Minn Kota or not to Minn Kota??

[The Quadfather]

This is my first post so forgive me if it's not in the right place, or just re-direct me.
I am going take the plunge on a Lund boat this weekend. It's a 14' basic aluminum. It comes with the Minn Kota (?) spelling.... electric motor. I believe it was the 55# Thrust version. I would like to know what some of you think of this brand of electric motor. I can only find negative reviews in regards to reliability, customer service etc.
Is there another brand of electric you all like?

I will use it for most all types of freshwater fishin'. Trout, bass, spiny rays, etc. My thinking on electric was that I don't wanted to be limited by lakes that don't allow gas. Do you think I will be happy enough with electric? I mean gas is one more thing to be tuned, oil change etc. Oh.. Oh.. can't get the gas motor to start out on the lake etc. I will purchase this all new for what it's worth, warranties and such.

Chris

[A9]

You've posted at the right spot.
My .02 cents: Minn Kota's are great. I got a 30lb thrust on my Lund. Actually, I'd downsize to like a Minn Kota around 40 lb thrust or something IF you plan on doing a lot of trolling for trout. I put on a 30 lb thrust and run it off the boat in the picture cause I do a lot of trolling, so speeds 1-3 are great trout speeds. Speeds 4 and 5 are my speeds for getting around in a hurry, and speed 5 with me, a buddy and all our gear including those heavy deep cycle batters, will still push the boat really nicely even against a very stiff wind. So I think a 30lb thrust is adequate. I'd like a few inches longer on the shaft length, but I can forget that, cause the Endura 30 is really a great price at like $110 for what I bought it at. Like I said, I think that a 55lb thrust would only give you one or two trolling speeds, it's nice to have 3 trolling speeds. So I think like a 36lb thrust Endura would be fine for you. And I love my Lund. It's a 12' WC 12. What model Lund are you getting it? And Im gonna make a guess that your getting it from Nick's in Greenlake?
Good luck with your adventures on it.




I got some cheap carpet and cut it up to fit the floor and made a nice little carpet for the boat. Helps keep it clean and what not.

[Eddie L]

On my boat besides my 40HP Mariner,I have a Minn Kota Bow and a transom mount trolling motor. Had a Motor Guide transom mount trolling motor before,didn't last long.

[A9]

Yea not to completely rag on Motor Guide, I've never had one so I can't really say I dislike them, but I think theres a reason why you always see Minn Kota's in stores and no Motor Guides. Minn Kota's seem to work really well....

[hewesfisher]

Guess I'm the odd man out, I have a wireless 55# thrust Motorguide on the bow of my Hewescraft and it works great. Here are a couple pics during installation:





I run it off a dedicated 12v deep cycle battery wired through a 50amp waterproof breaker. I do not have the battery wired into the boat's charging system.

I like the wireless option since I can put the foot pedal anywhere in the boat and get the job done. I'm not always on the bow when fishing, and the Hewes really isn't designed for that anyway, but the area is big enough for me to use it for a casting platform when I want to. Fishing from the bow is best when the canvas is off the boat in the summer.

IMO, since you're going with a 14' boat, then go for as big a motor as you're comfortable with. Just because you choose a high thrust motor doesn't mean you have to run it on the high settings, they do have low speeds too. I ran an older 3hp (yes, hp) Minn Kota electric on my old 14' Hewescraft open fisherman (which I suspect is similar to the 14' Lund you're considering) and never had a problem with it other than I felt is was underpowered on occasions and it wasn't as "amp friendly" as the newer motors with extended running technology.

If it were me, I'd outfit the boat with at least a 15hp gas outboard and an electric motor. You can always take the gas motor off if you want to fish someplace where internal combustion motors are prohibited. I did that several times with my old boat. Can't do that with the new one!

[Eddie L]

The newer Motor Guide maybe better made than before,but I think I'll stick to Minn Kota's.

[A9]

Yea hewesfisher I got a 15 Yamaha on that Lund to go with the Minn Kota...Weighs like 80 lbs so it's really easy to take off if need be...Nice to be able to push that boat around with the gas motor on bigger lakes and the saltwater...

[bigastrout]

Hey quadradomus I have had two Minn Kota's both Endura models the first was a 50# thrust 36" shaft. I loved 8 years untill someone stole it from me it ran the same for 8 years never got tired. I have replaced it with the Endura 55# thrust 42" shaft it has been an even better motor

1. extra thrust
2. the longer shaft allows me to raise the motor so when I stand in the boat I can steer with out having to lean over

You might still want to invest in a gas motor though for larger lakes.

[Easy Limits]

I use to have a 55# Motor Guide on my 12' fiberglass boat. I used it in the salt water and lakes for a couple of years. Never had any problems with it.

[cjanak]

You may be interested in the reader comments at www.epinions.com (if you haven't already viewed them of course). Here's a little summary of features to look for in a trolling motor. Here's another article about features to look for that also contains opinions on which brands are the best.

[tcb]

I have a 70# Minn Kota on my boat, Works like a champ (except when I forget the foot pedal). I have seen the wireless controls in action, but I'm just not coordinated enough to use them myself.

In general, new electric trolling motors are like new cars. It's 2007 and there are no 'Junk' new cars. The market is so tight that anyone who made 'junk' is out of the market at this point.

[Jay S]

quadradomus

I own a 12 ft flat bottom lund with a 30lb minnkota. The 55lb will work great for your boat but like other guys mentioned you will start to get iratated when you want to get some where quick. Or if you take it on a trip you will need many batteries look on craigslist or something for a little outboard I put a 10 hp on my boat and its alot more enjoyable I sometimes even use the gas motor to troll and it doesnt affect the catch rate. However I do wish I had more thrust with my minnkota. I also like to fish some lakes that gas motors arent allowed and just take of the 10 hp to do so then when I hit some of the bigger lakes I throw it back on. Previous to the 10 hp I had a 4 hp and was still anoyed with it. Its no fun when your on a big lake and its getting dark and the launch is on the other side of the lake so it takes 25-35 minutes to get back. Good luck with the new boat.

[wolverine]

I've had several electrics in the past on tin boats, toon, and even a kayak. All have worked well until they get around saltwater and then they quickly developed "issues". My bad for not getting the saltwater models. I just bought a new 10' toon and am looking for about a 40 lb for it. I'd prefer to get one of the digital variable throttle ones rather than the 5 fwd/2 rev models, but don't like the cost of the digitals. I never seem to be able to get the right trolling speed as it always seems to be between 2 & 3. Also the digitals have a lot longer running time between re-charging.