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I'm thinking about a kicker motor for my 1969, 16 foot Whaler. I have a friend with a "long shaft" Merc, a 10-HP, that is brand new. He sold the little sailboat that he bought the motor for. Never been in the water.

I've gathered that "short shafts" are preferred for dinghy usage and other small boats, but sailors often buy a long shaft to fit their sailboat (often mounted on a swing-down frame) and use it for their dinghy, too.

Terminology is usually a little more precise in this website. I've noticed mention of a "20 inch" lower unit for kickers. This would be what most people call the "long shaft," right? Are there longer or shorter "long shafts"?

Another question: My boat came with one of those swing-down mounts. I took it off and plugged the holes. I would assume that this was mounted to use a short shaft kicker. Am I correct that the preferred method is to mount the kicker directly to the starboard-side transom? (i.e. like Joe Kriz's boat)?

At this point, I don't really care to mess with linking the motors to be able to steer it from the CC (even though Joe says he tried that and hated it!). I'd just like a little insurance against mechanical breakdowns, and maybe try it for trolling.

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Dan,

A Short Shaft is 15 inches =
A Long Shaft is 20 inches = L
An Extra Long Shaft is 25 inches = X
An Extra, Extra Long Shaft is 30 inches = XX

So, you should just bolt the 20 inch shaft right on your transom with NO bracket. This is the preferred method.

Yes, you don't have to hook up the kicker motor to any controls at the helm if you don't have the need. You can just use the kicker for backup or even trolling around once and awhile.
While the kicker is running you can control the direction of the boat using the main steering as the main engine would be the rudder. You can't turn sharp, but if there aren't any other boats around, who cares. I used to use my kicker in that way on large lakes until I finally connected the 2 motors together....

Here's a Montauk 17' foot I setup for a friend of mine:
http://users.sisqtel.net/blewis/Monta...ntauk.html
20 inch Long Shaft Kicker mounted directly on the transom.
Dual Engine Controls for controlling both the main and kicker motors.
It's really easy to install and setup. The biggest investment is in the Dual engine controls, not counting the kicker motor itself, of course....

Whatever Floats Your Boat.....