Tips from 5 years of using a bow mount, on lakes, rivers and the ocean.
Folks,
I've noticed this spring, that there are a lot more folks that have jumped on the Minn Kota / Bow mount bandwagon.
But, even yesterday, I noticed fishing below Bonneville, that there are some folks that seem to be having some challenges using
these motors, especially in heavy current.
So I thought I'd start a thread on some tips I've learned along the way...
Tip#1.
If you are fishing in heavy current and you are using spot lock; its a good idea to 'lock' your remote.
If you do not do this; you'll accidentally hit a button and you'll lose your spot lock position. Yesterday, below Bonneville,
a guy did this and about ran into two boats. I've been guilt of this myself...you go to wash your hands, you lean over the boat and a button on the remote
will get touched and turn off the anchor mode/spot lock and you'll start drifting. In heavy current...this is bad news.
So lock the remote. You'll be happier doing that.
(Tip's 2-5 are specific to Ulterra models)
Tip#2.
Do NOT deploy while the boat is still moving. If you have Ulterra, you will get a deploy error.
Tip#3.
Do NOT stow (Ulterra) in heavy current with the motor trimmed down, especially if you have an aftermarket skeg. Side ways pressure on the the skeg will bind the shaft and you'll get a stow error.
Before you go to stow, move the motor to the forward pointed position...so that the skeg has less drag, then trim the motor all the way up. Then stow.
Tip#4
If you get a stow error or deploy error. Do you know how to recover? Turn the power off / then on. Do you still have an error? If not, then the error was
probably because you had current or something obstructing the motor. See tip 2 & 3 again...
Tip#5.
Lubricate the shaft. You need to use water based Silicone spray lubricate. Or Pledge...which is silicon based. Otherwise, you will get deploy/stow problems.
Tip#6
Install a SmartShunt inline. How do you monitor your battery state and rate of discharge? You have absolutely no clue unless you have some sort of battery
management system installed. A Victron SmartShunt or other Shunt of some sort is a necessity. Otherwise...you are just guessing. The battery life indicator
on the remote is not accurate when using other battery chemistries outside of Lead Acid batteries. Even then...the little bars of battery life is not accurate; especially if you are watching your discharge rate so you don't destroy your batteries.
Just install the Shunt and never look back.
Tip#7.
When trolling - Use a gas kicker in gear while using your Bow Mount. Leave the kicker pointed straight ahead...use the steering friction adjustment so that it stays in that forward position. This will significantly reduce the amount of battery use and you'll get great tracking, especially if the wind picks up.
Tip#8.
In current and using spot lock - use a kicker in gear to help forward propulsion and so your electric motor does not need to work so hard.
Increase the kicker's speed till you get the Bow Mount at a reduced speed. Watch the speed on your remote so you can make the adjustments to your gas kicker to help your electric motor get into the sweet spot of speed/control/battery consumption.
For example, yesterday below Bonneville, without the kicker running, the motor was running up at speed 7 just to keep my position.
Using the kicker and increasing the speed of the kicker just a little above idle, and my Minn Kota now was averaging around speed 2. At that speed
my battery management system (SmartShunt) showed I could stay anchored at that speed for another 25hours...
Tip#9
If you find that the Bow Mount is over correcting steering, then you need to probably change the boat scale in the settings. Try moving up/down one level at a time and testing.
Tip#10.
Make sure you do the calibration of your heading sensor correctly. I wasn't even going to put this on the list...as it should be one of the early steps in
installation...but some posts previously on ifish where people did not do this, made me put this on the list.
Tip#11.
Use legacy mode for your heading/autopilot. Trust me...for fishing...you'll want legacy mode. If you don't know what this is...its in the manual.
Tip#12.
Do the maintenance. If you don't you'll be plagued with problems. This includes things like, remove the prop and clean behind it; especially if fishing line gets in there, etc. It will destroy the seals and you'll get water intrusion...water and electric motors is not good mix.
Lubricate all the pivot points, etc. This is all part of the preventative maintenance.
Tip#13
Install your Bow Mount using a quick release bracket.
If you ever need to take the motor off - winter storage, removal on the water because of a stow problem...its easier with the quick release bracket.
Yes there is an emergency manual stow procedure if you have an Ulterra...but do you really want to be messing around with that out on the water? Quick release bracket is much easier to deal with. If you are using a Terrova, the quick release bracket is still nice for Winter Stowage if you store your boat outside.
Tip#14
If using in saltwater, make sure you install the Riptide series...
Tip#15
If using spot lock, save the position on your remote. That way, if you have to float down to fight a big fish, its super easy to get back right on top of where you were anchored.
Tip#16
Install an aftermarket skeg for better steering control and reduced battery consumption; like the Lee-lok skeg.
Tip#17
If you are getting RFI (Electrical Noise) from your motor, you may have to install some filters / Ferrite chokes so you don't get the noise from the motor into your VHF radio, etc.
See the Boat/Motor Tech thread on this.
I'm sure there are other tips...these just come to mind.
Folks,
I've noticed this spring, that there are a lot more folks that have jumped on the Minn Kota / Bow mount bandwagon.
But, even yesterday, I noticed fishing below Bonneville, that there are some folks that seem to be having some challenges using
these motors, especially in heavy current.
So I thought I'd start a thread on some tips I've learned along the way...
Tip#1.
If you are fishing in heavy current and you are using spot lock; its a good idea to 'lock' your remote.
If you do not do this; you'll accidentally hit a button and you'll lose your spot lock position. Yesterday, below Bonneville,
a guy did this and about ran into two boats. I've been guilt of this myself...you go to wash your hands, you lean over the boat and a button on the remote
will get touched and turn off the anchor mode/spot lock and you'll start drifting. In heavy current...this is bad news.
So lock the remote. You'll be happier doing that.
(Tip's 2-5 are specific to Ulterra models)
Tip#2.
Do NOT deploy while the boat is still moving. If you have Ulterra, you will get a deploy error.
Tip#3.
Do NOT stow (Ulterra) in heavy current with the motor trimmed down, especially if you have an aftermarket skeg. Side ways pressure on the the skeg will bind the shaft and you'll get a stow error.
Before you go to stow, move the motor to the forward pointed position...so that the skeg has less drag, then trim the motor all the way up. Then stow.
Tip#4
If you get a stow error or deploy error. Do you know how to recover? Turn the power off / then on. Do you still have an error? If not, then the error was
probably because you had current or something obstructing the motor. See tip 2 & 3 again...
Tip#5.
Lubricate the shaft. You need to use water based Silicone spray lubricate. Or Pledge...which is silicon based. Otherwise, you will get deploy/stow problems.
Tip#6
Install a SmartShunt inline. How do you monitor your battery state and rate of discharge? You have absolutely no clue unless you have some sort of battery
management system installed. A Victron SmartShunt or other Shunt of some sort is a necessity. Otherwise...you are just guessing. The battery life indicator
on the remote is not accurate when using other battery chemistries outside of Lead Acid batteries. Even then...the little bars of battery life is not accurate; especially if you are watching your discharge rate so you don't destroy your batteries.
Just install the Shunt and never look back.
Tip#7.
When trolling - Use a gas kicker in gear while using your Bow Mount. Leave the kicker pointed straight ahead...use the steering friction adjustment so that it stays in that forward position. This will significantly reduce the amount of battery use and you'll get great tracking, especially if the wind picks up.
Tip#8.
In current and using spot lock - use a kicker in gear to help forward propulsion and so your electric motor does not need to work so hard.
Increase the kicker's speed till you get the Bow Mount at a reduced speed. Watch the speed on your remote so you can make the adjustments to your gas kicker to help your electric motor get into the sweet spot of speed/control/battery consumption.
For example, yesterday below Bonneville, without the kicker running, the motor was running up at speed 7 just to keep my position.
Using the kicker and increasing the speed of the kicker just a little above idle, and my Minn Kota now was averaging around speed 2. At that speed
my battery management system (SmartShunt) showed I could stay anchored at that speed for another 25hours...
Tip#9
If you find that the Bow Mount is over correcting steering, then you need to probably change the boat scale in the settings. Try moving up/down one level at a time and testing.
Tip#10.
Make sure you do the calibration of your heading sensor correctly. I wasn't even going to put this on the list...as it should be one of the early steps in
installation...but some posts previously on ifish where people did not do this, made me put this on the list.
Tip#11.
Use legacy mode for your heading/autopilot. Trust me...for fishing...you'll want legacy mode. If you don't know what this is...its in the manual.
Tip#12.
Do the maintenance. If you don't you'll be plagued with problems. This includes things like, remove the prop and clean behind it; especially if fishing line gets in there, etc. It will destroy the seals and you'll get water intrusion...water and electric motors is not good mix.
Lubricate all the pivot points, etc. This is all part of the preventative maintenance.
Tip#13
Install your Bow Mount using a quick release bracket.
If you ever need to take the motor off - winter storage, removal on the water because of a stow problem...its easier with the quick release bracket.
Yes there is an emergency manual stow procedure if you have an Ulterra...but do you really want to be messing around with that out on the water? Quick release bracket is much easier to deal with. If you are using a Terrova, the quick release bracket is still nice for Winter Stowage if you store your boat outside.
Tip#14
If using in saltwater, make sure you install the Riptide series...
Tip#15
If using spot lock, save the position on your remote. That way, if you have to float down to fight a big fish, its super easy to get back right on top of where you were anchored.
Tip#16
Install an aftermarket skeg for better steering control and reduced battery consumption; like the Lee-lok skeg.
Tip#17
If you are getting RFI (Electrical Noise) from your motor, you may have to install some filters / Ferrite chokes so you don't get the noise from the motor into your VHF radio, etc.
See the Boat/Motor Tech thread on this.
I'm sure there are other tips...these just come to mind.
