Electric trolling motors

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Dworwood

Dworwood

Keeper of San Juan Secrets
I know this has been talked about in the recent past but I am wanting opinions on thrust. I have a 21 foot alum boat with a cab. I am torn if I NEED the 112 lb thrust or if the 80 will handle my boat. Not sure I like the extra battery and expense if I don’t need it. Kokanee64 may have the answer as our boats are very similar. Any and all advice is appreciated.
 
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I will be following this thread Dworwood, I am interested as well, gonna pull the trigger on a new Ulterra this summer...was thinking another Terrova, but after getting back this AM from three days of chasing slurps between wind events, I have decided to go Ulterra.

For what it is worth, my current earlier model 36v 101 lb Terrova will throw my 20'2", just under 4000lb loaded, 101.5" beam Crestliner with ease. Nor have I ever pulled my batteries down in a full day fishing. Thursday with 5 people on the boat with the top up we were in a major wind in a narrow fork in Lake Canyon, but the troller, at full bore, kept us off the walls until we could get the big motor pushing...it was pretty tense for a bit.
My boat is on the cut between the 24v and 36v on all the guides, but think I have talked my self into the 36 volt again, more for maximizing available run time. I already have an onboard 36V charger installed and plenty of room for three big batteries. I would like to lose some weight, so may go to a lighter set of three batteries next time.

I have never run an 80 lb, so cant help there. But like you I have been giving it some thought.
Good question, I will be watching...Good luck...we did catch a few fish the last three days, I will try and get my fish report on this evening...
 
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BarzArz said:
I will be following this thread Dworwood, I am interested as well, gonna pull the trigger on a new Ulterra this summer...was thinking another Terrova, but after getting back this AM from three days of chasing slurps between wind events, I have decided to go Ulterra.

For what it is worth, my current earlier model 36v 101 lb Terrova will throw my 20'2", just under 4000lb loaded, 101.5" beam Crestliner with ease. Nor have I ever pulled my batteries down in a full day fishing. Thursday with 5 people on the boat with the top up we were in a major wind in a narrow fork in Lake Canyon, but the troller, at full bore, kept us off the walls until we could get the big motor pushing...it was pretty tense for a bit.
My boat is on the cut between the 24v and 36v on all the guides, but think I have talked my self into the 36 volt again, mare for maximizing available run time. I already have an onboard 36V charger installed and plenty of room for three big batteries. I would like to lose some weight, so may go to a lighter set of three batteries next time.

I have never run an 80 lb, so cant help there. But like you I have been giving it some thought.
Good question, I will be watching...Good luck...we did catch a few fish the last three days, I will try and get my fish report on this evening...
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I am leaning towards the 36v Ulterra heavily but if I don’t need all that power I hate to gain the weight and expense. Also they are not available yet! After your experience I will probably wait for them. Thanks, we will see what others have to say. I am like a kid though, when I decide to get something I want it right now!! LOL
 
I wish Dungee fishing would weigh in on this, they probably have a ton of experience with electric trolling motors in all conditions.
 
Dworwood said:
I know this has been talked about in the recent past but I am wanting opinions on thrust. I have a 21 foot alum boat with a cab. I am torn if I NEED the 112 lb thrust or if the 80 will handle my boat. Not sure I like the extra battery and expense if I don’t need it. Kokanee64 may have the answer as our boats are very similar. Any and all advice is appreciated.
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I have a 20 foot fiberglass boat. When I first bought the boat I put an Ulterra electric up front. First time I took it out I was really disappointed in the life of the battery. They only lasted about five hours being used as a trolling motor on a very windy day. The thrust never was a question. As long as I had battery power it held on course well. I up sized the batteries to a size 29 and this has really helped. The 36 volt will most surely last longer than the 24 volt. I dont know that you would need the extra thrust provided by 36 but the longer lasting power is a great bonus. We used the electric last fall at Good Hope bay strictly as a posistioning motor along the shore line and never had any problems with battery life. I think if you have the battery space I would go with the 36 volt. Something else that some dont think about is that, even with a deep cycle battery, you will get better battery life if they aren't totally discharged before being re-charged again. With a 36 volt system the batteries may actually last longer.
 
waterlogged said:
I have a 20 foot fiberglass boat. When I first bought the boat I put an Ulterra electric up front. First time I took it out I was really disappointed in the life of the battery. They only lasted about five hours being used as a trolling motor on a very windy day. The thrust never was a question. As long as I had battery power it held on course well. I up sized the batteries to a size 29 and this has really helped. The 36 volt will most surely last longer than the 24 volt. I dont know that you would need the extra thrust provided by 36 but the longer lasting power is a great bonus. We used the electric last fall at Good Hope bay strictly as a posistioning motor along the shore line and never had any problems with battery life. I think if you have the battery space I would go with the 36 volt. Something else that some dont think about is that, even with a deep cycle battery, you will get better battery life if they aren't totally discharged before being re-charged again. With a 36 volt system the batteries may actually last longer.
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Thank you, that is what I was needing, experience. I had a elec motor on my bass tracker but hardly ever used it and both were from the eighties. Things have changed a little since then! That makes total sense, thanks for giving me some great input. That helps me a bunch.
Dave
 
Actually pretty novice in this area. We have been around a lot of motors but our current set up is the first 24v system we’ve ever had. Prior to that we only had 12’s and swapped batteries.

Our current set up works great, 27 group sized batteries. 80lb terrova pushes our 18’ aluminum around just fine. Our boat is light and although aluminum, I wouldn’t feel comfortable suggesting a set up for your rig.

I will say this though, if it was me with your set up (or any) I’d get as big as I could get away with. Next to a rod and reel I don’t think there is a more important tool for fishing Powell than a trolling motor. With our past set ups we knew there were flaws, and that we certainly wanted to bump up. We could bump up now but it’s not needed. But again, our situation is different.

If you’re actually seeing factual instances where you know a 36 system would be better then don’t hesitate. I don’t think you’d regret it, if you’re legitimately comfortable with your current set up and just wondering, then stay.
 
I did not get an elec motor on this boat when I purchased it because I hardly ever used my 12 v one on my old boat. Then I returned to Powell and see how beneficial having one is. My good friend told me to get the biggest one I could get and I never should have second guessed him from what I am hearing from you all. Because they are back ordered nationally I contemplated going with the 24v set up. THANK YOU all for the input, because of battery life and the other words of wisdom I will wait for the 36v to arrive. I can’t say thanks enough for the experience and wisdom that you guys have shared, thanks for taking the time to answer my question. I just hope I get to put it in action before the end of summer!
Dave
 
Dungee Fishing said:
Actually pretty novice in this area. We have been around a lot of motors but our current set up is the first 24v system we’ve ever had. Prior to that we only had 12’s and swapped batteries.

Our current set up works great, 27 group sized batteries. 80lb terrova pushes our 18’ aluminum around just fine. Our boat is light and although aluminum, I wouldn’t feel comfortable suggesting a set up for your rig.

I will say this though, if it was me with your set up (or any) I’d get as big as I could get away with. Next to a rod and reel I don’t think there is a more important tool for fishing Powell than a trolling motor. With our past set ups we knew there were flaws, and that we certainly wanted to bump up. We could bump up now but it’s not needed. But again, our situation is different.

If you’re actually seeing factual instances where you know a 36 system would be better then don’t hesitate. I don’t think you’d regret it, if you’re legitimately comfortable with your current set up and just wondering, then stay.
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Thanks Preston and everyone else for replying to my plea!
 
We have a 21' Lund Tyee with the 112 # thrust Ulterra. I really like it for numerous reasons. Wide open it will push my boat 2.9 to 3.0 MPH with no wind. If you like chasing boiling stripers, the faster you can go quietly, the more fish you can catch. I have never had the batteries fail during a day of fishing. I have used it in the anchor mode for hours and still had plenty of battery to troll the banks. I don't use it to troll crankbaits, have a 15 HP gas motor for that. I do keep the trolling motor in the water while using the gas motor trolling for steering purposes. The one drawback is that it is fairly fragile. I have had to send mine in twice. Both times I hit submerged rocks with it while trolling with the gas motor. I did this dozens of times with my old boat and my old trolling motor never quit. The new Ulterras have limit and micro switches the are used to control the lower and raise functions. If these get bumped to hard it throws them out of tolerance and the motor won't deploy or stow properly or at all. I charge my batteries every night which helps greatly. I have regular interstate batteries now, but when they wear out I'll put AGM's in it.
 
Sounds like you already made your decision but I’ll reaffirm that the 36 volt is the way to go on a boat your size.

My 16’ Lund had the 24 volt. Worked well but it was a much lighter boat than you have.

My new to me 17’ Ranger is getting the same motor right now. I considered the 36 but I really don’t have space for the batteries.

I just use the Terrova. I don’t mind stowing the motor and the auto deploy just seems like one more thing to break - and that isn’t something I usually say.
 
We broke our big motor at the mouth of Lost Eden one day and had go electric to Halls to call for a tow, it was nice having a good back up
 
Ryan said:
Sounds like you already made your decision but I’ll reaffirm that the 36 volt is the way to go on a boat your size.

My 16’ Lund had the 24 volt. Worked well but it was a much lighter boat than you have.

My new to me 17’ Ranger is getting the same motor right now. I considered the 36 but I really don’t have space for the batteries.

I just use the Terrova. I don’t mind stowing the motor and the auto deploy just seems like one more thing to break - and that isn’t something I usually say.
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Ryan, me and almost all my fishing buddies are over 60 and believe it or not we are getting a little less coordinated than when we could jump high and run fast! LOL. It worries most of us standing on the bow on a rough day pulling up a motor, something we didn’t even think about a few years ago. I totally like less things to break but in this case I am looking forward to auto deploy and stow. It’s hell to get old but it beats the alternative! Not long ago I would have just gone for a swim and laughed it off with everyone that watched but now it makes me a little nervous, especially when fishing alone. Thanks for your insight and advice, it has been interesting to see the different comments and they have helped me a bunch.
 
@Dworwood I completely understand where you are coming from on that. The Lund was a much deeper bow than the Ranger is, and I didn't even think about deploying or stowing the motor. The Ranger only has about 6" between the casting deck and the top deck of the hull. When I was at Blue Mesa over Memorial Day weekend I did think a bit more about being up in the bow. Dad often fishes with me. He is 77 this year, and won't be performing those duties anymore.
 
KYKevin said:
Ryan, what pitch prop did you use on your 16 Lund? And what size motor?
Thanks
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60 HP 4-stroke Merc. I had 4 props that i think ranged from 9 pitch up to 13. I believe I usually used the 12 at Powell. We never went with more than 2 people in that boat.
 
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