electric trolling motors

[thedalleskevbo]

planing on installing bow mount minn kota powerdrive v2 with copilot 24 volt 65lb thrust with 60 inch shaft or riptide rt70sp with copilot to increase thrust to 70lb and shaft length to 62inch without jumping to 36 volt on a 19 ft thunderjet . any pros or cons would be appreciated

[RascallyRabbit]

Originally Posted by thedalleskevbo

planing on installing bow mount minn kota powerdrive v2 with copilot 24 volt 65lb thrust with 60 inch shaft or riptide rt70sp with copilot to increase thrust to 70lb and shaft length to 62inch without jumping to 36 volt on a 19 ft thunderjet . any pros or cons would be appreciated

I'd go with the Riptide, but I think you need to check your models, and spec's. Here some information that I pulled off Minn Kota's website. The formatting didn't come out perfect, but if you read between the lines you'll see what I mean.

Model Volts Thrust Shaft
Riptide SP70/CP/AP 24 70 54"
Riptide SP70/CP 24 70 54"
Riptide SP55/CP/AP 12 55 48"
Riptide SP55/CP 12 55 48"

Model Volts Thrust Shaft
Riptide ST101/CP/AP 36 101 54", 60"
Riptide ST80/CP/AP 24 80 54", 60"
Riptide ST80/CP 24 80 54", 60"
Riptide ST55/CP/AP 12 55 48"
Riptide ST55/CP 12 55 48"

I would go with the ST 80/CP/AP, with a 60" shaft.

I'm also curious what sort of anchor system you currently have on your boat?

Steve/RR

[fish junky]

Riptide ST80/CP/AP 24 80 54", 60"


I have this one and use it all the time. I also think it would be a good choice for your T.J. I have no complaints at all. One thing about the Riptide is you can use it in salt water or fresh water and not worry about it. I would also spend some extra $$ and get an onboard charger. Makes thing alot easer.

[Lead Bouncer]

If youre planning to use the bow mounts in the rivers, i would reconsider. Minnkota might have re-engineered the foot control, but they were having burnout problems with the constant need for maximum power. running back and forth to pull up/ down the motor is not fun. I have eighty pounds and a much smaller boat and its not enough for a big boat.

[Starfish]

It all depends on what you're using the electric motor for. If you have a gas kicker and are just using the electric for boat positioning, drift control, pulling bobbers, or walleye and bass fishing, then the 65 lb is fine. If you're actually trying to use it for backtrolling (not recommended IMHO) then you need all the thrust you can get.