A good canoe motor?

[CJpilot]

I have a 16 foot Old Town canoe with an outrigger that I would like to put a motor on. Does anybody know what size motor would fit on it? Does anybody have any suggestions for a good motor model that can be found in the couple hundred bucks range? I dont mind older models if they look and work ok.

Here is the canoe model I have: http://www.oldtowncanoe.com/canoes/generalFamily/ojibway_158.html

It is an older model but basicly the same boat.

 

[NYGiants]

Re: A good canoe motor?

i have an aluminum grumman canoe possible a littlle longer than that and its rated up to 5hp. personally on something like that i say 2hp or an electric motor would be just fine. youd need to get something like this for an outboard
www.oakorchardcanoe.com/motormount.php

 

[CJpilot]

Re: A good canoe motor?

I have an outrigger/mount or do you mean the Power Paddle? Im not sure if an electric would work considering I am on a river and it needs to be able to travel long distances. (5 miles+) And Im not looking for fishing, It leisure, going camping and stuff.

 

[NYGiants]

Re: A good canoe motor?

than just buy a small 2-3 hp outboard. they have internal gas tanks too so you dont have to worry about hoses and tanks.
go on craigslist to find them

 

[CATransplant]

Re: A good canoe motor?

The Evinrude and Johnson 3hp outboards are terrific for canoes. They're light, quiet, have an internal tank, and will push your canoe along at a nice pace. You can find a used one that runs perfectly for around $300.

 

[jdsgrog]

Re: A good canoe motor?

The Evinrude and Johnson 3hp outboards are terrific for canoes. They're light, quiet, have an internal tank, and will push your canoe along at a nice pace. You can find a used one that runs perfectly for around $300.

Ditto. Though I got a later model that doesn't have a tank built in, it is a smooth and quiet running motor since it is a twin cylinder.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: A good canoe motor?

Any Evinrude/Johnson that looks similar to this one would be an awesome canoe motor. Great power, very low weight http://fotos.infonavis.com/boat/2007/07/26/264950/104293_n.jpg

 

[CJpilot]

Re: A good canoe motor?

I really liked this one and probably would have purchased it if I had the money at the time. http://maine.craigslist.org/boa/1679890517.html
A good motor? And any idea what year it is?

 

[CATransplant]

Re: A good canoe motor?

Marginal, really, and the ad doesn't claim that it runs. If it runs great, the ad always says so on Craig's List. Even if it doesn't run great, but will start, the seller ALWAYS says it runs great.

1.5 hp is pretty small. And, at 25 lb. it's only seven pounds lighter than the 32 lb. 3 hp models. Also, it's a single cylinder. Twins are much smoother-running.

 

[CJpilot]

Re: A good canoe motor?

Oh ok. So stick with 2.5 and up?

 

[Downwindtracker2]

Re: A good canoe motor?

No, they are much too powerful for a side mount. Motor weight is a very serious problem with a canoe,hey, why else is my tinney so fat at the stern. I have a 16' 6" square stern freighter that I use for hunting.This Clipper canoe is just a 18' 6" freighter with 2' cut off.I use a 4.5HP Merc with it. It is too damm powerful. A slight wrong move and both it and me get wet.In fact twice so far. Those 1 1/2 hp motors would be more than enough,even for me.

 

[JustJason]

Re: A good canoe motor?

I ran a Tanaka (same as sears/gamefisher) 3HP last year on my fishing canoe. I have a 17ft old town discovery with the same side mount.
3HP is to much. Power is great but the canoe went just to damm fast. If had to do it all over again I would find a 1-2HP instead.

 

[CJpilot]

Re: A good canoe motor?

Alright, I think I have found a Johnson 2hp for $100. I will get some info on it and post it here for your opinion if I think its ok.

I do think smaller would be better because the canoe itself isnt very heavy. (Its basicly an open, oversized kayak with canoe seats) And to make matters a bit tippier I am not a heavy person at all, which may make it hard to offset the weight of a larger motor on an outrigger.

 

[JustJason]

Re: A good canoe motor?

I don't have any pictures but I extended my mount with some spare to hang off the other side as well. Then I added some threaded rod and a couple of nuts and bolts to hold it together. Then I added 2 10lb dumbell weights to offself the weight of the motor. It looked funny, but nobody was looking and it made the boat way less tippy.
Just food for thought.

 

[CJpilot]

Re: A good canoe motor?

Great idea! I may try that!

 

[102020]

Re: A good canoe motor?

No, they are much too powerful for a side mount. Motor weight is a very serious problem with a canoe,hey, why else is my tinney so fat at the stern. I have a 16' 6" square stern freighter that I use for hunting.This Clipper canoe is just a 18' 6" freighter with 2' cut off.I use a 4.5HP Merc with it. It is too damm powerful. A slight wrong move and both it and me get wet.In fact twice so far. Those 1 1/2 hp motors would be more than enough,even for me.

Hey all! I'm new (don't worry though! I know how to search!).
Anyways, I wanted to share what I've got goin on with my rig.
I'm carrying an 18' coleman, with a BPS (bass pro shop) 30lbs trolling motor which is side mounted (I made a custom bracket for it, cost me $10 instead of $90. Today, I actually just purchased http://fotos.infonavis.com/boat/2007/07/26/264950/104293_n.jpg as mentioned in post 7. It's a 1970' Evinrude 4hp outboard, runs great (not mounted yet though). I was doing alot of research before buying, and found most canoe go-ers are using the 3.5hp, and in my area, it's alot harder to find exactly what you want, so I went with this solid gem. I'm going to be mounting it up (rear and centered) in a few days, I'll probably start a thread on my little project too. So that sums up what I've got goin on, but that wasn't my point to your post.

My point is such: If your motorized canoe is unstable, you could set yourself up with some ama/outriggers. I plan on doing this myself too since lake Erie, Detroit River and lake St. Clair tend to be a little choppy at times.

 

[riptide09]

Re: A good canoe motor?

I have 2 canoes and I have used motors on both. The motors I have used are as follows: '67 Evinrude Lightwin 3HP, mid 80s Sears 1.5 HP and electric trolling motor.

The 3HP Evinrude was nice and moved them fast but to be honest it was pretty heavy to be hanging off the side. Made the canoe unstable and you had to be real careful leaning over towards the motor side or it would be easy to flip over.

The Sears motor was a better choice from that perspective. It is a lot lighter but being air cooled instead of water cooled it sounded more like a chain saw motor and was annoying after a while.

Trolling motor was great. I have a cheap Minn Kota 36 lb. thrust I got a WalMart and it pushes then canoes perfect.

 

[robert graham]

Re: A good canoe motor?

Honda makes a 2HP air cooled, 4 stroke, centrigual clutch, 27 lbs., cost around $900 new, maybe find a used one for less. I've run a Tanaka 3HP on my 17"aluminum canoe for 20+ years and a Tanaka 2HP would be about right for your canoe, if you can find one on-line. The air cooled and centrifugal clutch are real big features for shallow water running.

 

[floatingwoody2006]

Re: A good canoe motor?

my 77 british seagull 40 plus is awesome on the canoe. Light, 4 hp, but the thrust is different..Not too fast, but can pull like a tug boat. Reliable as the day is long.. Good Luck.