Mounting an electric trolling motor on the bow of a bowrider boat without drilling holes can be a challenge. Here is how I did it with a simple 2X6X24 pressure treated board using the existing cleats on my bowrider boat, some tie down straps and some thermal glue. This is a really neat way to propel your boat. It gives a peaceful ride for enjoying those sunsets or fishing without the smell of gas fumes or the sound of a gas motor. It can be a backup way of getting back to your dock in case the gas engine fails. And no modifications are made to the boat, so the boat can be sold in its original condition without having to explain why there are holes and a large permanent off-center motor mount on the bow. It can easily be taken off and stored away when not needed.
Our prototype testing leads us to note some
cautions. Since the bow is fairly high out of the water, the
55 lb thrust motor creates a lot of torque on the motor’s plastic shaft
with sudden changes in speed. The 2X6X24 wood mount works fine. It’s
the plastic
trolling motor shaft bends slightly with large throttle changes. It would
do this
with any type of bow mount. So one should minimize this torque by
raising the motor as high as possible, so that the propeller is just
under the water surface, and also be
careful with large sudden throttle changes.
The mount is just a simple 2X6X24 inch pressure treated board with some mounting hardware ($13 at Amazon: Amazon.com:
4 Pcs 3.1 Inch 304 Stainless Steel Ceiling Hooks Pad Eyes Plate Marine
Hardware Hooks with Screws : Industrial & Scientific)
and a one
inch hole drilled in it about 6 inches from the top as shown here. (There is
an extra shackle shown at the bottom of the picture which you don't
need. I used that for tying the boat to my mooring.) The board is
secured to the boat with three tie-down straps you can purchase at
Harbor Freight for about $15.
A slight and easy modification might need to be made to the trolling motor. The top control arm may need to be turned 180 degrees so that the throttle and steering arm are facing you when you are in the bow. This is done by removing a bolt that goes through the shaft just under the throttle arm assembly. Turn the assembly 180 degrees and put the bolt back in. Here are some YouTube instructions.
The mount uses three straps to secure the board
to the front bow hook and two cleats as shown in this top view. The
blue straps hold the top of the board and the red strap secures the
bottom of the board to the bow eye (or bow cleat).
