kicker motor, Do I really need it?

[picksbigwagon]

my boat is a 87 crestliner fishhawk tiller. I have a 40 hp evinrude and a 9.9 evi kicker on the back. this will be my 3rd summer with the boat and I am wonder why I actually keep the kicker on the back. I am not gonna sell it for the the couple times a year I head to Mille Lacs or Superior, but for the rest of my fishing, I use my 65 ft # 24 volt minnkota autopilot. what am I missing if I take the kicker off the back?

In fact, can I solely use my trolling motor for trolling lindys and cranks when I am on Mille Lacs and Superior and figure something else to do with that kicker?

I don't back troll, the boat used to have a homemade version of wavewackers but they didn't come with the purchase.

thanks for the help

[PerchJerker]

If I had a 40 hp tiller, I doubt that I would be using a kicker motor.

I would think you could learn effective ways to use your 40 and your AutoPilot for livebait and for cranks. There was a post not long ago about slowing down trolling speed, find that and read it for some ideas. Above all else, a driftsock will do wonders for you in numerous situations.

[outdoor ran]

Even if I can troll with the bow mount or big motor. It sure gives me a piece of mind knowing I got the kicker if something happens to the main motor and wind kicks up.

[Valv]

Tom, I agree with both above. You shouldn't need the 9.9 unless you want assurance in case you navigate big waters.

if you get a sock you'll drop your speed to almost nothing since you have a 40hp.

[picksbigwagon]

just got back online, had some wisdom teeth pulled gotta love that vicoden, anyway, I will probably pull the kicker and store it in the garage until those couple trips a year I head to Mille Lacs or superior. Now how do I hook up a wave sock to the back of my boat? I have a 40" wave sock, I would have to imagine that I need to drop it 20-30 feet behind the boat?

[MuskieJunkie]

If it were me I would not run a kicker with a 40 hp motor.

For the drift sock, you can tie it off the front of the boat to keep it clear of the motor.

[PerchJerker]

Agree, tie it off the front of the boat, and use a short enough rope to keep it well clear of the motor.

A 40" sock is probably going to stop your boat in it's tracks

[knoppers]

I have a 175hp main, and can say I have used my 9.9 kicker 5 times in 5 years. I use the bow mount for about everything. I bought the kicker for downrigging for lakers, but my main motor trolls down to 2.6 mph, so I have had not much use for the kicker. but it is a good back up in case something goes wrong with the main motor.

if I bye a new boat, it will not have a kicker.

[clamtrap]

I have a crestliner 17ft and I'm going to put a kicker on for the fact that I can troll down to 1 to 2 mph my big motor is a 115 and it dosen't troll down that slow. I have a 70lb 24 volt trolling motor on the front. I was hoping that a ? like this would come up so that I could get a little input thanks

[10,000 Casts]

a 40 hp shouldn't have a problem trolling down for you.

ClamTrap,

I have an Opti 135 on a 19 ft Crestliner and I can troll it down to 2mph no problem. But it only runs on 2 cylinders when trolling. A carb model might have a problem trolling down. Try tilting the motor a bit.

[10,000 Casts]

maybe put out a drift sock???

[clamtrap]

thats a good idea thanks for the input jason

[dkf]

You shouldn't need a kicker. You could get a set of wave wackers and backtroll to keep your speed down. Or maybe invest in a little 2.5hp motor for trolling to save weight and room. I use my 6hp yam to troll, the trolling motor battery will not last for 12-16 hours of trolling without a recharge.

[picksbigwagon]

If I am gonna troll for 12-16 hours I will put the 9.9 back on. Normally I fish in the metro and usually am throwing for bass and northerns. thanks for all the help, I will be putting the 9.9 on a rack until I make trips to Mille Lacs and The Gitch