I am thinking that I might downsize boat and motor. Which would be better for trolling and overall fuel economy, a 60 hp Etec or 70-75 hp 4 stroke? I have ranger 1850 with 150 carb, really best outfit but I like to downsize my tow vehilce as well. I would appreciate any tips or comments.

Wouldn't it be more cost effective to just have an 8HP kicker installed? I am in the process of getting one isntalled (motor is being shipped) on my Trophy and with the motor, Garlick bracket, ez steer arm, trollmaster throttle control and installation the bill is about $3600.00. With the obvious gas savings I am keeping the hours off the big motor too. I know this wouldn't help with the your desire for less towing weight but you won't loose the HP you currently have on your boat now.

Mike

I am thinking of doing, what brand of kicker, what is price just for kicker, gas tank hook up and ez steer? I dont want to get the throttle control. I have a great 9.9 and might just add the ez steer and see how the next year goes. I appreciate you taking time to give me your suggestions, thank you.

If you rig is paid for, it just makes sense to add a kicker and get on with life.

Take care
REW

I have 9.9 kicker now, and will evaluate this over the next year or so. I am in no hurry, however I am getting older, retired and was thinking of getting alittle smaller outfit. I appreciate your commnet.

How much do you troll? if under 8hr pierods at a time, i have been thinking about, and would recommend looking into, an engine mounted trolling motor. They are ultra quiet, use no gas, run off the batteries you already have for your bowmount, and are a quarter cost of a kicker. they can troll up to 2.5mph, and if you need more then that, start the main motor give it a boost. The only negative is you will need an onboard charger (which you may already have) and you wont be able to fish for 18hrs a day (most of us dont already). there are all sorts of gadjets made that will charge your trolling motors while running.

Engine mounted electrics will be taking the market by storm, soon. exp with the prices of gas and motors rising!

I would go with the 4 stroke I have 75 ETEC not happy with it's trolling speed .

I have a Yamaha High Thrust T8 in route that was $2300.00. The EZ STeer connecting rod is either $240 or $260. Since the motor is a 4 stroke they will "T" into my existing fuel line and it will be ready to go.

Mike

I will compare four stroke to optimax, see what I find out. I love my outfit and have 9.9 kicker, but just looking long range and thinking best to downsize over next yr or two. If the 60 or 75 optimax or 4 strokes dont troll so good, I will look at other suggestions. Thanks again for your input

I have a Yamaha High Thrust T8 in route that was $2300.00. The EZ STeer connecting rod is either $240 or $260. Since the motor is a 4 stroke they will "T" into my existing fuel line and it will be ready to go.

Mike


I like the cost of your T8, sounds like a good price, Where did buy and how long ago? I like the idea of the EZ steer and T to connect gas line.

I would go with the 4 stroke I have 75 ETEC not happy with it's trolling speed .

I too have a 75hp E Tec. At first I had a 15p prop that would only troll down to about 3mph. I dropped down to a 13p and that got my speed down to 2.5 to 2.7mph. I lost about 4 mph top end, but that wasn't a big deal to me. By adding a single 15" trolling bag I can get down to 2mph and a second bag gets me down to 1.7. You might want to give the trolling bags a try. They are a lot cheaper than a kicker. I still have a T8 on my wishlist though.

Thank's for the info I thought dropping the pitch would slow it down to.I did try a drift sock but mine is a little big so I tried two bucket's that work's but after that I bought a kicker.Ended up buying a 8 hourse Tohatsu long shaft electric start cost 1.550 trolls great.Plus a can back troll again plus I don't put so many hour's on the E tec plus it's great on gas.

Before selling my kicker, I bought the panther connecting rod (came with everything) for about $60... Currently, I have an EM trolling motor (EM 80). Not sure I'll get 8 hours out of it, but that could be my batteries (NAPA 27's - two years old). Check you rig carefully if you're buying one of these. My engine has one more hole to go to be set at it's lowest point (which generally negatively impacts performance), and the motor trimmed all the way down so it's tucked under the boat, and the prop pops out of the water in rougher water or when waves from other big boats go by. Don't get me wrong, it's better than having to raise and lower a TM, especially if you have to step into the splash well to do it, and not having it bounce around back there is nice too. But there is a downside to it (potentially). If I had it to do all over again, I woud have kept my kicker and got a tilt and trim for it, as well as electric start and throttle controls.

My 70 hp Suzuki 4-stroke trolls down to 2.0 mph (gps) on a 1675 Lund Explorer.

My 70 hp Suzuki 4-stroke trolls down to 2.0 mph (gps) on a 1675 Lund Explorer.
What does it cost to maintain engine at 100 hrs, 200 hr, and 300 hours? I have heard expensive rates at dealers

What does it cost to maintain engine at 100 hrs, 200 hr, and 300 hours? I have heard expensive rates at dealers

I use inexpensive automobile oil (as all brands meet the engine’s requirements) and change it twice a year. I get it on sale at Checker Auto for less than $1/quart. $10/year

Change 4 plugs every two years. I get them at Fleet Farm for $1.75/plug. $3.50/year

Suzuki brand oil filter every spring. $9/year

Lower-end lube change every other year. = $3/year

Total Maintenance = $25.50/year for last 6 years. Everything mentioned is very easy to quickly do yourself, but I expect you will pay big bucks to have a dealer do anything.

I am retired, fish a great amount of time, and run my motor very many hours per year, as I do not have a kicker. It is also used 12 months a year near Red Wing, MN (river does not freeze because of a nuclear power plant on the Mississippi).

The motor has never been in the shop or given me any problems. It starts in an instant, even in 20-degree weather. So far, it has been one of my best purchases and I expect it to last longer than I will live.

Dave Gulczinski

I use inexpensive automobile oil (as all brands meet the engine’s requirements) and change it twice a year. I get it on sale at Checker Auto for less than $1/quart. $10/year

Change 4 plugs every two years. I get them at Fleet Farm for $1.75/plug. $3.50/year

Suzuki brand oil filter every spring. $9/year

Lower-end lube change every other year. = $3/year

Total Maintenance = $25.50/year for last 6 years. Everything mentioned is very easy to quickly do yourself, but I expect you will pay big bucks to have a dealer do anything.

I am retired, fish a great amount of time, and run my motor very many hours per year, as I do not have a kicker. It is also used 12 months a year near Red Wing, MN (river does not freeze because of a nuclear power plant on the Mississippi).

The motor has never been in the shop or given me any problems. It starts in an instant, even in 20-degree weather. So far, it has been one of my best purchases and I expect it to last longer than I will live.

Dave Gulczinski

I am all thumbs at times, but appreciate what you told me. I am also retired and use my engine alot. I probably put 100 hrs on the big motor a year and the same or more on my 9.9 kicker. I guess the thing that scares me about a 4 stroke is the large number of parts, but I guess you have pro and cons on anything mechanical

That sound's like a great engine.I have a freind with a 90 honda and it trolls way to fast but it has proven to be very reliable.My 75 Etec goes through plugs but other then that run's well just troll's to fast.I think the talk of all the mantinance needed on a 4stroke is just advirticing hype.I to am retired and put alot of hour's on my motor's.Just wondoring what kind of gas milage do you get trolling with your SUZUKI.

Just wondoring what kind of gas milage do you get trolling with your SUZUKI.

I don’t really know what the gas mileage is for my 70 Suzuki, but some day I am going to measure exactly how much gas it uses while trolling at idle.

Now if you go to the below Suzuki website and look at their boat test I should get something like 25 MPG or .1 GPH. But my walleye boat has a deeper V than their test bass boat so I suspect I don’t get that good of mileage.

http://www.suzukimarine.com/boat_builders/boat_tests/smoker_craft_sylvan/sylvan_171_bass_boat/df70/

I will compare four stroke to optimax, see what I find out. I love my outfit and have 9.9 kicker, but just looking long range and thinking best to downsize over next yr or two. If the 60 or 75 optimax or 4 strokes dont troll so good, I will look at other suggestions. Thanks again for your input

I will spend some time to decide on this, I have a 9.9 two stroke kicker, but will decide if I want to keep this outfit or make some changes. Thanks to all for any help and tips.