Setting up the boat to troll...

[Jethro]

I just got what I hope will be a real nice trolling boat, it's a 2003, 21' Sylvan Pro Fish. The previous owner didn't troll with it, it has a 150 Merc V6 2 stroke, and I imagine it won't be ideal for trolling. I think it will be loud and inefficient, and he says it will get down to 3mph. So I have a lot of options- I can get a trolling plate, I can drag trolling bags, I can get a small 4 stroke kicker with a bracket or I can upgrade the electric to something that will last all day trolling and have autopilot. Obviously there are advantages and disadvantages to all options. Was hoping to get feedback from the more experienced guys with dedicated trolling boats. I know a 4 stroke kicker is probably going to be the best option if money is no object, but I'm trying to get over the sting of the boat purchase first, so I was thinking a trolling plate for now.

Sorry I didn't put this in the boat section, but there are some serious trolling guys here on the Maine board I was hoping to communicate with. Thanks

[Mac Attack]

I owned a 21' Sylvan open bow back in the early 90's.
Had a 120 Mercruiser I/O in it.
Trolled down, but would eventually load up the plugs with carbon.
I installed a trolling plate so I could increase the RPM's a bit and reduce or eliminate the carbon buildup.
Helped, but I hated the plate.
I've had plates on 3 boats.
I've left them down a few times and bent them when powering up to get on plane.
Not a fan of drilling my motor's lower unit either.
Also, maneuverability in rougher seas or higher winds stinks with a plate.
A better option are drift socks, one on each side of the boat.
They are quite inexpensive and work.

In the end, putting more hours on the large (more expensive) motor while trolling is never a good thing.
A 4 stroke kicker easily pays for itself over the long haul.

I have had a kicker on 5 boats now and will NEVER do it any other way.
For me, it's just not worth it.

My current Lund has a Honda kicker on the back and a 24 volt Minn Kota Terova with ipilot on the bow.
This is the best way to do it IMHO.
But it isn't cheap.
I also added a 2nd bank of trolling batteries, wired in parallel with the other two.
Added a 2nd 2-bank on board charger for them too.
This gives me double the trolling time with the Minn Kota.

Get the kicker Jethro - you will be glad you did.
And be sure it's electric start with an alternator to keep your battery charged while you are running your electronics.
If you can't swing it right now, get the bags.

Good luck................and please post some photos of this new rig.

Mac

[Jethro]

Mac.. thanks for the info, pretty much what I figured but had to ask. Definitely seems I got the right guy on this thread and I hope I don't annoy you with all my questions! I really have no interest in drilling the big motor either. It was just rebuilt to the tune of $4,700 and it's possible at some point I might want to repower with a big 4 stroke anyway, so I don't want to sell a motor with a drilled cavitation plate. I guess I never thought about how it would handle poorly with a plate, I am already worried about how much of a bear this boat will be in the wind and waves due to it's size. It has an older Powerdrive motor, a 12v that I was already planning on upgrading at some point, but probably not this year. I think I will get the trolling bags to start this season but the long term plan will definitely be a kicker.

Let me ask if you don't mind.. what is the best way to mount it? I see a lot of these spring loaded, drop down plates, but it appears you can't trailer with the motor installed? Do they have rigid mounts that I could install or are they built custom and to order? Is it important to have a power trim, e-start motor? Just trying to see how cheap I can get away with for the short term. I plan on fishing some pretty remote waters here in the Northeast, so I sure would like a backup motor as well.

How big of a kicker do I really need? I understand how the larger ones have a more powerful charging system, but right now I don't run anything other than my sonar/gps while trolling. This is my first boat with a radio... maybe I'll be using that while trolling but I doubt it, I don't even use the radio in my truck. I don't have electric riggers, maybe in the future but not now. So to get myself set up just to troll can I get away with an 8hp? Am I going to hate myself if I try to do without remote throttle control?

This is the boat, I just picked it up Friday so I don't have the greatest pictures of it, more pending:






Thanks again! -Geoff

[Mac Attack]

Mount the kicker off to the right of the big motor.
No mounting plate.
Just make sure the lower unit is long enough to get the prop below the hull.
Remember, while trolling the hull isn't up on plane high in the water.
I trim the motor up while running with the big motor.
Mine is manual trim/tilt.
I have had power trim/tilt and highly recomend it.
Here's some photos of mine taken a couple years back.
I trailer with it all the time.
Straight up and down.

[Mac Attack]

click on the photos for a larger image.

[Mac Attack]

I had a Honda 8hp 4-stroke on my 25' Trophy that worked great.
That boat was WAY heavier than yours.
My 25' Sportcraft hardtop had a 9.9 Honda on it.
And the Sportcraft probably weighed 3X what your boat weighs.
(It had a 351 V8 in it)

You don't want too large of a kicker or you won't be able to go slow enough.
My Lund is only 16.5' and the 8hp on it is too much, but I wanted a twin cylinder, not a single cylinder.
Twins are WAY smoother - less vibration.
So I ended up re-pitching the prop and also cutting down the diameter of it.
I troll mostly for walleyes.
With the ipilot, it was tough to get down below 2mph at an idle.
Repitched and diameter cut gets me down now below 1.5mph.
I can operate the kicker at slightly more rpm.
Less carbon build up on the plugs and better alternator output.

Good luck.

[taxid]

Mac.. thanks for the info, pretty much what I figured but had to ask. Definitely seems I got the right guy on this thread and I hope I don't annoy you with all my questions! I really have no interest in drilling the big motor either. It was just rebuilt to the tune of $4,700 and it's possible at some point I might want to repower with a big 4 stroke anyway, so I don't want to sell a motor with a drilled cavitation plate. I guess I never thought about how it would handle poorly with a plate, I am already worried about how much of a bear this boat will be in the wind and waves due to it's size. It has an older Powerdrive motor, a 12v that I was already planning on upgrading at some point, but probably not this year. I think I will get the trolling bags to start this season but the long term plan will definitely be a kicker.

Let me ask if you don't mind.. what is the best way to mount it? I see a lot of these spring loaded, drop down plates, but it appears you can't trailer with the motor installed? Do they have rigid mounts that I could install or are they built custom and to order? Is it important to have a power trim, e-start motor? Just trying to see how cheap I can get away with for the short term. I plan on fishing some pretty remote waters here in the Northeast, so I sure would like a backup motor as well.

How big of a kicker do I really need? I understand how the larger ones have a more powerful charging system, but right now I don't run anything other than my sonar/gps while trolling. This is my first boat with a radio... maybe I'll be using that while trolling but I doubt it, I don't even use the radio in my truck. I don't have electric riggers, maybe in the future but not now. So to get myself set up just to troll can I get away with an 8hp? Am I going to hate myself if I try to do without remote throttle control?

This is the boat, I just picked it up Friday so I don't have the greatest pictures of it, more pending:

Thanks again! -Geoff

Nice clean looking boat and trailer in good shape! I see a lot of boats out here that are decent but the trailer is crap or undersized. People go cheap on the trailers and regret it.

[Jethro]

Oh that is awesome, I didn't realize I could mount on the transom without a plate. I never thought about the boat being much lower in the water when not on plane, so I figured I'd need a plate that drops down.

So I'm guessing you use both the Terrova and the honda in conjuntion when you troll? Just lock out the honda and steer and fine tune speed with the Terrova? Yes, it sounds expensive but ideal. I may have to see if the budget allows.

Thanks for the info again Mac. Fantastic rig you have, I wanted to buy a Lund but there was no way I could afford one. Double the budget I had to work with.

[Jethro]

Nice clean looking boat and trailer in good shape! I see a lot of boats out here that are decent but the trailer is crap or undersized. People go cheap on the trailers and regret it.

Thanks! Yes, it's carpet and seats are a bit tired but it is solid and fairly clean. It's a bit bigger than I wanted, but I could not for the life of me find a 18-19' walkthrough windshield that wasn't underpowered and/or had a terrible trailer. This trailer was bought brand new in 2011 he gave me the sales receipt, it was $3,899.00!! I checked the brakes, it's clean and works perfect. Very happy with it so far.

[Mac Attack]

So I'm guessing you use both the Terrova and the honda in conjuntion when you troll? Just lock out the honda and steer and fine tune speed with the Terrova? Yes, it sounds expensive but ideal. I may have to see if the budget allows.

Yup.
Lots of guys doing this these days.
Works sweet.
I set up my neighbor's Polar Kraft with a kicker and ipilot about 6 yrs ago.

Yea, it's a bit of money, but it's the only way to troll.
If you troll alone, or if there's 2 of you and get more than one fish on............

[fishlessman]

trolling with the plate will be more than a gallon per hour, trolling with a kicker will be less than 3 gallons per weekend. the savings add up quick with a second hand kicker

[zwiggles]

Sweet rig jethro! I’m still in ice fishing mode, but I cannot wait for trolling to being. This post is nice to see.

I would Think with two big bags you could get the boat to troll (with your current set up) on the big motor around 2mph. That would cover (for me at least) most of the trolling speed after spring. If you’re thinking about adding a new four stroke down the road, my thought process would be get the bags first, then the iPilot plus trolling motor combo, then the kicker, and lastly your new 4 stroke.

My father has a tracker v18 targa and it has a 4 stroke 150 which gets down to 1.7 ish with two bags out. When we fish slower I use the iPilot set up Mac mentioned without the kicker. I hope to add a kicker to the boat in the next few years, it really seems ideal for keeping hours off the big motor/ saving on gas/ plus remote control with the iPilot.


With only the iPilot I get about 6 hours in ideal conditions at speeds of .8-1.7 mph. This was a huge upgrade for us over the much higher speeds we get with the big motor. With the kicker I think it will go all day long. This was a game changer last spring when I first used it. Nothing like being the only one on the water with a flat lake, and no sound at all. As my dad said last year, “this is zen like”. Peace, quiet, the great outdoors, and the occasional screaming drag.

[Turnbuckle]

I put 200 hours on my merc 150 last year most of it trolling. Some advice to add.
I wish I could spring for a kicker, but n the meantime I’m dragging a bag. Amish Outfitters bag. Well made. Too many people told me to stay away from drift socks because they are meant to drift, not drag. Good luck.

[Mac Attack]

trolling with the plate will be more than a gallon per hour, trolling with a kicker will be less than 3 gallons per weekend. the savings add up quick with a second hand kicker

X2

[fishsluggos]

Nice rig! That will be perfect for trolling.

You got lot's of great info already. The one thing I want to add before you get a kicker know what your boats motor rating is. My boat is rated for a 90 HP. When I bought it I downgraded to a 70 HP because I knew I would be putting a 9.9 HP kicker on it. The combined weight of those two motors is less than the 90. So I didn't have to worry about overloading the transom and having the boat handling badly. Or worse being a safety issue. The reason I brought this up is your have a pretty big motor on there now. Sometimes less is more. 

The 70 is plenty for what I need. It gets up on plane fine and will do 30 MPH + with two big guys and fully loaded. With the 9.9 I can run down to 1-1.5 MPH no problem. Depending on the wind. 

You'll notice I went with Yami's. Knock on wood so far they're bulletproof. 

Lastly with a kicker you want a remote to control the kicker throttle. And a tie bar between the kicker and main motor so you can steer from the helm.