Proud to announce my Jackson Kayak Big Rig will be fitted with the state of the art Torqeedo 403 Ultralight Kayak Electric Motor!! Weighing only 16 pounds total it is the top electric motor kayak solution on the market.

I am looking forward to using this setup mainly for HOW outings due to the speed allowing to now shoot more video transport bait resupplies and also carry snacks and drinks to the Veterans.

Adding an electric motor to your kayak may require you to title and register the boat with your states Motor Vehicle Commission.  In some states you must have a boat license or certification to operate a power boat.

I am completely pumped about this new setup. Please check back for my write-up on the install, use, care, and all of the things associated with adding an electric motor to your kayak.

Excited to announce I have been accepted to the RAM Mounts pro staff! Been looking forward to this for quite some time! If anyone has any questions regarding rigging with RAM or just general questions about current products please feel free to contact me or leave a comment. The pro staff was organized in the summer of 2013 to help fellow anglers understand the benefits and uses of RAM products.

RAM offers wide variety of mounting solutions targeting kayak anglers to make fishing easier from their small platforms. From rod holders or electronics mounts to camera mounts RAM has many innovative designs that will fit any kayak anglers needs. Made in the USA and top quality! All RAM Mounts go through rigorous testing before they are offered. RAM also produces specialty mounting systems for vehicles, bikes, boats, and even the US military. RAM Mounts are Made in America!!!

Check out the RAM Mounts website kayak section for the latest in products offered by RAM. Also check out the paddle-sports catalog for current products offered at http://www.rammount.com/pdf/rammountpaddlesports2013lowres.pdf

Also please like the RAM Mounts Facebook Page & RAM Mmounts Kayak Fishing for up to date product reviews new products and just say hello if you would like.

Please check back here at The Plastic Hull for my RAM Mounts reviews installs and in action use!

The new Lowrance Elite 5 HDI chart plotter/fish finder’s transducer unfortunately is just too large to be scupper mounted flush on the Cuda. About 1/8″ sticks out on the bottom and i feel this will destroy the transducer over time.

Since this is an HDI unit the transducer needs to be mounted on the exterior of the hull below the waterline. A shoot through hull install with this type of unit will degrade the result of the display. I have two mounting options. One would be the Ram Mounts Transducer flex mount kit. The other being that the Cuda 14 has a removable replaceable skid plate with mounting hardware already molded into the boat. Simply I would have to design a bracket that would mount to the yak via the skid plate and bend up the transom to bolt the transducer through. I think this would eliminate the drag of having a bar and the transducer hanging over the side. Mounted inline with the boats hull it would act as a piece of the hull itself. At least these are my hopes.

Angle Aluminum Stock 1″ x 1/16″ x 36″

I recommend  stainless steel angle but as my choice due to its light weight and non rusting properties in salt water i like to start with aluminum. I also paint it so it is resistant from corroding and pitting. Once the aluminum bracket is fabricated maybe I will make one out of stainless steel. Aluminum is fine due to the trial and error phase of this bracket mount. I am two seasons into my previous scupper mount fabrication where i used aluminum and still see minimal corrosion. The kayak doesn’t sit in the salt water and if its rinsed with fresh water every time it prolongs the life.

Angle alum & Skid Plate

I decided to measure where the bend in the aluminum would be and using a Dremel tool cut of one side off the angle to make it flat.

Bend & Drill to align

I measured the existing skid plate screw holes and drilled appropriately for mounting.

Mounted to Skid Plate for measuring

Once the holes were drilled I mounted the bracket to measure with the transducer the amount of angle needed to mount the skimmer so it was aligned flush with the underside of the hull.

side view mounted to skid plate before cutting

Once i cut the long piece off it looked like this (below)

Transducer Mount after cutting

Transducer Mount after cutting

 Once this was done I aligned the transducer with the bottom of the hull and marked where to drill the hole. Then painted the bracket with black paint to resist the corrosive salt water.

Painted!

Now for mounting!!

Mounted Transducer

Mounted Transducer

Mounted Transducer

Mounted Transducer

Mounted Transducer

Mounted Transducer

Mounted Transducer

Mounted Transducer

Mounted Transducer!

Thats a pretty clean mount! I hope it wil work with loading and unloading the yak on and off my truck. Unfortunatlly it was the best solution but i think it will be fine!

Next will need to run the wiring so i have to figure out how im going to run all of the wire through the hull temporarily for the remainder of the season. These Lowrance wires and plugs are very large and makes the install tough. As in the photos below you can see my existing install using C-Caps. The plug collar is actually larger than the 3/4″ hole drilled here.  I might be temporarily installing through the hatch and then replacing the hatch in the future.  This will give me a chance to hinge the back end of the hatch. At least i can try it once before the final with out worrying about it being pretty..

Existing Hull Pass Through

Existing Hull Pass Through

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