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My wife and I are looking to purchase a new boat soon. My question is do most of you guys use your trolling motor when long lining cranks, or are kicker motors more prevalent? We're looking at a Lund deep v type boat, if that makes a difference.
what would the advantage be of a kicker be over a trolling motor...or is there any?
Down here it's more trolling motor but if it was me, and buying a DeepV I'd go with the kicker. Better control with that high sided boat in the wind.
And on Mark Twain Lake there's ALWAYS wind. We currently have a Bass Tracker 165, and struggle with boat control on windy days, the back of the boat wants to pass the front of the boat!!
That's the reason I would go with the kicker.
Get glass,better in the wind.
Why is glass better in the wind?
Heavier sets deeper in the water
The reason we're looking at a deep v is neither one of us are spring chickens...we're looking for more stability while walking around on the boat and seats that are higher and easier to get out of than bass boat type seats.
Check out the "First Ride In The New Boat" thread. That is the exact boat you described.
I fish out of a deepV for the very reasons you mentioned. I got tired of basically sitting in the floor to move from spot to spot. Keep in mind, i'll fish 10 hours straight without giving it a second thought. With a deepV you are always sitting in a chair comfortably. I also drive and scout new areas while standing up looking for hidden cover, stumps, rebar etc.
To answer your question, I use both for pulling cranks. Often I will use the troller (only) first thing in the morning while I'm fishing higher in the water column in calm conditions. Mid morning I'll switch to a combination of the two. I lock my 8hp 4-stroke kicker going straight and use the a/p on the terrova to steer with the remote.
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Kicker for me in my moderately deep v. I will eventually get a trolling motor to steer with (and lock the kicker in straight ahead position) and maybe use electric only on calmer days.
Having never used a kicker myself, I didn't know you could lock it into a straight ahead position. With that and the trolling motor up front to steer, man, I would think the boat would be rock solid in the wind.
Thank you guys, so much!!!! Great info.
That is how I troll with my big motor when battery drain is an issue or on rough, windy days. I lock the steering wheel and let the Yamaha idle using a trolling plate. Steering with the Terrova gives me all the control I need.Quote:
Originally Posted by yikess
Quote:
Originally Posted by yikess
Can you tell me more about the auto pilot...do you it in conjunction with a FF to follow contours, or a predetermined course?
If it were me setting up a boat that I would keep a long time I would go with top notch electronics. The new MK Terrova link and the Humminbird Side image Depthfinder work in conjunction with each other and will follow a contour line. The Auto pilot works on a compass heading and is good but affected by wind. The Terrova with regular i-Pilot follows a GPS system and will navigate to given waypoints on a path, then with the touch of a button, turn around and go back through them. These aren't cheap but depending on what you want or need they are the good stuff.
The Auto pilot works on a compass heading and is good but affected by wind.
The Auto pilot works by picking out a point of reference that you want to go to and then it will correct for the wind or current if it is taking you off line and bring you back on course. Without it you would just go in a general straight direction but would be at the mercy of the wind blow you off line.
Word of advice on using a contour steer unit while pulling cranks; unless you have a lake with very slight changes in the contour of ledges, you will go crazy trying to pull cranks. Ky Lake has some great drop-off for cranks but should my boat be set up to auto-steer on those contour breaks, I would lose 100 Bandits per trip. Quick direction changes are not your friend when pulling cranks.
Quote:
Originally Posted by skeetbum
If we do it up right, this will be the last fishing boat we'll buy. Having said that, we are planning on going top notch. We do want to go with the IPilot, and couple that with Humminbird side image on the console and the front of the boat, and a lesser Humminbird on the rear of the boat. We still need to figure out which Humminbirds to install.
There are some areas on Mark Twain Lake that we can utilize the contour follower, but I know what you're saying, there are areas we'd be making u-turns and 90 degree bends...tangling lines, snagging cranks, loosing cranks, followed by a lot of cussing!!!!Quote:
Originally Posted by mrdux
I do the same as Yikess. I have a glass boat with a 6hp kicker and a 80# Terrova with Ipilot. Push with kicker and steer with Terrova.
That's not how mine works. On a windy day I find myself correcting to get to where I want to get to. It may be designed to do what you say but that isn't my experience.Quote:
Originally Posted by clfarms1
Advanced AutoPilot...Simply point your trolling motor in the direction you want to head and activate Advanced AutoPilot. i-Pilot will keep you on your heading and deliver you there with GPS accuracy, while compensating for wind, waves, current or drift.
thats how its suppose to work skeetbum. Have you ever done any updates on it?
No, no updates. I'll have to get out on a windy day again and just wait it out to see if it does deliver to the spot. Mine is a straight auto pilot, no I-pilot. The co-pilot is the only change since I bought it.
Have 18ft tyee. I run exactly the same way as yikess. I do run the remote trolling motor more because access to move around boat and less worry about speed and bearing.
Plateboater, how do you like your Lund? How long have you had it? Is there anything you don't like about it? Are there any changes in options you would make now? What kind of water do you fish, big lakes, small lakes?
I would have to see the conture following feature in action before I made a four figure investment in this technology. The last thing I want is my boat getting jerked to the left or right while I'm standing up reeling in or netting a fish. Also, fishing in a pack of boats could become an issue.
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Ibcamn...sent you a PM. Guys I troll quite a bit and the I-pilot is much easier. First time purchasing this technology and been in a boat for over 30 years! I wish the change for me would have been about 10 years ago. You can link to Hummingbird/Lakemaster to make the system to "tune contour feature" even better but I run HD's. Either way my wife is in the front "laying out" and I am in the drivers seat trolling.....life is good!
Thank you, plateboater...PM'd you back.
Good info, thanks.