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Hey everyone,
Well I think its time to up grade my trolling motor. I have a Motor Guide Gator 12v currently and I have been reading a lot about the new Minn Kota's especially the Terrova with i pilot.
If anyone has one could you shoot me your thoughts on it. Good, the bad, and the ugly. I just want a truthful review of what it is like.
Is it worth the money?
I will probably stay at the 12 v set up, but will look into upgrading to 24v. Thoughts?
Thanks for your help folks!
no need to look arround, the terrova will suit you on LOZ or stockton,,, if you fish a lake with lots of trees it will take some getting use to but I use mine on truman and have zero problems.... go for it
Cochram crappieman on the MS off topic is selling one.
The lift assist is an important feature to me.
If you use a sonar up front, you will want to read all the posts about rf interference with the new tm's
If you troll theyre the cream of the crop. If you do alot of manuvering around in trees you'd be better served with a cable controlled foot petal motor. I have a PD V2 with I-pilot and LOVE it....but I mostly spider rig (1% of the time) and longline troll (99% of the time) in open water.
I have a MinnKota Terrova 80 lb. thrust 24 volt with I-pilot and US2 I love it. Go 24 volt, you won't regret it and buy the best Group 31 trolling batteries that you can find. I am using Interstates.
what kind of boat would depend on whether you should consider the 24v more than the 12v. glass and real heavy or tin boat. I have a 04 tracker pt175, had a MG 12v 43lb that came on the boat, that did ok, but could not really control the speed that well. Put a Terrova 55lb 12v w/48" shaft and Ipilot on it, and can maintain a steady .5 on up, what ever I feel I need or the fish want. I longline 99% and pull cranks 1%, and lots of battery left at the end of the day. If you have a big glass boat, may want to consider the 24v but I'm very satisfied with my choice.
i agree with gabowman,well said and i own a power drive with ipilot,jmho
Quote:
Originally Posted by gabowman
for trolling you can't go wrong. It is like having a first mate to drive while you do what ever else you want to do. it takes a little getting use to if you fish docks alot or fish stick ups. I think cables are better at these task.
Well I will be trolling some, not sure of the % of time though. But I love my jig fishing vertical jiggin a tree or brush is just a rush to me. I am a little behind on the features that they have.
I have a 18 foot Skeeter, and my current set up is 12v, and it normally does just fine. But after fishing Stockton lake here in MO with all the wind I am seriously thinking on 24v. Well that and lots of anchor line, lol.
Thanks for the info guys I appreciate it.
didn't see what lb thrust you have, but with a MK/Ipilot combo, you can use the anchor lock and it will hold you on your spot within reason from what I've read. Go to the MK web site and there is a way to help determine which TM would be best for you and your situation. Style of fishing, weight/size of boat, etc. all come into play. My 55lb works good for me, but I have a tin, not glass. do you have room in the boat for another TM batt to go 24v???
iPilot is great for trolling but jigging straight down ,they will move upto 20 feet either direction before motor comes on.I tested it on land and measured distant while friend pull trailer with truck.Tre reason Ifish beside on a brush pile with a marker .I with cable could stay still while he move causing him to hang. Without a marker in open water you think you are still cause still see brush on depth finder,but you can't stay on that little sweet spot thats on every pile
Went from a PD MK 55# lb 12v two Batt. to a 80lb 24v 60" with I-pilot us2, wOw Wow,, Great just so much better , I fish out of an Alu. 165cs and this one will just go all day and more, If I were you I would Go with the 80# 24v , But thats just me,
Its a 55lbs Thrust. I have room for at least 2 more batteries. Also adding some new electronics to the boat and that is my other reason for thinking of going to 24v. My 55lbs MG has worked great but with my boat being a little heavy due to all the gear I keep in it, I think something stronger and 24v would allow me to manuever better. Thanks for your thoughts.Quote:
Originally Posted by jimp
Yea I read your post back when you first made it. I am not expecting the Trolling motor to take over all duties, that’s just crazy talk. But I do want it to work well and without issues. I don’t mind staying on the foot control to keep me in where I need to be, I just want it to respond to my actions correctly, that’s my main concern of these. I am just so use to my cable control that it will take some getting used to anyways. But efficiency and quality and reliable are what I am after.Quote:
Originally Posted by genec
For myself, I feel that the cable control has an "instant reaction" from the time I touch the foot pedal to the time my boat actually moves...electric steer would tend to have a slight "time gap" in that reaction.....Quote:
Originally Posted by Little Skeeter
I like the feel that my foot is in constant "contact" with the boat's position at every second (I think it's my OCD controll issue...:)....)
But, as others have said, this electric steer item can be part of the learning process to anticipate and overcome...
Rickie
I run a 24v 80# Minn Kota Riptide on my 20' Skeeter Bay, it handles my heavy boat just fine.
i am looking for something that will run itself so i can fish . looking at the auto pilot with spotlock . i am not a multitasker .i havea auto pilot and like it till it desides to turn on its own some times .will have the newest modle soon .
the electric steer is not that to get use to, maybe a couple of hours, least for me anyway. The electric steer terrova is sweet for trolling/longlining, can't say for sitting on top of a BP. know anyone that has both versions, and maybe try 'em out to see which you like the best. If you've got the room & $$, I would go 24v since you've got a glass boat. Just remember you'll need to upgrade the wiring if you go to 24v. GL
Yea I kinda figured it was going to cost me a good chunk not just for the TM but fore rewiring.
new wire would not be that much imo, assuming 6ga would work for 24v. Be nice tho when it's done. A good winter time project. GL
I prefer my motorguide 82lb thrust digital for power and manuverability. Instant control works for the kind of fishing i do. I even long line troll with mine. Didn't choose the i-pilot as i dont troll often enough to need that function. Take your time and get the one for the style of fishing you'll be doing most. Bells and whistles dont mean a thing if you're not going to use them. My MG digital works perfect for me.
Yea I have several winter projects for my boat to do. But by spring I should be done and not have to worry about anything but fishing.
Yea like I said I have had no issues with my Motor guide, I just feel that at 10 years old I can get a new one that is more efficient for my boat, so that I can stay out on the water even longer. Mine has been a work horse, taking me everywhere I wanted to go with no issues. If I had a aluminum boat I would just keep it and put it on it.
Ok so I found out that I have a 3 prong plug that goes into a wire set of 2 postives and a neg, which then lead me to look at the back of the boat and dug up into it and pulled out a second positive connection with a breaker on it. I looked up the wire system and saw that it said 12/24 connection on it. But it didnt give me any details other than that.
Does that mean I am already wired for a 24volt set up? And that all I would have to do is get another batery and a new 24 volt trolling motor and I am set? Thanks.
I have no experience with factory wiring, but I know what it takes to go from 12v to 24v.
Let's say your current system is a bow-mounted motor, no other devices on this circuit, one stern-mounted 12v battery, and 2 wires in between. If you have the space to locate a second 12v battery near the current one, all you should need is a jumper. Disconnect one wire from your current TM battery and hook it to the same pole of the new battery. Then hook the jumper between the disconnected poles of the two batteries. You will now have 24v at the hookup point on the bow of your boat. Obviously, you can't switch a single pair of wires from 12v to 24v if your finder or any other 12v device is on the same circuit. I have a heavy pair of dedicated wires from my 2 batteries in the stern to the TM up front and a lighter set of wires hooking my finder to the single 12v starter battery.
If your existing wires are heavy enough to handle a 12v TM, then they should do even better with 24v. Nevertheless, it's a good idea to use a meter to test for voltage drop. If the resistance of the wire causes too much drop, go for heavier wire. Remember--voltage drop shortens fishing time.
you should look on the TM wire you have now and see if what gauge or awg it is. If its 6awg/gauge, I would think that would be sufficent to go 24v, but you can always contact the boat mfgr and see what they say before putting new wire in.
Ok I finally was able to see it on the wires, yes it is 6 GA wire. Here are some pictures of what it all looks like.
First pic here is the front panel where the TM plugs into boat, there is a neg and battery 1 and 2 positive leads.
Attachment 76973
Second pic is the wires coming from front of boat to rear and showing one connected to a TM battery, and a second just laying around. And you can see in yellow there the inline fuse used.
Attachment 76971
The third pic shows the breaker on the batter terminal connector, 50 amp
Attachment 76972
I'm not an expert but looks like you are set up to go 24v w/o much work at all. I would check the breaker size for the new one and go with it, and make sure you have an inline fuse on the 2nd power wire as well just to be on the safe side. As some say, go big or go home. LOL let us know what you do.
Thanks a lot bud. Yea after I started looking closer and doing some more research I started thinking what you just said was true before you said it, lol. I will deffinately put another inline fuste on it, and also look into the breaker and see if I will need to change it or not. Going to look at some TM next week I hope, but might have to wait till after the weekend of the 6th. That is my b-day and I am treating myself by going down to MS to fish one of those famous big 4 lakes.Quote:
Originally Posted by jimp
But I will let you guys know what I do and how it works out. Thanks for all your guys help, its been so long since I have had to do anything to my boat I almost forgot where things were.
Yes..your wired for 24 volt, so your good there. As far as a TM goes....I had a MK 54lb foot control on my 18ft glass and it done just fine, but the guy I worked for gave me a MK Riptide 75 lb with Co-pilot.....he said the copilot control had gone out....well long story short, he had put a new batt. in the keypad and he had put the keypad top on backwards and it didnt work...I flipped it around and it works great now...LOL......anyways the riptide has the keypad remote that I wear on my arm and it also has a corded foot control that can be plugged in and it has a 20ft cord on it so I can sit anywhere in boat an use TM either remote or FC. I spider rig and fish around stumps an trees and when using the remote I can sit in same spot and just reach down an hit a button to operate TM....dont have to move my foot at all. I Like It....personally. I also fish a lake here at home that wont let me run my 150 E-rude down the lake, it has a 10 hp limit...and theres a bunch of those guys say I`m cheating when I`m sitting in drivers seat and going down the lake just using the remote on my arm. One thing I would make sure of though is that both your plug and the plug-in is rated for the amp draw of a 24V TM if its not then your gonna cause it to get hot and cause you problems. If you have to get a new one make sure its one that plugs in an turns to lock....you want a tight connection at the plug.