Newport Vessels new kayak outboard motor

[Koz]

https://newportvessels.com/products/nk300-kayak-motor

 

It's expected to ship in March at a retail price of $1,299. But the kicker is that it requires a 36v battery, so you cam add another $500 - $1,000+ to your investment. The Torqeedo is $1,999 which includes the battery.

 

Personally, between that investment and an investment in your fishing kayak I think you'd be better off selling what you have and buying a purpose built, trolling motor kayak with spot lock like an Old Town.

[TnRiver46]

14 minutes ago, Koz said:

https://newportvessels.com/products/nk300-kayak-motor

 

It's expected to ship in March at a retail price of $1,299. But the kicker is that it requires a 36v battery, so you cam add another $500 - $1,000+ to your investment. The Torqeedo is $1,999 which includes the battery.

 

Personally, between that investment and an investment in your fishing kayak I think you'd be better off selling what you have and buying a purpose built, trolling motor kayak with spot lock like an Old Town.

When it gets close to 2 grand, I say you’re better off with a gas engine on a 16 ft aluminum boat. But that’s just me 

[casts_by_fly]

1 hour ago, Koz said:

https://newportvessels.com/products/nk300-kayak-motor

 

It's expected to ship in March at a retail price of $1,299. But the kicker is that it requires a 36v battery, so you cam add another $500 - $1,000+ to your investment. The Torqeedo is $1,999 which includes the battery.

 

Personally, between that investment and an investment in your fishing kayak I think you'd be better off selling what you have and buying a purpose built, trolling motor kayak with spot lock like an Old Town.

I would agree with you there, though if you have a boat you want to add a motor to, then the xi3 kayak is probably a better choice. Then you pick up spot lock equivalent and I think it’s roughly the same price bracket. The exception would be if you’re trying to travel long distances quickly and/or trolling. One of these with a 36/100 lithium on a big water 132 would be a heck of a nearshore rig for trolling the coasts 

 

1 hour ago, TnRiver46 said:

When it gets close to 2 grand, I say you’re better off with a gas engine on a 16 ft aluminum boat. But that’s just me 

yes mostly. Some people have space limitations.  Some don’t want to deal with trailers.  Lots of reasons already hashed on this board. There is no denying though that you can get a 16’ boat with a trolling motor and gas motor that will give more capability than an equivalently costed kayak. Even if you’re only putting on tiny waters with no boat ramp, a 12-14’ johnboat is hand launchable still. 

[flyfisher]

12 hours ago, Koz said:

https://newportvessels.com/products/nk300-kayak-motor

 

It's expected to ship in March at a retail price of $1,299. But the kicker is that it requires a 36v battery, so you cam add another $500 - $1,000+ to your investment. The Torqeedo is $1,999 which includes the battery.

 

Personally, between that investment and an investment in your fishing kayak I think you'd be better off selling what you have and buying a purpose built, trolling motor kayak with spot lock like an Old Town.

Couple things off with your assessment here.  The NK300 is the equivalent of a 3hp motor and they have a NK180s which is less expensive and less thrust.  The torqeedo you are comparing to is not the same one, that one is more comparable to the NK180s at 2k and with the smaller battery.  I have around 1500 in my NK180s set up and more battery life than the upgraded battery torqeedo set up which is 2500.

the NK300 is more comparable to the 110 3torqeedo which with battery starts at $2900.  You can also get a larger battery for less money and increase range.  If you go with a 30ah 36V you save about a grand over the torqeedo with similar range.

 

Spot lock feature is fantastic, only problem is it is weak and slow and the boat sucks to paddle should you have to do just that.  My dad has one and the spot lock worked fantastic on our river trips but the problem was he couldn't motor upstream given the weak thrust.  On lakes i would be at 40% throttle while he was maxed out.  It also wasn't real fond of grass and needed more depth to navigate.  I think for a lake it would be a solid kayak if speed isn't your concern.  I'd rather have a good paddling boat with a motor than a bad paddling boat with a motor.  

 

My NK180s will motor me upstream 5+ miles on a river and then i can float back or on lakes I have gone 10+ miles all with a 30ah battery.  

 

12 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

When it gets close to 2 grand, I say you’re better off with a gas engine on a 16 ft aluminum boat. But that’s just me 

maybe but at the same time the rivers I fish you would have a tough time in normal summer months water level.  

[airshot]

"Rated at 3 hp"  saw that before, many electric trolling motors have been rated at 2,3 and even 4 hp....however, in real life, none have been able to beat my 2.2 hp gas on a 12' jon boat.  Over the years I have friends that bought these hp rated electric motors and we have tested them in my pond. My little 2.2 gas has outrun them all.  Not sure how they come up with this HP rating.....

[detroit1]

ICE,ICE,baby....

[Bankc]

20 hours ago, airshot said:

"Rated at 3 hp"  saw that before, many electric trolling motors have been rated at 2,3 and even 4 hp....however, in real life, none have been able to beat my 2.2 hp gas on a 12' jon boat.  Over the years I have friends that bought these hp rated electric motors and we have tested them in my pond. My little 2.2 gas has outrun them all.  Not sure how they come up with this HP rating.....

Your gas engine probably has more RPM's than the electric motors.  

[Darth-Baiter]

love it.  but i think my Outback would be pretty impressive with the NK180.  

 

i sold my old kayak and the buyer reached out to me for paperwork to install a motor.  looked like a total pain the ass to me.  i am okay with Me-power instead of E-power that this point.  my kayak is an exercise in simplicity to me.  i dont want to complicate it too much.  

[Tatulatard]

Unpopular opinion: don't weigh down your kayak with motors.  Don't trailer your kayak.  Keep it light, car topable, man portable and powered.  Save the electrics and trailering for a pond boat or bass boat.  

[Darth-Baiter]

5 minutes ago, Tatulatard said:

Unpopular opinion: don't weigh down your kayak with motors.  Don't trailer your kayak.  Keep it light, car topable, man portable and powered.  Save the electrics and trailering for a pond boat or bass boat.  

I kinda think our kayak weight capacities are sometimes a total guess anyways.  hahha..

 

it does suck fishing with kayak friends that are motorized.  none of my jerk buds will even let me hang on.  I am panting next to them trying to keep up while mouth breathing, and trying to swallow a powerbar

[Bankc]

3 hours ago, Tatulatard said:

Unpopular opinion: don't weigh down your kayak with motors.  Don't trailer your kayak.  Keep it light, car topable, man portable and powered.  Save the electrics and trailering for a pond boat or bass boat.  

Did that for years.  Still do it from time to time on small ponds.

 

The question is, what's your focus on?  Did you come to enjoy a day of fishing or a day of kayaking?  

[Susky River Rat]

On 2/19/2023 at 8:53 PM, TnRiver46 said:

When it gets close to 2 grand, I say you’re better off with a gas engine on a 16 ft aluminum boat. But that’s just me

I see so many people on the susky with their 4-6k kayaks. I just shake my head.

3 hours ago, Tatulatard said:

Unpopular opinion: don't weigh down your kayak with motors.  Don't trailer your kayak.  Keep it light, car topable, man portable and powered.  Save the electrics and trailering for a pond boat or bass boat.  

That’s the whole point of having a kayak to me. Stop trying to make them a boat

[VolFan]

5 hours ago, Tatulatard said:

Unpopular opinion: don't weigh down your kayak with motors.  Don't trailer your kayak.  Keep it light, car topable, man portable and powered.  Save the electrics and trailering for a pond boat or bass boat.  

This. Within reason.

[choppertime]

Kayaks have become ever so popular since the pandemic, kayak specific tournaments, lots of pluses for owning a kayak,,,less maintenance for 1 do what makes ya happy,,,,you only get 1 chance at this thing called life! 

[Darth-Baiter]

21 hours ago, Bankc said:

 

 

The question is, what's your focus on?  Did you come to enjoy a day of fishing or a day of kayaking?  

this is actually a very good point.  for me it is kayak fishing.  which i feel is difficult.  mobility is a problem and i can only fish relatively close to where i launch.

 

i can draw parallels between kayak fisihing and backpack hunting.  both have that added physical challenges and limitations.  i can truck/road hunt..but i kinda liked the suffering of caring in my gear on my back..and packing out the animal.  (when i was younger and skinnier)

 

i dont think  would ever kayak for the sake of kayaking.  nerp...

[Tatulatard]

22 hours ago, Bankc said:

Did that for years.  Still do it from time to time on small ponds.

 

The question is, what's your focus on?  Did you come to enjoy a day of fishing or a day of kayaking?  

Both are a pleasure in their own.  I prefer catching but somedays are more kayaking than catching fish. 

[Koz]

4 hours ago, Darth-Baiter said:

this is actually a very good point.  for me it is kayak fishing.  which i feel is difficult.  mobility is a problem and i can only fish relatively close to where i launch.

 

Get a pedal kayak or or - wait for it - add a motor to your kayak.

[Darth-Baiter]

7 minutes ago, Koz said:

 

Get a pedal kayak or or - wait for it - add a motor to your kayak.

keep us KOZ  ,.,.i have the rolls royce of pedal kayak (in my opinion only)..a Hobie. 

 

20 miles on the pedals is still 20 miles..on the pedals.  

 

 

lets be honest.  even with a motor..you cant get a call from a friend that is on the opposite side of a large lake and motor over there.  i have had to load my kayak back into my truck and launch at a new place.  a bass boat just points the nose of the boat "that way" and guns it.  

[Koz]

On 2/22/2023 at 12:37 PM, Tatulatard said:

 Save the electrics and trailering for a pond boat or bass boat.  

I don't agree with that all. 

 

A lot of people don't have storage space for a boat or a vehicle that can tow a boat. But they still want to get out on the water and not be tied to bank fishing.

 

And with a kayak, you're generally limited by space and weight with what you can add, so you have to be selective. But I'd venture to say that most avid anglers who buy a boat end up going down the rabbit hole and spending a heck of a lot more than they intended for their boat and upgrading electronics and equipment multiple times, then get fed up and buy a bigger boat and start the cycle all over again. 

[Tatulatard]

6 minutes ago, Koz said:

I don't agree with that all. 

 

A lot of people don't have storage space for a boat or a vehicle that can tow a boat. But they still want to get out on the water and not be tied to bank fishing.

 

And with a kayak, you're generally limited by space and weight with what you can add, so you have to be selective. But I'd venture to say that most avid anglers who buy a boat end up going down the rabbit hole and spending a heck of a lot more than they intended for their boat and upgrading electronics and equipment multiple times, then get fed up and buy a bigger boat and start the cycle all over again. 

Kayaks fill the role of small fishing boat but so do small fishing boats like 10 foot johns or those plastic pond tubs.  If your kayak is so heavy it can't be car topped and you have to trailer it to the shore or ramp to launch like a boat then you aren't any better off than using a pond prowler, 10 foot john or canoe. I'd argue you have the same thing but worse for more money.  Kayaks have an advantage over other small fishing boats in that they can be human powered.  They give up alot as fishing platforms (store, stability ect) to be able to slice through the water with minimal paddling effort but that's the trade off.  You remove this human power from the equation and you lose its advantage but still keep the negatives associated with the design.  A kayak decked out with a trolling motor and battery or even a small outboard is cool but you end up with something thats a worse battery powered small fishing boat.  I've seen many people make this mistake.  They get a kayak and more is better to they add a ton of stuff to it and end up having to transport it in a truck bed or trailer like a small fishing boat. 

 

This is something I studied in great detail before my 2nd kayak purchase.  I really wanted to know what I wanted out of a small fishing boat.  Turns out I needed two small fishing boats.  A kayak that is light weight and super stable with a very high seating position and then an 8 foot pond prowler and trolling motor with depth finder.  A kayak to car top and drive around with on the roof for weeks at a time fishing after work or just whenever.  Just leave it up there and forget it.  Drag it off and cart it down a trail or shove it down a rocky bank launching wherever whenever even if for a few hours.  It and the pond prowler offer me a level of fishing freedom to go to places I can't with my bass boat and to do so on a whim vs having to get the bass boat ready which I want to do the day before and want a minimum of 4 hours on the water to justify dealing with getting ready and using it.

 

 

[Koz]

13 hours ago, Tatulatard said:

Kayaks fill the role of small fishing boat but so do small fishing boats like 10 foot johns or those plastic pond tubs.  If your kayak is so heavy it can't be car topped and you have to trailer it to the shore or ramp to launch like a boat then you aren't any better off than using a pond prowler, 10 foot john or canoe. I'd argue you have the same thing but worse for more money.  Kayaks have an advantage over other small fishing boats in that they can be human powered.  They give up alot as fishing platforms (store, stability ect) to be able to slice through the water with minimal paddling effort but that's the trade off.  You remove this human power from the equation and you lose its advantage but still keep the negatives associated with the design.  A kayak decked out with a trolling motor and battery or even a small outboard is cool but you end up with something thats a worse battery powered small fishing boat.  I've seen many people make this mistake.  They get a kayak and more is better to they add a ton of stuff to it and end up having to transport it in a truck bed or trailer like a small fishing boat. 

 

This is something I studied in great detail before my 2nd kayak purchase.  I really wanted to know what I wanted out of a small fishing boat.  Turns out I needed two small fishing boats.  A kayak that is light weight and super stable with a very high seating position and then an 8 foot pond prowler and trolling motor with depth finder.  A kayak to car top and drive around with on the roof for weeks at a time fishing after work or just whenever.  Just leave it up there and forget it.  Drag it off and cart it down a trail or shove it down a rocky bank launching wherever whenever even if for a few hours.  It and the pond prowler offer me a level of fishing freedom to go to places I can't with my bass boat and to do so on a whim vs having to get the bass boat ready which I want to do the day before and want a minimum of 4 hours on the water to justify dealing with getting ready and using it.

 

 

You bloviated without addressing my primary premise.

[Tatulatard]

9 hours ago, Koz said:

You bloviated without addressing my primary premise.

 

Is this your primary premise?

 

23 hours ago, Koz said:

A lot of people don't have storage space for a boat or a vehicle that can tow a boat.

 

To me these images are the same.  Small fishing boat on a trailer.  They occupy the same space and have the same towing requirements.

[jlieu]

On 2/20/2023 at 7:55 AM, flyfisher said:

My NK180s will motor me upstream 5+ miles on a river and then i can float back or on lakes I have gone 10+ miles all with a 30ah battery.  

This is a great idea...may look into this so it saves me trying to plan with a buddy for drop-off and pick-up duties with two vehicles!   

[padon]

On 2/22/2023 at 4:04 PM, Darnold335 said:

I see so many people on the susky with their 4-6k kayaks. I just shake my head.

That’s the whole point of having a kayak to me. Stop trying to make them a boat

i fish out of my kayak all the time on the susky with a torqueedo. the point forme isnt to make it a boat. its because i fish by myself alot and the motor allows  me to go upstream from my launch however far i want to then drift back down and paddle across the river to hit different areas. when i get the chance to do a shuttle float with a buddy the motor stays home. one less thing to worry about.

[KYKBassing]

I've gone down the kayak rabbit hole, first purchasing a fishing kayak and then adding on all the accessories (Sonar unit, power pole, torqeedo) and now I'm contemplating the addition of a trailer rather than car topping.

 

I fish alone 95% of the time and it seemed like a more logical approach at the time.  Looking back at the investment and advantages/disadvantages, it may have been cheaper and smarter to get a boat but I don't completely regret the decision.  

There's something unique about being that close to the water and fishing skinny water that would otherwise may a challenge to navigate.

 

One thing I think I underestimated was thinking I'd be content to fish the waters I originally intended.  The more I fish, the more and more I want to explore, which then continually pushes the boundaries of owning a kayak.