My DIY kayak electric motor bracket build

[danyeates]

I have realised that I do need a rudder though. Steering is very difficult. I won't be using the motor much in close confines, but as the kayak is so long it is difficult to turn. I may buy the Ocean Kayak rudder kit which will allow me to lock the motor in the dead ahead position and turn with my feet.

[shirt]

don't take this the wrong way, but i think you can do much better.

what diameter pole do these things take and to what depth do they go into the hull?



if it were me i'd bend a length of tube to 90deg and put one end in that black bushing. on the other arm i'd mount the motor. your motor looks as though it flips up at 90degrees to the water, and this arrangement would then allow you to rotate it so that it stows behind your seat when not in use.

i am sufficiently bored as to illustrate thus:



you'll need to have something to rest it on and maybe rething your storage arrangements, but it'd be much more user friendly.


ETA are these pics showing up? bloody photofkit

[richardxjr]

Interesting project

Would a motorcycle/jetski battery give enough range? (even 2?) An awful lot smaller/lighter.

If you stick with the plank it looks like you could build in a comfy backrest too.

[danyeates]

Mmm, not sure of the diameter of the rod holder, fairly large though. Only problem is the tube inside the hole doesn't go down vertically. It's angled so the rod reaches out of the kayak at 45 degrees or so. This would make fitting an engine bracket tube difficult. I understand your idea and the principle, but it would be much easier if the hole ran down vertically into the kayak. I'm also worried that the rod holder might not be strong enough.

Initially I did start by looking at a bracket that mounted inside the rod holders. Using the similar idea of the piece of wood, but mounting it using tubes inside the rod holders. Then my friend (a sheet metal worker) suggested making the brackets.

Re. the motorcycle batteries. I haven't tried. I do have some motorcycle/jet ski batteries at work, but they come empty so need topping up and charging before use and I didn't have time to do that. I'd need to do some sums to see if they'd last long enough.

[shouldbworking]

Seems a bit of a weird thing to do in my eyes - much like electric bicycles, however surely youd be better of with having a set of rudder pedals to control direction of it and a fixed throttle control somewhere down at the side of the seat?

[danyeates]

shouldbworking said:

Seems a bit of a weird thing to do in my eyes - much like electric bicycles, however surely youd be better of with having a set of rudder pedals to control direction of it and a fixed throttle control somewhere down at the side of the seat?

See my previous posts to both of those comments. Slightly more tricky to rig a remote throttle control, but something I may look into.

[danyeates]

danyeates said:

Ben Jk said:

This seems to defeat the object of having a kayak IMO?

Depends what you're using it for. I'm doing long distance paddling in tidal Coastal areas that have strong currents. It's there as a safety net/paddling aid than a primary method of propulsion.

Also, I sold a RIB which would often burn £100 a day but I still wanted a cheap and easy way of getting onto the water. So I use my kayak not only for paddling, but also as a cheap and easy replacement to my boat. The trolling motor allows just that. I have the flexibilit of paddling or travelling under motor (both cost nothing!) but also have the benefit of being able to fight strong winds and tides when crossing the Solent or Fal esturary.

Edited by danyeates on Monday 3rd October 08:30

See above!

[richardxjr]

My 'ski battery is rated @ 19aH if that's any help. 2 would still be a lot lighter and easier to place than that massive one.

Solar charging panel?

Edit: Drill some holes man!

Edited by richardxjr on Monday 3rd October 10:21

[danyeates]

richardxjr said:

My 'ski battery is rated @ 19aH if that's any help. 2 would still be a lot lighter and easier to place than that massive one.

Solar charging panel?

Ok, I was using a 75AH battery as that's what I had to hand at work.

This video I found explains runtime and amp hours in the description.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-_tLSp4CEk

"Demonstration of a kayak with a 30 lb thrust trolling motor. At full speed, the kayak can move at more than 4 miles per hour. With a 105 amp deep cycle battery the kayak can go at full speed for more than 3 hours. Excellent for fishing or just cruising a lake or ocean."

I probably don't need this sort of run time, so maybe jet ski batteries would be a better option.

[danyeates]

richardxjr said:

Edited by richardxjr on Monday 3rd October 10:21

Nice! Seems a lot of weight right at the back of the kayak though. Plus, how would you control it?! That's now used up the area to fit a rudder and it's too far back to adjust the tiller!

[richardxjr]

That was my first thought, but I expect you lock it straight ahead and steer with the paddles! The now central prop would act like a skeg, no?

2 x ski batteries in your storage panel up front, and a solar cell on the lid

[danyeates]

richardxjr said:

That was my first thought, but I expect you lock it straight ahead and steer with the paddles! The now central prop would act like a skeg, no?

2 x ski batteries in your storage panel up front, and a solar cell on the lid

Yes, it would. I'd want to be in more control though. Especially where there's a lot of other boats around. I'd want the tiller to be within easy reach in case of emergency.

Two batteries away in the locker would be ideal as it would free up the stern storage for my cool box. Only advantage with the big heavy 75AH battery is it counter balances the motor if it's fitted to one side.

[richardxjr]

I'd mount the power switch close to hand to deal with emergencies.

As you've probably found, leccy powered kayaks are quite big in America, there's loads of solutions out there.

Damn, I'm going to have to build myself one now!

[anonymous-user]

Buy a proper boat that won't be as affected by the currents and wind

http://www.kirtonkayaks.co.uk/home/sea-kayaks/59-c...

[danyeates]

bulldong said:

Buy a proper boat that won't be as affected by the currents and wind

http://www.kirtonkayaks.co.uk/home/sea-kayaks/59-c...

Crikey, though mine was big at 4.1m long. 5.6m! Would need a longer car I reckon!

We do have some nice Kaskazi kayaks in at work at the moment, but a bit out of my price range.

[anonymous-user]

danyeates said:

bulldong said:

Buy a proper boat that won't be as affected by the currents and wind

http://www.kirtonkayaks.co.uk/home/sea-kayaks/59-c...

Crikey, though mine was big at 4.1m long. 5.6m! Would need a longer car I reckon!

We do have some nice Kaskazi kayaks in at work at the moment, but a bit out of my price range.

Yeh, that one is a bit of a beast. More suited to the purpose of coastal cruising than the plastic boats around.

[richardxjr]

I like this

Steering cables through to foot pedals



Rotary power switch to left of seat

[danyeates]

Where did you find that? I have the rudder attachments at the stern and the foot rests that convert to rudder controls but I couldn't find a motor that fitted to them.

EDIT: In fact, it looks like a standard Minn Kota motor that someone has converted. Interesting.

[richardxjr]

Yes, it's a MinnKota 40 ... found limited info here
http://www.allkayakfishing.com/forums/showthread.p...


Ohh, and from that forum, a kit:

http://www.lightperformanceworks.com/lpw-kayak-pro...

Edited by richardxjr on Monday 3rd October 11:55

[danyeates]

richardxjr said:

Yes, it's a MinnKota 40 ... found limited info here
http://www.allkayakfishing.com/forums/showthread.p...


Ohh, and from that forum, a kit:

http://www.lightperformanceworks.com/lpw-kayak-pro...

Edited by richardxjr on Monday 3rd October 11:55

Well I'll take home the Minn Kota I have here and see if it looks like it will adapt to fit the rudder screws at the stern of my kayak.