Minn Kota Vantage 101lb 36v; Need reassurance!

I didn’t want to spend $4K on trolling motors and kickers. Got a new boat and was trying to decide what to do…bow mount, T8, Vantage? Decided to go with the Vantage 101 and kill 3 birds with 1 stone. Does anybody have one? How long do they last on a single charge? Strong enough to backtroll in 3′ rollers? Any problems? Would you buy another one? Any vote of confidence would be much appreciated.

WOW! 101lb thrust, that’s amazing! Also, how do you run a 36v elec motor? I assume you buy a 36v battery, or can you chain three twelve volts together?

Doesn’t sound like you can make a bad choice whichever way you go.

I have a 36 volt, 101 lb transom mount 3x vector on a 1675 Lund tiller (no kicker). The vector prop is too small to pull the boat backward in big waves; I use my big motor for those situations. Yes, I would buy anther one as it does work very good for my style of fishing. Should the big motor ever fail, it also acts as my backup motor for smaller waters.

Dave Gulczinski

I’m putting it on my new Ranger 620 Tiller when it gets here for that reason. To get 36 volts you need 3 batteries and connect them in series.

I run a 620T and have a 74# Vantage (24 volt) on it. It pulls my boat fine in most water. I primarily fish Mille Lacs and unless I’m pulling cranks or blades I only use my electric. I actually even use it for cranks in shallow water or on calmer days. I get a full day out of mine on a single charge. Even like now when I’m on the river fighting the current all day it still holds up.

Like Jason I have a 24 Volt 74 lb Vantage on my boat. Honestly it was probably my favortie thing on the boat till I got my Pro Kicker. But, don’t get me wrong they each have their use. There is nothing like back trolling on the pond on either a break or flat edge with that Vantage. Last Opener on antoehr lake I pulled live bait rigs in 3-4 feet of water. I beleive my Kicker would have spooked thos fish. Even with the Horizontal rain and sleet I had awesome boat control. The thumb dial for speed is the cats meow. Exact and precise boat control. I also use it on the river when vertically jigging on the edge of a wingdam or structure. I can hold right on a spot if need be. Crawl up the break and right back down by slipping in the current.

Is it the thing to have for pulling cranks? No in my opnion the Pro Kicker is where it is at. Pulling spinners I use both. I have back trolled in 2-3 footers on the Pond with my Vantage. When they start getting bigger than that and I have waves crashing over the big motor I use my Kicker.

To recap, the Vantage has it’s place and time, but it is not a cure all piece of equipment. . My batteries last for the weekend with no problem.

thanks for everybody’s input! I figure for now if the waves are too big and it’s windy, I’ll just use the F150 to backtroll.