new old canoe

Fishing
#1
-- Last Updated: May-15-09 5:25 PM EST --

I bought a used Osage flat back canoe today with very few scratches and no dents. I'm very pleased with it. It's rated for an 8hp motor. I have a 9.8 hp motor. Does anybody think that would be overkill? This is my first flat back canoe and any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.

#2

put it on and try it out …

– Last Updated: May-10-09 11:32 PM EST –

...... you'll know soon enough if it's too heavy .

Don't know how old your canoe is , but an older 8 h.p. probably weighed more than a more recent 9.9 h.p .

If it isn't to heavy , take your time about openning it up to full power ... could get a little squirelly ... be your own test pilot and start off on the caution side about weight and speed .

If your 9.9 has an adjustable trim tab , I'd start off with it centered ..

#3

Heck yea it’s overkill
And it sounds like a freaking BLAST too!!



Get a safety boat to go with you and give it a go.


  • Big D
#4

Trim the boat
Dont put motor, gas tank, and yourself all at the back, or at least without adding balancing weight to the front. Otherwise the front will be way up in the air and there will be little steering control and possible flooding over the back when throttling. Same applies to any boat I guess.



Found this out with my OT Guide and a 30lb minn and a 50lb battery. Moved the battery to front with a few jugs of water and worked amasingly well after that.



Good advice on safety boat and as always PFD.

#5

depends
I’ve had several square stern canoes and still own/run one. I’m not familure with that brand but have to admit that most SS canoes I’ve seen have been rated @ 5 hp or under. the only exceptions I’ve seen are the big 18-20’ maine guide canoes that will easily handle a 10. Your’s must be this style or have an exceptionally wide transom/ be fuller all the way aft? ( i.e more boatlike)





In any case, here is my 2 cents:

  1. The difference in weight between a 2 stroke 8 and 9.9 hp differs from 0 to 20+/-#. Add another 20# for a 4 stroke. While, it’s hard to say how your 9.9 will effect your particular boat without knowing details of both, I’m thinking the extra weight and power could give you trim/control/stability issues. That said, since you have it, you might give it a try as the other poster suggested. Just do it under calm and controled conditions. You can help (not solve) the trim issue by extending the fuel line on your (full) tank and keeping the tank as far foward as it will go. An extra person in the bow should also helps but you need to consider if you’ll be using the boat solo as well.



    p.s. One of the things I’ve learned with these craft is that you (yourself) have to stretch to reach the motor a bit. This makes stearing, shifting and especially, trimming the motor dificult. Unlike a boat, there isn’t allot of boyancy in the stern to compensate for the motors weight and your leaning back all the time. For this reason, lighter is better when it comes to outboards. FWIW, through trial and error i’ve found that the perfect SS canoe motor is 4-5 hp, has a self contained gas tank, full forward, neutral and reverse gears and weighs under 50#. ( To be honest, i’m not sure i want to go any faster in a canoe than a 5 hp can push it anyway! You can usually find a nice little nissan, tohatsu, merc or suzuki 4 or 5 hp that fits this bill for $300-$400 in the want adds. I’ve owned them all and still own 3 :slight_smile:
#6

test run update
17’ss canoe 9.8 hp outboard motor. Nice deep 3 acre farm pond.



First try: I paddled out, started my motor & thought “man this is gonna be cool!” as I twisted the throttle. Off idle smooth sailing, a little more throttle and the nose of my canoe rose from the water,6 or 8 feet above the water at which point wind steer took effect, causing a sudden 90 degree turn! Hmmm, must need ballast.



Second try: Add 150lbs to nose of canoe, paddle out, start motor. Off idle smooth sailing, a little more throttle still ok. About 1/4 throttle, suddenly nose is 6 or 8ft in the air. Canoe begins to wobble and wind steer causes about 120 degree turn. Hmm, better go home and get more weight or is it entirely too much motor? I’ll let you know how the next try goes.

#7

that’s seriously funny …
… when sitting still , how low is the stern before takeoff … is it too low or reasonably OK ??



Maybe planners added to stern sides would help keep the bow down and give you better control ?? Maybe a very flat pitch prop would help ??

#8

test run
Looks a little tail heavy , but not enough to make you think its going to stand strait up on you.

#9

new old canoe
My canoe is 17’long,40" wide at center , the stern is 18.5"wide , 17" tall. Its aluminum and weighs about 100 pounds. My motor is a mid 70’s two stroke 9.8 merc runs like a champ, don’t know what it weighs.Yes it dose cause squirrelyness issues.

Thank you for time and two cents.

#10

I could be incorrect but I really do …
… believe you can get that canoe to run and control exceptionally well with a planner system attached to it … if it’s an aluminum canoe all the better with experimenting with planner wings being attached .


#11

Too funny
Sounding like a lot of boat for me, but I don’t know anything. Pilotwingz has a lot more experience with powered canoes than I do.


  • Big D
#12

not so Big_D …
… my personal experience with using powered canoes is 00000 …



I do have a 74lb. MinnKota and a bracket but have not put it on yet .



What I do have understanding and experience with is areodynamics , as well as much time using many different types of powered boats .



From an areodynamic standpoint , I think a canoe is about as efficient as a block of ice … very poor . They are designed to go slow , faster than that they loose practically all stability , but can be cleaned up to a certain degree with add-ons .



For instance , if a special bracket was installed on the S.S. that would allow the motor to be mounted at a negetive angle vertically (opposite of the way the motor raises) , that should help quite a bit with forcing the bow down . Add some planners to the sides at the stern to trim the canoe at above design speeds , and I really believe you could get 10 mph under good control characteristics .










#13

If all else fails…
You can at least have Canoe Wheelie Championships where you live!

#14

there’s some pretty good ones on …
… YouTube , canoes wheelies and wipeouts that is .