Moving One Motor Between Multiple Kayaks and SUPs

The moment you own more than one boat, the question of how to motorize your fleet without buying a motor for each hull becomes a real one. It is not a small consideration. A quality electric motor is a meaningful investment, and doubling that investment just because you have two kayaks or a kayak and a SUP is a hard thing to justify. At Bixpy Canada, we designed the K-1 motor specifically so that one unit can serve your entire fleet without compromise, and the adapter system we built around it is what makes that more than a marketing claim.

The K-1 motor is compact enough to make the multi-boat concept genuinely practical. At 2.8 lbs including cable and hardware, with dimensions of 9.05 inches long by 3.6 inches wide by 6.32 inches tall, this is a motor that travels as easily as any other piece of paddling gear. You carry it in one hand. You store it in a dry bag or a hatch. The adapter for each boat stays on the boat, and the motor moves between them. That separation between the motor and the mounting hardware is the core of the whole system. The quick-release interface that connects the two comes apart with 4 nuts and bolts, so swapping from your fishing kayak to your SUP to your inflatable is a matter of minutes, not a project.

The Adapter Catalog

We have built more than 30 adapters for the K-1, and the breadth of that catalog is what makes the multi-boat promise real. For paddleboards and kayaks with fin boxes, the fin adapter series is the most seamless possible install. The adapter replaces the center fin in the existing slot, nothing on the boat gets drilled or modified, and setup takes about as long as changing a fin normally does. For paddlers who own multiple boards running different fin standards, the SUP Adapter Bundle packages the most common options together so you are covered regardless of which board you are rigging. For inflatables, the Peel and Bond Fin Box Adapter handles the mounting without mechanical fasteners, which is the right solution for PVC and drop-stitch construction.

Fishing kayaks present a slightly different set of options, and the Rod Holder Adapter is often the most sensible place to start. Virtually every production fishing kayak comes with rod holders already installed, and this adapter mounts directly into any standard tube. There is nothing to modify and nothing boat-specific to source. For boats running T-Track, which covers a significant portion of the angler kayak market in Canada, the RailBlaza Universal Hexx Adapter attaches to the track and can be set up as either a fixed mount or a steering configuration. Boats with a traditional flat transom take the Transom Adapter, which comes with an adjustable depth pipe and a full tiller steering setup including both 12-inch and 24-inch handle options. For kayaks with unusual geometry or stern shapes that do not fit a standard adapter, the Universal Kayak Adapter uses adjustable pipe arms to accommodate the variation. It is the more involved install of the bunch, but it covers the cases where nothing else quite fits.

Pedal drive adapters are worth understanding if your fleet includes a pedal kayak, because the concept is clever. For boats running Hobie Impulse, Native Watercraft, and Hoodoo pedal systems, the dedicated drop-in adapters work by removing the pedal unit from the drive well and fitting the motor adapter in its place. The pedal drive goes back in whenever you want it, nothing is permanently altered, and you have a boat that runs on pedals or motor depending on what the day calls for. Pod-style drive systems have equivalent adapters on the same principle. All of the hardware across the adapter catalog is waterproof, dirt-proof, and corrosion-resistant, with marine-grade stainless steel components suited to both saltwater and freshwater. Whatever adapter is sitting on your hull between sessions is built to stay there without degrading.

Performance Across Different Hull Types

The K-1 produces 33 lbs of thrust when paired with the PP-378 V4 Power Pack and 38 lbs with the larger PP-768, powered by a brushless motor driving a direct-drive propeller inside the Bixpy Canada PowerShroud duct. The shrouded design captures the water column and accelerates it through the motor rather than allowing energy to dissipate radially off the blade tips, which is how we extract more thrust per watt than an open-propeller design of the same diameter. For paddlers who have spent time thinking about hull resistance and propulsion efficiency, the implications are straightforward: the motor performs consistently well across different hull profiles because it is not losing efficiency to tip vortex losses the way an unducted propeller would.

The PP-378 V4 runs at 25.2V with 378Wh of capacity, fitting comfortably in most kayak hatches and day storage areas at 12 inches by 9 inches by 3.5 inches, and it delivers approximately 75 minutes of runtime at top speed with up to 10 hours available at lower speeds. The PP-768 doubles the energy storage for all-day sessions and is what produces the full 38-lb thrust figure. Both battery packs float. For paddlers who want to run third-party power, the K-Power Module connects the K-1 to virtually any standard 24V lithium battery, with the full control system, Bluetooth remote, kill switch, and cabling included. This opens up options for extended trips, multi-day expeditions, or integration with 24V systems you already own. The motor and all power components are IP-67 rated and depth-rated to 100 feet, so moving the same unit between saltwater and freshwater boats on consecutive days requires no special procedure.

Can You Use One Bixpy Canada Motor on Both a Kayak and a SUP?

This is one of the most common questions we get, and the answer is straightforwardly yes. Can you use one Bixpy Canada motor on both a kayak and a SUP? As long as each boat has its adapter installed, the motor transfers between them without any changes to the motor itself. The wireless Bluetooth remote controls 12 forward speeds and 3 reverse speeds, with a double-press Warp Speed mode for maximum output, and the setup process is the same regardless of which hull the motor is mounted to.

We have built dedicated adapters for boats from Hobie, Old Town, Wilderness Systems, Jackson, Bonafide, Feelfree, Native Watercraft, Eddyline, Pelican, NuCanoe, Viking, Vibe, Perception, Riot, iRocker, Isle, BOTE, Sea Eagle, Aquaglide, Advanced Elements, and many others. The K-1 is the third generation of our motor platform, following the J-1 and J-2, and since 2017 Bixpy Canada motors have gone out on tens of thousands of personal watercraft across every hull category. The adapter library has grown alongside that install base, and when a new drive system or hull platform reaches meaningful adoption in the market, we build an adapter for it. The full catalog and adapter finder are available at ca.bixpy.com.