Do it Yourself Canoe Motor Mounts

The design for a canoe motor mount consists of three parts: a crossbeam made of wood, extruded aluminum, or metal; which spans across behind the rear seat, two heavy duty three to four inch ninety degree "L" brackets; which will be used to attach the mount to the canoe, and a six to eight inch square three-quarter-inch plate made of plywood where the motor will be attached.

  1. Materials

    • Wood can be used to make your canoe motor mount. It is easily drilled and cut to meet your design specifications. If you use wood, when choosing the thickness of your crossbeam and motor plate you will want to consider stability, weight of your motor, and the stress put on your mount under power. You will also want to consider sealing your wood to prevent water damage. Extruded aluminum can also be used as it is strong, lightweight, and less likely to suffer water damage over time, however, it is more expensive than wood and may be harder to find and to tool. If you know how to weld, then metal is an option as long as you account for the rust factor and don't make the mount too heavy.

    Designing and Constructing the Bracket

    • Cut your crossbeam to the desired length allowing 12 to 14 inches to hang over each side. Mark your crossbeam on each side where it meets the inside of the canoe wall. Center your ninety degree "L" brackets on these marks, and bolt them to the crossbeam. Now, bolt the bottom edge of the motor plate to the end of the cross beam on the outside of the canoe, keeping the "L" brackets down, on the side where you plan to attach the motor. After this, it is a good idea to use "L" brackets to brace the brackets of the motor plate for extra stability when the canoe is under power.

    Attaching the Bracket to your Canoe

    • If you don't mind four well placed holes in the top rail of your canoe, then bolting your canoe mount to your canoe is the way to go. Set your mount on the canoe and make a mark where the top rail meets the "L" bracket, drill two holes in each bracket at this level. Then with a maker or pen make a mark on the top rail of the canoe through the holes you drilled in the "L" brackets, and drill holes through the top rail at these marks. You can now bolt the mount to the canoe. If you're not too thrilled about drilling holes in your canoe, just use the "C" clamp method by cutting four three inch square pieces of scrap three-quarter-inch thick wood. Like a sandwich, layer the "L" bracket and the top rail of the canoe together between two of your squares of wood, one on each side of the canoe side, with a C" clamp. The "C" clamp when tightened, will dig in to the wood and not your canoe and the square pieces of wood will disperse the tension of the "C" clamp evenly to prevent the "C" clamp from slipping off.