trolling motors?

[BAD BEHAVIOR]

55# is fine for a light boat like you are talking, but you may regret the pull start 25. 25s can be a pain to pull and 4 strokes haven't really come all that far. A cracking battery for a small motor doesnt weight much. I watched this very scenario on the lake the other day with a new 25hp 4 stroke. It didnt look like it was pulling all that easy.

As far as TMs go, a 55# 12v on my 18' alum center console couldnt keep up with a fast current or strong wind. With a 24v 70#, its fine, but I could see even more. A 21' fiberglass boat might even need a 36v tm.

Boat dealer says 55 lb. thrust is fine for 16' G3. Pull start Yammie is a 20hp. Dealer says it pull starts easier than a 21" lawn mower -- it has a compression release! You gotta get out more often! It pays to get ya information from those who make a living at riggin' 'em up!

I sell a pile of 21" mowers every year and they all pull easy and crank easy , The first year..........then ....... Good luck!

[BAD BEHAVIOR]

Oh and on the 21 footer, look on up to the 36 volt. trust me, youll thank yourself later!

[Pinocchio]

Boat dealer says 55 lb. thrust is fine for 16' G3. Pull start Yammie is a 20hp. Dealer says it pull starts easier than a 21" lawn mower -- it has a compression release! You gotta get out more often! It pays to get ya information from those who make a living at Sell'n em!

Fixed it! [/quote]

Not so fast! They ain't gonna be riggin' nor sellin' 'em very long (not 30 years) rippin' off and lyin' 'bout boat stuff! Boating products is mosely 'bout word-'o'-mouf so B.S.'in' customers won't get ya much bidness! An' dis issue was a recommendation for a smaller, cheaper trollin' mota noways! Wise-up!

[Reel Cowboy]

Boat dealer says 55 lb. thrust is fine for 16' G3. Pull start Yammie is a 20hp. Dealer says it pull starts easier than a 21" lawn mower -- it has a compression release! You gotta get out more often! It pays to get ya information from those who make a living at Sell'n em!

Fixed it!

Not so fast! They ain't gonna be riggin' nor sellin' 'em very long (not 30 years) rippin' off and lyin' 'bout boat stuff! Boating products is mosely 'bout word-'o'-mouf so B.S.'in' customers won't get ya much bidness! An' dis issue was a recommendation for a smaller, cheaper trollin' mota noways! Wise-up! [/quote]

The 55# might ok on a 16' G# but on a 21' bay boat with the most thrust you can stand. If you go in and out of creek mouths or against the current and tide very much go with the bigger of the two.
Another thing to consider if you don't have one is an onboard charger. You want regret it.

[Pinocchio]

The 55# might ok on a 16' G# but on a 21' bay boat with the most thrust you can stand. If you go in and out of creek mouths or against the current and tide very much go with the bigger of the two.
Another thing to consider if you don't have one is an onboard charger. You want regret it.

Hole-on, thar! A trollin' mota recommendation for a 21' bay boat based on one for a 16' aluminum jon was never da issue heah! Da 16' jon was mentioned jus' as an example of a dealer (of the jon) recommending a TM fo' da jon (or any other boat they sell) -- nuttin' more! No, apples ta oranges comparison intended although that's what's gettin' "straw-man, jumped-on heah!"

[RHTFISH]

Oh and on the 21 footer, look on up to the 36 volt. trust me, youll thank yourself later!

I could not agree more if you really expect to move the 21' around much in wind, etc. Also keep in mind working around bars, etc., often you need some real power
to keep boat from being damaged. I've got 80# on 17.5' and use all it has at times especially when tides and winds are moving!

[Reel Cowboy]

http://www.bigbendfishing.net/phpBB3/vi ... ling+motor" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[grim reeler]

55# is fine for a light boat like you are talking, but you may regret the pull start 25. 25s can be a pain to pull and 4 strokes haven't really come all that far. A cracking battery for a small motor doesnt weight much. I watched this very scenario on the lake the other day with a new 25hp 4 stroke. It didnt look like it was pulling all that easy.

As far as TMs go, a 55# 12v on my 18' alum center console couldnt keep up with a fast current or strong wind. With a 24v 70#, its fine, but I could see even more. A 21' fiberglass boat might even need a 36v tm.

Boat dealer says 55 lb. thrust is fine for 16' G3. Pull start Yammie is a 20hp. Dealer says it pull starts easier than a 21" lawn mower -- it has a compression release! You gotta get out more often! It pays to get ya information from those who make a living at riggin' 'em up!

Thats what I said about the TMs. I clarified between the 16 and the 21, and offered my personal experience with a 55# 12v from "getting out" on my 18' alum boat. Like someone said about outboards in a different thread - no one ever complains about being overpowered. It holds very true in trolling motors as well.

As far as pull starts go, I pulled a nice fat blister on my hand with a 4hp a few months ago, and cussed a 15hp pull start pretty darn good soon after. I've also had some very ungentlemanly things to say about pull start mowers in the past. And when i got out a couple weeks ago, I watched a man who admitted to "rigging em up" for a living pull and pull and pull on a new 25hp 4 stroke. My buddy and I even commented to each other on how the extra $$ for a electric start would be worth it. On the positive side, he was significantly over powered for the boat he was in, which IMO is just about right.

These arent things I read or heard, I experienced or observed them all first hand (the one with the blister). I also have a healthy skeptisism for what salesman tell me. We just bought my wife a new car - you shoulda heard some of the tales we were told.

Just my 2 cents.......

[Bow'd Up]

I have an 80lb Riptide on my 20' Skeeter bay boat and it does a good job but I would not go any smaller, even 10lbs smaller. May be well worth your 350.00 to make sure you have enough trolling motor for your boat.

[BAD BEHAVIOR]

I have an 80lb Riptide on my 20' Skeeter bay boat and it does a good job but I would not go any smaller, even 10lbs smaller. May be well worth your 350.00 to make sure you have enough trolling motor for your boat.

Bowd, He probably aint fightin neck draft in high winds!!! LMAO!!!!

[Pinocchio]

GR, I'd rather never tell anyone what to chose. A brief chat about some issues and let 'em make their own choice. My take on pull-start vs. starter for a modern outboard 30hp or less is that if it's hard to start enough to put blisters on your hand, there's something that needs to be done to fix it -- having a starter won't fix it to start easy like normal! If at all practical, I prefer simple over complex. I've had my share of Bendix, starter motor, battery, battery cable and battery charger problems over the years and a simple recoil pull starter on a smaller hp outboard that sees routine maintenance is way less problematic than electric start (and a bit lighter when used in a small jonboat to lower draft in skinny water). That's all I'm saying.

And, for adequate vs. "big as they come" trolling motors -- big wind and big current is not what I'd use as a guide for TM choice -- weather decisions and tide decisions about when to go fishing have proven to me to be more prudent than max power, weight and cost for gunning a rig out of situations that should have been ruled-out by decisions to go fishing on a more favorable day! But, those choices are for everyone to decide for themselves!

[grim reeler]

With the wind and the weeds yesterday on Jackson, I was wishing I had more that a 24v 70# tm in my 18' alum tunnel hull.

There is no such thing as too much.

[Pinocchio]

With the wind and the weeds yesterday on Jackson, I was wishing I had more that a 24v 70# tm in my 18' alum tunnel hull.

There is no such thing as too much.

What would you suggest for a Cat. 5 hurricane?

[SHOWBOAT]

This is from a guy a guy who caught a 26" redfish in the Feb tournament and couldn't get back in time for 3:30 weigh in b/c his trolling motor couldn't pull him against the tide and wind to get out of a creek. Water was too low for the big motor to get me out. Oh yea, my boat is a 17' aluminum boat. If you're going to play the tides and fish shallow for hogs...spend the extra 350.

[grim reeler]

With the wind and the weeds yesterday on Jackson, I was wishing I had more that a 24v 70# tm in my 18' alum tunnel hull.

There is no such thing as too much.

What would you suggest for a Cat. 5 hurricane?

319 North