How big of a trolling motor?

[BEMIDJIJOE]

I have a pro v 1660 when I bought it it had a 36 lbs bow mount. Ya, that is too small. What thrust would you guys recomend? Is 50 lbs enough? and how long of a shaft?

[Meat-Run]

BemidjiJoe,

It depends on what you fish for and how hard. If you do allot of musky, bass fishing and like the slop I would go as big as you can but my recommendation would be a 24volt 82lb, 56inch or longer with a built in charger to keep your batteries charged all the time. I have a ranger fisherman witht the 74lb motor when I need to fight the wind I have the extra power and to hold me in one spot for a long time if need to . Another thing to consider is make sure you get a long enough shaft to keep the motor in the water with a good walleye chop.

Good Luck and now is the time to purchase left over motors at retailers. Start with Reed's, GM, Cabelas and thorne.

MR

[sal]

I have a 1776 prov. My 74# does a great job. Get it with sonar and gps (or whatever the auto steering is called)..... you'll love it.

[marine_man]

As far as thrust goes 50 lbs would probably be sufficient... but too much thrust is never a bad thing either... it's kind of like having too much fun.

For shaft length I'd be inclined to go with a 54"... 48" will probably work, but when you're going up and down in the bigger waves (think good walleye chop) you won't be constantly pulling the powerhead out of the water and putting it back down again.

The autopilot is a nice feature too...

marine_man

[WaveWacker]

As much as you can afford (I would say 50 at a min) that way you know you won't be disappointed.

[big musk411]

You should be good to go with 50-60lbs. I have 16.5 ft alumacraft with 54lbs and it does fine. From my understanding the more power the longer it will last between charges because it isn't working as hard. The new Copilot is a great feture, much easier to controll than foot pedal.

[BobT]

Quote:

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From my understanding the more power the longer it will last between charges because it isn't working as hard.

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True to a small point. The amount of thrust required translates into watt power and a battery will deliver a set wattage over time. For example, a 30# motor delivering 30# of thrust will consume virtually the same power as a 50# motor delivering 30# of thrust. The difference is small.

Bob

[Mark Christianson]

I HAD a 12v 50 lb on my 17 ft Crestliner.

I upgraded to a 24v 65 lb a couple summers ago. NICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Duffman]

24v 70lb on a 16.5 ft boat here.

You hardly if ever see guys who wish they went with something smaller in a trolling motor on these forums. Most of the time they are wishing they went with something a tad bigger.

[BEMIDJIJOE]

I must thank you all for weighing in. I wish I could go all out and buy a big son of a gun but money is tight. I am thinking a 50lb with a 54inch shaft. They are on sale at reeds. I might splurge and get the ducer on the end. Thansk again fellas

[BobT]

I think you'll be just fine with your 50# choice.

Bob

[lancer]

Like most people said bigger is usually better. I run a 65LB 24volt autopilot on my 21' crestliner and have had real good luck with power and battery life. If the 36volt is out of your price range I would think the 50LB would do just fine.