Off Topic Kicker

StMarysDude

StMarysDude

Well-Known Member
Question about kicker size. I have a 15' Legend angler with a 40 hp merc on it, works perfect for most everything. Would like to get onto Fanshawe lake but they only allow 10 hp and under. I've seen a lot of good used kickers for sale but have no idea what makes the most sense for my size boat. I seen a 5hp long shaft 4 stroke I was considering then read a couple of things about making sure your kicker could also be used as your back up just in case you main goes down. Thinking it would take a few hours to get back to launch with a 5hp if I was in 60 fow off of Bruce. Any feedback/suggestions appreciated. Thanks.🚤🚣‍♂️
 
Difficult question to answer. Usually I'd recommend a 2-cylender motor for a kicker since single cylinder motors always run rough, but on the back of a 15' that's likely too big and a lot of weight.

I'd probably try the 5. Get a good deal so that if you don't like it you can sell it for the same or even turn a profit.
 
I nice 5hp would great on your boat and I’d recommend a Honda. I had a Honda 5hp on my first boat and worked like a dream as it was a small boat as well.
 
My 2 cents : Go with the 9.9 HP . It won't over power your boat , needing to get back to shore on it would be quicker than a 5 or 6 . And you can troll all day on a few $$$ . We use a 15hp 4stroke kicker on a 18' StarCraft . A little overkill but we can troll for 7 hours on less than $3 . It saved a fishing day once when the main engine died . Was well worth the investment .
 
Sonsoffishes, I was going to recommend and 7.5 or 9.9 but think both might be a little heavy for that back of the boat. Depends on where the batteries are and if the gas tank is in the floor or not. Just my two cents.
 
Consider getting I good electric trolling motor. you could go bow mount and be universal or they also have transom mounts as well. Just an option.
 
I would go 9.9 if you can find a deal. I heard at fanshawe they will not let you in if there is a bigger then 10hp on your boat. So showing up with your 40 and the kicker wouldn’t work.
 
We put a 5 hp 4 stroke mec on the back of a 16 legend .It works but it shakes and rattles next time I would go with a two cylinder
 
I had a 4 hp 4 stroke (Yamaha) on my 16 foot side console and it worked great and it doubled on the back of my Scanoe. It had a built in gas tank and that was perfect when on the canoe not having to worry about a fuel tank and just have to carry a litre of fuel(alcohol based and available everywhere in small legal containers) in a bottle as back up. What I would caution is to make sure that it comes with a charging system, cost a bit more but well worth it if you will also be running sonar and an electric trolling motor.

I have talked to Fanshawe Gate earlier this year and the full time employee said that my new 18 foot with a 90 merc and a 9.9 pro kicker would be welcomed as long as I took the prop off the main drive. She also cautioned me that the part timers might not know about that interpretation, so ask for a manager if your bounced at the gate.

We love fishing Funshawe and have always come home with enough walleye for dinner anytime we went there.
 
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I would consider a Mercury to match the 40, so that fuel line can be moved to smaller one. Thus no need for portable tank taking up room in boat and no need to install a change-over valve when engine has different fuel hook-up.
 
I aslo have a 15' legend with a 40hp main motor and i have a 2.5 hp 2 stroke merc.
Its not too fast for pickrel fishing but fast enough for salmon and does 5 to 6 mph with no lines and gear out. Goes all day salmon fishing on a 3 gallon tank of gas
 
rockin-steelhead said:
Sonsoffishes, I was going to recommend and 7.5 or 9.9 but think both might be a little heavy for that back of the boat. Depends on where the batteries are and if the gas tank is in the floor or not. Just my two cents.
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Battery is in the back by the portable gas tank, it is already pretty heavy by the motor.
 
m burr said:
Consider getting I good electric trolling motor. you could go bow mount and be universal or they also have transom mounts as well. Just an option.
Click to expand...
The boat normally comes with a motorguide mounted on the bow, guy sold it before selling the boat for some reason, only thing is it would be really slow going using it on Fanshawe lake in London.
 
StMarysDude said:
Battery is in the back by the portable gas tank, it is already pretty heavy by the motor.
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I'm thinking get the lightest motor you can. 5-6 hp.

Like I said before, get a good deal on a used one and if you want a bigger one, sell it, break even and get a 9.9
 
We run a 5hp long shaft 4 stoke Merc on our 16' Legend Xterminator and it works well, will drop down below 1 mph and will do 5mph wide open. It does shake a bit so I mounted it with a piece of rubber mud flap between it and the transom. Our boat has dual 5 gal. fuel tanks so I run a hose to each motor, that way I have a spare hose in the boat if one goes bad(happened this year, split o-ring).
 
@rockin-steelhead I see your point . Weight on that size boat would be the most important . My 30 HP is 120 lbs and am sure the 40 is a fair bit more .
@StMarysDude I believe the average 9.9 runs 80+ lbs ? Might want to research the weight of smaller sizes for comparison ?
 
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