Canoe trolling motors can be tricky little things. This is why even today, one of the most common questions relating to canoe motors happens to be how can one effectively secure the trolling motor to a canoe without damaging it?
Well, the answer is pretty simple. Most of the time canoes do not come with vertical flat transoms that are required to mount a trolling motor. So, in such cases, you will need to get a different motor mount that you can attach to your canoe.
When talking about motorized canoes, these mounts tend to be an extremely crucial part. These mounts help in securing the motor of the hull so that there is a strong connection made and there is no room for wobbliness or loose ends. The firmer the connection, the better the operation will be, thus resulting in better propulsion and the ability to cover larger distances per battery charge.
Best 6 Canoe Trolling Motor Mounts
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1. Top Quality Canoe Trolling Motor Mounting
Reader Choice
Top Quality Canoe Trolling Motor Mounting offers great fitting and is made from ash hardwood. Giving it a nice natural vibe is its acrylic urethane sealing. The clamp gets tightened from the top by using star bolts and the best part is that you can do that by using your hands (no tool required). Top Quality Canoe Trolling Motor Mounting is extremely rugged built and is designed to design to withstand extreme environment.
2. AquaOutdoors Canoe Trolling Motor Mount Bracket
Most Popular
AquaOutdoors Canoe Trolling Motor Mount Bracket gets entirely made in the USA. Not a single part of this Canoe Trolling Motor Mount Bracket is sourced from a third world country. You don’t even have to drill any additional hole to get it attached to your canoe. Ideally, the existing hole should do the trick. You just have to give it some tough love like drilling additional holes to stop it getting twisted once the brute force of the motor applied on it. AquaOutdoors Canoe Trolling Motor Mount Bracket flaunts a solid 6061 aluminum construction and is made from thick ash hardwood.
It has some issues with the angle bracket as it gets flopped around even when it gets tightened firmly. Sometimes you can experience issues like forward slippage of the mount-side clamp but it can be averted easily by tightening the bolts firmly so that the AquaOutdoors Canoe Trolling Motor Mount Bracket does not move an inch from its position.
3. Old Town Side-Saddle Canoe Motor Mount
Old Town Side-Saddle Canoe Motor Mount offers great performance without making you pay a premium price. You can easily mount an electrical engine or a gas engine on it without destabilizing it. Made from aluminum, Old Town Side-Saddle Canoe Motor Mount is extremely durable and is resistant to rust.
The motor can be moved from its original position and this is what allows paddlers to operate the motor comfortably without checking on the motor every now and then. For electrical motors, this heavy-duty Canoe Motor Mount offers a great mounting surface which is made from strong hardwood block.
However, one of the major drawbacks of this Old Town Side-Saddle Canoe Motor Mount is that it is not compatible with wood-trimmed canoes.
4. Old Town Standard Canoe Motor Mount
Old Town Standard Canoe Motor Mount can hold the power and the weight of a trolling motor easily. Rugged built, Old Town Standard Canoe Motor Mount is reversible and that means, both left-handed and right-handed people can control it without reinventing the wheel. The mount can be attached to the gunwales by using your hands; no need to use a wrench to get it tightened.
Strong and durable, Old Town Standard Canoe Motor Mount is made from heavy-duty aluminum. You can easily mount a 3-horsepower engine (electrical or gas) on it without making it off balance. So, now you can dash off to your favourite fishing spot by getting your canoe equipped with this powerful Motor Mount.
5. Newport Vessels Pontoon Trolling Motor Mount
Newport Vessels Pontoon Trolling Motor Mount is known for its superior performance and durability. It is compatible with almost all Trolling Motors that are commonly available in the market. The installation process is very simple and you don’t have to drill any holes in it to get it installed. All the installation hardware comes included.
To pivot the Newport Vessels Pontoon Trolling Motor Mount, you just need to loosen the bolts a bit and then you can reposition the mount. Keeping it secured in its positions is two bolts.
It comes with 2 Year warranty which is a big advantage. However, you need to make sure that the shaft is not longer than 1.15’’ because in that case, it might start acting up.
6. MotorGuide Universal Removable Mount for Trolling Motors
MotorGuide Universal Removable Mount for Trolling Motors is a highly flexible trolling motor mount that you can install on your Canoe without losing your mind in the process. The removal process is extremely simple and this is definitely one of its main USPs. It has got a Universal hole that makes it compatible with most trolling motors available in the market. Flaunting composite construction, MotorGuide Universal Removable Mount can easily withstand impacts.
Why do you need a Canoe Motor Mount?
However, one of the more pertinent questions is why do you need a canoe motor mount. Well, one of the most obvious functions of a motor mount is to efficiently secure a trolling motor to the canoe.
Motor mounts also use adjustable knobs in order to mount and dismount the bracket to a canoe’s gunwales. This helps one to move the mount in a much easier manner for trips where you need to pack in more stuff for your journey.
Another great part about motor mounts is that they are full – reversible and work equally for both – right as well as left-handers.
I’ll break down some of the best canoe motor mounts, how to pick the ideal one for your needs, as well as some useful tips for improving your trolling motor’s performance.
Choosing the best canoe motor mount:
Selecting a canoe motor mount can tend to be confusing. Thus, to help you avoid this situation, we have come up with few factors that you need to keep in mind when selecting a motor mount for your canoe. They are:
Material
One of the most important considerations for your motor mount is the material of your motor. You must give this aspect its due importance and only go for the best quality material available. The best in this regard is aluminum. Aluminum is light in weight, corrosion-resistant, and is quite strong. This will help keep your kayak lightweight, thus helping increase the vessel’s trolling speed as well as retain its battery life.
Hardwood cross-brackets are not that much popular but they can do wonders if used properly. Maple, Oak, and Ash are some of the popular Hardwood types that are primarily used in the making of Hardwood cross-brackets. However, urethane coating needs to be applied to them in order to increase the longevity of these Hardwood cross-brackets. The best thing about these Hardwood cross-brackets is that they have got an aesthetically pleasing look which is hard to miss. When the natural wood grain gets exposed, it gives them a stylish and stunning look. Another major advantage of using Hardwood cross-brackets is that they are easy to drill. So that means, you can easily attach equipment like fishfinder mounts, fishing rod holders, or any other mounting accessories in them without facing any hassle whatsoever.
The Type of Mount
There are two mount styles available: side-saddle and standard brackets. While side-saddle mounts can be clipped to the canoe’s hull and is extremely useful if you have a small vessel and are best suited for shallow waters, Standard mounts have a full bracket spanning the width of the canoe, and more suited for deep waters.
Side-Saddle mounts
Unlike Standard Brackets, Side-Saddle mounts don’t take too much space and this is what makes them ideal for smaller watercraft. However, these Side-Saddle mounts have a serious drawback and that is – under heavy load, these Side-Saddle mounts tend to bend the canoe outward and this can pose a serious challenge to the kayaker if he/she is kayaking in shallow water. However, if you are paddling in deep water, you don’t have to worry at all.
Standard Bracket Mounts
The crossbeam of the Standard Bracket Mounts tends to cover the entire width of the canoe. hand-operated knobs are mainly used to get these Standard Bracket Mounts attached to the gunwales of the canoe. These knobs can be loosened or tightened by using your hands (no need to use any tool). The major advantage of using this Standard Bracket Mount is that they stay put throughout the journey and rarely do they destabilize the canoe in one way or the other.
Arthur G. Moore is a veteran paddler. He has over 10 years of whitewater kayaking experience in his kitty. When he was young, he used to love kayaking in rapid III and rapid IV but as time went on, he decided to concentrate mainly on covering long distances on a standard touring kayak. He is currently working as a senior editor for Kayak Manual.
