Kicker motor -- What shall I look at?

[slimerg0d]

Hello all,

I bought my first new boat (a 2006 192 Smokercraft) and it has a 150 merc 2 stroke on it. I would like to get a kicker for trolling. What do you suggest that's quiet and is it possible to hook it up so I can steer it off the main motor? What is a good kicker and size for my boat?

Thanks in advance for your replys

[gizmoguy]

Yamaha T8.

[slimerg0d]

Thanks gizmoguy. Will that be big enough?

[Black_Bay]

Mercury makes a 9.9 Pro Kicker that is every bit as good as the Yamaha.

[PerchJerker]

The T8 and the Pro Kicker are your choices for "true" kicker motors, with their own trim and tilt, strong mounting brackets, geared and propped for thrust, electric start and alternators, etc. Both are great motors. I have the Pro Kicker, I've also spent a lot of time using T8s, and you won't go wrong with either one. You can get either in a remote (console) control version or a tiller version, and can get a removable steering bar to tie to your big motor.

The other manufactueres make 8 or 9.9 hp 4 strokes also, but you will have to add a seperate hydraulic lift and may have to strap down the motor for stability, etc. And they won't have high thrust gears and props, although you could change the prop.

[riverrat56]

Or, a drift sock is 70 bucks....

I'm personally against kicker motors, but that's just my opinion. They save gas, thats for sure, but, how much gas do you need to save to make up for the price of the motor? Plus they add alot of extra weight to the back of the boat. And since you will have a drift sock anyways, using that under the boat or out the back or front (depending on direction of travel) will slow you way down.

[MuleShack]

Cant troll raps with a drift sock .

I have a 07' T8 and it works great.

[ChompChomp_YANK]

I have a 18' alumacraft with a yamaha 150 and a T-8 kicker. I have mine hooked up to the console it works great.

[blueroof]

The T8 and the Pro Kicker are your choices for "true" kicker motors, with their own trim and tilt, strong mounting brackets, geared and propped for thrust, electric start and alternators, etc.

Suzuki has a 9.9t available now that has these features. Getting one this coming Monday! .

LB

[PerchJerker]

I've seen that motor on display, haven't heard any reports on it or seen one on the water as it's new this year. Hope it works out great for you.

[riverrat56]

Why can't you troll raps with a drift sock? We do it all the time.....

[MuleShack]

well i suppose you can, but your limited to the direction of the wind, unless you have a sail to move you around the stucture.

My 150 wont go slow enought to troll, that's why i have a kicker. also when wind is too hight for the bow mount electric, then it is used to back troll.

And yes, i could probably drag a sock around off the front of my boat to slow me down with the 150, but i would rather have the kicker to do that.

[slimerg0d]

I like using the drift sock when I want to drift. When I want to troll my 150 is too loud and fast... Wouldn't an 8 or 9 horse be too small for my boat?

[markkstanley]

8 or 9 horse is plenty. One added benefit of a kicker - two engines means you can always get home. Have had a few occasions when the kicker came in real handy - it was slow but we got there.

[davesfriend]

I have a 1750 sportfish with a 2005 merc. 9.9 kicker. Wind, rain, it doesn't matter . I can troll for weeks on one one tank of gas. It is connected to the 125 merc 2 stroke consoule. It would be nice if it were a tiller, but it works. I'll tell you one thing, after fishin with a 2 stroke and trolling late nite, that four stroke is a dream. The water jet hitting is louder than the motor.

[Northlander]

Either the Yamaha T8 or the Mercury Pro Kicker are great kicker motors. Trollmaster on and they get even better.

[davesfriend]

I was woundering, if your lure was to get snagged, how would you back up with a drift sock, or how to follow a weed line. With a drift sock aren't you pretty much stuck with where the current or the wind takes you? I have never used one and am courious on how they work. Are you talking of using it under the boat to slow you down with the big motor running?

[markkstanley]

Control the drift direction with your trolling motor. I do it for slip bobbers and rigging.

[Northlander]

You can troll with a sock out the side or 2 small ones clipped on so you have 1 on each side. You can either just back up with them on or pull them in when you get hung up. Just make sure you dont have out so much line that they could get into any motors.

[CatManLee]

I use a drift sock right now and can't stand it! It does slow the boat down slow enough to troll at any speed you want, but in my experience it pulls the boat from side to side. If I let go of the wheel for even a moment, I'm jetting off to one side or the other in no time. I basically have to keep steering the boat all day, turning the wheel constantly, but again it does work, it's just a lot of work. Back trolling it works pretty good though.

I am actually looking at kicker motors right now and trying to find a good one at a decent price. If there's one thing I'm learning so far, is to shop around! These motors seem to differ in price a lot from one area to another.

At a dealer "up north"...Mid 90's 2-stroke 9.9 $1,000+ WOW???

4 strokes at the same place year 1999-04, ranged from $2,000 to $2,500...

Same motors elsewhere for the most part have been priced quite a bit below that. Dealer guarantee (if one) and all the maintenance stuff aside, a $500 to $1,000 swing is worth doing some shopping in my opinion. However if you are looking at brand new ones, disregard what I just said and have a ball...

I would love to get a Yamaha, but my main motor is a Yamaha. If I had a Mercury, I would get a Mercury kicker, etc...just because they match. If I find one priced right, I really don't care what the brand is, just as long as it runs and works well.

One more thing on the whole "Is 8hp or 9.9hp big enough?" Yeah it is, there are a ton of them out there and for a reason...heck I had a 4hp kicker on a boat once and it pushed me around faster than I would ever want to troll a crank bait with. You could probably make it work with a 2hp outboard, it's just the 8hp and 9/9.9hp motors don't have to work very hard, so it's the smarter choice. So there you go, that's opinion on all of this.

[Northlander]

Do a search on Amish Drift socks and they make a small double sock system that runs under the boat and 1 goes off each side. No side pull like if you only had 1 sock out one side.

[Borch]

What many of the pro and guides are using too slow down their big motors enough to troll is building a drift sock harness that goes under the boat and attaches to the two front boat cleats. They use two small drift socks and tie them into a rope half way between the keel and the water line on each side of the boat. You tie the harness to the two front cleats when you troll and pull them off by untying one end and walking it in front of the bow and then pulling the whole thing into the boat. Socks sit under the boat out of the way. They also sit on the boat's natural pivot point which helps with boat control and helps keep the bow down in windier conditions. I'll try to get a pic up of mine soon.

[riverrat56]

I was woundering, if your lure was to get snagged, how would you back up with a drift sock, or how to follow a weed line. With a drift sock aren't you pretty much stuck with where the current or the wind takes you?

I just usually put my motor in reverse to back up, and following a weed line is just like you normally would, just at a slower pace. You are not at the mercy of the current or wind, it is a tool to lessen the effects of the wind, and make boat control easier. One place they really shine is when backtrolling a tight contor line, a sock out the front allows you use it as a pivot point to make very tight turns.

[Borch]

RR,

They also shine when trolling cranks or spinners forward under the same circumastances if they are setup correctly.

[riverrat56]

Borch, I have always backtrolled for spinners, I feel I have better control. When pulling cranks if I need to go slower, (usually in someone elses boat) I run 1 sock under the front of the boat, off the bow eye. What benefits would I see of switching to a 2 sock system like you use?