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I have the opportunity to pick up a new Minnkota trolling motor which will be used on a john boat with me (215lbs) and two boys (total of 240lbs). Would a 30 lb thrust work? Should I go larger with say a 40 or 45 or 50lb thrust? We will be using it a local county lake for long line trolling some but mostly going from spot to spot and anchoring.
Thanks
Personally, I wouldn't go below 42lb thrust ... with two group 31 deep cycle marine batteries ... especially with a 12V system. :twocents
... cp :kewl
Bare minimum of 3 pounds of thrust per foot of boat. That is BARE minimum. Always better to go with bigger.
Just like with tow vehicles, always go as big as you can afford. You'll never have a problem with overpowering a boat. Just make sure you have the battery to back it up.
I get Bass Pro award points from my work for working extra overtime so I can get a 50Lb thrust model in just a few weeks. Thanks for the advise to go bigger.
On the battery piece what would you all suggest? I know to get a deep cycle version - is there a "best" that is relatively maintenance free? Also, any chargers that you recommend?
Thanks
On batteries, I think "best" is usually personal preference via experience. I currently use Everstart Marine batteries, and have used the brand for decades (so I can't comment on other brands).Quote:
Originally Posted by Shmang
As to "chargers" ... I still have a Shumacher charger that's well over 30yrs old & still functional. My most recent boat came with a Minn-Kota 220 onboard charger (2 banks @10A/bank) and it's worked flawlessly. If I had to replace it, I would likely get the Minn-Kota MK220d (digital) ... and if I should opt to add a 3rd battery at the same time, I'd go with the MK330D (3bank @ 10amps/bank). I just don't like the idea of charging a heavily used battery with less than 10amps.
... cp :kewl
I have a dedicated reservoir boat that I use in the few reservoirs we have here in MD, and all we can run is electric. I run 55s on a 15' boat, but as far as batteries. I found that 2-6 volt golf cart batteries in series will way out last multiple 12 volt batteries. When I was running 12s I needed to bring an extra set of batteries to swap out halfway through the day, now that I've swapped them out for 6s I can run anywhere I want on the reservoir without a fear running them dead. As far as motor size get the biggest you can afford.
Oh and I should've added I run a BPS XPS 3bank charger and it works great. I run this because I have 2-12s in parallel for my bow mount that I use while I'm actually fishing
tin or aluminum ? I use a 45 lb. on a 16 ft. xpress . no problems but I single pole and slow troll only .Quote:
Originally Posted by LowePro
Got the 55LB thrust model being delivered tomorrow. Now I am on a quest to find the battery and charger to go with it -- checking out a few sites and will be calling them tomorrow. Thanks for the help.