Boat control Help

[wallter]

New 18' Alumacraft, 150 yami, drift sock owner & bow troll motor. No money for a kicker. I'm guessing the 150 is to much to troll mud edges. Ideas please...

[Thundercluck]

I've always used the bow mount troller (24V 70lb thrust) it works great. My old boat, 1750 tournament pro Aluma had a 55lb bow mount that worked well, but wasn't enough push with a good wind. Otherwise, there are some great transom mount trolling motors with a lot of power to push an 18 ft boat around ($300-400).

[jhals68]

I run with two drift socks. One on each side. It's easier to control the boat, and if you get the 60" socks you may have to use a little throttle to get desired speed. I run a 115 merc and sometimes I have to pull one sock if I'm trolling into a stiff breeze.

[warriorgus]

I have a 20 ft Yar Craft with a 150 Yamaha Tiller. I use a the big wavetamer sock and it trolls down very nicely. However, if the waves get smaller I use a 101 lb transom mount trolling motor. I also will note I like to use the sock with the troller in some wind to keep the bow from moving around. I know the 20 ft boat is bigger but if you get a big enough sock you should not have a problem when the wind picks up.

Gus

[wallter]

So are you guys saying that with 1 or maybe 2 drift socks that I will be able to troll forward with my 150 yami???

Also, is it easy to run a drift sock off the transom?? I've never tried that.. Thanks all...

[warriorgus]

Actually I would recommend that you back troll to get more of the boat profile to slow you down. This will give you more control of boat and speed. Of course us tiller guys live die for backtrolling. The only time I front troll is crankbait fishing.

[vikes40for60]

If your intent is to pull plugs and you truly cannot fund a kicker, go with the (2) drift socks.

I did that about 4 times, then ponied up for the kicker.....Yamaha T-8 - a dream come true.

[wallter]

I'm guessing I'll do the 1 or 2 drift socks. I'm guessing that with a console I'm not gaining anything by back trolling. True or not???

[warriorgus]

You actually do gain much speed control by backtrolling especially with live bait fishing (i.e. jigging or rigging).

[PerchJerker]

DO NOT RUN A DRIFT SOCK OFF YOUR TRANSOM IF YOU'RE RUNNING YOUR BIG MOTOR!!!!!! I hate to think what a tangled mess you'd be in for.

Run them off your bow cleats or bow eye. If you're backtrolling having a sock off the cleat on one side of the boat won't cause you any control problems. If you're forward trolling you'll want a sock on each side of the boat, or directly under the boat (off the bow eye).

If you're drifting or using your bowmount then you'd be fine running a sock off your transom.

[hitthebricks]

Warriorgus, I've been looking for a real big drift sock for my 2050 Crestliner because a 72" sock hardly slows it down in a stiff wind. How big of one do you use? HTB

[LundeyeTundra]

I have a dumb question... How is everyone able to monitor speed down in the <2mph range? I assume either speed transducer for graph or GPS, but neither of mine on the Lowrance work reliably at these slow speeds. They both seem very accurate at higher speeds (they match speeds).

I have played with the speed transducer (paddle impeller) location, without success. Is there a sweet spot on the transom I haven’t found yet?

Help would be greatly appreciated.

[Guest]

If you have a GPS it should go down to under 1MPH.

If it doesn't, go into your settings and turn off your pinning.

[warriorgus]

HTB,

I use the biggest Wavetamer sock. it is 60 inches in diameter but also is about 6 ft long and fills up with a tremendous amount of water. I first bought it for 18 ft Warrior with a 90 hp. Now I have a 20 ft Yar Craft with a 150 4stroke tiller and it is amazing how it still slows you down in a good chop. The note here is that with my heavy boat that also creates drag when drifting. Another way to remedy the fast drift is to point your motor up wind when drifing and kick the big motor in gear every once in a while which will help you slow down. Odds are that wind will seldom be perfect that it keeps you at a constant depth on a break line and you will need to work your way in or out on the drift anyway to stay in a depth. The biggest point here is to stay on the depth you are catching fish and turning the motor towards the wind and popping it in gear will keep you on the fish. Just the way I do it and I have had tremendous success. By doing this and slipping a breakline most of the time other boats will drift right past me due to how slow it keeps you going and keeps you the spot better.

Gus

P.S. Tillers are God's gift to the walleye fisherman.

[hitthebricks]

I was wondering more if you have tried the 9', 11', or the 14' dia. socks. With the higher profile and windshield its bad and if I put the top up in the rain, Its like flying a kite. With the 72" sock out I pass boats that are just drifting, I've seen a few of the huge ones used but I'm not sure if its the 14' size or not. I also use my kicker a lot for back trolling but it would be nice to just drift sometimes. thanks HTB

[PieEyed]

Great post "warriorgus" I don't think he got what you were trying to say though, but at least you tried. I fish the same way you do and you're right it works better than anything I've tried. If you want to slow troll walleye you can't rely solely on a drift sock. If you do I can guarantee it will not be as effective as staying on the structure at a slow speed. I have an 18' Lund with a 90hp tiller and I haven't found a drift sock that can keep me slow enough in a stiff wind. You have to use a motor too. You can never go too slow when fishing live bait.

[hitthebricks]

PigEyed, I see you don't get it, I already have a bigger drift sock and use my kicker for control, and a boat that catches a lot more wind because it sits higger and has a windshield to catch the wind! Also the biggest sock is a full 9" in dia., witch I thought he may have had some experience with. HTB