Kicker Install Question

[Dan M]

Just started looking for a used kicker for my 2006 Tracker Pro Guide V16.

Main motor is a 75hp Mercury.

It's obvious one of the previous owners had a kicker installed - I was thinking about a 9.9 Mercury long shaft, as we mostly troll for musky and trout.

Looking at my transom, and where the previous owner had it mounted - does this look doable? Does this U bracket for the trailer tie down get in the way?

I plan on getting a steering bar to steer from the steering wheel, and remote throttle.

[horsehunter]

I don't know but if your main motor is a 4 stroke I would just go with a pair of bags. Your looking at adding a lot of weight to one side of a 16 foot boat and  the height looks a bit much for a 20 inch shaft. 25 inch extra long may be hard to find.I'm assuming your looking at a tiller and it looks like the previous owner didn't use it much. Borrow a small motor and hang it on to see where everything sits.

[Dan M]

7 minutes ago, horsehunter said:

I don't know but if your main motor is a 4 stroke I would just go with a pair of bags. Your looking at adding a lot of weight to one side of a 16 foot boat and  the height looks a bit much for a 20 inch shaft. 25 inch extra long may be hard to find.I'm assuming your looking at a tiller and it looks like the previous owner didn't use it much. Borrow a small motor and hang it on to see where everything sits.

I actually have a pair of bags, and this motor came with a trolling plate as well.

I was wanting the kicker to keep the hours off the main motor (only 100 hours or so on it) - and for backup/safety.

Main motor is a 2 stroke

 

*edit* - however, weight was a concern of mine that I am thinking about as well.

Edited December 29, 2019 by Dan M

[Sk8man]

Given the size of your boat  and weight considerations you may wish to look at a smaller kicker than a 9.9 and certainly one without trim/tilt as extra weight. Some of the Tohatsu's are lighter framed than the Merc's for example yet offer good performance. You might be able to get away with a 6 hp for that boat but an 8hp would do a great job and get you off the lake a little faster in an emergency. You could probably get out and away from any transom "obstacles" with a bracket and steering bar set-up hooked to your main motor. interestingly, I found that I could do away with the EZsteer setup when I moved from a 2 stroke to 4 stroke kicker (more torque). I just steer with my big motor unless it is pretty rough (3-6 footers). You may wish to at least experiment  before actually buying and installing a steering hook-up.

[Dan M]

4 minutes ago, Sk8man said:

Given the size of your boat  and weight considerations you may wish to look at a smaller kicker than a 9.9 and certainly one without trim/tilt as extra weight. Some of the Tohatsu's are lighter framed than the Merc's for example yet offer good performance. You might be able to get away with a 6 hp for that boat but an 8hp would do a great job and get you off the lake a little faster in an emergency. You could probably get out and away from any transom "obstacles" with a bracket and steering bar set-up hooked to your main motor. interestingly, I found that I could do away with the EZsteer setup when I moved from a 2 stroke to 4 stroke kicker (more torque). I just steer with my big motor unless it is pretty rough (3-6 footers). You may wish to at least experiment  before actually buying and installing a steering hook-up.

Good info - thanks - I'll look into the 8hp Tohatsu. I'd rather not the bracket obviously, but I guess I wouldn't know if I would need it until I had an actual motor to put on there.

[MCF]

You won't need any bracket to mount the motor.  It will work hanging off the back on the transom like the previous owner had.  On a 16ft, you could go down as far as 6 hp if one appeared.

[chowder]

I have a 6 hp merc 4 stroke tiller extralong on my 165 Alumacraft connected to the 50 hp merc 4 stroke with a very inexpensive bracket on the front of the two motors. IMHO  you would want a solid but economical kicker bracket in order to be able the trim the kicker up without undue restrictions.

[Sk8man]

The reason I mentioned a bracket is what Andy is mentioning as it allows you to get the motor up and out of the water (i.e. not dragging which can mess it up) and because you have a greater range of motion for turning with the kicker.

[Dan M]

10 minutes ago, chowder said:

I have a 6 hp merc 4 stroke tiller extralong on my 165 Alumacraft connected to the 50 hp merc 4 stroke with a very inexpensive bracket on the front of the two motors. IMHO  you would want a solid but economical kicker bracket in order to be able the trim the kicker up without undue restrictions.

Do you wish you had went with the 8hp over the 6hp for trolling?

[rolmops]

One solution is a bracket, but how about an extra long shaft 6 horse kicker? In your picture you have a tape measure showing a length of 25 inches which is what an extra long shaft is. That way you can just flip the engine over forward when not in use. As for 4 stroke, if your main engine is a 2 stroke , a 4 stroke kicker means not only extra weight but also requires extra room for another tank. That adds another minimal 3 gallons of extra weight (24 pounds) while with a 2 stroke kicker you can just splice it into your main tank. (unless the oil for your main engine is mixed in at the carburetor inlet). You may want to look at a sailing website where extra long kickers are often advertised.

Edited December 29, 2019 by rolmops

[Dan M]

27 minutes ago, rolmops said:

One solution is a bracket, but how about an extra long shaft 6 horse kicker? In your picture you have a tape measure showing a length of 25 inches which is what an extra long shaft is. That way you can just flip the engine over forward when not in use. As for 4 stroke, if your main engine is a 2 stroke , a 4 stroke kicker means not only extra weight but also requires extra room for another tank. That adds another minimal 3 gallons of extra weight (24 pounds) while with a 2 stroke kicker you can just splice it into your main tank. (unless the oil for your main engine is mixed in at the carburetor inlet). You may want to look at a sailing website where extra long kickers are often advertised.

The main is EFI - so I could tap into the current fuel tank for a 4 stroke.

[Sk8man]

With the extra long shaft you'd probably be dragging in the water with it all the way up for sure. You might not see it while on land but the boat sits lower while in the water

[Dan M]

Yea I think I'm gonna be on the lookout for an 8hp, and use a bracket if needed

[sstout]

I have an 8hp tohatsu as a kicker on a 16ft starcraft hooked with a steering bar to the main 60hp two stroke. The tohatsu has been awesome. I installed a troll master this last season, so throttle is up front as is steering tied to the main. I will say the weight thing though. It's not bad, but you do notice theres more weight on one side of the boat. I like having the kicker as a backup too. My main 60hp merc is older, but still reliable. If I had to the tohatsu, which is new, can push the boat well enough to get me back. I like the 8hp. It trolls right down but is still powerful enough to act as a backup if need be. My tohatsu might weigh a little more since it has options like electric start. Its run on it's own fuel tank since I premix the other two for the main. I cant comment on the bracket idea. My transom has a spot for a kicker. Goodluck, outfitting your boat just the way you want is the fun part

[sstout]

Here's a pic of the 8hp 4 stroke next to the 60hp merc, 1988. You can see the tohatsu is farely large and almost the same size. Great motor though

[Blue Heron]

I have the same boat (a couple years newer w/ a 60 hp 4st merc) and have a 6hp tohatsu 4 stroke (sail-pro model from onlineoutboards.com) mounted directly on the transom . They are connected with a simple quick connect rod on the front - It works great and does not drag in the water when running with it raised on the bracket. The eye on the back of the boat is not an issue.

I previously had a 16' lund that was very similar and had an 8hp tohatsu on it - the 8hp was a little smoother at trolling speed since it was 2 cylinder and it had elec start

 

Either will work with out any fancy stuff needed on the transom and neither seemed to create any issue due to their weight

 

I used a control-king speed controller on both

Edited December 30, 2019 by Blue Heron
additional info

[Dan M]

11 minutes ago, Blue Heron said:

I have the same boat (a couple years newer w/ a 60 hp 4st merc) and have a 6hp tohatsu 4 stroke (sail-pro model from onlineoutboards.com) mounted directly on the transom . They are connected with a simple quick connect rod on the front - It works great and does not drag in the water when running with it raised on the bracket. The eye on the back of the boat is not an issue.

I previously had a 16' lund that was very similar and had an 8hp tohatsu on it - the 8hp was a little smoother at trolling speed since it was 2 cylinder and it had elec start

 

Either will work with out any fancy stuff needed on the transom and neither seemed to create any issue due to their weight

 

I used a control-king speed controller on both

Thanks - yea Looking at either an 8hp or 9.9 since the weight is pretty much the same. I troll for most of the day so wanted to go with the 2 cylinder

[FishingFool34]

I have a 2018 Tohatsu 8hp for sale if you’re interested send me a PM.