trolling motors

I am looking for input in to which kind of trolling motor I should get. I am not looking to spend alot of money, but was out looking with the wife and came across the minnkota power drive. the unit that i could attach and get the wireless co pilot with also. any ideas.

thanks in advance

Every time this comes up, 90% of the people say MinnKota has (1) the best motors, and (2) the best service. That being said, I’ve run Motorguide for four years without ever having a problem that wasn’t my own fault.

I have heard some nightmare stories about mg’s service, though. The happy-happy minnkota customers who’ve had problems resolved make me think I’ll be taking a serious look at them next time.

Gianni you nailed this one. The legions of MinnKota fans always rate them as the greatest and that they have great customer service. Looking at this logically, they wouldn’t know what their customer service quality was if they hadn’t had problems with their motors.

To me the best customer service is a QUALITY PRODUCT THAT NEEDS NO SERVICE. I’ve had MotorGuides since 1987 and have never had a problem with them.

Good luck with whichever motor you choose.

Dan

Shane I have a Minnkota on my boat. Its been on there since 99 and never been off, looked at, fixed, nothing. But it has been smacked in the rocks, stuck in the mud a good number of times and never had a problem!
But its a good thing to know that Minnkota has a the best sevice if I do ever wreck it!!!

Minnkota is a good quality motor I would take a look at them.

I use to run motorguides Now i have Minnkota …nuff said

hey thanks guys,

I was looking to get one by the end of this month. I have finally talked the wife into letting me get one for my boat for fishing the way i want to. I am thinking that i will get the minnkota power drive and then add the wireless co-piolet onto it at a later date. thanks for you input.

also does anyone know who or how to put a live well into a boat?

thanks

shane

Just my opinion but you might get better use out of the auto pilot feature. My old trolling motor had it and my new one doesn’t and I miss it everyday that I use my troller.

Gator Hunter

I am trying to stay fairely cheap because it will be for my old boat. when i get a new boat, i will have a better trolling motor put on it at the store. I am just looking for something that would work for me for a year or 2. not looking to spend a ton of money on this boat that I have.

shane

Definitely go with the AutoPilot. I have it in my boat, and when I go out with my buddies and have to run the motor, I really miss it. Also, Shane, I know I owe you a PM, and I am working on it….

Shane, I also have the Minnkota PD. I wish I had the autopilot. I fished with a buddy who does and it is sweet. I don’t know what the price difference is but it is definately something to consider. Good Luck!

I think the auto piliot is around $800 and the power drive is around $350 to $450 depending on the thrust. I am just trying to get the most bang for my buck and not send the wife into shock. Seeing how she did give me the ok for it, but not putting us into the poor house.

shane

The co-pilot accesory adds about $150 to the bill. I don’t think that’s a whole lot different than upgrading to a auto-pilot. Also remeber that you can transfer this bow mount on your new boat too.

Gator Hunter

hey gator,

I can run this motor on a new one even with 24 volt system in the boat? the guy was telling me that i would not be able to transfere this motor to a brand new boat

shane

I have the Co-Pilot and think it’s a waste of money. It’s good for drifting situations to reposition the boat, but not for much else. With 3 people in the boat you can’t see the head of the trolling motor to tell which way it’s turned. In tighter areas with current it’s a pain in the butt, and you get half the fishing time cause you’re using up your free hand. I really wish I would have spent the little extra and got the auto pilot. To be totally honest, I would much rather drag the foot control to the back of the boat (minnkota power drive comes with 18′ cord) than use my Co-pilot, and that’s even when I’m alone in the boat. You have to use up a free hand to run it, and that just doesn’t cut it.

If drifting and dragging baits on a lake are all you’re going to do then I would say go for the Co-Pilot, but for bass fishing and working wing dams on the river, (basically most river fishing situations) it’s a pain.

Just what I have found in 2 months of using the Co-Pilot.

thanks for the input, I do primarily fish in or along the weeds and lilies. I am looking for a nice one that I would be able to use without having too much hassle.

thanks

shane

Do be aware that the autopilot function in the newer m’kotas has a horrible durability record. Mine doesn’t work and I’m sick of fixing it. Dustin’s Doesn’t work. Neither does Mike Little’s and I don’t believe Tuckner’s did last year when he sold his boat. To be honest, the only person I know that has a working autopilot is Kerry “Hawg” Harvey. All the others I know of have gone crapola in a very short amount of time. Granted I know guys that tend to fish often and hard but I’m not impressed with the durability of that feature. My suggestion is to skip the autopilot feature until they can prove they can keep it working through a full season on a boat that gets fished more than 10 times a year.

The rest of the motor & mount is very reliable.

my 2 cents.

I agree with James. I have been down that tecnology road too many times. The more features it has the more things that can go wrong. My advice, go with a cable steer like the Maxum.

SHANE, I SUGGEST MINKOTA. IVE HAD TWO MOTORGUIDES AND HAVE HAD TROUBLE WITH BOTH. IV’E HAD THEM SERVICED, AND THE SAME THINGS GO WRONG. ONE OF THEM IS STILL RUNNING ONLY BY STEALING PARTS OFF MY OTHER ONE. I HAVE TWO MINKOTA POWERDIVES. ONE IN 28LB THRUST AND THE OTHER IS 36LB. THEY HAVE SERVED ME WELL FOR 10 YEARS AND 8 YRS RESPECTIVELY. THE ONLY THING IVE DONE IS REPLACE A WORN OUT FOOT PEDAL THIS YEAR ON THE 36LB. SINCE I LIVE IN MANKATO, I JUST WENT DOWN TO MINKOTA AND PICKED UP A NEW ONE FOR $65

do they have a deal rigth at the place they are made, instead of buying them at a retail store. If it would save me alot of $$$$, i would drive down there and pick one up.

shane

You can get replacement parts at the factory, but I don’t think you can buy the whole unit from them. Check with Reeds Sports- good prices,free shipping.

I have a 2001 AP, and I know when I bought the boat this spring, that the compass had to be replaced already.

I took my AP in today to have them recalibrate it, hopefully it works again, I love the AP option and haven’t had any problems til now, we’ll see thus far it has been well worth the $$. I keep you all posted on how it works when I get it back… Thus far I’d buy it again, as long as the re-cal works.

MN-RST-RIDER
What year did you get your AP, from my understanding it’s the newer models that have the problem.

SHANE, MY COUSIN HAS A GOOD FRIEND THAT WORKS AT MINNKOTA. I WAS CONSIDERING BUYING A NEW MOTOR THIS YEAR, AND MY COUSIN TOLD ME THAT HE COULD GET ME A DEAL. IF YOU TELL ME EXACTLY WHAT YOU WANT TO GET, I’LL CHECK ON A PRICE FOR YOU

Umm I got it in 2001, new with my boat I assume it’s the same year, haven’t really looked at it, They said the adjusted “pot A” from 2.02 v to 1.0 v and “pot b” from 4.28 to 1.0 v. Cost me $25 not too bad IMO it it works that is, might try it out tomorrow depending on weather and how much I drink tonight Tuesday for sure providing the weather is decent.

Two of my fishing partners each have a 65 thrust, 24 volt AP. Both of them are having problems. They were both purchased last year. One of them had it calibrated twice and it appears to be working ok. The other one had to be calibrated 3 times, with a new board and two new compasses. It was still giving him problems. He gave a “serious” complaint to Minnkota and they delivered a new system to his door step in three days.

I have run the 55lb 12 volt ap for 2 seasons. The only problem I have had is the ap drains the batterey. It is well worth the money. No more problems in the windy conditions. Before ap I had the pd troble free for 8 years.
Jigger2001

From what I understand, the problems have mostly been occurring from the 65lb thrust, 24v systems with AP.

Whew I was inches away from buying a 65# but since it was a 24v system and my battery compartment only had room enough for 1 battery this is what I ended up with… Yes I know how to hook up a second battery, I just didn’t want to do it that way for my boat I can do 3 mph at full tilt with my trolling motor which is just fine by me.