Trolling motor plugs

[jeffabise]

I recently mounted a trolling motor on a new/used boat I just bought, it was already wired for a trolling motor and has a marinco 3 plug receptacle in the bow. I purchased a Minn Kota 3 prong plug to connect to the trolling motor and it seems to match the plug in, however i'm not getting any power when I connect it all together. checked the voltage to the receptacle and i'm getting a reading. any guesses? also what would be the best way to mount a minn kota trolling motor on a 2007 bayliner discovery 195, it came with a mount but it was mounted to far back for the trolling motor to be put into position so I screwed a piece of plywood to extend it over the side.

Also, I'm using the marinco receptacle because I'm unable to find out how to get it out to replace with the Minn Kota receptacle.

 

[selanative]

Re: Trolling motor plugs

only thing i could figure is maybe the prongs are wired differently. So maybe the positive prong on your plug is actually mating with say the negative in the receptacle? just a guess

and cant help with the mounting suggestions.

 

[jeffabise]

Re: Trolling motor plugs

i gave that a try as well, still no go, and i keep hitting the trolling motor breaker reset
after everything i try just in case something trips

 

[gm280]

Re: Trolling motor plugs

Is your trolling motor only 12 volts or 24 volts? Some time three prong plugs are wired for 24 volt systems. If you know how to actually read a volt/ohm meter then verify the two prongs that are reading 12 volts and wire the plug on the trolling motor to the same configuration, that being the positive to positive and negative to negative. Don't worry about the third prong or the colors of the wires. Just wire to the receptacle configuration being how that was previous setup and working... Also, you have used that trolling motor previously I hope. So it is a known good trolling motor...right? If all that is true, you should be trolling in no time...

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Trolling motor plugs

A three wire receptacle does not necessarily mean the boat is currently wired for 12/24 volt operation since who knows what the prior owner(s) have done to butcher the system. Three wire systems generally look like this:



You need to determine if the system still has three wires and if it does, with a 12 volt motor and one battery you only need two. So step 1 is to determine what you have in way of wiring from the battery(ies) to the receptacle. IF (note the IF) you intend to use only one battery and the troller is a 12 volt ONLY motor, then connect the RED and BLACK wires to the POS and NEG terminals respectively at the battery. The third wire (whatever color it is will not be used). At the bow, you simply look at the receptacle to determine which terminals the red and black wires are connected to and then match the black and red wires from the troller to the matching terminals on the plug. You mentioned using a meter and got a reading. Reading of what? Marinco plugs and receptacles are typically twist-lock types so the plug and receptacle must mate properly for the system to function.

 

[jeffabise]

Re: Trolling motor plugs

thanks for all the help so far, my system is 12 volts, my voltage meter reads good in my receptacle, i removed the wires from the plug and then plugged it in so I could check the voltage when it's plugged in. at that point i'm not getting any power. could it be that the minn kota plug just isn't compatible with the marineco receptacle?

 

[Todd4]

Re: Trolling motor plugs

Does it twist and lock? Also, there is a 12V/24V jumper wire (copper plate) in the MK plug that determines what voltage you are set up for - but that doesn't appear to be your problem. 12V and 24V are also molded into the MK plug. Sounds like you're right - incompatability problem, at this point.

Can you jumper wire directly from your Marinco outlet to your TM wires (no plug) to check your TM operation?

Todd

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Trolling motor plugs

You still have not answered the question about the reading you get. Do you read 12 volts on the meter? On which of the three terminals? and are the red and black wires from the trolling motor connected to the terminals in the plug that match the red and black in the receptacle?

To verify the motor, just connect it directly to the battery. If it runs, the motor is good and you have a simple wiring problem. If not, you are wasting your time with wiring. There are only two wires. Match them to the troller cable. Only you can tell if the plug is correctly matched to the receptacle. It either plugs in or it doesn't.

 

[jeffabise]

Re: Trolling motor plugs

i'm reading 24 volts, is that a problem if i only got 2 wires coming from my trolling motor