My wife and I are thinking about getting a travel trailer in the next year or so. This will likely mean the purchase of a truck to pull it. One thought I’ve been pondering is what to use as a boat (we have no interest in a 5th wheel/boat combo). I think I like the idea of getting a zodiac style boat that can be disassembled and stored for each camping adventure.
What would you suggest to be the largest motor that could easily be manhandled and easily taken on/off this style of boat? The one I’m kinda looking at is rated for an 8hp – 25 hp motor (short shaft). 25 HP is obviously out of the question. I’ve seen some 15 HP motors that are just over 100 lbs, but that seems a bit much to try and put on myself.
Suggestions would be great. Anybody with experience with this scenario?
my dad runs his with a 15 prop 4 horse honda. He also has one that is larger like a 25 I think that is a jet. The 15 is about all u want for weight wise I would think and the raft really cruises pretty fast. We used to waterski behind it when we were really small way back in the day. Not the best but it worked
My dad’s boat has an old 15 horse Johnson. One year when the water got rough and we couldn't get the boat safely to the launch we had to hand balm the boat 100m ish to our camp site. It wasn't alot of fun but with two people we were able to take the boat in one trip, caught our breath and took the motor on the next trip. Not sure how much the motor weighs but if you don’t have to move very far with the motor it shouldn’t be too bad. I definitely recommend having at least one person to help move the motor and if you have ever had any back issues I’d recommend down sizing the output of the motor. I was 21 at the time and lifting the motor myself was damn near impossible, do to its awkward shape.
Why won't you just go with 9.9 hp , I think that will be plenty,
myself I am getting 6 HP - 4 stroke for my 10 ft zodiak this coming season,
the weight of the motor is about I think 55 - 60 lbs, where the 9.9 will be about 85 - 100 lbs, friend of mine got a 2 stroke 6hp and needs someone in the front to hold down the boat steady , he's runing it on a 10 ft zodiak.
Hope this helps,
You're in exactly the same scenario I was in three years ago. This is what worked for me. I've got a 12.5 ft inflatable and I went with the biggest motor I can handle - a 20 hp 4-stroke. This thing's 110 lbs and a bi@#$h to take on and off the tailgate but thankfully I've never had to carry it further than 10 feet. I went with this size because of the annual trip we do that requires a big motor to plane the boat with all our gear, food, water and 4 passengers. Now if your situation is mainly day trips with one or two passengers then Morph1's suggestion of the 9.9 should do you fine (and allows you on those lakes with HP restrictions). But if you got the money and the brawn, more is better! If you want to be gentle on your back I would highly recommend you get a set of wheels mounted on the transom. Makes short work of launching - even by yourself.
Motor for Zodiac
, he's runing it on a 10 ft zodiak.
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