Kicker on a Tomcat
- Thread starter Beflyguy
- Start date
jennykatz":3vb9r8vp said:
The boat does troll fine as it is but I am told that many people use a kicker to save wear and hours on their main engines and that made sense to me. Also since I want to have the motor on board for the dinghy, why not mount it an the rear where it is accessible for transferring to the dinghy. There it is out of the way and if it's mounted there, why not use it for trolling or in an emergency? (major electrical failure or the like)
I might want to do the same thing. If I recall, I think Bob Austin made a board that slipped into the dive ladder mounts and was able to mount the kicker to that. Depending on how the Tomcat trolls on a single engine, I might want a kicker mounted in the center of the bracket (probably needs to be a long shaft kicker for that). Also, it would be nice if it could be steered via a remote control. I might consider looking at a solution using a generator and a bass boat like electric motor for trolling.
After I posted this - I did some looking around in Bob's photo album - here's a link to the pages showing some pictures of his kicker mounting plate.
After I posted this - I did some looking around in Bob's photo album - here's a link to the pages showing some pictures of his kicker mounting plate.
Captains Cat
New member
Get yourself a bucket, preferably galvanized steel (or heavy plastic) and hang it from about a 20'' line attached to either the port or stbd stern cleat. Throw it over when you want to troll. Run the opposite engine at idle, you'll slow down fine. A lot cheaper than a kicker, and the bucket is useful in other ways too.
Charlie
Charlie
Captains Cat
New member
Concur... But if there are trolls out there, I don't go... 
matt_unique
New member
I have a sweet kicker! It's a 150HP Suzuki that will plane off Napoleon even with the other engine off. 8)
rogerbum":r6ltfe4z said:
Roger,
Yes, that's the idea. Since the waterline when at rest or at slow speeds is only 10-12" below the top of the motor bracket, a short shaft should be fine. I was picturing something somewhat permanent off to one side so the ladder could still be used.
Something like this.
Wandering Sagebrush
Free Range Human
Brian,
I am wondering if a 6 hp kicker is enough to effectively troll a Tomcat... Any wind at all, and my guess is you're going to be going down wind with little ability to do much else. We have an 8 hp Honda on our CD 22, and in wind, I find it does not have the poop to easily keep the boat under control. Once the bow falls off, I either have to gun the kicker (a lot) to correct, or change course. Gunning the engine means that most of the time my kokanee rig pulls off down riggers.
Offshore, we almost always end up using the main engine to troll.
Steve
I am wondering if a 6 hp kicker is enough to effectively troll a Tomcat... Any wind at all, and my guess is you're going to be going down wind with little ability to do much else. We have an 8 hp Honda on our CD 22, and in wind, I find it does not have the poop to easily keep the boat under control. Once the bow falls off, I either have to gun the kicker (a lot) to correct, or change course. Gunning the engine means that most of the time my kokanee rig pulls off down riggers.
Offshore, we almost always end up using the main engine to troll.
Steve
There is a local Tom Cat that has done this. As I recall he has an 8 or a 9.9 on a permanent bracket that raises and lowers the motor into the water. Obviously he loses the factory swim step.
He is not on this site, as far as I know. Next time I see the boat I will try to get a photo.
Warren
He is not on this site, as far as I know. Next time I see the boat I will try to get a photo.
Warren
My TomCat is a 1997 with twin Honda 90s. I have trolled with my 90's, switching back and forth to balance the hours, for 13 years. I have so many hours I don't even look anymore. I change the oil regularly, grease the fittings, lube the prop shaft, and do an annual replug, and that's about it. They run perfect, use no oil, and I believe they will run until I cannot stand them anymore and want something cooler just for the heck of it. I think the newer Hondas are even better. I would not worrry about wear and tear very much. These outboards like to be used, and I'm sure even the new larger ones will troll just fine. Happy fishing. TWO-DAWGS.
When I wanted to be able to troll very slowly with my twin 40s on the 22 or twin 150s on the Tom Cat, someone (I think it was Les at EQ) suggested that I run one motor in forward and the other in reverse. I am not sure he was serious or whether there are drawbacks to doing this, but I thought it was an interesting idea, assuming that gas consumption is not an issue. Thoughts?
Warren
Warren
Captains Cat
New member
Doryman":3lqerw4j said:
With the motor spacing on the TC, when I put one in forward and one in reverse, I can spin on the vertical axis. If you troll that way, you'll make the fish dizzy!
Charlie :disgust
matt_unique
New member
Great picture Dot/Marty!
Brian - you would have water impact on your kicker when you come off plane. Thinking out loud...that spot will yield the least sea impact if it were trimmed up. May take some vertical position experimentation.
Brian - you would have water impact on your kicker when you come off plane. Thinking out loud...that spot will yield the least sea impact if it were trimmed up. May take some vertical position experimentation.