Minn kota 24v pd65 trolling motor

[mav6759]

I have an minn kota 65pt, on a 17.5 1987 ranger bass boat. This is the 3rd one that i have had. The problem that I am having is that it does not seem to be pulling the boat correctly or fast enough. (I am so tired of smaller trolling motors on BIGGER passing me when I'm on high). What i mean is a 12v 45pt on a 18ft bass should not beat me in a race. This is my 3rd trolling motor in 6 monhs. What am I doing wrong. I had each trolling motor checked and the trolling motor shop said they were find. Do I have a mounting issue. Or did I miss something. I know this Ranger is heavey, but I should be going a lot faster. (I think) Can anyone help.

MAv6759

 

[KDAVID1]

Re: Minn kota 24v pd65 trolling motor

I had a motorguide 55lb on a Ranger 354V that did ok but wasn't real fast--and just switched to a minn kota 70lb. The motorguide was 12/24v and the minn kota is straight 24v. One thing to do is a cap check on your batteries (there is a recent post on the site that gives alot of good info) Also you is yourwiring good--you could be leakage. have you checked your plug and receptacle to see if you are getting 24v-could be something there. Also--is your prop in good shape--if its worn down pretty good that will slow you down. I am for sure no expert--but these are some of hte things I have read on the site. If you do a search you should be able to find some very good info on troubleshooting. Good luck.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Minn kota 24v pd65 trolling motor

1) Battery condition (have them both load tested at any auto store)
2) What wiring configuration do you have? Two, three or four wires from batteries to the receptacle at the bow.
3) Have you measured voltage at the receptacle and the plug (should be 24 volts)
4) After running at high speed, feel the wiring at the battery. If it is warm to the touch fix the connections or check the wire size.
5) Are you trolling or racing? You cannot compare troller speeds unless boats and loads are identical.

 

[NYBo]

Re: Minn kota 24v pd65 trolling motor

This is my 3rd trolling motor in 6 monhs. What am I doing wrong. I had each trolling motor checked and the trolling motor shop said they were find.

Huh? If they are fine, why have you been replacing them?

 

[mav6759]

Re: Minn kota 24v pd65 trolling motor

I had the batteries checked, they checked out fine. The wiring does get warm, (don't know why) running 8ga wiring. But, I am running 18ft of 8ga wiring from the front to the rear. I knew thats a lot of wire, but the batteries are in the rear of the boat. I do remember that the wiring up to the trolling motor get very hot on Tuesday while crappie fishing. It got hot enough to burn my fingers. I never had that problem before. I don't know what going on, any ideas.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Minn kota 24v pd65 trolling motor

Wires hot enough to burn your fingers is a fire hazard and where is the breaker or fuse?? Disconnect, thoroughly clean (shiny bright) every connection. You have some connection issues. Looking at them is not a way to check electrical connections. Heat is created by resistance and is actually wasted energy. 18 feet is actually 36 feet since current must pass all the way around a circuit. If the wires get hot anywhere along along their length the wire is not heavy enough.

 

[mav6759]

Re: Minn kota 24v pd65 trolling motor

Thanks for the reply, I don't have a breaker. I have a direct connect between the batteries and the trillong motor. I have 8g wire from the batteries to the trolling motr, which has 10g wire. I thought by going to a bigger wire then 10g that came with the trolling motor, it would be ok. As far as the wires, Yes thry got very hot to the touch. Come to think about it, the top the my trolling motor, was very hot as well. Any ideas.

 

[fucawi]

Re: Minn kota 24v pd65 trolling motor

sounds like your motor is drawing excess current due to a problem in the controller at the top of the unit ..I should take the shroud off and look for signs of burn/overheat.

 

[mav6759]

Re: Minn kota 24v pd65 trolling motor

Ok, I finally got to break this motor down. I took off the TOP cap and there were only Two wires, Red and Black. Both the Red and Black wires were burnt. Somehow, they lost some of the plastic coding and the wires were touching and Smoking. So I fix that, Took the motor out, it ran fine until 3 hours into fishing and it quit. All I can hear is a clicking from the relay on the main control board. I was told that the foot pedals go bad on the PD65 when the wind blows. My question is, is there some kind of test that I can do to determine if it is the main control board or the control board on the foot pedal. I forgot to mention, that there was some humming from the main control board before it went out. Also when I hook the motor direct to the batteries, it spins great, better then I every seen it.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Minn kota 24v pd65 trolling motor

Foot pedals go bad when the wind blows?????????????? I would take advice from someone else. The fact that you have gone througjh three motors says something is wrong with your setup. You apparently also run the motor at the fastest speeds for relatively long periods. Your motor draws 40 amps maximum and over 36 feet of wire, you are probably losing a fair amount of voltage. Electronics can be damaged by under voltage just as they can by over voltage. And to protect you, your passengers, your boat, and perhaps your house if the boat is stored there, install a circuit breaker at the battery.