How to Mount and Maintain a Kicker Motor Bracket

Boating Magazine notes that most kickers go on the starboard side, because the tiller handle is usually on the port side of the motor. That puts the handle toward the middle of the boat where you can reach it. Make sure that at full lock and full tilt, neither engine hits the other, and that the kicker clears the main engine's steering, trim rams and cables. Also check there's room behind the transom to get a wrench and backing plate in. Mercury adds two placement points: the kicker can go on either side as long as you can comfortably reach it to lower, start, steer and stow it, and it shouldn't sit right over your fishfinder transducer (you may have to move the transducer, see the transducer guide).

Boats with a swim platform or molded stern. A common forum question is where a kicker goes when there's no flat, open transom. Most brackets need a flat, vertical mounting surface, so these boats often need a custom adapter plate or a platform-mount bracket, with serious backing behind whatever it bolts to. Ask the boat builder, bracket maker or a rigging shop before you drill a molded platform: many aren't built to carry that load.

Boating Magazine explains that the kicker's anti-ventilation plate (the flat plate above the prop) should end up roughly level with the boat's bottom when the bracket is down. On a V-hull, the bottom is higher off-center than at the keel, so measure the transom height at the actual mounting spot, not at the center. The motor's shaft length (short or long) must suit that height and the bracket's travel. Mercury's ProKicker guidance says to pick the shaft length so the anti-ventilation plate sits no more than about an inch below the bottom of the boat, measured at the kicker's spot (typical; confirm with your motor and bracket instructions). Follow the bracket maker's measuring instructions: they give a formula based on the bracket's travel. Boating Magazine also says that if the transom angle keeps the motor from trimming with the plate parallel to the water, a hardwood or marine-plastic wedge can correct it.

Hold the bracket's mounting flange on the transom at the measured height, square to the top edge of the transom. Use masking tape on the gelcoat so the marks show and the drill doesn't skid. Mark the bolt holes using the bracket as a template (many makers also publish a hole pattern). Check inside again for anything behind each mark before you drill.

Drill each hole straight, at a right angle to the transom. If your transom has a wood or foam core, the bolt holes are a path for water into it. A common way to protect the core is to drill oversize, fill the hole with thickened epoxy, let it cure, then drill the bolt hole through the epoxy (the through-bolting accessories guide shows how). Clean up dust and shavings.

Garelick, as quoted by Boating Magazine, recommends a backing plate inside the transom. It spreads the load so the bolts don't crush the transom or pull through. Cut a plate of aluminum or marine-grade plastic about the size of the bracket flange and drill it to match. Big fender washers alone are not enough for a heavy kicker.

Coat the back of the mounting flange and the backing plate with marine sealant and push some into each hole. Push the stainless bolts through from the outside, add the backing plate, washers and locknuts on the inside, and tighten evenly while a helper holds the bolt heads. Use the tightness or torque in the bracket instructions; don't crank until the gelcoat cracks. Wipe off the squeeze-out. Many brackets don't come with transom bolts, so buy them long enough to go through the transom, backing plate, washer and nut.

With the bracket locked in the up position (and the springs set as the maker describes), lift the motor onto the bracket pad and tighten its clamp screws. Then through-bolt it. Boating Magazine warns that clamp screws can vibrate loose over time and you could lose the motor. Use the motor's bolt holes in its transom clamp and bolt through the bracket's mounting board with stainless bolts, washers and locknuts.

Before the first start on a new motor: Mercury notes that its new ProKickers ship with gear lube in the gearcase but you have to add engine oil yourself, and electric-start, power-tilt models need cables to the cranking battery. Check the oil, prime the fuel and follow the break-in in your manual.

Run a stainless safety cable from the motor to a solid point on the boat. Boating Magazine is blunt about why: auxiliary engines don't float. Panther says not to use its brackets without its safety cable (some models include it, some don't). Leave enough slack for the motor to tilt and swing without the cable getting in the way.

You have a few choices:

• Tiller steering: the simplest. You sit or stand next to the kicker. Boating Magazine notes this puts the skipper in the back corner of the boat.
• Use the main engine as a rudder: leave the big motor down and steer with the helm while the kicker pushes.
• Tie bar or link kit: a rod connects the kicker to the main engine so the helm steers both. Kits are specific to steering type (cable or hydraulic), motor brand and spacing. Panther's FAQ notes the rod often has to be bent to clear the motor, hoses or bracket, and it must never bind at full lock. Check the full range with both engines tilted up and down. Mercury points out that a remote-steered kicker also needs its own remote control for shift and throttle.
• Electric steering units: a servo motor turns the kicker, with a wired or wireless remote.

Whatever you choose, turn the wheel lock to lock with both engines down and look for binding, rubbing and stressed hoses.

A kicker is supposed to get you home when the main engine has a problem, and fuel problems are a common cause. A separate portable tank with its own line and primer bulb keeps the kicker independent of the main tank. If you tie into the main tank instead, that usually means a separate pickup and filter, installed to USCG rules: that's a job for a marine technician. Secure a portable tank so it can't slide, keep it away from heat, and use the fuel the kicker's manual calls for (some older two-strokes need premix).

Run the kicker in the water. A quick start on the trailer is only OK with external flush muffs (or in a test tank) if your motor's manual allows it; the built-in flush port is for engine-off flushing unless the manual says otherwise. Check that:

• The bracket locks positively in each position and doesn't drift down
• The motor's water pump stream (telltale) is strong
• The prop is deep enough not to suck air in a chop when the bracket is down
• Nothing rubs or binds when steering
• The bolts and transom area are dry with no weeping after the run

Recheck the transom bolts and the motor's mounting bolts after the first few outings.

• Rinse it with fresh water after salt water use, especially the springs, pivots and lock pins.
• Lubricate pivot points and pins as the bracket maker recommends.
• Check bolts for tightness and the sealant for cracks every season. Water around the bolts means the seal has failed.
• Look for cracks in the bracket arms and mounting board, and replace a mounting board that has split or gone soft.
• Panther says its brackets must not be used to trailer the motor (it voids the warranty), and Garelick, as quoted by Boating Magazine, recommends against trailering with a motor on the bracket. Remove the kicker or follow your bracket maker's instructions before you tow.