Remove motor or not for electric only

[ocbinva]

I have a Tracker V16 Guide w/15HP OB. I use it primarily in brackish river water and edges of the Chesapeake bay. However I have wanted to take up some fresh water fishing and its is limited to a 9hp or less or electric. I was given a Johnson 9.9 that ran when put away over 10 years ago (Project). My main question is "Do you remove the OB when using trolling motor as primary? I have a bow mounted trolling motor and was thinking of getting one for the stern on electric only but the OB is bolted on through the transom and removing it will be a pain. Any issues with leaving it on other than weight and drag? Thanks

 

[Johnny]

that depends entirely on your local laws there.
in Florida, if it is an electric motor lake only,
you MUST remove any petroleum powered equipment and fuel tanks.
If you can tilt you motor out of the water, there will be no drag.
if there are no laws to contend with, it is your choice of
convenience to remove or keep it.

 

[jbird68]

I have a 90 HP main motor and a 6 HP kicker. I'm obviously not taking my 90hp off. I just use my trolling motor. Also, if I raise my outboard out of the water my boat won't track straight while trolling. The rear will sway left and right. So I leave the main motor down.

Sincerely,

jbird68

 

[RiverBottomOutdoors]

Easy fix: Get some 9.9 decals and replace the 15 HP decals. I think there's a guy on here that makes theme, but you can get them on the internet.

 

[ocbinva]

I have thought about the 9hp decals or picking up another cowl but i hear that locally game and fish have been checking motors lately and issueing expensive tickets. Unless I remove the ID plate I don't think it's worth the risk.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

 

[TNtroller]

Ask the game and fish guys what is required for the electric only areas. Maybe you could just remove the cranking battery so it could not be use, or just disconnected from the battery. Here in TN, electric only means you don't have to remove the big OB, just don't use it.

 

[kofkorn]

I agree with comments above. In RI, there are lakes with both. They have some that say "Use of Outboards in excess of 9.9 prohibited" where you can have a larger O/B motor on your boat, but you can't use it. Then they have other lakes that say "Outboards in excess of 9.9 prohibited", where you aren't even allowed to launch a boat with a larger motor. I ended up contacting the Fish & Game dept to get it clarified.

You need to check closely, every state is different.

Good luck!

 

[ErnieLearns]

You can leave your outboard on the boat. The effect on a stern mounted trolling motor can be compensated for easily. If you are going through weeds I recommend put the outboard in the up position.