Motor for Jon boat?

[panfish12]

Hi guys, I just got a tracker 1232, and would like to outfit it for small lakes and ponds. My first question is will a small outboard be worth the extra cost and hastle that would be avoided by sticking to electric only power. Ideally I would like to have a bow mount trolling motor and a small outbord on the back. 6 hp is the max recommended on the safety sticker. But, I could also just go with a larger transom mounted trolling motor and not have to deal with gas. This is my first boat, so I dont really know what to look for in a used motor, or what a good price is. I know a guy who has a 3.6 hp mercury just sitting in a shed (model # 6168187), but I dont know if it runs or what its condition is. (I havent gotten a chance to talk to the owner yet) What would be a reasonable price for this motor, and would it be a good fit for my little boat? Any other advice on my first boat would also be appreciated.

 

Thanks, Ethan.

[Gundog]

I would question how old the mercury is. If its very old and in poor condition you would be better off buying new. You can get a new 6 hp outboard for about a grand. If it was me, I'd get a new motor and put a smaller (and cheaper) trolling motor next to it. A big TM on a small jon means carrying 4 batteries, possibly 6 depending on how big the lake and how long you fish cause you will be using it as your only source of moving the boat. With an outboard you will use the motor to move you close to the places you want to fish and use the TM to get you on the spots. Nobody could tell you the price of a used motor without looking at the motor first. If it looks like its been through the ringer, it ain't gonna be worth much. 

[detroit1]

4 to 6 batteries for a 12' jon boat? dude! what are you talking about? 

[Gundog]

27 minutes ago, detroit1 said:

4 to 6 batteries for a 12' jon boat? dude! what are you talking about? 

If he gets a "large" TM like he said in his original post, I can assume he is talking about a 24v TM. I know from having a 12v TM on my little jon (back when I was a youngin') that running a boat on just a TM drains batteries real quick. I use to carry 3 12v batteries on my trips and ran 2 batteries dead and the 3rd half drained. That is with me, a friend and all the gear we carried. Not to mention 2 breakfasts, lunches and dinners. That is what I'm talking about. 

[detroit1]

Yeah, those Shakespeare troll motors did suck juice. Motors are more efficient this century....my  16' deep v takes about 6 hrs to run down with my 12v motor. I'm also thinking that a 12/32 jon's wt. capacity is what- maybe 450#, ..6 batt. @ 60#, would leave you and all gear at 90#. Take away 40# of tackle and you need to weigh 50#. All i'm sayin...

[Way2slow]

Not many TM's are going to make 3.5hp.  A tank of gas on a 3.5 gas motor will out last a whole boat load of batteries and go a whole lot faster.  However, when you get to the spot you want to fish, trying to use a gas motor for a TM to ease around with is going to totally suck.  That's when you wind up sitting on the very front of the boat and use a paddle in one hand and rod in the other half the time.

 

With electric, you learn to pick a spot and launch close to that spot because a couple of hours running on the faster speed settings are about all you get, unless you have a boat load of batteries.  Remember, that's about 65 pounds every time you add an extra.

[WRB]

New 3 to 4 hp 2 stroke outboard engines are expensive, 4 stroke are even more pricey.

Trying to find a good condition used small OB is challenging.

1232 Jon boats are more like a canoe and difficult to stand and fish in.

If you have a electric TM up front and a small tiller OB in the back, the combined weight is about 150 lbs to consider loading in and out of the small boat.

I think the TM and small OB is the way to go, just stay seated!

Tom

[JustJames]

I got 1436 dress up jonboat with 35 lbs trolling motor and 15hp OB.

do I really need OB engine maybe or maybe not. It helps to move from spot to spot quicker in big lake / reservoir like Lake Perris or DVL lake, but in my home lake which is not that wide I hardly ever need OB engine, many time now I fish only with TM, only use OB when launch/load.

I can run my TM for 6-7 hours streght and use only 60-70% battery. My TM has 4-5 speed and at the highest speed is fast enough for me to move to next spot.

OB engine is good but now it develops some cracks around joint at stern from stress when running engine and when towing on bumpy road. Those d**n engine is pretty heavy, I think mine is more than 100 lbs and imagine all that can do with your aluminum Jon boat.

For your small lake, I would

think transom mount trolling motor maybe 45lbs of thrust or higher might be better suit.

[WRB]

That would be a interesting ride in white caps on DVL! 1436 is a lot wider then 32" 1232, V type 12' & 14' runabouts are a lot safer boat IMO on windy lakes.

Tom

[BrianSnat]

I think you should get a gas motor, depending on the size of the lakes you might fish.  If the lakes are larger than 2-3 miles from end to end you will appreciate the gas outboard.  It will move you around a lot faster than normal electrics.  If 6 HP is the max recommended then I wouldn't go above that by much, if at all. 

But beware when someone says "It worked great three years ago, only has 10 hours on it, but I haven't used it since".  I remember when my dad gave me a 9.9 he had sitting in his garage. It literally had only about 3 hours on it, but sat in the garage for about 10 years.  It cost me almost  $400 to get it running again. Still a pretty good deal for a 9.9. Had I paid  a few hundred for it , then not such a good deal.

Make  sure that used motor runs well, and not just in a barrel. Ask if you can test it on a lake, on your boat or his. 

 

[JustJames]

Nothing unusual?, done that a few time on DVL And skinner lake, plenty of time in Lake Perris and Henshaw. Only lake I wouldn't dare to go is Silverwood Lake. 

[panfish12]

Thanks for your input guys. I talked to the owner and it sounds like he is willing to let me have the moter since he never uses it. One more question, what is a resonable price for a 30-35 pound thrust trolling motor? (Bow mount with foot pedal)