Minn Kota bow mount challenge - hopeless front deck layout? Pics inside!

[Bawanga]

Hi everyone,

I've been lurking around this forum a bit trying to find ways of bow mounting a Minn Kota Riptide ST to a boat with a front deck resembling my own, but so far I haven't quite seen the light. My boat is a Rana Plast made in Norway, not exactly made for bow mounting anything. Maybe this is a hopeless project?

Here are some pictures of my front deck - the cardboard cutouts are templates for the Minn Kota quick release bracket (inner and outer halves) for scale. The tape measure is 150cm long (about 59 inches). As you can see, there are several challenges - anchor hatch, bow railing and cleats. I'm including a couple of different angles.

Any ideas?

My boat is similar to the one in the picture below, a Rana Plast 510 HT (17') with a 70hp Suzuki 4-stroke, weighing about 1550 lbs including the engine. I'm trying to decide if the 12V 55lb Minn Kota will be strong enough or if I should go for the 24V 80lb. I measure 75cm (29 inches) from the front deck to the waterline, so I will need the 54" or 60" shaft length.

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Bawanga

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Minn Kota bow mount challenge - hopeless front deck layout? Pics inside!

You must be able to reach the motor to stow and deploy it. You have a closed bow and no walk-through windscreen which makes that extremely difficult. With some creative brackets (custom made) you could mount the motor outside the rail which is the preferred mounting. However the stow and deploy situation would need to be studied before buying a motor.

 

[Bawanga]

Re: Minn Kota bow mount challenge - hopeless front deck layout? Pics inside!

You must be able to reach the motor to stow and deploy it. You have a closed bow and no walk-through windscreen which makes that extremely difficult. With some creative brackets (custom made) you could mount the motor outside the rail which is the preferred mounting. However the stow and deploy situation would need to be studied before buying a motor.

Hi Silvertip,

Thank you for your input! Actually, getting to the front deck is pretty easy, the walkways are not really that narrow where I need to step on them, and the handrails on the hardtop help too. I get up there in a couple of seconds (for mooring etc.). Also, for my intended use, I can't see myself stowing/deploying the engine more than once or twice per trip.

After posting the images, I started eyeing that anchor hatch lid. I'm not actually using the hatch for my anchor or anything else for that matter, so maybe I could fasten the "puck" from the quick release bracket to that? I would probably need a backing plate of some sort and maybe replace the hinges for something stronger, I'm guessing even a 55lb engine would cause some torque with a 54 or 60" shaft.

Would it be possible to mount the bracket so that the shaft would follow the center line of the boat when stowed? So that the "head" part on top of the shaft would rest against some sort of support fastened on my windshield divider? Or does the shaft need to be completely horizontal relative to the deck in order to "lock" into stowing position? I'm sure this wouldn't look awesome, but the front deck is pretty much a wasted space as is, so no real loss if I can't stow the engine to either side...

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Bawanga