updating bow mount trolling motor

[Supersportster]

Hey.

I have a 18ft aluminum sylvan supersportser from 1989, it has a 1998 johnson 115. It came with an older johnson bow mount electric trolling motor. It works fine, but the cord and foot pedal cluters alot of the bow of the boat.

I have no idea how much trust it has, and the shaft is a little to short so it comes out of the water sometimes when I am using it.

My question is, will the Minn Kota Power Drive V2 with 55lbs of thrust 12volt be enough for my boat?

Is there a different Minn kota i should be looking at? I like the idea of having the foot pedeals on the floor of the drivers area, and then have the copilot to be able to control the motor from anywhere else in the boat.

I no nothing aobut the different motor trolling motors so I am looking fofr advice before I buy one.

Thanks!

 

[Rick.]

Re: updating bow mount trolling motor

I think you will find with the copilot you won't even set up the foot pedal anymore. If your looking for new you should seriously look at an Ipilot. It has some pretty hard to beat features but...more money for sure. Best of luck. Rick.

 

[Supersportster]

Re: updating bow mount trolling motor

I was looking at that. Does it have to hook up to a gps on the boat, or does it have its own built in ?

Also will 55lb thrust be enough for my aluminum fishing boat??

 

[Silvertip]

Re: updating bow mount trolling motor

55# thrust on an 18 footer is getting a little "ify". I have one on an 18 foot pontoon and it does fine. However, if you try to position fish in very windy conditions you may not be able to hold position with anything less than nearly full speed setting. If you typically fish calm water and even rivers with 3 MPH currents you will be fine with a 55. The fob style remote is convenient but for serious fishing in obstacle filled waters, the foot pedal has an advantage since you sometimes need both hands free for fishing.

 

[bassman284]

Re: updating bow mount trolling motor

I have a 55# V2 on my 1650 Lund (16'10", 850 lb dry) and it does OK. I also got the copilot which, it turns out, I rarely use for the reason Silvertip gave. If I had a third hand I might use it more. 20-25 mph winds will definitely challenge it.

I originally had a 47# Maxxum that I really liked except for the crowding in the bow. I'm 6'5" (and old) and the pedal position was killing my back. The smaller, flatter V2 pedal solved most of that but at the expense of steering response. It just takes longer to change direction with the powerdrive than with cable. Also with the cable steer, I knew which direction my motor was pointing by my foot position. I'm a little deaf and if it's a little windy I often can't hear the steering motor so I make unexpected direction changes. Not a real big deal, but a little annoying sometimes.