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I'm in the market for a new trolling motor and was wondering if a 12 V Minn Kota with the digital maximizer technology would work for trolling or if a 24V model be better, I'm currently rigged for 12V. I've been using an outboard to troll and would like to switch over. Thanks.
12 volt will do you just fine. 24 will give you more run time but its not needed most of the time. plus ya gotta get 2 new batteries a new charger and the 24 volt system. That can be a hefty price tag when all said and done
Run 2 batteries in parallel on the 12v system, and you should last all day....
plus to plus and neg to neg? which one do you hook the motor to patrick? Do you charge 1 at a time or do you have to unhook them or can you leave them hooked and charge 1 at a time. Tell me more.
This link has some useful info.
http://www.crappie.com/gr8vb3/showthread.php?t=57043
How big is the boat?
Pos to Pos, Neg to Neg. the wires going to the battery are comming off of 1 battery, and the charger is hooked to one battery. It would be a quicker charge if you had 2 chargers, one for each battery, but it works just fine for me running one charger on both batteries...
Quote:
Originally Posted by sac-a-lait
Been out of town for a while. Thanks for the info. The boat is an 18 ft. semi V Tracker, not real heavy. Thinking of going with the 12 V 55lb. thrust.
I promise that if you go to a 24v system you won't ever wish you hadn't. It's like going from a 4 cylinder to a V8. If your boat is light, it may not be worth the money though.
I have a 17' Xpress, came with a 46lb 12V. I currently run two batteries in parallel and it will run a long time. But my next motor is a 24V MinKota Maxxum 70 pound. I think you ought to go with a bigger motor on your boat than a 50 pound. Running a 24V means you need an extra battery, but the price difference on the motors themselves, 12V 55lb to 24V 70 lb is only about $30. You can get by with smaller diameter wire with the 24V system too. I mean, if your 8 ga wire is enough for the 50 12V, it will surely be enough for the 70 24V. My boat is currently wired only with 10 ga wire...that is marginal to start with. I'm wiring a different boat with 6 ga.