Terrova I Pilot for 16ft Bass Tracker

I am really considering buying a terrova i pilot for my bass tracker. Im stuck on what size I should get.

The boat is a late 90's panfish 16 very similar to this Bass Pro Shops - Fishing, Hunting, Camping, Boating, Archery and More

Right now I am leaning towards the 55# thrust.

I do a lot of vertical fishing over brush piles so I am very interested in the spot lock. I've read mixed reviews on the accuracy of spot lock but I'm hoping with a lighter boat it will stay on target easier.

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

If you are not going to use it to pull cranks the 55 would be good. I have a 18 WarEagle and run a 55 and perfectly happy with it. Not much help on spot lock because I don't fish brush piles. I will say mine holds me close enough when I do use it. Seems it does better if you have just a little breeze so it can pull straight into it. This is just my opinion for what it is worth, a lot of people have unrealistic expectations of what spot lock should do for them and some of the advertising dosnt help. It's controlled by GPS and it has to move off the spot and GPS has to get a new fix before it can adjust. It has a lot of other features that make it a dream for me to use spider rigging, long lining or pulling cranks. If you get Terrova and Ipilot the good thing is if spot lock dosnt work for you, you can attach foot pedal and use just like a cable steer.

I would go with the 24V motor. That is what I have on mine.

The spot lock is very useful for holding the boat in a relative position while you are doing something else.....and the follow a recorded track feature is VERY nice.....even if you don't get the link.
As far as holding over a brush pile....I would say it depends. If you are dropping jigs down into the brush, you won't like it. I often fish just over the top of a brush pile and find it very useful then....it is good to move around a little on the pile anyway.
If you want to hold the boat just away from the brush pile and slip float minnows over the top...it is great.

It is not fool proof, and can get itself confused on occasion, but I REALLY like it.

I have the 55 lb. thrust I pilot on a Tracker 175 TXW currently, had the same unit on my previous boat - a Tracker 170 (16.5 '). Bought the unit when they fish came out over 3 1/2 years ago. Works just fine pulling crank baits, holding on a spot with spot lock, etc.

I've got a 55# Terrova w/ IP on my PT175, and like it a lot. If you fish brush piles a lot, then the spot lock will not hold you in one spot like 2 anchors would. You will drift off and then it will pull you back to the spot, not the exact same spot and maybe/maybe not in the same position relative to the brush pile. I use the spot lock to keep me off the bank or whatever when I want to get a drink, re-tie my rods, change lures, etc;. I don't worry about anything then, but you do have to make sure you don't accidently turn the spot lock off and start drifting, etc.

55# will be plenty for your boat, you could run 2 batteries parallel if you have room in the boat for more time on the water.

I agree with jimp.....seems like we have nearly the same boats and TM. I use two batteries on mine, but don't really feel like it was necessary to do so. Spot lock will allow the boat to drift approx 20' and then may run you 20' past as it tries to relocate, so don't count on it for bp's

I have a 17 1/2 bass tracker and 55 lb mi5 motor guide,i only fish bp and shoot docks,always been a cable man,well tm does good on bp but you do need a little breeze,it moves a little but comes back to it slow,not bad but nothing will stay on bp like a experience cable man,i just turn 70 and want more time resting while fishing and now while tying on a bait wife can still fish bp.under a bridge it will lose singal once in a while.still holding on to my maxx 70 didgal cable for a while to give it more test,had it 6 months but been sick some so have not been as much as i like ,maybe 15 times

I have the 55 on a Lund 1650 XL Sport and it works great. The spot lock holds as good as one anchor but will not hold position like two anchors (bow and stern) would.

The tracks, cruise control and directional systems are awesome.

i haven't used my anchor in over 3 years.

I also have the Terrova I-pilot 12 volt on my 16.5 Tracker and it has more than handled all my needs. Never have run out of power or felt I did not have enough trust. At power setting 4 or 5 it will pull me about 1.2 to 1.5 which is a good trolling speed.
I am still working on the spot lock over brush piles. Last time I was out I would pull into the breeze up to just maybe 5 ft past brush pile and set the lock. It held me within about 10 feet of that setting which was good enough to fish a jig all around the brush.
I like it if you are fishing a river bank and want to work a 20 to 30 ft area you can set the lock about at the top end of the stretch you want to fish and with the current it will gently move you back and forth up and down that area. Good for fly fishing an edge or shore line. Also good if you have to re-rig or pee too, just don't hit the rabbit button while hanging over the edge.

Add me to the list of 55lb Terrova w/ipilot
Works great on my V172 G3

I use the Yamaha EFI 90hp (via a few isolation switches / relays) to help keep the two trolling motor batteries standard 6Vdc GC Batteries charged up while camping / fishing for weeks at a time. Spot lock is a great feature use it a lot plus the track back - we mostly fish large rivers and never had an issue lack of thrust from the setup

I had a 55 terrova but on the TN river when they are pulling it wasn't quite enough. I now have a 80 and am pulling and pushing crankbaits and it is working fine. I would go with the larger motor. I have been pulling at 1.7 mph for 5 or 6 hours and the indicator lights are still at 3/4 charge. My boat is a tracker V18 all-fish
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Be careful about going too big with the TM though. I read a post on here last year where a fella bought a nice big 24volt system to replace his smaller 12v system and the result was that even on the lowest speed setting his boat moved way too fast to be practical. Just something to keep in mind with a lighter boat like yours.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Kenny

Be careful about going too big with the TM though. I read a post on here last year where a fella bought a nice big 24volt system to replace his smaller 12v system and the result was that even on the lowest speed setting his boat moved way too fast to be practical. Just something to keep in mind with a lighter boat like yours.

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a troller with variable speed can be slowed down to almost nothing, but you're right if there is only fixed speeds.

I have a 55# on a 14'9" dura craft and I love it. Works great for spider rigging. Spot lock is ok but will not hold as good as 2 anchors, But I don't carry them anymore. Spot lock works good enough, just be patient when the wind blows you will get back on the spot in a minute.

Spot lock is for pee breaks and reties. Works great!

Thanks for all the suggestions! I decided to buy the 55lb thrust. It is going to take some getting used to. I'm really struggling with the foot control. I think it will just take practice. Overall it's a great addition to the boat. Spot lock was about as good as I thought it would be.

I bought the Terrova especially because I thought I would want/need the foot pedal. I had always used a cable drive foot control motor. Well after hooking up the pedal to make sure it worked I put it in a storage bag, where it has been for the last 2 years. Once you get use to the hand held remote (I wear mine around my neck with the lanyard that came with it) you don't think about the foot pedal. One reason at least for me is the motor drive control on the I-Pilot is nowhere near as fast as the cable drive so the feel of the foot pedal was just off for me. I was use to hitting the foot pedal and mashing the on/off switch and the time lag on the new one threw me off so I got use to using the hand held and now am totally spoiled by it.
I was pulling some crappie cranks last week by myself and it was really hot so I had put up my Bimini top. It was really cool to stand back under the top in the shade and operate the motor from the remote, I think once you get it and use it you will feel the same way.
Just remember to keep a spare set of batteries for the remote with you. Mine lasted about a year and luckily I had a spare set, cause they won't have them at a marina or 7-11 store. I got mine at Walgreens.
Good luck.
SeaRay

I was totally sold on the Terrova but when I started doing some guiding it really came into play, clients sit side by side up front with me behind them to help with whatever they need, can do whatever and control the boat from where ever. Cant wait for the new ones to come out, the self deploy and stow will be an awesome tool when fishing alone, back the boat in the water and deploy and spotlock, when you come back down get it headed back to ya and stow. Hope I am brave enuff to try it, will make unloading when alone much easier!!!!

I like the terrova for the same reasons as Rees. When we had a smaller boat, I would put my wife up front and drive from the stern. She caught lots more fish than I did. It sure made things easier when I wanted to buy more fishing stuff:biggrin