buying a trolling motor: help!

[musky_tail05]

I am going to buy a bow mount trolling motor this year and I have a few questions. I have a 16 1/2 foot boat and I will be using the motor for trolling, boat positioning, etc. on lakes.

1. I am thinking about getting one that has 55 lbs. of thrust with a 54" shaft. Is this enough pounds of thrust or should I consider buying one with more?

2. I have narrowed it down between the Minn Kota Powerdrive and the All-terrain. I have talked to people who said that the All-terrain is better because it has a direct cable to the motor, so that it has quicker response. Is the Powerdrive worth the 50-some dollars extra?

3. I also need a quick-release bracket so that I can take the motor off and get the boat cover on and off. I know that they make one for the Powerdrive, but do they make one for the All-terrain?

I am willing to spend up to about $450 to $500 for one. Any help is greatly appreciated. musky_tail05

[panolo]

After fishing with the power drive this year on a friends boat I will be switching my all terrain. The cable drive, imo, stinks with any type of wind or weed restrictions. The only advantage I can see to it is on the river. Whomever said that you have to keep your foot on it the whole time is exactly correct.

[Chris-Neises]

Get the universal sonar Powerdrive. Once you add the Copilot accessory you will probably never use you foot control again.

[Tom Wilson]

Musky,
They do not make a quick release for the all terrain (or at least, I've never seen one and we never sold them at Gander).
The only thing that comes with the quick release bracket is the Power Drive and the Auto pilot series. As far as the point about the cable drive, unless you are consistently fishing in tight areas (such as a die hard dock fisherman) it really wouln't matter to you. I fished for years with the power drives and still have a 55 on my duck boat. My duck boat has quite an elaborate blind and even in a tough wind I am able to pick up all of my dekes. I currently have a 74lb Maxxum on my Ranger 520, and I have yet to fish in wind that it wouldn't handle. It is a cable drive, and yes it is quicker, but the electric steering in the power drives has been greatly improved, and it is nowhere close to slow. If your boat is aluminum the 55# will do more than fine, however they do make it now in the 74#. I also would recommend strongly to buy the one with the universal sonar, as it is almost impossible to find a good way to rig a transducer to the power drive series because of the slide through shaft. The other benefit is the foot pedal. Both the Maxxums and the all terrains have enormous foot pedals and they have to be positioned not only to give the pedal itself room but also to give the cables a place to go, and in a 16.5 ft boat- space I'm sure is at a premium. The power drive has a wonderful little foot pedal, and it is also much easier to operate. Hope this helped, ggod luck with whatever you decide on.

[Shorelunch]

I second what Tom said. If you don't plan to have your foot on the pedal 100% of the time, the Powerdrive is the way to go. I would also recommend paying the extra $ to have the universal sonar option - if you plan to have a fish locator on your bow. It is a real pain to deal with the transducer cords on a Powerdrive.