Kicker's effect on trim of 25'

sjhantzis · Posted: Fri Mar 19, 2010 8:59 am Post subject: Kicker's effect on trim of 25'

Has anyone had a problem with the trim on a 25’ after installing a kicker? If you have, how large was the kicker and what type of mounting bracket did you use. Washington Marina, here in Washington, D.C., has some concerns about the kicker’s effect on trim and wanted me to check for feedback before we move forward. If we go ahead with the project, I’ll probably mount a 5 HP Honda. Anything larger will be too heavy for easy movement from C-Dory to inflatable to canoe. My main is a 150 HP Honda.

Thanks,

Steve Hantzis

petemos · Posted: Fri Mar 19, 2010 9:09 am Post subject: Kicker's effect on trim of 25'

I don't have a 25', but on my 22' I have an 18HP Nissan which weights 115lbs and I don't really have any problems. I did mount it on the port side to balance the load of my batteries and myself at the helm. I would think with the increase in size and beam of a 25' and the weight of a 5-6 HP, you are not going to have any problems.

Pat Anderson

Usual kicker for a CD25 is a 9.9 or 15, a 5 might be a fine dinghy motor but marginal as a kicker I would think. We have a long shaft Honda 15 mounted on the port side on a stationary bracket, and like you have a Honda 150 main. Trim is not an issue.

toyman · Posted: Fri Mar 19, 2010 10:10 am Post subject:

We had a Honda 8 on Fan-C-Dory last summer, no trim problem with the motor. But remember, when running you will be sitting back there - WAY back there, unless you put an extension on the tiller. Then the trim IS affected - I couldn't discern any handling problem though - and the * pushed the 25 fine in benign conditions. I took the Honda off for this year - for the same reason you are going with the 5 Honda, just to damn heavy to handle.

hardee

Captains Cat

journey on · Posted: Fri Mar 19, 2010 11:36 am Post subject:

Let's see. Hondas are heavy, no question about that. And 5 hp is OK for a dinghy. However, if you're putting that motor on for safety, it isn't going to cut it.

Journey On has Honda 9.9 on the port aft transom. And when we used it in an emergency, it got a good 5 knts in relativity smooth water. We use it because that's the largest that can be used on the Achilles dinghy. That outboard weighs 110 lbs and is a bear to lift on when we're launching. We, and several others use a hoist to move the motor from Journey On to the dinghy. Pictures in the Journey On Album. I believe Dr. Bob has pictures of his set up also.

So what are some alternatives? Well, a Tohatsu 9.9 weighs 84 lbs, which is 23 lbs heavier that a Honda 5. Remember to work off the transom of a 25, the motor should have a 20" shaft. If the motor is only for the dinghy, the Tohatsu 5 is only 57 lbs. And dinghy engines never wear out. If I had the experience than that I have now, I'd have gone for the Tohatsu. Cheaper than the Honda, from Defender.

Even if you go with a dinghy only engine, use a hoist. Wrestling 60+ lbs off the back of a boat onto a dinghy over water can be a disaster. On the sailboat, we always used a hoist for a Johnson 6, because dropping it into water would be a bad thing to do.

Journey On has a Garelick spring loaded motor mount. Works well, isn't cheap, but dependable. Keeps the motor out of the water when we're cruising and in the water for trolling or transfer. See pics.

Boris

thataway · Posted: Fri Mar 19, 2010 10:08 pm Post subject:

No problem with the weight of most kickers on the transom. You have to do some balancing acts with other items, such as batteries some times, if there is a trim problem. As Boris says, there are several hoists available to move any dinghy motor from the kicker bracket.

We are different than many others, but find that the smaller engines are fine for kickers--you are not pushing the boat over its displacement speed. I keep telling the same story--but a 4.5 hp short shaft outboard on a dinghy would push a 35 ton vessel with a Length Water line of over 48 feet at 2.5 knots--I have gone many thousands of miles on a 26 foot sailboat (arc bottom, similar to a Star boat's configuration, but higher freeboard and weight)--with a 5 hp outboard.

The short shafts will work, but you have to live with occasional cavitation if there is significant seas. The larger motors and long shafts are better if you are going to try and trash into 15 to 20 knots of wind and chop....but 5 hp will work fine for low trolling speeds, and getting the boat home. Modern 4 strokes are very reliable--and I prefer a kicker with completely independant systems.