12 foot aluminum boat.....motor recommendations

[Dabluz]

I have a very light 12 foot aluminum boat. It looks smaller than 12 foot but I measured it and it's exactly 12 feet long. Is a 9 h.p. motor too big or heavy for this boat?

[ccmtcanada]

I think a 9.9 should be fine for it...

 

Not sure if 12 foot aluminums have those plates on it that tells the max HP motor....

[johnnyb]

There should be a tag on the boat somewhere telling you what the max hp allowable is. My 12 footer says it is rated for 15hp, which I'm pretty sure would be wayyyy too much. I currently have an 8hp on it, and when I'm by myself in the boat, it is perfect...got it trimmed up nice, and she hoots right along without bouncing. As soon as another adult is in the boat, speed and plane are cut DRASTICALLY. If I was always by myself, I'd stick with the 8, but if I was more likely to have a partner along, I would go for th 9.9

Just my $0.02

[irishfield]

If it's a cartopper... ie 4 foot wide transom... a 9 is plenty and don't make any sharp turns. I know they flip with an 8.. F-in-law still has the 14 inch scar on his leg from propellor "rash" !

[Mike the Pike]

If it's a cartopper... ie 4 foot wide transom... a 9 is plenty and don't make any sharp turns. I know they flip with an 8.. F-in-law still has the 14 inch scar on his leg from propellor "rash" !

 

Ah Wayne I can't wait till you get old so you forget about my flippin experience.

 

Yup keep your hand well placed on the tiller handle and wear your kill switch.

[irishfield]

I had forgot Mike.. but thanks for reminding me.. damn aluminum dust !

[Musky or Specks]

If it will take a 9.9 it should take a fifteen they are the essentially the same motor. A 9.9 is just a 15 thats been detuned. So they way the same just one goes a little faster. But with that light of a boat if you wanted to do back lakes an even smaller moter would be nicer. God knows I hate portaging my 15 into my various boat caches.

[BITEME]

Ah Wayne I can't wait till you get old so you forget about my flippin experience.

 

Yup keep your hand well placed on the tiller handle and wear your kill switch.

 

 

I hear you have something you might actually be able to stand in without bailing

[ecmilley]

depends on the style of engine you use, I have a 12 ft sea nymph rated for 15 hp, but with a 9.9 4-stroke and my 250 lb fat-ass i can pretty much swamp the back of the boat when i am in it by myself, a 9.9 2 stroke is plenty on this boat and you won't need numbers. a 6 hp moves them around pretty good just depends on where your going to use it.

[Fishnfiend]

I think my 12 footer is rated for a 7.5. I use my 2 hp, 4-stroke on it. I have had a 5hp mounted on it and wouldn't want much more. The bigger motor eats away at weight capacity (fishing lures, lunch, etc) and can make things quite scary. Since you won't be taking the boat on any big water, there's not really a need to go over the rated HP.

 

My $0.02

[Dabluz]

Thanks for the replies guys. The reason I was asking is that my buddy has a 9 h.p. Honda 4 stroke. The thing weighs a ton. I won't put it on my cartopper for sure. His 2 h.p. 2 stroke pushes my 12 foot cartopper at a pretty decent speed.

 

My 12 foot cartopper no longer has the information plate....if it's still there, it's behind a piece of wood that was added to reinforce the transom.

 

I've been thinking things over and since I already have a 14 foot Sportspal canoe for small water, I hope to trade my 12 foot cartopper for a 14 foot boat so that I can handle rougher water and use my buddy's 9 Honda 4 stroke. He has just bought a 16 or 17 foot Legend with a 75 h.p. engine. He already had a 10 foot Zodiac but rarely uses the 9 h.p. Honda. Most of the time, he uses either an electric motor or his 2 h.p. 4 stroke on his Zodiac.

Edited May 3, 2008 by Dabluz

[finfan]

Hang onto your pants brother! You wont believe how fast you'll go with a 9.9 on a 12ft aluminum. She goes pretty good...yahoo!

[Dabluz]

Hang onto your pants brother! You wont believe how fast you'll go with a 9.9 on a 12ft aluminum. She goes pretty good...yahoo!

 

When I was an auxiliary conservation officer, we often cruised on smaller lakes with a 12 foot aluminum boat and a 10 h.p. Mercury. Yes.....it was fast. But we didn't carry much equipment. But it seems to me that my 12 footer is even lighter than the one we used to patrol with.

 

When I was a kid, I remember water skiing behind a 10 foot aluminum boat with my Dad's old Elgin 7.5 h.p. engine. It was a 7.5 British h.p. The operator had to be alone in the boat and the skier had to take off from a sitting position on a dock. When just speeding along, I would guess that the boat was skimming on no more than 2 square feet of water.

 

I am a bit leery of using more than a 7.5 h.p. on my 12 foot cartopper. I don't need the extra speed anyway. Like Fishnfriend said, even a 5 h.p. outboard would serve my purposes.

 

My quest is now to trade in the 12 footer for a 14 footer. I'm pretty sure that there are people out there who would prefer a smaller lighter aluminum cartopper but are stuck with a 14 footer on a trailer. I can unload and load my 12 footer on my roof support when alone. Hauling it to the edge of the water is a cinch. But I use my 14 foot Sportspal canoe when I go fishing in such a situation.

 

While I'm waiting for a trade, I will be modifying my aluminum boat so that I can use a bowmount fishing motor and sit in a chair on a short pedestal.

[fishindevil]

Well you should also base your decision on what kind of fishing you do,if you like to troll a 5-8hp would be just perfect,and if you had to do a portage with it,you wont have a heart attack while doing it !!!!!! read ernies post again i have been in his small 12fter and that 9.9 four stroke,is really big for that small boat and really heavy for it,so a 5 would still leave lots of weight for a tackle box,and all that other stuff and wont over weight it...well good luck...cheers