XI5 or Terrova w/t I pilot

I am about to pull the trigger on a gps trolling motor for My BT pt175, I've been doing some comparing of features and prices and cant find very much besides the Moto Guide may be quieter, has 5 ft adjustments on spot lock and saves 8 routes vs. 6 with the Minn Kota. I would like to hear from current owners of both units and what they like and dislike about there Minn Kota or Motor Guide? I am looking at the 24v 80# models of each brand, also I do not have a depth finder that will work with either but I prefer Lowrance to Hummingbird and I will have to add a battery and wiring for a 24 v system. So I will have some $ invested and want to make the best choice. I am sure this topic has been brought up before, but I found very little doing a search.

first ,what type of fishing do u mostly do

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Originally Posted by genec

first ,what type of fishing do u mostly do

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Crappie mostly and venture into Bass in the Summer months, the anchor features seem like a great tool for fishing deep brush! I'd like to get into Walleye/Saugeye also

I have a XI5 AND IT IS GREAT FOR SITTING OVER BP,BUT TERROVA MANY SAY IS BETTER FOR TROLLING,I RARELY TROLL SO OTHERS WILL HAVE TO CHINE IN,DON G HAS HAD BOTH AND HE LIKES XI5 FOR HIS STYLE OF FISHING.IF U ARE YOUNG AND HEALTHY FOR MY STYLE OF FISHING CABLE IS THE BEST BUT TIME HAS CAUSE ME TO CHANGE

:hesaid

Never had the MG but for my style of fishing (pure trolling) I will have to say the MK is hard to beat. Add to that the link capability with the HB units and LM cards and the boat literally drives itself. Fishing solo is such a pleasure with these features.

Cant speak for the MG as I haven't used one, Don G is a pretty good source of info, he aint gonna say it without knowing what he speaks of. Spot lock on the Terrova leaves a lot to be desired but for me its not a big deal, if that is important to you then the MG may be a better option according to reviews. As far as trolling and linking to the Humminbird I find the ILink is hard to beat and intend to have the new one coming out that will be auto deploy and stow.
good luck.

I have owned both & both are excellent motors. We had a few growing pains when the Xi5 hit the market but I think all is well now. Like Gene, I either fish open water brush or docks. For this reason I changed over to MG because it does great on "anchor lock". Much, much better than MK. For a troller, I would recommend MK. MG will also be linking with Lowrance soon.

For overall quality of build I would lean a little toward MK.

When I got my xi5, it was because of the price. Shopped both MK and MG hard and ended up ordering xi5 from shut-up-and-fish.com from this site. He beat everybody on the xi5 price and was way less $$ than the MK. I have been very satisfied with the xi5, (80# on 22' Center Console Fiberglass bay boat) but never owned the MK, so I can't give a fair comparison. Anchor lock holds in wind, and I have not had problems with battery consumption. To each his own!!

Last night the money I had in my pocket was burning a hole, so I went out and purchased the Xi5, 24v 80# gps model, mainly because it will remember 8 anchor spots and 8 four mile routes plus works of of 2 satalites, has a 4 direction 5ft toggle function when in anchor mode (the fish may move a bit) and the foot control is wireless, where as the MK only stores 6 anchor and 6 two mile routes and works off of 1 satalite. So it seems I got a little more for My money with the MG, now if the weather would get above 20 degrees Id install it!

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Originally Posted by Tom 513

Last night the money I had in my pocket was burning a hole, so I went out and purchased the Xi5, 24v 80# gps model, mainly because it will remember 8 anchor spots and 8 four mile routes plus works of of 2 satalites, has a 4 direction 5ft toggle function when in anchor mode (the fish may move a bit) and the foot control is wireless, where as the MK only stores 6 anchor and 6 two mile routes and works off of 1 satalite. So it seems I got a little more for My money with the MG, now if the weather would get above 20 degrees Id install it!

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You will like it
I had MK on 175 it worked good
I have the MG on a z20 ranger and I like it better
I have not seen any problems spider rigging with it I would like to get the
It does HO
D the spot better
link for the Lowerance units

Cajun, I think it will work well for spider rigging, as I do more of that then any thing, also thinking about long lineing off the back deck. I am sure it will change the way I fish for the better, where as 75% of the time I fish (work) solo, this will make it much easier. Now I have to work on changing the boat from 12v to 24v, I see u had a pt 175 did u run 3 batteries or 2? I have room for a third battery in back, but am kinda wondering if installing the trolling motor batteries under the front deck to balance the weight in the boat better.

JUST REMEMBER TO UNPLUG TM BEFORE U CHARGE BATTERIES

I moved them around bought a double tray out Cabelas and put the third battery in the back with the other 2
I also put in a 3 bank charger to charge all three
I never unplugged the TM to charge but probably not a bad idea if you have a plug
If you do use a plug make sure it's a good one a loose plug can cause low voltage issues and burn up the TM

Let us know if it lives up to the claims

Love my xi5. I fish standing and submerged structure.

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Originally Posted by cajun fryer

I moved them around bought a double tray out Cabelas and put the third battery in the back with the other 2
I also put in a 3 bank charger to charge all three
I never unplugged the TM to charge but probably not a bad idea if you have a plug
If you do use a plug make sure it's a good one a loose plug can cause low voltage issues and burn up the TM

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Well I found a used Dual Pro 15 amp 3 bank charger with extended leads for cheap and still has most of the 3 year warrenty left so I may end up installing both trolling batteries in the front hatch, I know Ive read when You use 2 batteries for a trolling motor to make sure they are the same type and age, well the battery I currently have is now a year old, so I am up in there air on weather I should just buy another or buy 2? so they are the same age, this project is getting over budget quick, lol! I have always unplugged My trolling motor, hopefully it has a quality plug as I didnt notice. When I get all My parts together I will try to take pix and document the installation, I kinda feel like a Kid before X mas, anxiety is killin Me!

if your budget is tight and you already have a 1 year old battery then go ahead and get 1 more then when one of them goes bad replace both of them.

Don,
I just ordered Xi5, any tips on the installation?

thanks,
brett

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Originally Posted by brettw

Don,
I just ordered Xi5, any tips on the installation?

thanks,
brett

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Brett, I mounted mine on the MK bracket that I had my Terrova attached to. Works great

now i got to buy a busted Terrova !

Will the cable that attaches my Terrova to my Lowrance also work to attach my Xi5 to my Lowrance?