First Boat -14ft aluminum

[CJH]

I know this isn't one of the big fancy boats that everybody like to talk about, but I wanted to pick the brain of the experts. I am probably going to purchase from a friend my first boat this spring. Its an old 14ft aluminum boat from a resort that is no longer around that would be a cheap purchase ($100). The engine is shot and it doesn't have a trailer. So I was thinking about either getting a 5 horse so I could run it in alot of the city lakes around here (Bloomington) but was wondering if that was enough power, if I would be able to troll with it, and if I should spend the money on a new motor or try and find a used one.

Since I fish mainly small lakes, I was also tossing around the idea of just getting a trolling motor, but didn't know if it would take me 3 hours to get to my spot or not or how long the battery would last.

Any ideas on what a trailer would cost?

Any thoughts/ideas would be greatly appreciated. I am on a budget and have a baby on the way, so I don't want to spend a ton of money as I am sure you can imagine! Plus I have a few months to figure it out, but thought I should at least start thinking about it, as I know I won't have as much free time once the little one gets here!!

Thanks much!

CJH

[barek68]

I would think that any motor up to 15 or 20 HP would be fine and troll great for fishing. As for the elec. thats not a good idea imo, because you will have a good chance of being stranded out there if the fishing is good and for get to check your battery, stay with gas.

[BoxMN]

I agree. Our first boat a 14' Crestliner (older than dirt) and a Seahorse Evinrude 15hp. It screamed, actually.

If you can, I would suggest finding one of the 9.9 evinrude/johnson or 15 hp motors in the same design model. You know, the one with the slanted motor cover. Those motos have small size but pack a heavy punch and run forever. You can find them for about $250 in less than great condition up to about $400 in great condition.

Good luck, and have fun! Oh yeah, you can also find a trailer realy cheap. Put in new bearings (or whole new hubs for $30 each) and grind off some rust and paint, and you are set to go!

[polarsusd81]

Yep, you can find a motor pretty cheap if you look around for em. I know that on a certain someones list site, there are tons of small motors in your size range that will work excellent on that boat for ya. I would say a 9.9 would really get that thing moving for you, and you can find one for about 250 to 400 like Box said. With a 9.9, you should be able to put it up on plane and still be able to troll down really nice with it, down to about .75 mph if you need to. Have fun and get out fishing, its what its all about.

[PerchJerker]

My first boat was a 14' starcraft with an 8 hp motor.

I agree with the others, a small gas motor is probably a better way to go than an electric motor. I've fished out of boats like that with small motors, maybe 3 hp or so, that had internal gas tanks. They worked fine, but a little bigger motor will give you more speed and power. Depending on how big (wide and deep) your boat is I don't think I'd go bigger than 10 or 15 hp if you're concerned about being able to troll slowly.

Don't underestimate the importance of a good trailer, a bad trailer will be nothing but headaches and problems. Good wheels and bearings are criticial, and it needs to load and unload easily and be big enough for the boat (with a small boat like you're talking about the size/capacity isn't as much of a concern).

Good luck with your first boat (and congrats).

[BigGrassBass]

I've got an older than dirt 14' deep wide Crestliner that I've been running a 3.3 horse Merc on for years. Yeah, you don't get anywhere fast and a stiff wind can make it fun but on the small lakes you'll do just fine. Plus the price dif. from a 3.3 to a 9.9 or 15 is amazing. I also like the fact that 5 gallons of gas is all I use in a season and I fish at least once a week. You can troll all day on a splash of fuel.

[rodmaker]

I would go with a 15 hp. You shouldn't have a hard time finding one.

[marine_man]

I fished for a couple summers out of a 12 foot boat with a 6hp on the back.

It worked pretty well for the small lake we were on, but if it rained, you were going to get soaked because it didn't move very fast with 2 guys in the boat.

As others have suggested, a 9.9 or 15hp would be a good way to go. You usually can find them used fairly reasonable.

One other note - while a 4 stroke would be nice, it'll be expensive, plus the extra weight will hurt your ability to get on plane quickly and get moving, so I'd tend to shy away from them in this situation if possible. I'm not saying it won't work, but the extra weight will make a difference.

Good luck!

marine_man

[sparcebag]

Is there a 10HP limit on the lakes your fishin? I've a 14' resort boat with a 7.5 Johnson,I live on a 1500 acre lake and its my favorite boat to use at home.a 16' with bigger motor and extras is my other boat,it sits idle alot,I'm even thinkin of offin it.

[PerchJerker]

Since this is your first boat / motor, one thing to pay attention to when you're looking for the motor is whether it should be a short shaft or long shaft motor for your boat. It depends on how tall / deep your transom is.

[CJH]

I believe the lake closest to my house has a 5hp limit, but not sure, I'll have to double check (I wish they were all consistent). So that's my concern. I was thinking about a 9.9, so that might be the answer. This is just one of the boats with the bench seats, not much to it.

So would you suggest I look in the classifieds or are there used motor dealers that would maybe have a more reliable product? I was leaning towards a two stroke since all of my small engines are already that, other than the lawnmower.

Thanks for all of the replies, and keep em coming!!!

CJH

I doubt I would take it on any big lakes. Two of my friends have 18 ft runabouts we can fish out of for bigger water. But for small city lakes, I think this could be a fun little setup.

[marine_man]

Classifieds are a good spot to find a good motor, provided that you do some checks or take it to a dealer and have them check it out.

At a minimum I would want the motor to run smoothly at all speeds, a quick check of the gear lube to make sure that it's not milky (which would indicate a leaking seal) and that the cylinder(s) have good compression and the readings are within 10% of each other at the most.

You can rest a little easier if it comes from a dealer, but I would still be cautious.

marine_man

[Grant]

I have a 14 ft crestliner with a 15hp Johnson on it... the little thing just hauls - it'll get up on plane no prob. and the motor is indeed bulletproof.

sometimes it would be nice to have more room in it, however the shallow draft can't be beat. even with my tubby butt in the driver's seat it still only draws a few inches of water to the keel and only a few more to the skeg. when I properly distribute weight, it draws even less!

[evinrude19]

i have a a small little 12 ft boat it is actually smaller than that more like 10' 10" but it is small but i have a 10hp motor on that and let me tell you that thing haullsome haha i got it going like 28mph but i think you should be able to throw on a 10hp motor and u should be fine my friend has the same set up with a 10 and he does just fine and a 10 isnt really heavy at all either

[Down Deep]

I had a Lund S-14 that had a 15 HP Johnson. I could run about 18 to 20 mph and troll all day. One thing to consider is that once the fishing bug takes a-hold, you may want to start fishing other waters and the extra HP will be nice to have. I bought my 14 to fish small lakes and ended up on Rainy, LOW, Lac Suel and many others.

To find a trailer, start by looking around at boat dealerships. You may be able to find a trailer for a couple of hundred. It may need some rehab, but you can save some $$$. FYI: Valv has a trailer listed on the For Sale forum.

If you need to raise some extra income try this. My neighbor is in his mid-20's and has a couple of rug rats. He is a fishing nut. To pay for his obsession he works part-time as a security guard a couple of nights a week. He says he gets paid $10.00 per hour to sit around and surf the net. Pretty good duty if you ask me.

[CJH]

Thanks for all of the feedback and input.

I just checked the lake I go to the most, and its got a 6hp limit on it. I was leaning towards a 10-15hp, maybe a 9.9. So I am not sure what to do now.

Why the limits can't be all the same, makes no sense to me. Especially since the lakes are state owned.

[mamohr686]

I would stick with the 10-15 hp motor as stated previously, then just take the electric along for the 6hp limit lake.

There are lots of different reasons to limit HP on lakes such as preserving critical habitat, or water polution concerns. It seems like lakes with limits always have better fishing and less pressure. I like the limits, and if you ever go to the boundary waters you'll get a better idea of how prisine it is, and how much they benefit the area. The experience would be a lot different if there were a bunch of 225hp motors buzzing boundary waters.

On the midwest outdoors tv program, Twin cities outboard is advertised heavily as having a huge selection of the type of outboards your looking for. It might be a place to start.

[Bad Catcher]

CJH, My first boat was a 14' Lund with a 5.5 Johnson. It was the Grandpas. I was in the same boat (bad pun) as you are. If you can, go with the 10 to 15 hp. It may be tough, as many duck hunters like them also. I suggest looking at TC outboard also or look for sportsman oriented auctions. The little boats can get back into the weed beds better but don't forget the oars. Good Luck.

[FlatBottom]

I bought a 14 foot Lowe flatbottom last spring and a new 10 hp Yamaha the year before. I love it. The only motor that we could find that was still a two-stroke was the yamaha. It's pretty nice cause the motor weighs about 80-85 lbs and actually has a built in handle. It does excellent with fuel. I go up and fish small lakes along the Northshore, so weight of everything is important. All new I spent about 3500, boat, motor,and trailer(used shorelander bunk 1995 800$). The 10 has plenty of power and trolls almost right down to nothing. We used the 10hp on a wide 16ft flatbottom two years ago, with three guys and all of out gear it plained out and moved right along. We trolled for four days on three gallons of gas and still had plenty left.

[fishorgolf]

I would go with a 9.9. will get you going fast enough and trol down to a crawl. can be used on lakes with a 10hp max. and they are tough motors. All the canada fly ins use them and they take a beating!

[chickeywing]

I knew a guy that had a 14' fiberglass boat with a 2 horse Johnson. Kept it for YEARS and loved it. Trolling was his specialty. Think about it: If you're in hurry to get to the other side of the lake, maybe you should pick a different sport. Fishing should be relaxing.

As for the trailer, if you find one with carpeted bunks, make sure it has keel rollers. Keep them lubed and the boat will slide off just fine. The bolt on roller bunks also work great on smaller boats.

TC