With plans for a new boat we are also looking at new kicker motors as well.

I spoke to one of if not the best guide on the Rogue tonight, he has an 8hp High Thrust Yamaha on his 24' NR Scout and loves it. He explained that there is so little difference between the two that its a toss up? (8hp vs 9.9 hi thrust)
I looked at the online spec chart and sure enouogh, no difference? not that I could see (Honda)

My question is ... "Is the 8hp High Thrust Honda/Yamaha big and strong enough to push a 24' inboard around? What about in a B10 situation or in the jaws an Nahelam or the Jaws at the Rogue on a strong out going tide?

What do you like about the Honda? or the Yamaha? I like the control level on the Yamaha right on the handle! anything else? Price point is close.. a little more for the Honda.
thanks in advance!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

go with the yamaha t8 you will love it and t is more than enough power !!!

Yamaha are the sh**!

I have used both the Yamaha and the Honda 9.9 four strokes and they are both nice motors. I have a 22' trophy and they both did well at B-10. Get the one with the best price and warranty. Its almost the difference between getting a Ford or a Chevy. Now myself, I am a 6.0L Power stroke guy. Good luck.

Yamaha High Thrust is the bomb. I use a 9.9 on my 27' Seasport and have fished in all kinds of ocean and current conditions. It pushes me around with no problem until the winds reach 20kts and above. But who wants to fish at that point anyway. You will have no problem with the boat your talking about. Mine probably weighs a good 3,500 lbs more.

My Dad has the 8hp Yamaha on his sled. Best damned kicker we've ever used. Say it this way, his motor runs BETTER then his buddies honda 9.9. That thing just runs and runs. Plus, has the power tilt, a bonus I'm glad he bought (didn't realize how nice it was on a kicker until using it).

TH,

I have the 9.9 high thurst on my Predator bit I would go to the T8 with tilt if it ever wears out.

Yamaha all the way for me.

Boy, could I use that tilt...

fp

High thrust is the key for a kicker. They are like little tug boat motors. They will not push a little boat fast, but they have a LOT of push at low speed. If the Honda doesn't offer HT, I'd pass. Merc "big foot" is a good unit.

Hoghunter, my 24' short cabin SeaSport weighs over 5,000#. I'd bet your boat is over 6,000...

I run a Yamy 9.9 HT. It takes a few minutes to warm up, then it's great. It's a 1998 with about 3000 hours on it.

TH - So far, all the advice posted has been good. My 2 cents worth is as follows. I run a 21" hardtop Trophy (3450 lbs) with a lot of freeboard to catch the wind. My Yamaha 8 hp high thrust has never failed to push the boat where I wanted it to go. If you go with this model, check to see if the electric tilt model has an external rope pull start. Last time I looked, it didn't. The non-electric tilt model does have an external rope pull starter and that's the one I went with for safety reasons. I'd rather be able to start the motor than remove the cover, a bracket and then wrap a rope around the flywheel (all while rocking the boat in waves and getting rain in the motor!).

Since you are getting a new setup, and to address your concern about handling in high wind and current situations, get a 4 stroke Yami big motor also. I was fishing in the middle of a bunch of guides up in BC, and they don't even use trolling motors, just troll on the big motor. These guys were trolling at sockeye speed with 18 foot Silverstreaks and Yami 115 4 strokes and a bunch of dudes on downriggers, right into the wind, rain, and tide with no control problems at all. Those big 4 strokes will idle all day just like a car engine, and when it's real nasty out are a good alternative to sitting back there fighting the kicker.

Slabquest, my Seasport weighed 6.400 lbs dry. With a load of gear, fuel and water it weighs over 10,000 lbs and that's usually what I'm packing when we go on our trips. I added a nozzle to the Yamaha (like you see on tug boats). It compresses the water as it's drawn through the propellor and provides even more thrust. Like you I have over a thousand hours on my Yami and it hasn't missed a beat.

Yamaha,Honda,Suzuki,Evinrude,Johnson. All real good kickers. Do yourself a favor and buy the least expensive one that fits your needs for a kicker motor.The only thing that beats cubic inches is round dollars

Hoghunter,

Oh Yeah, I mis-read your original post -- you said 3,500 MORE.

One of the things I'm looking forward to when I get the TR1 (see auxilary motor thread) is the little tach / engine hour meter.

Now I have to guess at kicker motor hours. I figure I troll 6 - 8 hours for every 1 hour on the big motor. Actual hours would be nice to know for oil changes, etc.

When you say "nozzle" do you mean like one of those Mac's prop guard deals?

Don't think you could go wrong with either one! I have a honda 8hp and it is a runnin fool. haven't had a hic-up since I got it. I have a 90hp Yami waiting for me as soon as the money tree blooms again, can't wait to get that baby on my boat. Got a yami instead of a honda based exclusively on price.

Slabquest - I have the hour meter/tach unit and love it. It really does help to keep track of maintenance etc. It's also great for logging rpms that you were running when hooking fish. Speed from GPS and depthfinder is good but not nearly as accurate as rpms.
The nozzle I'm referring to is round like a prop guard but it's quite a bit more involved. It is about an inch larger in diameter than the prop and mounts with 6 bolts to the cavitation plate. What seperates it from a prop guard is that it's about ten inches from front to back with the front being larger in diameter than the back. This concept produces a compression of the water as it's sucked through the propellor thus providing more thrust. Propellor nozzles have been used on tug's for years.

as you all could emagine, being in the kicker motor autopilot business, I have run all kickers, with just about every boat out there. Honda 8-9.9 are great motors, though the handles/tiller vibrates at trolling speed, I noticed this on several customers boats when they released the power thrust models for 2001. This vibrating noise drives me nuts. The most popular kicker out on the market right now is the yamaha T-8, elec. start, high thrust, long shaft. I have herd no complaints anyway!

Pete/Tr-1

Hoghunter,

Who make that nozzle? Do they have a website?