Kevin Van Dam Forums

My father and I are in the process of upgrading the electronics on the boat.  We just upgraded to an HDS-8 with structure scan in 2010 and now it’s his turn to drop some bucks into the boat on the next and probably last big ticket item, the trolling motor.

The boat currently has an Evinrude foot control 74lb thrust trolling motor on that came with boat in 2000-2001.  It’s fairly modern as it looks just like the Minn Kotas that are still on the market and works like new.  It’s pretty beat up and a bit annoying because eats the deploy/stow cord from time to time and it’s maxed out on cable slack take-up.  If any more slacks develops in the cable due to stretch there in no more adjustment left to take it up basically.  My father and I like the idea of the GPS motors with the spot-lock electronic anchor and I like the idea of the I-pilot system so he control the motor by remote from the back of the boat while I fart around with unhooking a fish or whatever in high winds and not be at the mercy of the wind.  Power poles are out of the question as we really are looking to improve our deep water structure fishing game in the wind. 

The only motor I can find that has these features is the Minn Kota Terrova and I’m not sold on that motor yet because it is such a departure from a conventional wire controlled folding motor as it is electronic steer and has a wonky stow/deploy system. 

Questions:

Is there any other trolling motors with a spot lock type GPS anchor out on the market that I’m just not seeing? 

Should we wait to see what comes down the pipes in the next few years for new motors?  All this GPS trolling motor stuff seems fairly new and I’d hate to be an early adopter when the motor on the boat is fully functional as is. 

Assuming we wait, any of you guys have a good anchor system?  Ours consists of kicking a sand anchor overboard at the right timing to catch a weed bed and make a drift sock out the weeds to slow us down in strong winds.

If you were in our shoes, what would you do?  Save that money and wait or pull the trigger on a Terrova?

The minn kota gps controlled is an awesome unit. I got to fish in a boat with one last year, was really really cool. We were jigging for walleye in heavy current and a cross wind, the boat would spin occasionally but the electric kept us right on the spot the whole time. Even when fishing around 15-20 other boats to the point you could reach out and touch them (we call it playing bumper-boats) the boat stayed on the hole.

As for the slow deploy time, just deploy it while you are grabbing a rod and by the time you are ready to cast it will be down and ready to go.

I’ve never anchored while bass fishing, I just keep a foot on the maxxum to keep us on the spot.

BBK - 09 February 2012 02:43 AM

The minn kota gps controlled is an awesome unit. I got to fish in a boat with one last year, was really really cool. We were jigging for walleye in heavy current and a cross wind, the boat would spin occasionally but the electric kept us right on the spot the whole time. Even when fishing around 15-20 other boats to the point you could reach out and touch them (we call it playing bumper-boats) the boat stayed on the hole.

As for the slow deploy time, just deploy it while you are grabbing a rod and by the time you are ready to cast it will be down and ready to go.

I’ve never anchored while bass fishing, I just keep a foot on the maxxum to keep us on the spot.

Thanks for the info.  Did you get a chance to operate the foot petal on the motor?  If you did, was there any latency problems with input to motor movement? 

I have no worries about deploy time, but it’s nature of the way the Terrova deploys/stows by rotating at the head of the mount.  It will require the mount to stick out up to 10’’ from the bow of the boat to allow the head to rotate and have the shaft to clear the boat.

I hate setting the trolling motor to max or near-max speeds to fish into the wind because the trolling motor torque steers and if I so much as space off for a split second I have to correct the direction of the boat.  Torque steering is only an issue in strong wind when I’m pushing the motor to near it’s max thrust. 

Lol, damn torque steering high horse power FWD BOATS!!!!!

I would highly recommend a Minnkota.  I have the Fortrex and it is an awesome unit.  Believe me, if I had the money to get an I-Pilot (and could talk my wife into it) I’d have it on my boat.  I would love to be able to have one of those units.  If you have the opportunity to get one, I’d do it.

No didnt get a chance to, but I have played with an “edge” I think it was called. It was the same type of steering, motorized instead of cable. Took a while to get used to it as I am used to the cable controlled maxxum. But there was no lag with that one.

If you need a motor to stay on a spot the Terrova with the i-piolet would be the ticket. You can set a course and the thing will put you close to the same drift everytime. The steering torque wont matter on an electric steering type because the motors that steer will hold the shaft straight. I used an older power drive but being used to a cable footpedal took time to adjust. Im sure they have gotten better in the last 10 years though. I have a Fortrexx 80lb thrust and love it. No worries with steering with the new mount.

I messed up, was the powder drive2 that I used, not the edge.

To be honest I’m not as happy with the V drive (uses motor to turn) as I was with the normal cable type.  It is too slow to turn and I hate the pedal because you can’t have the button on and turn the thing at the same times so it clunks on and off.  The remote is the only advanatge but my partner (wife) refuses to use it and help me with it so it doesn’t get used much.  The only way I would go that route again would be to get the ipilot.

Thanks for the info everyone.  The Terrovas appear to use the same foot petal as the Minn Kota/Evinrude cable steer but with variable resistor rather than a cable system.  It’s definitely a different foot petal than the older Minn Kota electric steer motors.  If I can’t send power to the motor and steer at the same time then I’m not touching that thing.  I’m looking for the something that functions like a Kota cable drive but with spot lock and all that fancy horsechit.  If have to sacrifice any basic bass style trolling motor functionality to get those features then we’ll pass on the motor.

I think we will wait until the Terrova has been out for a while and their are reviews, ect before looking at it again.  Thanks.

It would be cool if they could take the i piolet technology and put it on a fortrex, youd have the best of both worlds

If you want some good info on the Ipilot, check out Idofishing.com Their forum has a ton of guides and anglers with the Ipilot, and they can tell you everything you need to know about it. Yeah its mostly a walleye site, but who cares.. there are a lot of bass guys there too.

BBK - 10 February 2012 06:09 PM

If you want some good info on the Ipilot, check out Idofishing.com Their forum has a ton of guides and anglers with the Ipilot, and they can tell you everything you need to know about it. Yeah its mostly a walleye site, but who cares.. there are a lot of bass guys there too.

Will do, thanks.

stick um - 10 February 2012 01:58 PM

It would be cool if they could take the i piolet technology and put it on a fortrex, youd have the best of both worlds

Heck yeah.  I’d be sold on it if it was a fortex or maxxum with I-pilot.  The Evinrude we have now is just a re-badged maxxum (or perhaps it’s the other way around) and it’s been a champ.  Powerful, quiet and taken a TON of beatings without a hiccup.  That motor has sold me on Kotas despite being badged as an “Evinrude’.

I own a 101 pound Minkota Terova and recently put the I-Pilot system on it.  I was very sceptical as my boat is VERY heavy (2600 pounds) and sometimes the autopilot type things don’t react in time to offset the momentum of my boat.  After I put the IPilot on was I surprised !!  This thing is terrific. Best 400 bucks I ever spent.  It works as advertised.  I even had it on “spot lock” while jigging Walleyes on Lake of the Woods last year in 20mph winds.  It held me right on the money, while my buddies’ boats were all over the place. 
The Terova has one advantage over other Minkota motors with I-Pilot…...the foot pedal still works with Terova.  With other Minkota models, the foot pedal is removed and cannot be used. This is important, and not always recognized by the buyer.

Great product though !!  Very useful.