what hp motor for trolling is best

[801SPRTSMN]

I have a 17 ft boat and im wondering what HP trolling motor is the best for that size of boat????
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[Coldfooter]

Any 10hp should do you fine
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[Gorgefanatic]

I would go with a 4 or 6 hp because you can always increase the rpm if you need to go faster. I have a 6 on my 20 ft.er.
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[fsh4fun05]

I've often wondered the same thing. I don't troll but only because I don't have the ability to. What size motor (hp), in your opinion, would a 20' fish n' ski need to troll?
Sorry to hijack your post... what's the actual difference between a short shaft and long shaft motor? How would I know if I need a long shaft? errr...how can you tell if a short shaft will work for your boat?
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[lurtch]

i know that from experience..a short shaft is for shallower watter running rivers and such..a long shaft for lakes and more speed..
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[bvs]

The smallest 2 cylinder 4-stroke is best. Usually this is 8hp. The 6hp and less single cylinder motors don't run as smooth, are louder, and rattle a lot more.

FYI, the difference between the 8-15hp motors is usually just the carburetor size and/or a couple other minor differences. These all usually weigh the same, have about the same torque and will all troll just as slow.
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[Fishhound]

[#008000]Generally speaking, the shaft lengths on outboards (including kickers) are designed mostly for transom size on your boat. This includes transoms designed as cut-outs. [/#008000]
[#008000][/#008000]
[#008000]For example, Transoms fall into several size catagories. 15, 20, 25. A 25 inch transom is usually found on boats designed for big water. 20 inchers are common on walleye boats. And 15 are usually on shallower water boats (like bass boats, smaller aluminums, etc.) - of course you can find exceptions and overlaps to these generalizations. [/#008000]
[#008000][/#008000]
[#008000]If you have an after market kicker mount (like Remote Troll or some such) then there may be some adjustability according to the installation and design of the mounting unit.[/#008000]
[#008000][/#008000]
[#008000]Also, long shaft motors are heavier motors.[/#008000]
[#008000][/#008000]
[#008000]While you can use a longer shaft on a shorter transom (with some performance considerations), the opposite most probably would not work for you as the prop might not be far enough in the water and would not provide enough thrust.[/#008000]
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[Fowl-Hook]

Couldn't Be More Correct BVS

The smallest 2 cylinder 4-stroke is best. Usually this is 8hp. The 6hp and less single cylinder motors don't run as smooth, are louder, and rattle a lot more.
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[Matador]

Another thing to consider is whether the trolling motor is the only motor on the boat. If you only have one motor then it is also the motor that gets you around everywhere, so you should probably get the biggest motor that will troll as slow as you like. The reason for this is the need to get off the water in a hurry for safety. I would guess around 10hp in that case. If the motor you are talking about is a dedicated trolling motor then I would say get something in the 5-6hp range.

I used to have a 16.5ft Hydroswift with a 65hp main motor. When it was running right it could cruise at about 25mhp. I put a 6hp trolling motor(2 cylinder) on a remote troll bracket. That setup was IDEAL. It could troll very, very slow if I wanted, or up to 5mhp. And it was quiet and smooth. One-cylinder motors often can't run at low rpm for long periods, and don't run as smooth.

More recently I had a 14ft aluminum fishing boat. It only had one motor. It was a 15hp 4-stroke Honda. The boat could really move, for a fishing boat, but the motor was too big for trolling less than about 3mhp. That speed is okay for some things but for pop-gear and flatfish it is just too fast. I would drag a five gallon bucket to slow it down some more and had plans to install a trolling plate. I had to sell the boat before I got it setup right. The reason I like the 15hp is because it was big enough to get me around fast if I needed to.

Trolling plates are another option to get you more speed for safety and still provide good trolling capabilities.
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[cadresults]

[#8000ff]BVS Nailed it... 4 stroke, 2 cylinders. Also, keep in mind some lakes have a 10 horse or less restriction.[/#8000ff]
[#8000ff][/#8000ff]
[#8000ff]I haven't been to porcupine for a few years, but they used to have a size restriction.[/#8000ff]
[#8000ff][/#8000ff]
[#8000ff]If it was me, I would go with an 8 or 9.9 horse..[/#8000ff]
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[carplips]

4 stroke wise, what has been said is spot on.
2 stroke motors, I would go smaller.
Generally speaking, as far as I'm concerned 2 stroke wise, there are two catagories of motors weight to hp..
4-8 hp
9-20hp.
25 and above really doesn't work for trolling on small or larger boats. A 25 on a small boat doesn't seem to troll down well enough and a 25 on a larger boat would have fairly major weight issues and wouldn't make good sense.

4 to 8 hp works great and are light and convenient motors. When you get up to and past 9 horse motors they are fairly heavy. There is no weight difference between the 9.9's and 15 hp motors with 18 and 20 horse motors not really overall that much heavier.

Long shaft motors have some advantage for trolling motors on larger boats as far as getting the foot down in the water far enought that it won't start frying your impeller in waves when the motor can come up out of the water and/or adjusting the trolling plate down so far that you feel like your going to fall out of the boat getting the motor down in the water. The weight difference between a small 4-8 hp long shaft (20 inch) and a short shaft (15 inch) is negligable.

My preference is a 4 to 6 hp two stroke or if you would rather run a 4 stroke go with a two cylinder.


If your trolling motor is your main motor, go with the largest motor you can and still get down to a very slow speed. I can run up to a 20 hp two stroke motor on my 14 ft aluminum for trolling without a problem of speed at all. At 25 hp. a trolling plate is needed. Any horsepower lower than a 25, if its running decent at all, should idle down and troll everything you would like to short of fly's.
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[reelfast]

On our first boat we had the 9.9 short shaft. The 4 cycle allowed it to be plumbed right it the same fuel tank as the main engine. We lived in Idaho at the time and we had soft water fishing year round. The engine started well in January and did a good job. It was tiller steering and not bad till the wind kicked up then driving the boat was a full time job. The next boat had the same set up with the addition of a TR-1 autopilot. Good reliable trolling in any conditions. Some times when it got really rough like out on Willard during a storm the auto pilot just couldn't work fast enough to keep the boat on course. I also had to work over the rail to lower and pull the pull rope on the motor. Not too bad but but the wife could not start it and I had visions of slipping off the swim platform into Bear Lake in December and getting very wet. As an all weather fisherman I felt safety was important so the 9.9 manual tilt/start got replaced with a 9.9 long shaft power tilt electric start. The first thing we found was the long shaft has way more authority in turns. This allowed the TR-1 autopilot to handle way worse conditions. We have had the waves splashing over the front and the rig will hold the line. It cuts down on the side slip in turns from down wind to up wind. Once I learned what the motor wanted for start it fires up usually in less than a couple seconds. Anyway I figure the way to go is if your main engine is 4cycle go with that on the kicker. If it is 2 cycle and can burn the same tank mix consider that. The less screwing with gasoline on a boat the better. Get enough shaft in the water to control the boat well. If you don't have auto pilot get it. If you still don't want it get it on your electric on the front and let it steer the boat. I haven't tried it but I see folks on lakes using the electric to steer while they troll and it looks like it works just fine. Last but not least the kicker has had to bring the boat back because of problems with the main drive. Make sure your satisfied with the speed there. Anyway that is what we have seen with the trolling motor thing on our boat.
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[Wood_Shampoo]

If you want the BEST trolling motor on the market hands down, then get the Yamaha 8hp High Thrust.
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[801SPRTSMN]

thank you guys for all the info i think a 6-8 hp trolling motor is the best for my boat. Thanks for all the info again
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[toyguy]

FYI, the difference between the 8-15hp motors is usually just the carburetor size and/or a couple other minor differences.

This statement totally surprised me. So I thought I would confirm.

While your statement holds true for the 8 & the 9.8, it doesn’t for the 15. The displacement and bore & stroke is a fair amount bigger in the 15. Like 2/3 again bigger (displacement).

BTW, I agree with the guys here who say go 4 stroke. Especially if it's a dedicated trolling motor.


Make Nissan
Model / NSF15 Engine (No. of Cylinder) 2
Engine Type 4 stroke
Output 15 hp
Displacement 351 cc (21.41 cu.in)
Bore x Stroke 61 x 60 mm (2.4 x 2.36 in)

Make Nissan
Model / NSF9.8[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]Engine (No. of Cylinder)[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]2[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]
Engine Type 4 stroke
Output 9.8 hp
Displacement[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]209 cc (12.8 cu.in)[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]
Bore x Stroke[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]55 x 44 mm (2.17 x 1.73 in)

Make Nissan
Model / NSF8[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]Engine (No. of Cylinder)[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]2[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]
Engine Type 4 stroke
Output 8 hp
Displacement[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]209 cc (12.8 cu.in)[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]
Bore x Stroke[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]55 x 44 mm (2.17 x 1.73 in)
[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]

Here’s Merc’s

[font "Times New Roman"][size 5]15 FourStroke Specifications[/size][/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Output HP @ Prop 15 [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Cylinders 2 (in-line) [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Displacement 351 cc [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Bore & Stroke (in) 2.40 x 2.36 (mm) 60 x 61[/font]

[font "Times New Roman"][size 5]9.9 FourStroke Specifications[/size][/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Output HP @ Prop 9.9[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Cylinders 2 (in-line) [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Displacement 209 cc [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Bore & Stroke (in) 2.16 x 1.73 (mm) 55 x 44[/font]
[size 5][font "Times New Roman"] [/font][/size]
[font "Times New Roman"][size 5]8 FourStroke Specifications[/size][/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Output HP @ Prop 8[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Cylinders 2 (in-line) [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Displacement 209 cc [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Bore & Stroke (in) 2.16 x 1.73 (mm) 55 x 44[/font]
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[801SPRTSMN]

im only using it for trolling i have a main motor that i cruise around on i just need a trolling motor cause my main one likes to get clogged up when i troll with it
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[addicted2fishin]

A lot of us (myself included) can't really afford the 4 stroke motors. There are a lot of used 2 strokes out there that are a LOT less than the 4's. Because of this, and the fact that I have no experience with 4 stroke trollers, I will only touch on the 2 strokes.
What motor is best could really depend on the boat you are using it on. I know you mentioned it's on a 17' boat. However, you didn't mention if it is a deep V, a tri-hull, or what. Also, how tall is the transom? You should also measure the distance between where the troller will clamp on and the waterline on the boat. This can make a big difference in deciding between a long or short shaft. If you have any doubt, go with the long shaft. Remember that a tri-hull boat, while more stable in calm water, has a tendency to climb waves and can bring the motor further out of the water as it goes down the back side of a wave. The deep v boats tend to keep a more consistent depth, though they do have some climb.
As for the horsepower rating, that can also depend on the boat. How heavy is the boat? How susceptible is it to wind, etc. You may have a bit of struggle with a 4 hp in the wind, but a 6 hp should do well on a 17' boat. My old 17.5' boat had a 6 hp short-shaft troller I bought from the Strawberry Marina when they were retiring their old wooden rental boats. It did a great job on that boat and is still out there trolling along (saw my old boat on KSL a couple of weeks ago).
My current boat is a 19' deep V with a 9.9 hp short shaft troller. I have it on a Remote Troll set up (not adjustable) and wish I had a long shaft troller for this boat.
One last pointer is that your trolling speed can depend as much on how well the motor is tuned as it does the hp rating of the motor. A well-tuned motor, tuned for the elevation you are fishing at, can troll down to a lot lower speed than one that hasn't been tuned up in a while.
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[grzbear10]

My boat is a Skeeter SL210 and according to the Dealer due to my transom shape and the way it sticks out. He suggests I do not go over a 4 hp. due to weight considerations. But you guys do not recomend a single cylinder 4 stroke motor. Does anyone have any suggestions for my application?
See attached pictures for transom style.
Thanks
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[mike4cobra]

My 18ft procraft has the sam style of transom as your skeeter. I had a custom built motor bracket made for a kicker motor. I replaced my swim ladder and used the existing holes to mount the bracket. One problem I had early on was the boucing around (its solid mount of course, by bouncing i mean in rough water) tore the srews right out of the transom. What I found was the best was I accually went it from the back side(where your gas tank and such is located) and checked my clearance for strait through bolts. Now if your skeeter is anything like my boat then to handle the size of big motor we have the glass is like 4-6 inches thick in the transom area and the spaces in between have foam blown in them. I took a sawsall and cut the foam out of where i needed to work. After all was said and done I actually had to angle my bolts up through there to get to a spot I could work. I used 1 1/2'' washers to make sure they wouldnt dig in to the glass. I also replaced the foam that i cut out by using that foam filler insulation as a glue. Now on the top part on the deck, I just used a large backing plate under the deck, my deck is aluminum but i imagine it would work on wood too. I did this 4 years ago and have yet to have one bolt come loose, and i have run some pretty rough water since then. Also, when I say custom built bracket, I mean a buddy that had a pipe bender, after some flat bar and powder coat, it looks like something that was bought out of cabelas. By the way, if you mount it similar to the way mine is, weight is not as much an issue being its mounted in the same style as your big motor was from the factory. Hope this helps, I know what its like trying to put a kicker on a bass boat![laugh]
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[grzbear10]

I use to have a '87 19 1/2 ft. procraft before this one. What size kicker did you end up installing? Do you have any pictures of the back of you boat?
Thanks alot for the informative post.
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