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Posts: 28
Location: crivitz, wi | If you fished waters like Green Bay, would you take a 200hp motor
that would go faster but you would need another motor for trolling
or a 150 hp that would do 50 mph with a 19' ft boat and not have the expense
of the other motor?
Bob |
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Posts: 529
Location: Not Where I Want To Be | If the 150 was a 4 stroke, Then possibly. If not i'd take the 200 and put a kicker on. |
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Posts: 646
Location: In a shack in the woods | From my experiance I'd try to be as close to the max rating the boat can handle. |
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Posts: 433
Location: Cedarburg, Wisconsin | Why would you think a 200HP couldn't troll as well as a 150? I've got a 200HO E-TEC that trolls much better than my old 150HP ever could and that was a good trolling big motor. I still use a kicker some times for musky though because if I make a bad mistake and hit rocks, it's a lot cheaper fixing the 9.9's aluminum prop than a customized stainless prop. If I were to only fish non rock situations I'd have no second thoughts about trolling with the 200. From what I've seen the 200 uses practically the same amount of gas at idle as the 9.9 does at half throttle for the same speed of around 2.5mph. By the time the 9.9 is running WOT to hit a little over 5mph the 200 probably has the advantage.
BUT! Two motors makes for a safe trip on big waters, and the kicker is a must for slower trolling speeds than 2.5 mph. You never know when a motor will die on you. Ignition parts can go out, fuel lines can get clogged or fuel pumps can fail. I've had motors die on me 4 times in the last 30 years and it ain't fun without a kicker to get you back home.
If you can afford it and don't max the HP your boat can handle you will be sorry. I know from experience.
Edited by Almost-B-Good 3/7/2010 9:47 AM
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Posts: 1663
Location: Kodiak, AK | All else being equal, max it out. |
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Location: Sawyer County, WI |
Max it out. Underpowering a boat (whatever the reason) is a bad idea. I learned the hard way. |
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Posts: 433
Location: Cedarburg, Wisconsin | Thought some more on this and if you are in big waves, it really doesn't come down to top speed much at all. I fished Lake Michigan for salmon for many years and the number of days I could open the boat up was very minimal. You pretty much want a prop that can get a big bite to hold you up on plane at lower speeds easily. Then the bigger HP motor is an asset as far as ease in staying on the waves without overrunning them or falling off plan and sliding backwards down them. I'd still go with the 200 and a kicker for safety over a single motor setup.
Edited by Almost-B-Good 3/8/2010 7:41 AM
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Posts: 2384
Location: On the X that marks the mucky spot | What's the boat? That's the biggest factor in this decision. I know from personal experience, you NEVER want to intentionally under-power a boat that is primarily going to be used on the great lakes! |
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150 hp or 200 hp