Trolling motor

[Granny]

I currently have a transom mount trolling motor and its about shot. I am going to pick up a new bow mount now while the prices are low. What would you bass fisherman suggest I get? I only have a 15' boat and I usually stay on small water. I was told a 48" shaft and a 55lb thrust would be good for that size boat.

What are your thoughts on the Auto Pilot and mechanical vs. cable driven?

Thanks in advance,

Granny

[Outdoors_guy]

I hahe a 16.5 foot alumacraft navigator and on it is a 55 pound thrust and i believe a 55 inch shaft or what ever size shaft they make that is i the 50's. Any ways that trolling motor pulls my boat around just fine. So 55 pound thrust would be plenty for your boat. A longer shaft is nice if you like to go out on windy days that way it stays in the water. And for the mechanical vs auto pilot i am no help never had a auto pilot but i would like to get one. I guess if you have the money to get one i would. Another thing to look at is that you can get the trolling motor with the transducer built in to the bottom of it. I have that and it is pretty nice. Good luck on your decision.

[wormburner]

Granny, I have the exact trolling motor youn are speaking of, it works great on my 16' Lund, I do not have the auto pilot option though, I think if I was you I would just pick up a Minnkota with th standard foot control, my buddy has a auto pilot and does not care for it!

[Granny]

Thanks for the info!

I had my mind set on the Auto Pilot but I have been seeing mixed reviews on it.

Granny

[Mark Christianson]

Auto pilots are not very durable.

What I mean is that the internal compass thingy breaks pretty easily.

My autopilot busted, my Dads busted, and a good friends busted.

The motor still works fine, but the autopilot portion is no longer working.

A lot of extra money for nothing from what I have experienced.

[RossT]

I wouldn'y recommend an Auto Pilot or a Powerdrive for bass fishing. The electronic steering on each of the motors is slow and unreliable. Look into a Minn Kota All-Terrain trolling motor. These are cable steered motors, much like its big brother the Maxxum. They are designed to handle the abuse and can be stowed and deployed faster than a Power Drive/Auto Pilot. I know Cabela's HSOforum has some on sale right now.

On your 15' boat anything from 36lbs. thrust on up will work fine, and as far as shaft length, you will need to take some measurements for that, but do not get a motor with a shaft that is too long, you'll find that it'll get in the way. Good Luck!

[Granny]

I just got off the phone with a couple shops in town and still got mixed reviews but I am leaning toward the 55" 48lb powerdrive. With the $200 I save, I can just pay the wife to steer the boat all summer .

Thanks again,

Granny

[cjac]

Another against the Auto Pilot, unless you're trolling for 'eyes and following a specific course, it's not all that it's cracked up to be. I 2nd the above about considering one with a transducer built in. Have my Vexilar from the ice season on there and I like it.

1/2 day of work, I'm hitting the water in an hour!

[Granny]

I don't like the fact that I can't go back and edit my post after a short period of time. Oh well.

RossT,

Correct me if I am wrong on this, but I wouldn't be able to steer the All-Terrain motor from the rear of the boat, right? I forgot to mention that earlier. The front of the boat is the wifes spot. I will be steering and fishing from the rear of the boat most of the time.

Thanks,

Granny

[EBass]

Granny you're a bass guy like me. Go with the cable driven for the foot control. You have instant control instead of waiting for that motor to turn. (Know what I'm saying?) You may want a bit longer shaft like 52" or something. As far as thrust, well I like to fish rivers and have a Minnkota 50AT 48" shaft, when the water is swift I can only slow my drift down. So I need to get a 74 pound thrust on my little 14 foot jon boat. I know, some may say that's overkill; however, fast current and an under powered trolling motor doesn't = success. It = "Watch out for that tree!" But I don't know if you fish rivers.

Get the biggest - baddest one you can afford and tape an M80 to the old one. That's my .02

[Granny]

cjac,

I was thinking of that aslo with the Vex. How well does the Vex work on the boat? I have an older FL-8 and only use it on the ice. Do you just use it to find the weedlines or are there other advantages to it?

Granny

[Granny]

Ebass,

I don't fish rivers up nort here. I usually hit lakes under 500 acres so I usually don't have a problem with big waves or high winds. My current trolling motor is a 44lb transom and it has been just fine but I keep loosing forward or reverse.

The M80 may rank up there with the most usefull tools on the planet! One of the top fish finders I have ever used .

Granny

[EBass]

Oh, OK well then get a cable driven something. Are you trying to go with a 12V system? That's what I have, and it's fine for lakes except for real windy days.

[andy j]

brian,

A 48" shaft is perfect for your boat, Mine is a 42" shaft on my lund pro bass and I wouldn't want anything longer, your front end might sit a little higher but 48" will be perfect. No wonder your wife has been catching all the pigs, she gets first casting rights, how does that work, I think you need take back your boat. In the long run I think you will be much more happy with the All Terrian, But the one nice thing about the powerdrive is that you can get the cordless CoPilot feature, that runs about $150, I have used it and it works great, but yet another thing that in time will break down.

[Superduty]

I also would go with cable drive if possible. Have had both powerdrive and cable drive over the years. Powerdrive is slow to respond and it uses your battery to steer. Wastes a lot of juice in my opinion.

[sami0115]

as Tim "the toolman" Taylor says. more POWER huhuhuhuhu

i would rather have more power than i need and not use it than to need more power and not have it.

[Granny]

Thanks for all the info guys! I don't want to pay for power that I am not going to use. If the wind picks up too much, there is always a calm shore on every lake that is just waiting to be fished. I am going with the Minn Kota 55lb 48" shaft powerdrive. I think it is around $380 right now.

Andy,

I keep the wife in the front of the boat and yea she usually outfishes me, but there is a big difference between us. She is happy when she catches fish. I am happy just to be out on the water. During the summer I usually let her cover the water with spinnerbaits & frogs and I will fish the Magic Stiks and tubes on the deeper weedlines.

Thanks again,

Granny

[andy j]

I shouldn't show my fiancee this or she will want first casting rights. No really that is cool. If my fiancee is with me and I locate fish I tell her where to cast. On our first date she was probably playing with the worms or leechs. and I located some fish, I told her to pick up her rod which was had a texas rig worm on it, and pointed to where she should cast. I told her how to work it, and what to do if she felt anything, and sure enough she felt a bite, let off a little, and put the hammer on it, great hook set! It ended up being about a 4 pounder. She loved it and She was impressed that I knew there was going to be a fish there. AJ

[panolo]

I like the Maxxum. I have had great luck with the cable type drives. Although you have to pay attention sometimes cause the boat can spin if you are getting hit by big waves and not working the foot pedal.

[cjac]

Was out on White Bear yesterday for muskies. Had the Vex on to help with identifying the weed edge to maintain depth and the transition to hard bottom from weeds. Once you get good at reading it'll tell you everything you need to know.

I'm working on that whole "Getting good" part......

[Deitz Dittrich]

Granny- In my opinion, your trolling moter directly affects how you fish and the fishing you enjoy the most.

With this in mind, I can tell you this. If you mostly fish weedlines or just run shorelines you can do quite well with an AutoPiolet or Other mechanical drive unit. However, if you like to fish docks, flip cover and other up close type fishing.. then, The cable drive units are allmost a must. The mechanical are slow to respond, noisy, you have to watch them to see how much they have turned, and harder to deply in to the water. For most "weekend" anglers, a mechanical unit works because they feel they are easier and you can run them for many places in the boat. But the cable units give you much more in response and controol.

I myself run a Maxxum.

On another note... get as much power as you can afford. Even if you have a 15 foot boat, there is no such thing as overkill in related to power in a TM...Sometimes its just nice to have, you will never complain that you have too much power.. but you will often complain that you dont have enough!