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Hey guys,

I just purchased a 7.5 honda kicker for our 17' Montauk and need advice on how to mount the motor. I chose to go for the long shaft to avoid having to buy a motor bracket and have seen people who have simply clamped the motor onto the transom. Any advice would be much appreciated. Cheers!

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That's the recommended way to mount a kicker, right on the transom without a bracket.
What year Montauk are we talking about?

See this article for an Outrage model.
http://www.whalercentral.com/articles...icle_id=48

Also notice at the top of the article is a link for the Montauk.
Depending on your engines and whether or not you want to control it from the console will determine which side you want to mount it on.

If you just want a backup without control other than using the tiller handle, then you would probably want to mount it on the starboard side. Just make sure there are no obstacles in the way whichever side you choose.

In this link, the kicker is mounted on the starboard side which worked for his engines and cables.
http://www.whalercentral.com/infusion...?user_id=5

Here is one mounted on the port side that worked for his engines and control cables.
http://www.whalercentral.com/infusion...er_id=5953

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I recently posted this very same question.

On my 1995 Montauk I mounted a 1971 6 HP Johnson.
Due to main engine failure I was glad to have it to get back in however when I removed the kicker I noticed it had put dents and small fractures in the gelcoat where it dug in.

I am now thinking of screwing in a small plate or piece of teak on either side to distribute the force. Going through the personal pages I have not seen this done.

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Chris -- Just clamp your Honda 7.5 directly to the transom on whichever side makes the most sense per Joe's good advice.

I have done this on several Whalers I have owned. There is no need to use a pad, indeed, use of a pad is discouraged because it will make the installation less secure.

You want the motor mounting clamps to bite into the gel coat to form a secure grip. Boston Whaler's Owner's Manuals used to recommend doing exactly this without the use of any bracket or pad.

If you are concerned about it being totally secure if rough water, use the auxiliary bolt holes in the kicker's mounting bracket to bolt the motor to the transom. I have always done this.

Yes, if you ever remove the kicker there will be marks in the transom, but those can be easily filled if need be. If the kicker stays on the transom all the time, then who cares?

The kicker in this photo (just barely visible behind the main motor) never moved so much as a fraction of an inch in the ten years I owned this boat in spite of the rough water it occasionally encountered:

http://home.comcast.net/~tomwclark/18...00dpi.jpeg

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I run a 8hp Tohatsu on my 16' for a kicker and it works great.I use a outboard lock to keep the clamps from backing off and to protect it from theft. The only problem I have had is sometimes the motor would fall from it's tilted up position while running in bumpy conditions. I solved that by using a bungee cord to keep the tilt lever from coming out of it's slot. You might not have that problem with other outboard brands.

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Looks like I'll be installing the motor on the starboard side since we don't really mind not having full control of the steering, but it does sound nice! Time to get the boat ready for the weekend. Thanks guys for the help!

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Oh and Joe, I am running a 1986 Montauk.