As much as I hate to admit it Fritz is correct. I know a few guys that have them on 23 foot boats, but I have never seen one on a larger vessel. Do they make them for 25 to 30 foot boats?
to the gentleman that asked about anchoring… You will always catch more grouper if you are anchored over the structure they will come to you
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PROUD YANKEE
Oyster Baron
NMFS = No More Fishing Season
“Back home we got a taxidermy man. He gonna have a heart attack when he see what I brung him”
Do they make them for 25 to 30 foot boats?
PROUD YANKEE
Paul, I have mine on a 24’ Triton. I have friends who have 25’ and 26’ custom made bay boats. They all have I-Pilot trolling motors with spot lock. They do a great job. Even when fishing rigs, I had invested in an expensive rig hook. A lot of fishermen use rig hooks to attach to rigs. I encountered two problems with my rig hook. First, if the water was rough and current strong, it makes it a little dicey getting close enough to the rig to attach the hook. Second, when you’re that close to a rig, fish can easily pull you into the rig and cut your line. Third, when fishing with a rig hook, you can only fish the down current side of the rig. With my spot lock trolling motor, I get on the up current side of the rig. I stay 20-30 yards up current, throw out a little chum, and draw the fish away from the rig. I haven’t been broken off since I got the I-Pilot trolling motor. I wish I’d had that trolling motor when I used to fish for spades out of Edisto. 4KI and 6HI would have been so easy!!
Harold Wilcox
www.haroldshogwash.com
quote:
Originally posted by sellsfishAs much as I hate to admit it Fritz is correct. I know a few guys that have them on 23 foot boats, but I have never seen one on a larger vessel. Do they make them for 25 to 30 foot boats?
to the gentleman that asked about anchoring… You will always catch more grouper if you are anchored over the structure they will come to you
.
PROUD YANKEEOyster Baron
NMFS = No More Fishing Season
“Back home we got a taxidermy man. He gonna have a heart attack when he see what I brung him”
If you’re looking for a spot lock trolling motor for a larger boat you need to look into Rhodan GPS Anchors. I had a MK Ipilot on my 18’ Scout but when I upgraded to my 22’ Sea Hunt I decided to go with the Rhodan due to it having a 72" shaft. The Rhodan uses a 3 blade prop which gives more thrust and allowed me to use a 24v system on my Sea Hunt so I only had to put 2 batteries in the console instead of 3. So far the thing has held solid in some pretty nasty chop and current and never lost charge. My only gripe is the remote doesn’t have as many features as the MK and you can’t see the speed setting from the remote. As far as spot lock it wins hands down, but the MK is better for trolling if that is a consideration. Rhodan now has come out with a 36v model with an 84" shaft for even larger boats. I can only imagine what a monster that thing is.
Sea Hunt 220
“Salty Mo”
All this amounts to a bunch of guys that don’t know how to properly get a anchor heading. Maybe I’m old school but that’s how I was taught. I don’t have much problem dropping the anchor on a piece I want to fish but since I have a bigger boat that a trolling motor won’t work on I can’t say that it helps but if you can’t anchor up a boat and find the proper anchor heading then you probably need more practice cause the old electronics will fell sooner than later and if you can’t anchor when I need to then you might as well head to the dock
Just reel or get broke
What model seahunt were you fishing on? It looks just like mine.
26 Seahunt
Angler’s Dream
Noslack63… lots of people might not know how to anchor properly but you can’t tell me you would rather set and pull an anchor a couple times in 200’ of water rather then just push a button. It’s more accurate then an anchor and a lot easier. I know a guys with them on 28’ boats, plenty of 25’ boats and tons of 23’ boats. Minn Kota is where it’s at. Automatic stow and deploy. Come on. That’s like saying you would rather paddle to the fishing grounds instead of using the new technology(combustion engines).
Btw- the 2017 minn Kota has a new spot lock. It’s a big improvement over the previous models. It doesn’t move around as much. More accurate. It’s obviously the future. They even have that on triple outboards now. No need to anchor.
Don’t they make outboards with this technology now, or did I dream this up?
I’m one of those that still likes to anchor. However, it seems as though another positive for the trolling motor lock would be the axis of rotation would be so short that you could stay on a spot through the tide or current swing due to just pivoting around the motor vs pivoting around the anchor and having to constantly adjust anchor every hour or so.
I know how to anchor pretty good and I can drag my anchor from one spot to another and only pull it up once at the end of the day, but there is NO question that spot lock would be easier. NO QUESTION… If I wanted to move the boat 100 feet to the left or right, it takes several minutes to do that with an anchor, or pretty quick with the remote on a minn kota. But again, I’m skeptical on how this would work with 30’+ boats or catamarans.
quote:
Originally posted by skinneejI know how to anchor pretty good and I can drag my anchor from one spot to another and only pull it up once at the end of the day, but there is NO question that spot lock would be easier. NO QUESTION… If I wanted to move the boat 100 feet to the left or right, it takes several minutes to do that with an anchor, or pretty quick with the remote on a minn kota. But again, I’m skeptical on how this would work with 30’+ boats or catamarans.
As long as the shaft is long enough to stay in the water going over a 4’ swell, and the motor is strong enough to move the boat in the wind and current at the same time, it would work perfectly.
The issue is finding a shaft long enough to work on these big boats with the bow 5’ or more off the water.
But I agree…NO QUESTION how much easier it would be overall.
Wadmalaw native
16’ Bentz-Craft Flats Boat
Reeldawg I have a ipilot and love it for lake fishing and it’s great for the guys who’s boat will accommodate it but I have a 30ft contender and I just don’t believe it will hold my boat put. Like skinny said I very rarely have to pull anchor just drag it behind the boat and get my anchor heading and try to drop on the piece i want to fish. If you have a pretty good captain you can power drift if the current ain’t ripping to bad. Yes minnkota is great technology but like I said it can fail. What are you gonna do when your control board or compass goes out on the ipilot I have had it happen on mine and you are dead in the water but if people still no how to set an anchor properly the day is saved.
Just reel or get broke
quote:
Originally posted by noslack63Reeldawg I have a ipilot and love it for lake fishing and it’s great for the guys who’s boat will accommodate it but I have a 30ft contender and I just don’t believe it will hold my boat put. Like skinny said I very rarely have to pull anchor just drag it behind the boat and get my anchor heading and try to drop on the piece i want to fish. If you have a pretty good captain you can power drift if the current ain’t ripping to bad. Yes minnkota is great technology but like I said it can fail. What are you gonna do when your control board or compass goes out on the ipilot I have had it happen on mine and you are dead in the water but if people still no how to set an anchor properly the day is saved.
Just reel or get broke
If your TM fails, you anchor.
Doesn’t mean you should not consider the tech IMO
Wadmalaw native
16’ Bentz-Craft Flats Boat
It’s good to know how to anchor over a piece of structure, but I would much rather push a button! I have been on a couple of boats with station keeping or position lock and it is a dream to Mark a piece of structure and stay right over the top of it without having to do anything.
That is black Angus 26 foot sea hunt Gamefish
.
PROUD YANKEE
Oyster Baron
NMFS = No More Fishing Season
“Back home we got a taxidermy man. He gonna have a heart attack when he see what I brung him”
quote:
Originally posted by skinneejI know how to anchor pretty good and I can drag my anchor from one spot to another and only pull it up once at the end of the day, but there is NO question that spot lock would be easier. NO QUESTION… If I wanted to move the boat 100 feet to the left or right, it takes several minutes to do that with an anchor, or pretty quick with the remote on a minn kota. But again, I’m skeptical on how this would work with 30’+ boats or catamarans.
A guy over on THT, Sarasota Line X, has an 84" Rhodan on his 37’ Freeman and he speaks very highly of its capabilities.
quote:
Originally posted by BadfishA guy over on THT, Sarasota Line X, has an 84" Rhodan on his 37’ Freeman and he speaks very highly of its capabilities.
Now you are speaking my language. This is what I wanted to hear! Thanks!
quote:If by "power drift", you mean tweaking the throttles a bit to keep you in a spot, the problem with this is that it's a lot of effort if the captain wants to get in on the fishing action.
Originally posted by noslack63If you have a pretty good captain you can power drift if the current ain’t ripping to bad.
There are days on certain spots where we drift, but I feel that it’s 5x more work. I think we have caught upwards of 17 grouper while drifting, but it certainly cuts into the captain’s rod time. I would rather just plant in one spot and relax.
quote:
Originally posted by skinneejDon’t they make outboards with this technology now, or did I dream this up?
I’m pretty sure it comes along with the Optimus steering package – it was like a $10K upgrade. I looked in to it when pricing out my electronics package but the Optimus joystick on a boat less than 35-40ft is a bit overkill in my opinion. The only reason I would get it is for the spot lock feature, not use it to dock the boat. I think it is called “sea station”.
290 Sailfish “GameChanger”
x2 300 Yamaha’s
Yes Skinnee, Merc and Volvo are offering it even for multiple engine setups, there is also one aftermarket system out there but I cant remember the name.
266 World Cat
Twin 130 Honda
I didn’t say I don’t carry an anchor. Or know how to use it properly. Its just another tool. That, while it is working, is an upgrade to an anchor in certain situations. I haven’t had a chip board go out in 9 years(just jinxed myself), but I’ve got a spare in the cabinet and it comes with a two year warranty I think.
All of this caveman BS is just that, BS. Oh, I’d rather do it the absolute most difficult way as possible so I can then beat my chest and proclaim myself man of men as I look down my nose at those that use technology. That’s horse pucky! I can start a fire with two pieces of wood but it’s a hell of a lot smarter AND easier to use a lighter. I can walk to MD to visit family but it’s a hell of a lot smarter AND easier to jump in my truck and drive there. I can sharpen my knives on a rock but it’s a hell of a lot smarter AND easier to use my Works Sharp. I don’t “need” to breathe as frequently as I do. I could hold my breath for specific intervals throughout the day but you know what, I’m kind of fond of oxygen and what it does for me so I choose to breathe as much as possible. Call me crazy but I enjoy how much easier living is when I breathe.
No one is saying you “need” this type of trolling motor. No one is saying you “need” a $600 reel and a $600 rod. No one is saying you need a 60’ custom boat. But if using those things improves your fishing experience, why can’t people use them without the “purist cavemen” coming on here and scoffing at them for doing so?
No matter how much it hurts, how dark it gets, or how far you fall…you are never out of the fight.