matthiasbroersma wrote:
Good morning,
I do suspect that triple the power on the mounting ball connection with the TI might be a problem. Forces will have to be a bit more distributed.
The original ball mount is sound, once set up properly it works great and, for the TI, it's an excellent solution because it's very easy to install and places the 403 behind the rudder where it needs to be. Can it take the extra thrust of the 3HP? It might if properly secured, but we'll probably never know because the 3HP 1103 AC is only available with the new mount.
So why did Torqeedo develop a new mount? The original ball mount has issues with trailering. Torqeedo recommends removing the motor from this mount when trailering. This is very inconvenient. I did this at first, but it quickly became a hassle. To make it trailerable, I simply pinned the shaft mounts so they could not rotate, and then bunjied the motor down so it wouldn't move during the harsh bumps encountered when trailering. This worked perfectly and I never had to remove the motor again for trailering.
I assume Torqeedo develop the new mount to be more rugged. It certainly is and for many kayaks and small boats, it's probably a better mount than the older ball style. But for the TI, which has a rounded hull in the back and a rudder, it presents a significant problem for mounting. I'm almost certain an effective solution could be designed to use this new mount on the TI, which is why I'd love to get my hands on one.