two batteries, but I like to take a third if I know I am going to be out for a long while.

[chesapeakeblend]

In maryland you DO NOT NEED TO REGISTER THE CANOE if the motor is under 7 hp. I believe it is 7hp but could be 10 but look at the DNR regs.

mike

[Capt.Nick]

You must register "All" boats,canoes,kayaks,inflatable rafts, etc.if they are propelled by any kind of motor including electric motors & gas engines under 7.5HP in Md.The fee for under 7.5 hp. & electric motors is $2 + you must also produce a bill of sale, pay a 5% sales tax if you haven't already done so and place numbers on the hull at your own expense.

[HJS]

Capt.Nick's got it right. I'll C&P what I got from the DNR boating website:

http://www.dnr.state.md.us/boating/registration/

======================================
How do I know if my vessel must be registered in Maryland? Your vessel, whether commercial or recreational, must be registered in Maryland if it:
is equipped with any kind of primary or auxiliary mechanical propulsion;
is not currently registered with the U.S. Coast Guard (documented) and;
is being used principally in Maryland.
=========================================
$24 registration fee (vessels 16 feet in length or less, propelled by a motor of 7.5 horsepower or less, are exempt from the fee). The registration is valid for the calendar year in which it is issued plus the subsequent year.
=========================================

So if want to put a troller on your 16' canoe (or less) it must be registered but the registration fee is waved. Over 16' it $24 for two years.

[chesapeakeblend]

yeah i just found that on their website.

is that within the fast few years? when i had a jon boat a few years back when DNR told me I was not required to have it licensed.

[HJS]

I put a troller on my canoe about 10 years ago and I had to register both my 16' & 18' canoes then. The 18 footer was already 40 years old and I had virtually no titles or papers for it, and no serial number of any sorts. I forget exactly how it was done but registering an undocumented canoe turned out to be no problem.

[Riverman]

Hey guys, my buddy and I are working on a bow mount trolling motor for a yak that you can stow and deploy. He works on Motorguide trolling motors and has access to factory parts. We have fit his with one and are almost done with mine. We took them completely apart and cut both shafts down so the total length is about 2 feet long. Will post after the maiden trip and we were thinking of selling them if there was any interest out there.[grin]

[Tim Clinton]

I have used a minkota 36 lb thrust un my 14 ft fiberglass canoe for years on the james, swift creek and appomattox. Works like a charm. If you paddle athird of the time, one battery is plenty- I use long wires to store the battery up front for balance. I have rigged two pieces of treated lumber bolted to the side, with the gunwale cut out, so brackets are not needed. I fish solo alot, so the less I carry the better- less hauling means more time on the water! good luck- Tim

[Tim Clinton]

I have used a minkota 36 lb thrust un my 14 ft fiberglass canoe for years on the james, swift creek and appomattox. Works like a charm. If you paddle athird of the time, one battery is plenty- I use long wires to store the battery up front for balance. I have rigged two pieces of treated lumber bolted to the side, with the gunwale cut out, so brackets are not needed. I fish solo alot, so the less I carry the better- less hauling means more time on the water! good luck- Tim

[Juke]

If you side mount a trolling motor on a yak, you'll need outriggers to keep it upright.

[JimBob]

Sorry, I'm a bit late on this but....

I'm not (at all) an expert, but basically displacement hulls like canoes and kayaks of a given design (particularly length to width ratio) reach a speed where addition of power just doesn't help much - if at all. I'm thinking 30 - 36 lbs of thrust is more than enough. Loading might make a difference but I doubt you'd want to load the canoe to the point that it makes that much difference.

I have an old 17 lb thrust motor (impossible to even find that low thrust anymore) that moves my Mohawk 16' right along. One of these days I'll replace it (and whatever I get will have to be bigger, by default) and see what more thrust really does. I expect some improvement but I'm not expecting that big a change.

Not to the point, but.....One thing that I think would be good is to have is a fully variable thrust range, instead of the 4 - 5 speeds they have these days. This is especially true with the more powerful motors. Back in the 70's we had motor like that on a jon boat, and for a while LL Bean carried one specifically for canoes, but I don't think they do any more (I could be wrong).

My two cents. Good luck.

Jim

[HJS]

Jim - In the distance past on TF there was a similar discussion about haul speeds, trolling motors and prop pitch as they relate to canoes. Admittedly, more speculation than fact... and with no real meaningful resolution either. Your right, haul speed is very important - long & narrow boats (like canoes) have less resistance and therefore a higher haul speed than coventional boats. But, IMHO, trollers and their props are basically design to power bigger, high resistance boats like rowboats, bass boats and even Bay boats... virtual scows when compared to the sleekness of a canoe.

An analogy to putting a trolling motor with conventual prop on a canoe might be like putting 4 small-diameter Mickey Mouse tires on a Corvette. The Vette will go a lot slower at the same rpm but it will have a lot of leftover power to spare. Mounting appropriate tires will make it go faster. Similarly, installing an appropriate, higher pitched prop designed for a canoe's troller might make it go faster. Dunno... sounds logical to me.

I brought this up to a Motorguide rep at the Timonium Fishing Show but didn't get a satisfactory answer. He seemed clueless as to what I was referring to. All I know is that when I paddle with the troller on full-speed the canoes goes at least another mile per hour faster. A mile per hour probably sounds like chump-change to conventional motor boater, but with a canoe thats like a 25% increase in speed. Oh well, I guess the debate continues.

[moc]

My canoe is registered in Maryland. DNR told me that I would have to register it if it was powered. However, the price is cheap. Only when you go over 7hp, then you have to register at a higher rate like regular motor boats.

[JimBob]

HJS, I'm with you on this, but there is a hull speed limit (which your motor apprently doesn't quite reach) and as you approach the hull speed limit your return on power input drops off. The question is, (in your case, say) is the marginal return in speed worth the weight and money to add more power? My vote would be no. But, then again, I'm cheap.

By the way, when my mighty 17 lb motor is maxed out, I'm wondering how much energy is going into overcoming just the drag of the shaft. It would be interesting to put some sort of lose fairing on the thing (to stay streamlined to the flow) to see how much difference it makes. I bet that there would be another mile an hour there. HMMM ..a science project.

Good point on the prop pitch. Unfortunately we are a marginal market to the motor people.

Everybody saying you need to register a powered vessel in MD is correct. Inexpensive, but annoying.


Jim

[Bob G]

News watch - I've used a trolling motors on my 16 foot Penobscot for years and in other canoes, and it's great for windy days when you've got to paddle like hell or you want to get to breaking fish quick. My advice is you don't need much power with a canoe, and want the shortest shaft you can get. I found this out quick on the James River when I got my first rig, and was constantly having to raise the motor to get over rocks!

Last year I got my first kayak, and now I'm considering selling my motor (28 lb Minn Kota), motor mount and battery as a set. I extended the power cord on the motor so you can put the battery amidships to balance your weight. The mount is a nifty item made by some guy out of his shop in PA. Both are in great shape. I work on South side, if your interested we could meet and you could take a look at them. Leave me a deposit and you can try the whole rig out.

Oh yeah, any motorized vessel needs to be registered in VA.