How to slow down trolling speed with large motor

[erikwells]

I purchased a 17 foot Starcraft Fish and ski in November. I have not put it out on the water yet. However it may suit my growing family well in terms of room; I have a trolling concern. My experience has been a 120 hp motor trolling for pike is still generally too fast. I have a bow mount trolling motor and will use that for walleye and sneaking around. I think for trolling pike it would wipe out my battery pretty quick. I love to troll pike and I am pretty certain the trolling speed will be too fast (using the 120 hp). I could drive in reverese but that would get old very quick. I would like a kicker however thats not in my near future. Any lower cost suggestions?

Thanks,

EW

[marine_man]

Sure.. by a drift sock and throw that over... or, even cheaper yet, a 5 gallong pail. One ought to be enough to slow you down...

marine_man

[shorefisher]

A 5 gallon pail now how come I never thought of that I'm rigging one up tonight

[work sucks]

I second that motion...I wish i'd thought of that. Thanks for the tip!

[beeonkey]

You could try to turn down the idle speed. Some motors will handle the lower and others don't it maybe worth a try. I have done it with 70's and 90's with good luck. I love to troll shadraps.

[PerchJerker]

There are several options.

1. Driftsock or bucket as already mentioned. Best way to use it is to tie it off the bow eye so it's directly under the boat and safely away from the motor, or use one on each side attached to the front cleats. It can be a pain to steer if you have one on one side of the boat and none on the other side.

2. Put your bowmount in the water, turn it so the wide part of the lower unit is pushing against the water as your boat moves forward. This will drop your speed a few tenths of a mph.

3. Use your bowmount to push against your big motor. This will let you use your bowmount at a lower setting than using it for all your power, so your battery will last much longer.

4. Try trimming your big motor all the way down, or up, to see if that affects your speed. But if you trim it up, make sure you're still getting enough water in the intake to keep it cool.

5. Re-prop your big motor to a lower pitch prop, this will slow trolling speed. Just watch that when you're running WOT you're not over-revving your motor.

6. You can slip your motor in and out of gear as needed.

Good luck, hope something in there helps.

[matthothand]

Everything perchjerker said I agree with. I think the easiest would be to play with the trim and have the bowmount in the water for (some) resistance. A buddy of mine just brings his mother in law with and the boat seems to go slower...and sit lower...sorry.

[Orlip]

I use the drift sock method, 1 out each side tied to the front cleat and then tie the back to the rear cleat. This way when you turn it stays right along side the boat. Dropped my speed down to 1 1/2 mph

[BoxMN]

FWIW, for pike, our 150 going about 2.6-2.8MPH is abotu perfect for pike, and we often even give it some throttle going above 3mph for them. Just make sure the drag is set right Get plenty of walleye at those speeds too, and even bass.

We also have drift sock, but don't use it often, at least not after June is over.

[Liar]

if you are using a 5 gal bucket, attach a rope with an eye nut and washers to the bottom, so you can pull it backwards to the boat. If it's windy or in current a full 5gal bucket gets heavy. Also remove the metal handle and secure the rope to the sides of the bucket. We don't need 5gal pails on the bottom of our lakes. you can also cut the bottom out and make several removable slats to allow more water through. That way you can adjust your speed by the amount of water the bucket catches.

Dan

[waskawood]

I think for forward trolling it is hard to beat using two small bags. One on each side of center about 1/3 of the way back from the front of your boat. If you use 30 inch bags tie them about 18 inches brom the centerline of your boat. Wave Tamer shows this and not only does it slow you down but it greatly improves boat control. Tie them to one length of rope and secure to the cleats on each side of the boat. They will be under your boat and out of the way. Helps keep the front from weather vaining in the wind and you can pivot around on a dime. Enjoy your new boat.

[Schwanny]

I have a troll-a-matic on my 115 and this plate will get my trolling speed under 1 mph. Perfect for slow trolling spinner rigs. I think they sell these at Cabelas for around $60. They are spring loaded and you never have to worry about lifting them. The only thing you loose is a little on the top end and a little bit on how the boat steers in reverse. I think they are great, but that's my opinion.

[gspman]

What waskawood describes is exactly what I've done and it works very nicely. I've got a 1750 Crestliner Fishhawk with a 115 Yamaha and this'll get me down to 1-1.5 mph. Then I do some of the things mentioned above by PerchJerker

to tweak my speed even more. It's a bit of a pain but it works.

[lazermule]

I bought my boat used and it is moderately under-propped. I tracked down the original owner and he said that he did that so it trolls down better. He did say to back off it a bit on the top end so it doesn't over rev. I really like it this way, so I don't think I'll change anything as it gets up and out real quick even loaded with guys, gear and the livewell full. It does 39 mph, which IMHO is plenty fast for a 60 hp tiller.

Prop it down, you'll like it...

LM