We came to China because we discovered something exceptional.
When we disassembled the motor, we found engineering that genuinely impressed us. Some components were the best we've encountered after years of servicing electric trolling motors.
And the steering gearbox is remarkable.
Its silent operation gives MakoShark an opportunity to distinguish itself from Australia's established brands.
But we also found something disappointing.
Excellent engineering was being undermined by avoidable assembly problems, inadequate component choices and manufacturing shortcuts.
Some had already caused failures during our testing.
We cannot commit to purchasing further motors while knowing they contain defects that will result in preventable warranty claims.
We rebuilt the areas that needed improvement.
What follows is what we discovered, what must be preserved, and what must change.
Our inspection and testing identified thirteen engineering findings.
Some confirm exceptional existing design. Others require mandatory production changes. Several already have solutions that we have physically developed and fitted.
The following engineering records contain the findings, required changes and original photographs.
Excellent — Preserve
The main motor power connectors are among the best we've encountered. Their design and construction should remain unchanged.
Engineering reference 01
The connectors travel down the main shaft into the brushless motor housing.
Factory requirement: retain the existing connector design, component quality and assembly standard.
Mandatory Correction
The mainboard and steering box are currently joined by a continuous cable, making them impossible to remove or replace independently.
The cable entries were poorly sealed using cut rubber grommets and excessive sealing compound.
Both assemblies must have properly sealed, detachable connectors so either component can be replaced independently within five minutes.
Engineering reference 02
The factory cut the original rubber grommets, pushed them into the cable openings and applied black sealing compound around the penetrations.
The electronic boards themselves are exceptionally well protected. Preserve that protection.
Required changes:
The steering box requires replacement approximately three times as frequently as the mainboard in our experience.
The factory already uses excellent detachable connectors elsewhere on the motor. Apply that same modular approach here.
Mandatory Correction
The original pair of plastic bushes was too thin and made from unsuitable material. One broke apart during removal.
We replaced both with substantially stronger bushes.
Both bushes must be upgraded in production.
Engineering reference 03
Factory requirements:
These are inexpensive components. There is no reason to compromise their durability to save a small manufacturing cost.
Excellent Design — Assembly Improvements Required
The steering gearbox has the best sealing arrangement we've encountered on an electric trolling motor. The continuous perimeter O-ring and individually sealed casing screws demonstrate exceptional engineering.
However, we found evidence of O-rings being damaged during assembly, and one casing screw uses a brass compression washer instead of the O-ring arrangement used everywhere else.
Preserve the excellent sealing design, improve assembly care, and explain the inconsistent fastener arrangement.
Engineering reference 04
The main perimeter O-ring and screw O-rings should be retained.
Observed issues:
Requirements:
One casing screw differs from the others:
Questions for MakoShark:
The brass-to-aluminium interface also introduces a potential corrosion concern in marine conditions.
Preserve the overall sealing design.
Exceptional Engineering — Preserve Existing Design
The internal steering gearbox is one of MakoShark's greatest engineering achievements.
The combination of gears, sleeves, bearings and output adapter produces remarkably smooth, quiet steering operation. Peter and I have examined and serviced competing steering gearboxes extensively, and this arrangement stands apart from what we've encountered.
This engineering is the foundation of MakoShark's silent operation advantage. Preserve the design and component quality.
Engineering reference 05
Retain the internal drive architecture and component quality.
The silence of the steering gearbox contributes to the product's central selling proposition: silent operation throughout the motor.
The objective is not simply to produce quiet steering. It is to preserve quiet operation across the complete product.
Major Commercial Opportunity — Engineering Development Required
Peter's workshop currently replaces more than 250 Minn Kota steering gearboxes every year. These are existing customers paying to repair failures in one of Australia's leading electric motor brands.
MakoShark has already developed an exceptionally quiet steering gearbox. By modifying its output adapter to fit existing Minn Kota motors, we have an opportunity to replace failed steering assemblies with MakoShark's superior silent technology.
This creates an immediate aftermarket opportunity through Peter's workshop alone, with the potential to expand nationally through our dealer network.
More importantly, Silent Upgrades allows customers to experience MakoShark's technology without purchasing an entirely new motor. Every successful retrofit introduces the MakoShark brand to an existing competitor's customer.
We want MakoShark to develop a compatible output adapter while preserving the existing silent gearbox design.
Engineering reference 06
Explore modifying the output adapter to enable retrofit compatibility with existing Minn Kota motors.
Preserve the existing gears, sleeves, bearings and quiet drive mechanism.
Establish necessary mounting and electrical compatibility for the targeted models.
The existing workload represents an immediate potential supply opportunity, subject to successful engineering development.
Mandatory Correction
After only one month of use, stainless steel fasteners were already becoming tight in the aluminium housing threads.
Engineering reference 07
Apply Tef-Gel or an appropriate equivalent marine-grade corrosion protection and anti-seize compound to all threaded fasteners during production assembly.
Particular attention is required wherever stainless steel fasteners enter aluminium components.
Protection must be compatible with sealing components and fastening requirements.
Fasteners must remain serviceable without damage to the housing threads.
Mandatory Correction — R&D Solution Fitted
The mainboard enclosure was mounted directly against the anodised aluminium baseplate, with no clearance between the two surfaces.
This arrangement traps saltwater and prevents effective washdown, creating an unnecessary corrosion risk around the mounting surfaces and fasteners.
We manufactured and installed 2 mm plastic spacers to raise the mainboard enclosure above the baseplate, allowing freshwater to wash through and drain freely.
This is a simple modification that eliminates an avoidable corrosion point and protects the long-term serviceability of the assembly. It must be incorporated into production.
Engineering reference 08
Original construction:
Required correction:
Incorporate the completed R&D solution into production.
Confirmed Mechanical Failure — Mandatory Correction
The steering box cable suffered mechanical damage after fewer than 50 deployments.
During deployment and retrieval, the cable repeatedly rubs against the vertical aluminium edge of the motor baseplate. This contact progressively damages the cable insulation, creating a failure point in a component that moves every time the motor is deployed.
This is not a potential long-term issue. The failure has already occurred during our R&D testing.
The factory must correct the cable routing or provide suitable mechanical protection so the cable cannot be damaged during deployment or retrieval.
A motor cannot be considered reliable when normal deployment causes damage to its own wiring.
Engineering reference 09
Change the cable routing or contact geometry to eliminate damaging contact throughout deployment and retrieval.
The cable must not be subjected to abrasion, crushing, pinching or excessive bending.
Maintain independent cable serviceability.
The failure has already occurred during testing. This is not a theoretical long-term concern.
Confirmed Structural Failure — Mandatory Correction
The moulded attachment hole in the plastic motor head is too large for the main shaft tube.
When the stainless steel fastener is tightened, the excessive clearance allows the plastic moulding to distort, causing the attachment structure to fracture.
This failure is caused by an incorrectly sized attachment hole, not by the strength of the plastic itself.
The factory must correct the fit between the motor head and main shaft so the assembly can be securely fastened without damaging the moulding.
The motor head must fit correctly before the retaining fastener is tightened.
Engineering reference 10
Correct the moulded bore-to-shaft fit.
The attachment must fit the tube correctly without relying on the fastener to distort the plastic into position.
The revised arrangement must secure the motor head without cracking the moulding and must remain removable for servicing.
Mandatory Addition — R&D Solution Fitted
Silent operation is MakoShark's defining brand feature. That silence must extend beyond the electric motor and steering gearbox to the entire mechanical assembly.
During testing, we identified movement between the steering box locking-pin cutout and the locking pin. This movement causes locking pin bounce, generating mechanical noise that undermines the motor's silent operation.
We designed and installed a rubber bump stop secured with a sleeved bolt. The bump stop maintains positive pressure between the steering box cutout and the locking pin, eliminating the movement and associated noise.
The modification provides another important benefit: it prevents the motor from dropping when the foot pedal is pressed to release the locking pin.
Both improvements are essential. A motor marketed for silent operation cannot produce unnecessary mechanical noise during normal use.
Engineering reference 11
The rubber bump stop maintains positive pressure between the steering box locking-pin cutout and the locking pin.
Factory requirements:
Silent operation requires the entire mechanism to remain quiet, not only the gearbox.
Mandatory Production-Wide Improvement
MakoShark has demonstrated exceptional engineering in some of the most important components of this motor. Unfortunately, the quality of final assembly does not consistently reflect that engineering.
During our teardown, we found excessive sealing compound around cable penetrations, poorly fitted grommets, untidy finishing at the motor shaft junction, and attempts to compensate for poor component fit through additional sealing material.
These are not problems with the fundamental engineering of the motor. They are avoidable workmanship issues introduced during assembly.
Every one of these shortcuts creates an opportunity for failure, warranty expense and damage to the reputation we intend to establish in Australia.
If we want Australian fishermen to recognise MakoShark as a first-tier brand, the manufacturing finish must demonstrate the same care and attention as the engineering inside.
The Spirit of Craftsmanship must be evident in the finished product, not just in its internal design.
Engineering reference 12
Required standards:
The expectation is straightforward: assembly quality must reflect the engineering quality already inside the motor.
Mandatory Correction — R&D Solution Fitted
The original main pivot assembly required improvements to both durability and serviceability.
We installed a stronger brass bush, extended the pivot shaft to accommodate an external circlip, and relocated the circlip from inside the main frame to the outside.
These modifications strengthen the pivot assembly and make servicing significantly easier.
All three changes must be incorporated into production.
Engineering reference 13
Previously, the circlip was inside the frame and unnecessarily difficult to service.
The new arrangement must permit straightforward access without dismantling unrelated components.
We have identified components that deserve recognition.
We have also identified problems that should never reach a customer.
Some corrections are simple. Some require manufacturing changes. Several are solutions we have already built and tested.
None changes the fundamental reason we believe in this motor.
The engineering foundation is exceptional.
But exceptional engineering is not enough if the finished assembly introduces failures that good workmanship could have prevented.
We are prepared to build MakoShark's Australian reputation around silent operation, reliability and local service.
That reputation must begin at the factory.
MakoShark has already demonstrated the engineering capability to build a first-tier electric motor.
We have seen it in the components, the design and the remarkable silent operation.
What we ask now is that the same pride and attention be carried through every stage of assembly.
We want to bring a first-tier product to Australia, and we believe MakoShark already has what it takes to build one.
The engineering deserves that standard, and our customers will expect it.