Mounting a second outboard motor

Diogenesusa

Recruit
Joined
Aug 22, 2012
Messages
4
I apologize to Don S. for unintentionaly hijacking his thread. This my first posting.

I am seriously considering the purchase of a Suntracker 32' PartyHut pontoon boat.

I plan on extended river trips, (Texas Colorado, Brazos).

My question is about mounting a second outboard motor on this type of boat, just in case the primary conks out, I want the capability to switch to the back-up motor.

In viewing videos, I have not seen this configuration anywhere.

Thanks in advance for any advice.
 

81_chapparel194

Petty Officer 1st Class
Joined
Aug 7, 2012
Messages
341
Re: Mounting a second outboard motor

i have seen boats with a small kicker mounted on boats as a back up but not sure about your particular boat.. pics of the transom would help in determining this.. maybe even contact your boat manufacturer and ask them.. i doubt that you would be able to run the same size as you have now but possibily a smaller kicker engine
 

5150abf

Vice Admiral
Joined
Aug 12, 2007
Messages
5,808
Re: Mounting a second outboard motor

There is a reason you haven't seen any, the only place you can mount an engine is between the tubes and since thre is already one there room for another just doesn't exist.

You also need to factor in weight, toons are normally pretty heavy in the transom already, with another engine it will just make this worse and the added weight will take away speed.

Make sure you have a cell phone and keep your engine in good condition and you will be fine but I really don't think you can add a second engine
 

Rancherlee

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jun 6, 2006
Messages
621
Re: Mounting a second outboard motor

The part that gets me is "32 foot pontoon" and "River"! How fast is the current on the river? We carried a 6hp kicker with on my Grandpa's 30x8 work pontoon and have had to use it. The poor little 6hp had to push us back 8 miles with 2500# load on the deck at a SLOW ~2.5-3mph but it did it, only took 4 hours.......... not much traffic and NO cell coverage on the lake in late October when we were removing navigational buoys just before freeze up......... We made a simple bracket out of 2 lengths of 1.5" 1/8" angle iron that caught 2 rear stringers and hung the Long shaft 6hp Tiller directly behind one of the 23" pontoons and it had plenty of bite. I've built the same for my pontoon but haven't secured a 4-6hp long shaft 4 stroke yet so I haven't installed the bracket. Depending on the wind/current you may possibly need a 20-25hp kicker to push that 32' effectively, and fairly beefy bracket to match.
 

BatDaddy1887

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jan 18, 2009
Messages
463
Re: Mounting a second outboard motor

I have an 8hp Mariner kicker mounted on the back of my boat. Here are some pics for inspiration. After some initial testing, I re-worked the mount to be flush with the bottom of the trim, so now it's mounted higher than is seen in the photos. We never worry about getting stuck out there now as the kicker also has it's own 6-gallon tank/connector.
 

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oldjeep

Admiral
Joined
May 17, 2010
Messages
6,455
Re: Mounting a second outboard motor

Biggest trolling motor you can get, mounted to the front of the pontoon. Might not get you home, but will get you to a nearby dock - although you might need to head down river.
 

Diogenesusa

Recruit
Joined
Aug 22, 2012
Messages
4
Re: Mounting a second outboard motor

I have an 8hp Mariner kicker mounted on the back of my boat. Here are some pics for inspiration. After some initial testing, I re-worked the mount to be flush with the bottom of the trim, so now it's mounted higher than is seen in the photos. We never worry about getting stuck out there now as the kicker also has it's own 6-gallon tank/connector.

I really appreciate all the advice. I contacted the Suntracker company and I got the answer that it can't be done because of the transom configuration.

However I knew that the American spirit of "where there's a will there is a way" would shine through.

From the photos, I was wondering about the steering of the kicker motor?

Is it steered by manual? or is the steering cable integrated to be controlled from the wheelhouse?

Once again, thanks for the advice.
 

BatDaddy1887

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jan 18, 2009
Messages
463
Re: Mounting a second outboard motor

To steer my kicker motor, if I were to use it, I have a 3 foot section of PVC pipe that snugly fits over the tiller arm, thereby allowing me to steer manually and control the speed (rotating the pipe) from the captains chair.
 

Silver Eagle

Master Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Mar 16, 2010
Messages
852
Re: Mounting a second outboard motor

There is a way.There this guy along the Delaware River that took his 24 ft Pontoon boat and turned it into a crabbing boat. He cut a hole in the center of the boat and made a mounting system to raise and lower the kicker engine when needed. He uses the 120 Merc to get him out in the deep waters then he uses the 9.9 to do all the work with. He can do a 360 with it. When he's not using the kicker he just covers it up with a wooden cover he made. Sorry I don't have any pictures of it.
 
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