need merc motor size advice

[willyqbc]

ok so the wifey and I are looking at getting into a new fishing rig and I have been out of the game for a while so I'm not up to date on what the new motors will do. I want the largest motor I can get that will not require the use of a kicker. we are looking at the 15 and 25 HP merc 4 strokes the specs on the boat are

16 foot side console aluminum
beam: 68"
bottom width:56"
hull depth:29"
hull weight:590lbs

so will the 25 horse allow me to troll at very slow speed or will I need to go with the 15? will the 25 horse work with a trolling bag (5 gallon bucket) dragging behind??

any info appreciated
Thanks
Chris

[Chuck]

I've got a 14' Lund which weighs 300+ pounds and a 15 hp Evinrude which pushes it along at a good clip with two people and fishing gear & food. The 15 will click right down to troll very slow - almost stopped. However it is a fair weather rig and quite light. I suspect that the 15 would be too small to push your boat at a good clip, as it sounds heavier and bigger than mine, however I'm not sure how slow you can get the 25 to click down to troll, as you seem to realize that the bigger engines don't like to run at an idle easily.
I understand your question - it seems your rig is too big to be small and too small to be big.

[Grandbois]

i would go with the 25, we got a 16 foot zodiac that we can get down to trolling speed with a 30 hp evinrude, the zod probably weighs about 250lbs bare, the only downside was how much gas i burned trolling with it all day, finally broke down a few years back and got a little 4hp yamaha, now i laugh at the gallon i burn trolling for 15 hours a day. Besides it would be good to have the extra power to get to where you're goin and rough conditions will be of little concern. Good luck

[ape]

A friend of mine has a 16ft with the 25 and he trolls along all day long with no complaints at all. Heused to have a 30 hp on it but went with the 25 when he bought a new one. I think you will be fine with a 25.

[Schutzen]

Willy
I think you would be better served with the 25 hp. It should be fine with out a bucket. But if you need to troll slower you can always drag. That heavy a rig with 2 people and gear and a 15 hp is not gonna cut it imo.

[Mr. Dean]

Then 4 strokes will troll at an idle all day on a pint and won't foul up sparkers.
I'd go with the biggest the boat could handle.

[Jagermeister]

Chris, that boat that Dave has that was mine once upon a time, Sea Nymph 14WT is quite similar except for +100# in weight and 2 ft. When I originally bought it, it had a 15hp evinrude which wallowed when it had 3 adult is it, just could not get it to come up on plane. Exchanged it for a 3cyl 25hp Johnson, it rockets now and you can troll all day with it. This motor came with a 4 blade prop.
I think that you should seriously consider a 40hp at least, remember that the 4-strokes are a fair bit heavier than the 2-strokes so this adds to the payload. Go bigger rather than smaller, it's expensive to increase the power if you find it's under powered, cheaper to buy a kicker. Believe me, I have carnal knowledge.

16 foot side console aluminum
beam: 68"
bottom width:56"
hull depth:29"
hull weight:590lbs
40-60HP
This would be a great boat for Tzenzecut, Stoney, Horsefly or even Quesnel and you would not be overpowered for 10 Mile or Dragon either.
Dennis

[boatdoc]

You have'nt mentioned the transom length. If you have a 15 inch transom you will be restricted to a lighter motor, eg 15 -25 hp mabey. If you have a long ,20 inch transom a bigger motor will work for you. This reason for this is the extra weight of a 4stroke will put the powerhead closer to the water line, all 4stroke o/bs will suck water into the bottom cylinders if they are too close to the water line. And yes bigger is often better with o/b motors, check the max hp rating on the boat and don't install more than it's built for. Best of luck and have fun with your boat.

[Scobo]

i had the 15hp in my 12' smokercraft. it struggled a little but not too bad with 3 big guys. you will need at least a 25hp in your boat though if you want to get her up on plain with 3 or 4 people. 2 might even be sketchy but possible with a stingray. if you want to troll really slow troll in reverse or get a bag.

[Jagermeister]

I think it's pretty much a given that the transom height on the boat mentioned will be 20". Very boats over 12' have 15" transoms.

[freeman6]

One more option would be a jet. You can regulate your speed by how far you engage the shifter. A 40 jet Merc and it will do right down to 0.6 km/hr (measured by GPS), on a lake. You can fiddle with the throttle separately of the shifter control to make sure you get a good idle speed.

Added benefits are the ability to run shallow rivers, play in the weeds. Downside is costs are a little higher initially and in operation because jets aren't as efficient as props.

Don't worry too much about the transom height vs leg length. Any reputable machine/fab shop can make you an adjustable jack plate to get your motor sitting at exactly the right height for what you are doing on any given day.

Go with the biggest one that you think that you will possibly need/can afford. Most 16 footers are rated for 30-40 hp. Some new boats are starting to use a maximum engine weight rather than hp as a limit because of the heavier weights of four strokes.

[kloosterboer]

Ya nowadays you can troll with any 4 stroke I know people troll with a 250hp yammy. My friend has a 16' alum boat with a 30 yammy and it trolls all day almost every day during the summer and it works great! I recomend a 50hp since you have a side console easy to troll with and has lots of power when needed

[BlacktailStalker]

I had a 35 hp on my 14.5' tinner and it trolled down pefectly.
On a 16' I'd run a 40hp with no consideration to anything smaller.
A 25 will do but you're not going to get up on plane very well with a couple guys and kids with your gear.
You can troll down a 225, so trolling abilities is that last thing I'd worry about, under powering is the first thing I'd worry about.
Actually I'm going to say a 30 hp would probably fit the bill nicely, I thought about it and looked around and decided to edit this. The $ jump wont be as significant, yet still provide what you need. Today's 4 strokes are pretty efficient.

[NEEHAMA]

I have a 1994 20 horse mariner (grey mercury) for $850. if you want

pm me..

[swamper]

Chris, you can always mount a trolling plate on the motor. This will create sufficient drag to slow you down without having to use a kicker.