Trolling Motor

[HZickefoose]

Hi all! I have a 1997 19' VIP Valiant open bow and I want to add an electric trolling motor on the bow. I have looked and it seems like a 75 lbs. thrust will work great. I figured it would be great for fishing and as an emergency back up just in case my I/O would fail. The lake I will have it on isn't really that big. It's about 4 miles long. My friend said that an electric trolling motor would never limp me in if needed. Any advice?

 

[Bondo]

Re: Trolling Motor

Hi all! I have a 1997 19' VIP Valiant open bow and I want to add an electric trolling motor on the bow. I have looked and it seems like a 75 lbs. thrust will work great. I figured it would be great for fishing and as an emergency back up just in case my I/O would fail. The lake I will have it on isn't really that big. It's about 4 miles long. My friend said that an electric trolling motor would never limp me in if needed. Any advice?

Ayuh,.... Welcome Aboard,.... Of course it'll bring ya home, til the batteries die,...

 

[Fleetwin]

Re: Trolling Motor

I have an 18' Larson I/O. HEAVY boat.

I use a Minn Kota (24 Volt) V-2 (70# thrust). It moves the boat very well. At least as fast as a 3 HP outboard would.

I have cruised along well over two miles with no issues. I ran out of lake long before I ran out or battery power.

I do suggest that you get good batteries and a good charger. I have a 3 bank (5 amps each) Minn Kota on board battery charger. Two legs are hooked to the Deep Cycle trolling batteries, the other leg is on my starting battery. I just plug it in the night before to make sure all are in tip top shape.

I am very pleased with the set up. I also have a wireless remote for the troller. What a Godsend!

 

[MAC ATTACK]

Re: Trolling Motor

If your boat does not currently have a trolling motor you should think of battery placement/wiring etc. I have a 17' CC that is not as heavy as yours and my 55 lb. thrust 12 volt does great. I never troll above 1/2 power unless the current is bad. With the right deep cycle battery and proper charging a 12 volt will run all day. Most folks I know would not own a 12 volt, but I had to consider how much room I had for the battery and weight distribution. Deep cycle batteries can be heavy. I trust mine to be able to limp back to the dock if needed from a good ways out.

The trolling motor design today uses a lot less battery than the older models. My old one was only a 36 lb. 12 volt and it would eat the battery in 4 hours.

The key is to get a smart onboard charger (Guest/Minn Kota etc.) and charge the battery within 24 hours of using it.

 

[sweet addiction]

Re: Trolling Motor

First off, how do you plan to mount that trolling motor? It can be done(I have pics). Second, You will want to add a second battery if you don't already have one. Third, You will want to also install some sort of charging system. - I have a 24 volt 45 lb thrust on my 18 ft I/O and it moves my boat along just fine, so a 75 lb thrust will be awesome, if you set it up right.

 

[HZickefoose]

Re: Trolling Motor

I plan on bow mounting it. I'm going to use 2 interstate or exide 160 minute batteries. For charging I'm thinking about going with a solar charger. I won't have any power available at my dock. I haven't had a boat for twenty years, just getting back into it, and I guess I'm just not 100% sure about the motor yet. I really don't want to get stuck on the lake. Plus I want to be able to troll around the lake while fishing. had a small issue with fouled plugs on my third time out in the boat last year. Probably because I towed a jet ski the trip before and it loaded up. Put new plugs in and It ran great. Just a little nervous!

 

[sweet addiction]

Re: Trolling Motor

I plan on bow mounting it. I'm going to use 2 interstate or exide 160 minute batteries. For charging I'm thinking about going with a solar charger. I won't have any power available at my dock. I haven't had a boat for twenty years, just getting back into it, and I guess I'm just not 100% sure about the motor yet. I really don't want to get stuck on the lake. Plus I want to be able to troll around the lake while fishing. had a small issue with fouled plugs on my third time out in the boat last year. Probably because I towed a jet ski the trip before and it loaded up. Put new plugs in and It ran great. Just a little nervous!

With the type of batteries you will want, I'm not sure if solar is gonna be the way to go. It will take far too long to charge even just one battery.