Motorguide w/ a mind of its own by turning when it should be going straight!?!?!?!?!?

Crappie Cole

Recruit
Joined
Dec 30, 2011
Messages
2
Here goes, first time trying this, but I can't find anyone else who has this issue out on the net.


My uncle gave me his old Bayliner Bayou boat, as he did not like the set up and so he just got a new one.... must be nice. I had to do a little tlc to get her on the water, but got her done, and had a blast fishing all over in it. The only gripe that I have with it is the Motorguide trolling motor. When I get on a path that I like, and want to keep a certain direction of travel, I have to keep my foot on the peddle. If I let off of the peddle, it turns hard left, and spins the boat in circles. Great when I am on the fish, but sucks when I am trying to run shore lines for bucket mouths. I am not sure the exact model of the trolling motor, again this was given to me.

Let me describe the unit to you all. It is mounted to the front of my boat and has the pull string to raise and lower the motor in the water. It has a "cable" that runs from the head of the trolling motor to the control/steering peddle. I have it wired up for continuously on and on 12 volt system (only one battery hooked to it). I can't see that it is "wired" up wrong to the battery that would be causing this issue. The motor is mounted at an angle on the bow of the boat. I have moved the position that the shaft is locked into, but that seems futile at best in an attempt to fix the issue. Anyone have any suggestions to give me to make it so that my boat "drives" straight and not is circles. Kinda blows when you set the hook on the ol' bucket mouth and have to shut everything down so that you don't have to fight the boat and the fish swimming in circles.

Thanks Guys for any help to a novice boater looking to capitalize on the water better!

Crappie Cole
 

Silvertip

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Sep 22, 2003
Messages
28,758
Re: Motorguide w/ a mind of its own by turning when it should be going straight!?!?!?

When you mention there is a "cable" that runs from the foot pedal to the head do you mean an electrical cable or push-pull type of cable. Hence the difference between electric steer and cable steer. I will surmise that you have a cable steer. If so, there is a friction adjustment on the pedal that puts tension on the shaft so the motor doesn't turn so easy. Unfortuantely, it also means the pedal may work a little harder.
 

Crappie Cole

Recruit
Joined
Dec 30, 2011
Messages
2
Re: Motorguide w/ a mind of its own by turning when it should be going straight!?!?!?

Silvertip-

Thank you.... I have not seen this while attempting to look at the possible problems, but I am going to make double sure that this is not the problem. I will also attempt to get an actual model number of the trolling motor to help if anyone else has ideas!
 

Outsider

Lieutenant Junior Grade
Joined
Apr 24, 2007
Messages
1,022
Re: Motorguide w/ a mind of its own by turning when it should be going straight!?!?!?

Should be an adjustable clamp on the motor bracket ... ;)
 

turtle2180

Recruit
Joined
Oct 30, 2011
Messages
4
Re: Motorguide w/ a mind of its own by turning when it should be going straight!?!?!?

I have/had the exact same problem with my motorguide. I did adjust the tension at the pedal but this made the pedal so stiff it was hard to steer. I had read somewhere else to use a rubber pipe fitting to create friction and it works great.

On the shaft of the trolling motor about half way down you will notice the shaft has a knuckle in it.. The top half doesn't turn but the bottom half does. This is where you would want to place this fitting. You can by these at HD, Menards, Lowe's, or local plumbing supply store. A brand name for this fitting is Fernco. It is a rubber fitting with a pipe clamp on both ends. There are all kinds of sizes but you will want one that is about the diameter of the shaft. The diameter of the upper shaft is larger than the lower and you should be able to get one of these fittings that reduces in size. I am just taking a guess but I think the one I picked up was 1 1/2" to 1 1/4". You will need to measure your TM shaft to see what you need. You will probably not get one that is exact just get as close as possible.

When you get it home you will take both pipe clamps off. Take a sharp razor knife and split it length wise so you could open it up and wrap it around the shaft. You will need to position it so half of it is on the upper shaft and the other half is on the lower. If you didn't already you will need to unsrcew the clamps all the way so you can wrap the around the shaft. Put one around the top and one around the bottom. You may need to do some addition trimming so you don't have a bunch of excess rubber. The first time you take the boat back out be sure you have something you can tighten or losen the clamps. With the TM in the water you can adjust the tension as needed to keep it from turning on its own.
 

BigZ

Recruit
Joined
Aug 4, 2021
Messages
1
Re: Motorguide w/ a mind of its own by turning when it should be going straight!?!?!?

I have/had the exact same problem with my motorguide. I did adjust the tension at the pedal but this made the pedal so stiff it was hard to steer. I had read somewhere else to use a rubber pipe fitting to create friction and it works great.

On the shaft of the trolling motor about half way down you will notice the shaft has a knuckle in it.. The top half doesn't turn but the bottom half does. This is where you would want to place this fitting. You can by these at HD, Menards, Lowe's, or local plumbing supply store. A brand name for this fitting is Fernco. It is a rubber fitting with a pipe clamp on both ends. There are all kinds of sizes but you will want one that is about the diameter of the shaft. The diameter of the upper shaft is larger than the lower and you should be able to get one of these fittings that reduces in size. I am just taking a guess but I think the one I picked up was 1 1/2" to 1 1/4". You will need to measure your TM shaft to see what you need. You will probably not get one that is exact just get as close as possible.

When you get it home you will take both pipe clamps off. Take a sharp razor knife and split it length wise so you could open it up and wrap it around the shaft. You will need to position it so half of it is on the upper shaft and the other half is on the lower. If you didn't already you will need to unsrcew the clamps all the way so you can wrap the around the shaft. Put one around the top and one around the bottom. You may need to do some addition trimming so you don't have a bunch of excess rubber. The first time you take the boat back out be sure you have something you can tighten or losen the clamps. With the TM in the water you can adjust the tension as needed to keep it from turning on its own.
Pipe insulation works too. I used zip ties, but a hose clamp allows for more flexibility
 

Attachments

  • E54AFDA8-75C8-4BB3-A4B8-E3E714D1A288.jpeg
    E54AFDA8-75C8-4BB3-A4B8-E3E714D1A288.jpeg
    2.4 MB · Views: 13
  • B49961B9-C1DA-4EC3-9608-0628BEF9BBAA.jpeg
    B49961B9-C1DA-4EC3-9608-0628BEF9BBAA.jpeg
    2.1 MB · Views: 11
Top