mounting trolling motor on v-hull

[firedawg]

I've got a '75 16-foot Starcraft aluminum v-hull rowboat that I've been trying to convert to a small water fishing boat. I'd love to mount a foot-controlled trolling motor such as a Minn Kota Powerdrive to the bow, but I have no platform/deck on which to mount it. Any creative ideas? Can I build a deck for the mount with wood, or is there a commercially made product I'm just not familiar with? Hope this isn't a dumb question, as I'm fairly green with this stuff. Thanks.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: mounting trolling motor on v-hull

Whether or not it can be done depends on how much mechanical ability you have and what the construction of your boat looks like. Fortunately, you don't need to add much area to mount the PowerDrive motor as its base is fairly small. Consider laying a piece of 5/8-inch thick marine plywood on the front of the boat and using a marker, trace the outline of the boat on the bottom. The length of this addition should be about 18-inches from the point of the boat to back edge. Cut out this piece and round off the edges with a rounding over bit in a router or simply sand it by hand. If you don't, fishing line will snag on the rough edges. Ideally, you could fiberglass this addition but to stay simple, coat it with fiberglass resin. Next, look at the rails of your boat and determine how to mount the new platform. Through bolts rather than sheet metal screws are preferred, but sheet metal screws will work. Stanless steel hardware is required. Now you can mount the motor to the new platform. Enjoy