Looking for ■■■■■■■■ from anyone who owns a Minn Kota with GPS iPilot. I currently have a Motorguide manual trolling motor that has some age and I am looking to upgrade. Not sure if I want to stick with the tried and true or go big and technical.
Is there a big enough advantage to upgrading to make it worth it?
What can you do with the iPilot that you can’t do with a traditional?
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The spot lock feature alone is worth it IMHO. It can also do cruise control, keep you pointed in a set direction at a set speed, and I love being able to run it from anywhere in the boat.
It does take a lot of getting used to, but once you do, you’ll wonder how you ever went without it.
I think my favorite thing is to be able to pull up on structure at something like 4ki and put the trolling motor down, move all over the structure to find the best spot, then hit the spot lock button and stay there all day if you want to. Then, you never have to worry about losing an anchor or having to pull it up from way down deep.
'06 Mckee Craft
184 Marathon
DF140 Suzuki
^^^ x2
We have 2 (55 lb for a 16 ft skiffish and 80 lb for a 22 ft bay), both with spot lock and all. Only problem we have is the initial anchoring, it likes to dance around a little, once it learns the current/wind it will settle in nicely.
Got one this past spring and shouldn’t have waited so long. I was a skeptic but I drank the koolaid. Here’s why:
-The spot lock feature works fairly well and is so easy to use. I now move freely around areas with heavy current and try different spots for 10 minutes and move on to the next spot. I used to spend that much time fighting with anchors. Moving would mean wrestling with the anchor and maybe disturbing the fish in the new spot. I bet I fish 3X as many locations per trip and am learning the water better than I ever did before.
Honestly for me it’s worth it just for the spot lock!
-Can rig baits, tie leaders, unhook fish without having to constantly take my eyes off the job to adjust trolling motor. If I have something I need to deal with, I just hit the anchor button and I don’t have to worry about drifting aground or into another boat, etc.
-Auto pilot and cruise control is great for flounder/trout/spanish mack trolling. Pick a speed and direction and let the motor do the work. I even use it drifting backwards by setting the GPS direction and setting a low speed on the motor.
-Being able to control from anywhere in the boat means I don’t have to keep changing places from the helm with my fishing partner in this little boat. I teach them to drop the motor and I run it from the back deck.
Everyone that fishes with me is sold the first time they use it. MK should pay me a commission.
My advice: Just bite the bullet and go all in with more power than you think you need to deal with our current and the ST model for easier stow/deploy.
Feel free to hit me up with any questions about usage.
16’ High Tide Flats (Green) w/Yamaha 90
Wilderness Ride 135
Wilderness Tarpon 120
BTW: I’m fishing a 16’ flats boat and use a 24v 80lb model. It’s more power than most recommend but I’ve never wished I had less power. I can make headway in the heaviest current and use all day without worrying about stressing the batteries at all.
16’ High Tide Flats (Green) w/Yamaha 90
Wilderness Ride 135
Wilderness Tarpon 120
I brought this up because I saw one on Craigslist and my current 15yr old trolling motor is on its last legs and needs to be replaced. The one on CL looked near new and showed little sign of wear, came with two batteries and a Minn Kota 3 Bank on-board charger. I got it all for $1200. Will most likely sell the batteries and charger. It also had a removable mount, but he left the puck on the boat when he sold it, so I have to find a replacement puck or buy a new mount. Thanks for the input, I’m sure I will have questions later!!
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Pit, just go to the MK web site! I’m pretty sure you can buy a puck!
I have the XI5 and love it. The GPS locks great. It doesnt move at all. The only thing I dislike about it is the amount of the mounting base that hangs over the boat.
I got one for my 16’ Lund a couple of yrs. ago & love it. Especially the spot lock feature. It beats the heck out of using the anchor.
If you decide to sell the charger, let me know.
Bob Van Gundy
Marine Designs,Inc.
Custom Aluminum Fabrication
803-727-4069
quote:
Originally posted by EasyPit, just go to the MK web site! I’m pretty sure you can buy a puck!
I have been from one end of the internet to the other and have not found a source to buy just the puck including Minn Kota’s website. I am waiting for their service center to open and I will call them. Hopefully I can buy one, it not, I will buy another complete mount and move on.
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Ok, I was able to order the mounting puck from Minn Kota, but it won’t be here until some time next week. I had a afterthought of buying the quick mount bracket as a whole locally so I could mount my motor now and use it this weekend, but apparently no one has it in stock locally that I know of. I called West Marine (all 3 locations), Gander Mountain and Field and Stream… Also called Walmart, but trying to get someone to answer the phone in sporting goods turned out to be a Cluster$&@%!!! Anywhere I might not be thinking of in Charleston that might carry the Minn Kota RTA-17 quick mount bracket?
“Kleenex, The Official Sponsor of Fishb8”
Try Chris V. at Charleston Marine, he services them and may have one.
How about it CHRISV, do you carry the Minn Kota RTA-17 quick mount bracket in stock?
“Kleenex, The Official Sponsor of Fishb8”
While waiting on the mounting puck to arrive, I have been doing some research on the iPilot system and what all it can do. I am blown away by it’s capabilities but have discovered so much more!! Does anyone have the iPilot Link system set up? Holy Cow!! I just found out that the Hummingbird GPS fish finder I recently purchased is compatable with the link system and I di believe the link system is going to be a future upgrade to my boat!! The possibilities are endless when you link the iPilot to the Hummingbird!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffD83Ej9Y9A
“Kleenex, The Official Sponsor of Fishb8”
I recently installed one on a custom build I did for a client. It’s the Ipilot 80 linked to a Humminbird 1197. That thing is amazing! You can set it to follow waypoints from the GPS, or to follow any depth contour, such as it will ride down the bank keeping the boat in exactly 10’ of water, or whatever you set it to. Does a lot of other stuff too but I haven’t used it much. They only thing wrong with it is, it’s not on my boat!
Capt. Larry Teuton
Swamp Worshiper
I like the record a track feature. You can record as many tracks as your memory card will hold and run them in the future. I have a lot of areas I fish on the lake where I fish the same shoreline everytime I am there. Now I can run it once to record and then let the motor take me on that same path whenever I return. Man, I’m going to be in hog heaven!! More time to fish and virtually zero time spent working the trolling motor!!
“Kleenex, The Official Sponsor of Fishb8”
Where did you find just the puck? How much was it?
It would be nice not to have to buy the whole deal so I can switch it to other boats.
Plus you can put one in the rear of the boat if you want to keep the front clean for fly fishing or the motor safe in rough water.
I love my iPilot. It’s better than clean underwear.
10% of the people catch 90% of the fish.
quote:
Originally posted by SSFieroWhere did you find just the puck? How much was it?
It would be nice not to have to buy the whole deal so I can switch it to other boats.Plus you can put one in the rear of the boat if you want to keep the front clean for fly fishing or the motor safe in rough water.
I love my iPilot. It’s better than clean underwear.
10% of the people catch 90% of the fish.
WE STOCK THEM
www.teamcharlestonmarine.com
www.joinrfa.org
IF I RESPOND IN ALL CAPS, ITS NOT ON PURPOSE, AND I AM NOT YELLING
quote:
Originally posted by SSFieroWhere did you find just the puck? How much was it?
It would be nice not to have to buy the whole deal so I can switch it to other boats.Plus you can put one in the rear of the boat if you want to keep the front clean for fly fishing or the motor safe in rough water.
I love my iPilot. It’s better than clean underwear.
10% of the people catch 90% of the fish.
I ordered one from Minn Kota before I found out that Charleston Marine stocks them. I am taking my boat there tomorrow to see if that can go ahead and mount one for me and then when the other one I ordered arrives, I will probably put it on my small boat so I can switch it between the two.
“Kleenex, The Official Sponsor of Fishb8”
I’m having the 112 lb thrust installed on my bay boat this week. Have fished with friends who have these and really like theirs.
Question - I do a lot of “cut bait / bottom fishing” for cats and reds.
Do you think the iPilot should hold the boat steady enough to " fan cast " around the boat?
Or will the boat “twist and turn” too much for this type of fishing?
It will work great for suspending over a school of Striper, crappie, etc; but I’m curious about the bottom fishing.