I'm looking to replace my trolling motor. Which one would you recommend and why?
I'm looking to replace my trolling motor. Which one would you recommend and why?
Motor Guide Xi5
Xi5!!! It interfaces via NMEA 2000 network cable with my HDS 9s using PinPoint GPS to allow me to tell it to g to a waypoint and Anchor when it gets there! It is handier than a pocket on a shirt. You can tell it to Anchor at any time so you can eat lunch or re tie a jig. It replaced a MinnKota Fortex. I have so much more room on the bow of my Z9. no cable to trip over. Mine has the 60" shaft to allow for easier lifting when it is time to move some where else with the Merc. It is 105 lb 36 volt. I love the wireless handheld remote with lanyard that comes with it. It also came with a wireless foot control. Which I never will use though.
I appreciate the comments. Please keep them coming. This isn't an easy decision. Anyone out there love their Minn Kota with Spot Lock? According to MK they have recently made huge improvements to their anchoring (Spot Lock). The US2 feature also seems very nice, as I can connect it to my Elite sonar on the front, and I can keep using my HDS 7 SS Gen 2 on the back of the boat. Looks like with the Xi5 I would need to upgrade my front locator to an HDS for it to work properly. Is that true?
No sir that is not true. The Xi5 via Pinpoint GPS interfaces with Lowrance unit only. If you have a HDS 9 in the console you are good to go as long as you have the PinPoint GPS installed. The PinPoint GPS was sold separately when I got my Xi5. My two HDS 9s are also Networked so when I set a waypoint on one it sets it automatically on the other. The accuracy of the Anchor mode is +/- 1 ft per Motorguide. I also run a Lowrance Point 1 antenna on the stern to insure I get all 15 GPS satellites to get the best waypoint data possible. The HDS Gen 3 has the best GPS software standard and locks onto all 15 GPS satellites. The Gen 2 locks on to all but 5 at best.Quote:
Originally Posted by KCMasterpiece
If you are a Lowrance man go with the Motorguide, Humminbird man go with the Terrova. In my opinion the Terrova matches the way I fish better, troll 99% of the time.
The boat I just bought had a 2014 model Terrova Riptide on it with I pilot and I have used it several times. As far as the trolling motor goes it works great. The remote is handy when you have to go to the back of the boat for something and need to hold in a general area. I dropped a marker buoy on a brush pile and turned the boat into the wind to give the spot lock a fair chance. If you think they will hold you in a small area, you are going to be highly disappointed. I had full signal strength and the boat would drift 20 to 25 ft off of the buoy marker before the trolling motor would re-engage. When it finally did it would go at times 10 to 15 ft left or right of the marker and sometimes 15 ft past it. That was in a 5 to 10 mph wind. It was designed to hold the boat within a circle so big and that's a pretty big circle. They say the XI-5 is more accurate with spot lock. The Terrova is quiet on lower speeds and that's the most important thing for me spider rigging and fishing shallow water. At .01 to .03 mph I can't hear it running but I'm half deaf. Remote is simple to read and easy to use. Battery draw is also very low. The new ones with blue tooth are supposed to be more accurate but I am going to wait and see reviews on them before I spend 350.00 on a new remote and blue tooth pod. Last thing a lot of interference if you try to mount a transducer on the motor especially with structure scan. I had to buy a separate transducer pole and mount it on the opposite side of the boat. Overall the Terrova will do anything I need it to and the speed control is really accurate because I checked it with GPS. When spider rigging, that's more important to me than spot lock.
This is something I've been wanting to purchase also but have been holding off because that's a big investment to be disappointed. I'm all Lowrance so maybe the Xi5 is the way to go.
I have a Xi5 and have been in a boat with a Minn kota spot lock. Prefer my Xi5 over the Minn Kota. The Minn Kota took forever and would move all over the place to get it's bearings and lock where the Xi5 doesn't. Also like the Xi5 jog feature of double tapping the remote forward, backward or left or right to move 5' in whatever direction you pressed.
Better consider the Minn Kota Ultrex I saw one in action last week and was very impressed.
From everything I have read and seen so far, the new Minkota is every bit as good as the motor guide at holding you on spots. I have a terrova and it has been good for me but I'm not a spot fisherman. Like EB said that new Ultrex looks to be a crappie fishermans dream motor if you single pole spot fish plus troll.
Tim, if your thinking of upgrading with the new remote for your existing motor to be more accurate, not going to happen. The older terrova is not going to be able to upgrade to the new technology. Sad to Say.Quote:
Originally Posted by TimY
Thanks for the information. I wondered about that when a salesman tried to tell me different. Mine does what I need it to do. Spot lock is not that big of a deal to me. I like the new XI5 and minn Kota so not going to say anything about either one.
If the newer line of Minn Kota are better, and you like/have Humminbird on board, then the Minn Kota would work. If you have Lowrance and prefer Lowrance, the XI5 is a no brainer. All I know is previous models of the Minn Kota Spot Lock were a joke and would not start adjusting until you were over 25' from your bouy and then might start at a high speed enough to cause you to fall out of the boat. I have a 45" shaft XI5 with pinpoint GPS and don't have to make hardly any adjustments unless I want to fish a different area of a brushpile.
You might want to hitch a ride with a couple of people who have these units on board so you can see for yourself. I sold a buddy of mine on the XI5 the first brushpile we hit. He was frothing at the mouth at the end of the day and wanting to know where to order it from.
I would suggest regardless of which TM you choose, be very aware of how you want to mount it before just laying it up there and drilling holes. Consider exactly how you want it to lie while stowed, you might find setting it back a bit more than usual will allow more room to get in off a bank, while keeping the TM inside the boat avoiding bumping docks and such.
The Ultrex is an incredible trolling motor but you better have a big bank account. Not many fishermen can spend 2,500.00 for a trolling motor.Quote:
Originally Posted by Eufaula boy
Got new ulktrax for christmas love it does everything they say if your down around wister come and get in boat try it out
I had exactly the same problems Tim mentioned with the interference with Downscan on front tm transducer ,and staying tight enough to a pile with the Minnkota, I was trying to two pole with it and a remote in one hand, Lets just say it was difficult!!!! I have bought the fortrex now since 95% two pole fishing, The only time I use V2 now is to troll for Hybrid's and spot lock on a school of sandies in the summer.Quote:
Originally Posted by TimY
So, as a somewhat frugal person, I decided to simply get the iPilot kit for my Power Drive. It was $500 and gives me spot lock (the new and improved), handheld remote, cruise control, etc. Looking forward to trying it out. Just couldn't get myself to spend that much to buy a new troller plus upgrade my front finder right now. The install was easy. Looking forward to trying it out one or two times this week.
I will guarantee you an upgraded locator will put more fish in the boat than a trolling motor. Hope it works well for you.
good discussion and love the detail. have better understanding of what I will need when I buy my new boat.
Masterpiece, give us a review after you get to play for a couple weeks, please.
Looked at putting an Xi5 on my base boat last fall. The Cabela's shop told me that I should see one attached first. They told me this trolling motor is very different in how it mounts. They even install some quick release on them so it can be removed and laid in the boat so you can put the cover back on. Apparently this mounting kit makes most boat covers no longer fit.
They had none on site for me to really get a visual of what he is talking about but it scared me enough to not buy until I can see this. Is it really like I'm describing for those who have one? Never seen it. Don't know if the guy was just trying to steer me away from motor guide or if this is really a valid concern.
Both by design have to hang over the front of the boat. So if you use a boat cover in most cases it won't fit over motor. If you have to park outside then quick release bracket is good investment.Quote:
Originally Posted by brosborough
Look at the New Minn Kota Ultrex. What impresses me is the same foot pedal as the Fortex, still able to use it as any other cable drive when it's required like fishing in a stump field, still runs a route or trail from your electronics as long as it's a bird or garmin. Same size as the fortex, has lift assist, and stores the same which doesn't require having the cover rebuilt. Yes I run Lowrance Electronics and I still will have one as soon as it's delivered to my dealer. It has a gps unit in the head of the unit which allows it to spot lock with either a button on the foot pedal or laynard controller. It will also follow depth contours without talking to the locator. I'm a minn Kota man like Lowrance from all the early and past experiences from the other manufacturers. Just something to think about. After talking with the minn kota customer service dept on numberous occasions the last month and my dealer as well they claim a +-1' on spot lock. That's very impressive. Stay tuned cause I will definitely have a review on the Ultrex very soon........Ranger
Great Mark... can't wait to hear your review!
Is the Ultrex Spot Lock upgraded from the current ipilot kit? I fished last week with a new ipilot with Spot Lock and it wandered consistently from side to side about 25' from the buoy. The wireless remote was great and the anchor mode would work really well for cast n drag but for vertical jigging a brush pile you better have a loooong rod! So- anybody know if the Ultrex is the same gps electronics? I've been waiting a long time for one that loads like the Ultrex but that's quite an expense if the anchor mode turns into a sight seeing adventure each time. Thanks.
I talked to Minn Kota several times. They said the Ultrex has a spot lock capability of plus or minus 1 ft. If that is true it will be worth the money. The foot control is like the fortrex but it's electric not cable driven. It has the spot lock on the foot control also. If it does what they claim it will be great. I will be interested to see how Mark's works out.
C2 let me get mine installed, and you can come try it out!!
Unless your powerdrive has bluetooth capabilities, you don't have the new ipilot.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KCMasterpiece
Spot lock On the Minn Kota is not much use will keep you in the area when tying a jig or taking off a fish that is about the best it will do. Mine is one of the first ones out so maybe newer ones are better. It does a great job trolling and speed is spot on but to stay over a brush pile need to use the pedal or remote.
I have watched a few videos on the new 2017 spotlock, including a few that used standing timber or markers as reference points in breezy conforms and the boat didn't wander more than a foot or so.
I have an older Terrova 80lb powerdrive I bought the Ipilot upgrade for a couple years ago. My boat is a 20' cc that catches wind pretty good. On a windy day 35' radius is probably normal. Calm days 15'-20' is probably pretty close to how it performs. If reviews come back great on the new units it will be hard not to upgrade; be like having deep water power poles!
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Had the pleasure to try out the Minn Kota Ultrex today. I will say I'm very very impressed. I will also say using Lowrance Electronics there are certain things this motor will not do, but would if connected to a bird. It will not follow a trail or route using Lowrance. That's not exactly what I was interested in. The Anchor mode worked flawlessly holding within what I would say 1' either way from where I anchored it several different times. We were fishing piles and placed a marker on the pile and when I hit anchor I placed another marker 1' in front of the motor. It was flawless even in the current on upper Ft Gibson. I will say the electric pedal was more responsive than my cable drive and took a few minutes to get use to. The lift assist on the storing bracket was great and was what I expected as I have a Fortex. Guys if I was wanting a tm for no other reason as spot lock this is the motor for you. Hands down I love this motor.......Ranger
About time Minn Kota fixed the spot lock. The Xi5 raised the bar on that feature and they needed to be competitive.
Doesn't the XI-5 hold in a plus or minus 1 ft. also. Never tried one so don't know how accurate they are.
I doubt any of them will consistently hold in one or two feet. They are governed by GPS and it's not that accurate. My Xi5 holds me consistently on a brushpile until I want to jog to one direction or another, or move on.
The new spotlock includes a second sensor, which I think is what helps with holding more accurately.Quote:
Originally Posted by IkenI
The Ultrex does indeed have its own gps in the head of the motor. From what all the reps said I talked to they state it's the best advanced gps ever used in the boating industry. All I know is what I experienced yesterday on Gibson with current on the river. It held us tight all afternoon. It's quite and I see less battery use as a conventional tm. As of right now from all the others I have used or been around it's hands down the best I have been around. Love the anchor button on the foot pad and also the convenience of the neck lanyard controller......Ranger
The Xi5 also had additional sensors. This is one thing that Minn Kota did to improve their accuracy. Both brands are good - just gotta decide which is for you. However, as I stated above no gps can consistently keep one foot accuracy. If all things are perfect they can come close. You need to understand the limitations of GPS. I've began using GPS 55 years ago in it's earliest stages in the military. To understand it's limitations (which are not much) go to:
GPS.gov: GPS Accuracy
from which I quote "Real-world data from the FAA show their high-quality GPS SPS receivers attaining better than 2.168 meter horizontal accuracy, 95% of the time."
Off to Grizzly Jig in the morn.
Floyd
The current of the river will help the Ultrex or the XI5 hold good and keep the boat in the right direction consistently. That is true for a constant wind as well. A whipping wind will sway the back of the boat around and might cause for adjustments to try and keep anyone in the back of the boat on the sweet spot. I normally use the remote off the lanyard on my XI5 and will use both when slow trolling. The XI5 has an anchor button on the foot control as well. I have the 24v setup and fished last week on a windy day there were gusts up to 45mph. The XI5 did its job very well. After about 4 hours of constant use, the charge started going down and we decided if we were going to fish the rest of the day, we needed to find a spot less windy. The LED battery indicator on the XI5 had gone into the red meaning the Batteries were getting down fairly low. A gust of wind was even able to blow us away from the spot, but the XI5 came through like a champ and put us back into position. We fished until 5 with the LED staying in the red for over 3 hours. It was impressive. Amazing is the technology of today. Now that Minn Kota has caught up and even fixed their "donut Issue", I think the difference depends on what electronics you like so you can connect them to your Trolling Motor. The Ultrex will connect to Humminbird and Garmin. The XI5 connects to Lowrance. Good fishing to all! ReaperQuote:
Originally Posted by Ranger09