sneaker

I agree with Devin. You won't save any money, but you can have a lot of fun building and operating the boat you have built. I have built this boat primarily because i couldn't find a boat that had the features that were important to me. It had to be light enough for one man loading, launching and to be powered with a MK motor. It also provides hands fee operation with fwd/rev, stop /start, left/right and power all handled with 2 foot pedals. I only use a paddle for balance in fast water or to conserve battery power on long runs. I wanted lots of dry space for gear or another passenger and a means of moving the boat around at home or at launch without carrying it. It is easily transported with my Pickup. Been using it for a couple of years now, and usually have more fun than anyone on the water. Ended up building half dozen of these for my relatives and friends. My apologies if this image doesn't show up as I'm pretty flakey at inserting them. Send a PM and I can get one to you..

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A fish-finder draws less battery power than the smallest lamp on my boat, if it doesn't include a GPS. So from a power standpoint it doesn't matter where you connect it. However the FF is most likely to shut down when starting your motor if you connect to the cranking battery. On the other hand, I found the t/m to inject a lot of noise on the battery and caused the FF to provide meaningless fish symbols on the screen (turning off the T/M removed the fish). I carry a small (10 ampere hour ) battery that is just for fish-finders and radios. They do not connect to the engine ground, so are isolated from both engine and T/M noise. The above problems were eliminated and the FF is providing some usefull data.

Its nice to see you starting the kids early and instilling in them the love of the O/D and fishing. I started mine at 4 y/o and she is now a granny and still my favorite fishing partner. We are always among the last boats off the water each day we are out, and she cleans the fish. The Jon boat is a pretty stable craft for its size, even with 350 lbs aboard. It ought to be OK on quiet water that doesn't have a lot of traffic. It is probably the best you can do with a boat that can be car-topped. Just make sure the flotation is in place and the kids have their PFDs' on. I would go for a boat no smaller than 12 ft, preferable 14 ft.

I have been using a couple of MK40s for 4 years now and have not had a problem with either. They are used in salt water half of the time and flushed with fresh water when I get home. You might consider the Maxim model with the digital throttle. It will double (or more) your run time on a battery charge. I use the Endura, but have built a digital throttle for it, and am very happy with the motor.

Not a lot of info to go on. If you have power at the head and no results at the prop, the problem is probably in the lower unit. Digital motor controllers generate a lot of heat, and MK locates theirs in the motor housing. It can then be 'heat sinked' to the water. I would guess that MG does the same. If you managed to get the controller out, it is doubtful that it could be repaired, and replacement of the module would be required. It sounds like you will need to find a MG service outfit even if you do the work yourself. Locate a MG guy, get an estimate and then you have enough info to proceed. Good luck. :-/

Charging the batt from the cigarette lighter should work, but the engine must be running to to charge the battery. Most lighter sockets are fused at about 20 amps so at that rate of charge you would have to run the engine for 4-5 hours to get a nearly full charge. You will want to carry extra fuses along as you have no way to limit the charge rate and it can easily exceed 20 amps if the battery is completely discharged as your alternator can put out 60 amps or more. I am not aware of anyone that makes a current limiter for an application like this but a reasonably capable electronics guy could make one for you.

My fishing kayak is light (270 lbs loaded) and a candidate for a prop with greater pitch. The standard MK 2 blade prop has a 4 inch pitch with a large diameter to give optimum static thrust, great for moving a heavy load. However it doesn't handle well when in reverse, important to me, and I thought a 7-9 inch pitch might also offer more speed. I have tried a modified Nissan 3 blade prop (P/N 3F0641010M) and a 3 blade prop from a 9 hp O/B (for an extreme example). The Nissan is 7.4 D x 7.0 Pitch. It was almost identical to the bigger OEM prop in speed vs battery draw. When in reverse it was 25% faster and offered excellent handling. The 9 hp 3 blade prop with a pitch of 9 inches would not go slow enough and due to the limited power available from the motor was no faster than the Nissan. If you are moving a heavy load the OEM prop is hard to beat. If you have a canoe or kayak, there are better props available, but most require some machining to fit the MK shaft. Kipawa offers a 3 blade prop that fits some MK motors. I called them but could not find anyone that could give me the dia or pitch of their prop. I did not try them but they might be an option for you.

you might consider carrying a 6 volt battery and switching to it for slow work. It will cut your slowest speed in half, and that may be enough.

My yamaha has 2 plugs, one in the rear and a dip stick holder. Neither are in contact with the water jacket of the engine and they have no internal access to water. Check that the water tubing around the back of the motor is not leaking and that possibly you aren't getting some splash entering the cowling. Both of these locations are pretty level and will retain water that migrates in from elsewhere.

All of the battery meters i have seen are just voltmeters with an appropriate scale. If the VM in your fish finder is accurate, is should be as good as any other meter. The trick is to determine the voltage vs the state of discharge. The scale you have provided looks wrong to me, because the battery voltage at 100% discharged is 10.5 volts, and you show about 11.90. The voltage will vary a little with battery type (not brand). Flooded batteries according to the Trojan website measure 12.9 at 0% Depth of Discharge charge, 12.66 for 20% DOD. 12.38 for 40% DOD, 12.06 for 60% DOD and 11.7 for 80% DOD and 10.5 for 100% DOD. These are the voltages measured across the battery terminals with no current flowing to the load. As soon as you turn on the motor the voltage will drop significantly, and that is normal.

I am assuming you have a min-kota motor. The head is secured to the shaft with a single screw. If it is a 5/3 speed, there are 4 wires going from the head to the motor end of the shaft and you should be able to twist these 180 degrees without any problems. So all you need to do is remove the screw holding the head to the shaft, rotate the head 1/2 turn and re-install the screw. I think! :-/

Most oil pressure gauges are electric with a 'pressure sender' driving it from the motor. If your gauge goes to zero when the ignition is off, then the problem is probably in the sender. If is doesn't, then replace the gauge.

I use the same method as CFF suggests. It works well for trolling and dealing with the wind. However keep in mind that if you end up over the side while fishing alone, the boat will probably move away faster than you can swim. That is probably why they use the red button. :-/

I use a homebuilt electric powered kayak for fishing lakes and rivers. The anchor is at the stern as I usually fish downstream. It is secured in a jam cleat next to my seat. This makes anchoring a simple one handed event, altho it takes two hands to pull the 10 lb anchor up. I use a pretty heavy anchor for fishing on rivers. One problem I ran into was having the anchor become snagged on the bottom. In fast water all you can do is cut it loose. More importantly you don't want to secure the bitter end of the anchor line to the boat. If the anchor hangs in fast water the stern can be pulled under before you can get to the knife. Some boats will 'wander' on the anchor line in moving water. If the center of pressure (on the hull) is far enough forward (or toward the upstream end) they will oscillate back and forth to the point of overturning. A drift sock out the downstream end of the boat will eliminate this. but is one more thing to deal with. My boat has a 1 1/2 inch keel that eliminates the problem. A stern anchor on a powered boat runs the risk of getting the anchor line hung up in the prop. I have a simple line guide on bottom of the anchor pully assy that confines the line to the pulley, and reduces chances of fouling the prop. After several years of use I haven't had a problem with this. Some kayaks have a lateral line on the boat to which they just clip the anchor and the anchor is usually very light. It seems to work in still water but I don't think it would be suitable for moving water. It looks like one would have to pull the clip toward the cockpit to retrieve the anchor and a boat anchored from the middle is a good way to go for a swim. So I think your on the right track looking to anchor from a pulley on one end of the boat.

Sounds like your 9.9 motor is the 'little' motor and main power is something else. If you previously had a cranking battery to start the main motor and it was being charged by the alternator, a deep cycle battery should be OK as it uses the same charging method. Your alternator is not likely to put out more current than the new battery can tolerate. The deep cycle battery will not have as much cranking power, but if you are using an outboard of less than 150 hp, it should be enough. I am puzzled why the bass pro guy was concerned. Alternators routinely charge batteries and the problem isn't obvious to me. Perhaps other guys have had some experience with this application of deep cycle batteries.

The nice thing about the bigger motor is you have the power if you need it. If you keep the speed down it will use no more power than a 30 lb motor, assuming it has the digital throttle. If you get the 5/3 speed unit then you will use considerably more power.

An important feature you will want to get is a digital or continuously variable throttle. When you are using half or less throttle (most of the time for me) It will more than double your run time on a battery charge compared to a 5/3 speed set up, and you can actually get the exact speed you want. You will probably want a transom mount although I have heard from some they like the control provided by a bow mount. But in choppy water you will want to run the motor from the back of the boat to avoid spray and possibly taking water over the bow. However if you fish a lot of bass, where you are pitching into structure, you really need the ability to control the boat with your feet. That calls for a bow mount and perhaps a platform to fish from. Tough call. I have no experience with MG and have several MKs I use on my boats. They are my only power source, except for a paddle I always have on the boat. The motors are very reliable. However I use an after market variable speed control, much larger and more rugged than the small units they put inside the motors. My impression is that the speed controls are the weakest part of the motor system. Perhaps others can offer more help in that regard. The speed of your boat will be determined primarily by its displacement and the length of the boats waterline. A larger motor will use the same power as a smaller one when both are pushing the boat at the same speed. So I would guess that a 30 lb motor will move you as fast as a 50 lb motor. That is until you have to come back against the wind. Then the added thrust will make an important difference. The largest 12 v motor I am aware of is a 50 or 55 lb. I have used a 50 on my 12 footer and it goes no faster than a 30lb. So I settled for 40 as the motor that best fit my needs. I am very pleased with the quiet operation of my boat. Even a squeaky motor tension collar is annoying and fixed immediately. Having a battery also allows for other important equipment such as a fish finder and a bilge pump. So for small water, it is a nice way to go.

Trolling motors use a lot of power and in create a lot of noise on the battery. This has often cause interference on my FF. I have 2 boats, both have the same problem. I improved the small boat by putting an L/C filter in the battery power line. I think almost any filter will help, just be sure it has an inductor (L) and a capacitor © in it and it can handle 1 amp of current. The larger boat is used on the ocean and I am often in hundreds of feet of water. My Raytheon unit was about useless when moving along at speed, and unreliable at 5 mph. I installed a small motorcycle battery and use it just to power the FF. I also disconnected the FF Negative lead from the motor ground. Great performance now and I can use it at 20 mph with no problems. The small battery will run the FF for several weeks and I take it off the boat to recharge it . My FF only draws .05 amps so it doesn't use much battery.

I routinely shorten the shaft of a MinnKota when I install it on my electric kayaks. Not the same motor, but perhaps this will be helpful. The MK uses a composite shaft than is easily cut with a hacksaw. I remove the Tiller handle and motor control switch. Inside the tube are 4 wires. Note carefully how any wires are connected to the speed control mechanism. I then cut around the shaft but try not to allow the saw blade to cut into the wires inside. You will then have to reconnect the wires to the speed control hardware. It is likely you will have to shorten the heavy wires and perhaps install new terminals. The MK uses 1/4 inch push on terminals that are readily available at the hardware store. Perhaps MG does the same. I would not recommend trying to shorten the motor end of the shaft.

I have use a 10 amp charger for years (schumacker and Sears) and they have performed OK. Last year I picked up a Vector digital smart charger. It comes in several sizes, I chose a 30/10/2 amp unit. It weighs about half as much as the older type chargers due to its newer technology (high speed off-line switcher). You can start charging at 30 amps, and it will step the charge rate down (to 10 amps) as the battery is charged. It is fan cooled, and the fan is run only as fast as power demands dictate so it is quieter as the battery gets charged. Once the battery is at 100% it turns off so you won't cook a battery. Paid about 70$ at Lowes and Wallmart caries a Black and Decker version of it. I like the vector shape/color better. So far is has been very fast, and no problems.

One more idea- The idle circuits on the carb have very small orfices that will be the first thing to plug up if the fuel isn't clean. Just had this happen to the lawnmower yesterday, and several times on the Kicker on the boat. If there is a tapered adjustment screw, count the number of turns it takes to bottom it out (screw it gently all the way in) and then remove the screw. There may be two screws, do them both. With the screw out, squirt a shot of carb/choke cleaner into the hole with as much pressure as you can. Then replace the screws and adjust them to the same number of turns from the bottom as when you removed them. Do this on a cold engine. Start the engine and if you are lucky, you are done. Workes for me....

I started trying to fish out of a plastic sit-in kayak and found it tolerable for about 1 hour. Putting a pad under the seat helped but raising the center of gravity made the boat unstable. A sit on kayak was out of the question as I fish in cold water and don't want to wear a wet suit to keep warm. So I think the jon is your best bet, more stable, higher seats and dry. I finally decided to make a boat that better fit my needs. Its is warm, dry, about 80 lbs and controlled with my feet, leaving my hands free to deal with fishing gear. You can have a look, just type into your browser jimskayak.com

I use a 40 lb MK on my fishing kayak and a series 24 battery for juice. This keeps me going all day if I keep the speed down. The digital speed control really does increase the efficiency of the motor. I have checked mine out and it draws about 1/4 of the power at 3 mph using the digital throttle as compared to the 5/3 speed set up. Your 50 lb motor is far more than you will ever need on a canoe, but it will not draw anymore current than a 30 or 40 when used on the same boat at the same speed. This is because they are all doing the same amount of work. I have made these measurements on my boat and was surprised at the results. The digital max will significantly extend the life of your battery, and you can always get exactly the speed you need.

:-/Try typing into your browser (24vdc to 12vdc converter) . You will find several possibilities. You should look for one that will provide 12v at 2 amps or more, and is suitable for mounting on your boat. I found them from 17 bucks to over 50, so look around. Most of them will require a dry environment.