Prowler - Electric Motor Fitout

[Binder]

I buggered my shoulder on the kayak a couple of years ago now, it has never come good, so the old Prowler has been gathering dust in the shed.

Finally decided to see if I could fit an electric motor to it, bought myself a jarvis walker 18lber a few months back and a couple of batteries to match. Been so busy it has all just been sitting in the shed waiting for me to get around to it.

So it went on my list of things to do in my holidays, and I had a looksee yesterday.

I had had a few ideas of how I wanted to do it, but with all the bits sitting on the shed floor, I was eyeballing it and trying to make up my mind which way to go, when I noticed the rudder pin on the kayak and the electric motor pin that held the motor in to the transom mount looked to be very similar sized.

Got out the verniers and checked it out - yew bewdy identical! What about length? The JW pin was slight longer, but that would be fine, it could just stick out the bottom!

So mounting the motor took all of about 10 minutes. Wiring took a bit longer, in the end I left the handle on the head of the motor, as it fits neatly in to the hull on the prowler to keep it out of the way down near my feet, used some 7 core trailer cable I had lying around to extend the cables. (paired up the wires just to be safe, but each strand is rates as 15 amp wire anyway, motor only pulls 12 amps).

Have not had it out for a water trial yet - later in the week.

 

[kmcrosby78]

Well done mate, looks like a good set up. Ironically I took my Prowler (unused by me yet) out from under the front of the house and hosed all the dust off it within the last week. Have couple of things to do - install sounder and battery mainly - and then hopefully start using it this holidays.

[Binder]

yeah love my prowler, like a thoroughbred race horse compared to my old viking tempo I had before it!

Just cant paddle it anymore!

[The Mad Hughesy]

very neat setup mate.

[Luvit]

How good is that when things just fall into place. Took a while to work out how you controller the turning till I saw the cables.

[PA Pete]

Nice mod hopefully we will start to see some kayak fishing posts, good one mate.

[Binder]

Just thinking about a deadman switch before the trial run. Got to be effective but safe.

Might be as simple as a bit of string tied between my big toe and a clamp on the battery, so if I fall out it pulls the clamp off the battery - but will have to do something.

I fall out and it stays upright I would never catch it with motor running!

Used to be a lot of kayak trip posts on here years ago PA Pete, Dino still does the odd trip in his Yak and reports it. Rest of us succumbed to injury or laziness

[ellicat]

Why not wear a belt and loop a decent length of cord through it to the yak ? (Enough cord that you wouldn't capsize the yak if you fell out).

If hitched to the front the motor would eventually drive the yak directly at you as you shortened the length.

 

[Binder]

Not sure If I really want a sausage slicer making ever diminishing circles around me at 6kph Ellicat !

seems like I might end up with a Wylie Coyote style ending......