Electric trolling motors

[Bob W]

I just bought myself a two man pontoon boat for fishing in the small lakes where it is not practical to trailer. The boat is 10' long and weighs about 90 pounds fully rigged.

I'm planning to add an electric trolling motor but have no experiece with electrics. Any advice is appreciated.

They come in ratings from 30 lb to 110 lb thrust. Since the boat is very small and light I'm guessing that 30 lb be enough . Is 30 lb enough to handle a light headwind? Which is better - bow mount or transom mount ? (I can set it up either way). Are the foot pedal controls worth getting and do they work trouble free?

Nothing beats experiece, so I appreciate any thoughts and comments.

Thanks,

Bob

 

[Yote]

With an inflatable I would go 38 pounds thrust and transem mount. Too big a motor and you will drain the batteries too fast, too small and it will take you forever to get where you want. You will love the electric, I use it to get from a to b and then row most of the time. It's nice to have when the wind comes up or if you just want to take it easy and not row. I have owned both Minn Kotas and Motorguides and find both about the same performance. Good luck.

 

[Oglthorpe]

I use an older 24 lb minn kota on a 12 ft fiberglass. It is a pretty light boat, but I would think that the 30 lb would be enough. I would suggest buying the minn kota with the battery maximizer. They are more money, but your battery lasts a lot longer.

 

[nedarb2]

i have an ooolllllddd 17lb minn kota on my 14' alumiunum and it goes pretty good, not the fastes thing in the world but i dont need it much daster, with the moter just straight down and the power level on 1 its still just barely to fast for trout trolling

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