I was recently given a boat for free by a member of our church. The boat is a 1972 fourteen foot tri-hull. It has been sitting in a barn for the last 15 years. The boat came with a 25 hp Johnson that did not run. I just added a 7.5 hp evinrude and got all the paper work done for the boat and trailer. The only thing it needs now is a trolling motor. The other day I purchased a Motorguide x3 45lb thrust 12v foot controlled motor. I started looking at how I could mount it and I am a little concerned. The top of the boat is thinner than the mount for the motor. My question is could I mount it on the deck? The deck is approx. 5-6 inches below the top of the boat. Would this give me enough room to be able to lift the motor into and out of the water?  Any other suggestions would help out too. 

 

Thanks

Build a small platform on your deck just for the mounting of your trolling motor.

If you can get under the deck I would install a piece of 1/2 or 3/4" plywood both under and on top of the deck to reinforce the area where you are going to mount the TM. I would use plywood at least double the width on the TM base.

 

Then I would use one or two  2 x 6s to get high enough to get over hull. 

 

One other suggestion. You may want to use construction adhesive between the plywood and the deck for more strength.

You will most likely have to build a bit of a platform as a mounting plate for the tm. However, the front is set up for a clamp on tm right in the middle. You can buy a hand controlled one, or if you want a foot control, Motorguide makes what's called the bulldog which has foot controlled tm with the clamp on bracket.