Trolling Motors

[bluegill82]

Just looking for some opinions on trolling motors. I was looking at buying a minkota edge 70 for my boat (16ft Lund). Looks like a good trolling motor, but I have never used one before. I would just like to hear your opinions and ideas of what I should get or if this trolling motor is the best bang for my buck.

 

[Flyvet]

Re: Trolling Motors

I just replaced my Motorguide Great White hand controlled with a Minn-Kota with I-Pilot. I haven't had the new one in the water yet but my first subjective opinion is that the MG is heavier duty and sturdier but the MK is smoother to deploy and of course more advanced technologically. One thing I like about the MG is that when retracted there is nothing extending past the bow to interfere with the anchor line. The MK base extends past the bow but hopefully will be sturdy and not be a problem with the anchor line or the edge of the dock. I think the I-Pilot will be real handy when tracing a path back down a shore line within casting distance, etc. I wanted to change to a motor I could control from the poling platform or rear deck while my guest fished from the bow so decided to go all the way on the upgrade. Either one has remotes.

 

[keninaz]

Re: Trolling Motors

I just bought my first trolling motor and in doing so i did a lot of research on MG too. They seemed to have more trouble than the MK so that's what I went with.
I also had some questions for Minn Kota Tech and hey guess what, they answer the phone in pretty reasonable time frames too. Friendly and knowledgeable when I got them on the phone too.
They are a little show in handling email requests but if you call them as pointed out they answer up and that means a lot to me.
And, I see their extended warranty that you get information with when you buy a motor is pretty cheap too if you want one. Tells me that they trust their own products.
Couple all that with the fact they have been making them for 75 years now I went with Minn Kota.

 

[bluegill82]

Re: Trolling Motors

I think I decided to go with a Minn Kota. I was wondering if anyone has a Minn Kota that is equipped with their digital maximizer. Does it really allow you to stay on the water longer or is it a marketing ploy? I know the edge model doesn?t have the digital maximize, but that is a cheaper model. What I am wondering is it worth the money to upgrade to the Minn Kota V2/ Maxxium or should I just go with the cheaper Minn Kota edge.

 

[keninaz]

Re: Trolling Motors

I asked the same question before I bought in this post~ http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=456195

It should provide you with what you are looking for.
I went with the non maximizer Endura C2 for my needs as I did not think the additional costs and the gains would be beneficial to me anyway.

 

[Fed up]

Re: Trolling Motors

I have two MK, one 24/70 Edge on my bass boat and a 12/45 endura on my jon boat.

The bass boat had a MG on it when i bought it, one thing that i dont like about the MG is the stainless steel shaft. It seems to make for more vibration. My father-n-law has a MG 55lbs unit that we sometimes will use on the jon, man on full power you can feel the vibrations in the seat.

On the bass boat i went for the cheaper edge model, I wanted the 24v set up becuase the boat was already wired for it, and I was looking for the most thrust i could get for my money. I can troll for the better part of the day on that set up, in steady winds, and have yet to notice a power drop in the MK. Plus with 70lbs of thrust on my 15ft fiber glass bass boat that thing will pull in the river currents.