how much trolling motor thrust?

[Dan Beisel]

I have a 16' 1970 Jolly Roger (semi-V type) fiberglass w/ 1970 115hp Johnson. I want to get an electric trolling motor for it, not so much for trolling, more for emergencies and puttering around with to give the ol' Johnny some rest at slower speeds.<br /><br />I am trying to figure out if 36-40# thrust would be enough. The Johnson weighs a few hundred pounds, I got 2-5 gal. fuel tanks, the seats, etc. It isn't loaded down very much and I can't see more than 500 lbs. of passenger on it at any one time (more than one person) . I've read online that 36# would be good up to 2,500#. What do you guys think?<br /><br />I don't plan on setting speed records with this thing and I only go on the local lakes around here.<br /><br />Thanks,<br />Dan

 

[peterc38]

Re: how much trolling motor thrust?

Jolly,<br /><br />Not sure where you read that but I doubt 36 .lbs would be enough to push up to 2,500 .lbs under any circumstance. The basic general rule of thumb is 5 .lbs of thrust for every 200 .lbs of weight you are pushing. So for example lets say your boat, motor, gear and passengers weighs 2,000 pounds (it might weigh less, do the math). <br /><br />2,000 divided by 200 = 10 x 5 = 50 .lbs of thrust minimum <br /><br />In my opinion, this is what you would need for normal conditions for the 2,000 pounds given in the example. As with gas outboards, you rarely hear anyone say, "I wish I got the smaller motor".

 

[Dan Beisel]

Re: how much trolling motor thrust?

found it on this site, says 70 lbs per thrust instead of 40.... web page<br />I hear ya about the "bigger is better", but it's all about how much you spend and how much grief you take from the wife to get the right motor!

 

[Dan Beisel]

Re: how much trolling motor thrust?

Went with a 50lb. MinnKota, hoping to try it out this week along with my new Cuda168 fishfinder!

 

[Dan Beisel]

Re: how much trolling motor thrust?

Went to the lake today, the motor pushed the boat pretty well even in a decent afternoon wind! I tooled around for a couple hours, the battery didn't hardly wear down! The Cuda seemed to work pretty well, now I need to figure out how to spot the fish.

 

[Black69]

Re: how much trolling motor thrust?

Which mount did you get with your motor and what brand of motor did you get?

 

[TELMANMN]

Re: how much trolling motor thrust?

Always, more power if can afford.

 

[Dan Beisel]

Re: how much trolling motor thrust?

MinnKota 50 lb. transom mount from G.I. Joe's, $200.

 

[javsam]

Re: how much trolling motor thrust?

ajollyrogering, what is the wesite and what is the model trolling motor? I only find minnkota 55 for 239.00<br />javsam