Close

Building the Motor Mount

A project log for E - Kayak

An electric kayak for commuting to school

dominicDominic 09/09/2016 at 03:390 Comments

I am using a pretty simple design for the motor mount. It attaches to the back of the kayak and has the motor mounted below the waterline, connected through a set of reduction gears to the prop. It was very important that I didn't modify the hull at all because I don't want to have any issues selling the kayak later. The threaded holes for the handle and drain plug make excellent mounting points for the the main plate pieces, which are cut from 6061 aluminum. The plate is reinforced where necessary by aluminum angle. I'm hoping this creates less drag than just having solid plate. The hinge allows the motor/prop assembly to swing up for going through shallow water or during transportation. Lastly, a wing nut is attached to a large bolt head that sits against the back of the hull. By turning the wingnut the prop angle is changed. Don't know whether this will have any noticeable effect but it's a neat design. Overall I'm really happy with how the mount came out. It's simple, rigid, and easily removable. After a few passes with a wire brush it even looks half decent, not something I can often say about my projects.

Discussions