Monmouth's 1979 Starcraft Kingfisher Rebuild

[Monmouth00]

I agree there likely not much to be gained raising the motor.
But, how much have you played with the trim setting? Being you don't have power trim, what ever you set it at will be a compromise between getting it out of the water and cruising.

And a question, why is there a motor restriction on that lake? Who imposes it? Just curious. And why not just go to a different lake?

And a final comment, the older OMC 9.9 and 15's are the same, get a 15 and put a 9.9 cover on it, and watch your throttle position.

Dan

there are/were a lot of 30-35's running up North with 25 covers

Watermann & DLNorth - Your opinions are appreciated.
Yes, I've got a glorified trolling motor!

I will definitely play with trim. Right now it's on the second notch away from the stern. If there isn't too much of an improvement with the Doel Fin, I'll kick it out another notch and see if that makes a difference.

The HP restriction is set by the Division of Fish & Wildlife and NJDEP. Both lakes by me are wildlife conservation areas, I believe.

There are two main reservoirs near me - literally five miles in either direction - and both are awesome fisheries.

One is a state-designated trophy trout lake. We routinely pull 20" rainbows in. There are lake trout in the 180' lake (we don't fish them past 90') that exceed 30". State record that was taken there was 41.5" and 32 Lbs. The brown trout population is also growing - it had waned in previous years because a virus wiped out the stocking population.

The other lake has Whipers - hybrid white/striped bass. These are my favorite freshwater fish to catch. The lake also has big bass, Pike, and a healthy trout population.

Why would I go anywhere else when I can fish these lakes? ;-)

The motor I replaced was a 20 HP Mercury two stroke with a 9.8 sticker on the hood. IT moved us just fine. But when it bit the dust, I was looking to stay legal. There's a chance that I might swap the carb and the reeds to make it a 15 hp, but as I said, I'm not all about speed. I just want the boat and motor to be safe.

I'm heading out early on Wednesday with the boy. I'll report back if the Doel Fin makes a difference.

Thanks again!

 

[DLNorth]

Big fish - I understand.
Just not used to restricted lakes here in MN.

Dan

 

[Monmouth00]

The boy and I cruised with the Doel Fin yesterday.

Despite the fact that I read it would probably rob a little speed, the iPhone GPS Speedometer read 1 mph faster this time out - a WHOPPING 12 mph. Man, I'm glad I'm bald, otherwise all that speed would have set my hair on fire!

Other than that, there was almost zero discernible difference.

Oh well, $28 poorer, and four holes in my O/B. A small price to pay to experiment.

 

[Watermann]

Must of had the wind at your back. :lol:

 

[fishrdan]

Lower.... pitched.... prop.....

 

[Monmouth00]

Lower.... pitched.... prop.....

I hear ya.

Newbie question - how do I determine what pitch my prop is? Is it stamped on there somewhere?

Is there a particular pitch that I should aim to buy?

 

[66Holiday924]

I hear ya.

Newbie question - how do I determine what pitch my prop is? Is it stamped on there somewhere?

Is there a particular pitch that I should aim to buy?

There should be a number stamped on it. When you decode it, you figure out what pitch it is.

 

[Watermann]

Kicker props are not designed for speed, they barely have any rake and usually the blades are dog eared. Don't spend ore money for not.

 

[fishrdan]

Is there a particular pitch that I should aim to buy?

1- Find the outboard's current WOT RPM, lightly loaded (Tiny Tach).
2- Find the manufacturer's WOT range for the outboard.
3- Find the current prop's pitch is, decode the numbers off the prop.
4- Find the current WOT speed is by GPS

With all of these numbers you (or a forum member) can make an educated guess as to what pitch prop will increase performance and (hopefully) bring the outboard into it's WOT range.

 

[66Holiday924]

Is there a particular pitch that I should aim to buy?

Check this out:

https://turningpointpropellers.com/PROPWIZARD/

 

[Watermann]

All of that info only works for a motor that has enough power to plane a boat not a kicker motor shoving a boats hull through the water. I'm not sure why but thinking buying more stuff for a 9.9 will make it more of a motor, it is only going to make the bank account lighter not the 16' boat.

 

[Monmouth00]

All of that info only works for a motor that has enough power to plane a boat not a kicker motor shoving a boats hull through the water. I'm not sure why but thinking buying more stuff for a 9.9 will make it more of a motor, it is only going to make the bank account lighter not the 16' boat.

Right. My thoughts exactly.

I'm not spending any more money to get maybe another 1 mph out of it. I'm dumb, but not that dumb.

I just want to make sure the current setup isn't taxing the engine too much.

Like I aid, it doesn't sound like it's struggling, and it's certainly not sucking down gas.

I think I'm in a good spot. Slow, but happy.

 

[Monmouth00]

Quick update, everyone. I'm selling the Rod Bender.

She was an awesome project, and she will be missed dearly. Unfortunately, my family of four is quickly outgrowing the boat. A 5' beam is pretty small, and has us tripping over each other. Now that my son and his friends (and their dads) are joining us for fishing trips, it's just too small.

I got a great deal on a G3 Angler V16c. It's a 2016 (never sold) that the dealer wanted to get off his lot. I got it for $1500 less than cost, and am hanging my 9.9 Yamaha on it.

I'll be sad to see the Rod Bender go, and will remain grateful to all of you who helps me make her what she is.

Cheers, Starmada!

 

[Watermann]

She'll make someone a very happy fisherman indeed. Post a pic of the new boat.

 

[DLNorth]

Congrat's on the new boat, it sounds/looks like a great boat, but >> wt 1080 lbs hp 90.
This is close to twice as big as the Kingfisher. Post some pics when you get it out.