Trolling plates on outboards?

[Jethro]

I know big 2 strokes get gumed up when trolled down but can you put a trolling plate on the 4 stroke OB's?
I'm going with a 4 stroke 50hp merc. and wondered if I could get away without a kicker.
Thanks :)

[coverdog]

You probably could. I hear the 4 strokes can troll constantly without problems. I don't own a four stroke myself so can't say for sure.

But I look at a kicker a little differently I guess. Rather than rack a bunch of hours up on my $15,000 outboard motor over time, I use the 8hp kicker. I have been using the same one for about ten years now on three different boats. It burns much less gas, cheaper to maintain and cheaper to replace. And keeps the hours very low on my main engine. Not to mention giving me back-up power.