Bowmount installation/battery choice

[bassboy]

Hiya!

 

Well....getting the boat ready and have a bowmount motor to install.....never done it before and although I dont find it a daunting task, I do have a few questions.....

 

Bowmount is a Minn Kota Maxxum 65lb thrust (24 volt)

Batteries: Not sure yet

Boat: 16.5 ft Tracker superguide V16dlx

 

I took the motor out of the basement today and set it on the bow of the boat to see how to go about doing this.....looks like I am going to need some shims, as there is an aluminum nose cone on the bow. I have seen some installations that use a sort of rubber grommet, and some that dont. I was just going to cut some stainless steel shims at work (same thickness as the nose cone) and use those.....is that advisable or should I be looking for the rubber grommets??

I was also going to pick up the appropriate Minn Kota quick disconnect mounting plate kit as well, but I still think I would need the shims.....

 

Thats not so much what is bothering me though.

 

The battery situation is where I am somewhat befuddled. I was going to mount the batteries in the compartment under the front casting deck, which is totally enclosed when the hatch is closed. For this reason I had decided that I wanted to get the spiral cell batteries (the optima type), for a number of reasons, of which include: They do not produce hydrogen gas when you charge them (#1 reason) , they need no 'topping up' of electrolyte, and they are non-spillable and can be mounted in any position.

However, when I went to CT to buy them this morning I noticed that they are only 50AH, and that bothered me a little. According to the bowmount manual, the motor will draw .75 amps per pound of thrust on the full setting....works out to 48.75 amps.....so to me that means that my batteries will only last me slightly over an hour (total time) if I use the motor on 100%.

I have no idea how this motor is going to perform with this boat so it remains to be seen to me how I will be using the motor and on what setting I will be using it on.

The dealer recommended a 50lb thrust motor, and this one is 65 so its more than need be, so I would think that I would have less tendency to use it at 100% too...

So I guess my real question would be: Are the Nautilus spriral cell batteries sufficient to give me a decent day on the water?

 

Also as a side note, I was considering getting one of the new Minn Kota on board alternator chargers to (In addition to the guest 2 bank charger I bought last year for on dry land) allow me to charge the batteries when the big engine is running.

 

Am I worrying too much?

 

Any help is greatly appreciated!!!

 

Bill

[Sinker]

I think your worrying too much myself.

 

You'll never need to run your TM at full throttle for an hour straight........unless of course the main motor dies,and you need the electric to get back to shore.......lets hope that doesn't happen.

 

I run a single battery to my 55lb minn kota, and I've never run out of juice......even on windy days when you tend to use it on higher power.

 

I used the rubber spacers for mounting mine......it just gives little play for bouncing down the road, and rough water. Its still solid on the boat though....

 

Sinker

[Roy]

Optimas are on the expensive side but they are golden. Wal-mart has them on special this week. Look after them and they'll last you 10 years.

[lookinforwalleye]

Just a heads up Wally Mart has Optima batteries on sale!

[Billy Bob]

Hiya!

 

Well....getting the boat ready and have a bowmount motor to install.....never done it before and although I dont find it a daunting task, I do have a few questions.....

 

Bowmount is a Minn Kota Maxxum 65lb thrust (24 volt)

Batteries: Not sure yet

Boat: 16.5 ft Tracker superguide V16dlx

 

I took the motor out of the basement today and set it on the bow of the boat to see how to go about doing this.....looks like I am going to need some shims, as there is an aluminum nose cone on the bow. I have seen some installations that use a sort of rubber grommet, and some that dont. I was just going to cut some stainless steel shims at work (same thickness as the nose cone) and use those.....is that advisable or should I be looking for the rubber grommets??

I was also going to pick up the appropriate Minn Kota quick disconnect mounting plate kit as well, but I still think I would need the shims.....

 

Thats not so much what is bothering me though.

 

The battery situation is where I am somewhat befuddled. I was going to mount the batteries in the compartment under the front casting deck, which is totally enclosed when the hatch is closed. For this reason I had decided that I wanted to get the spiral cell batteries (the optima type), for a number of reasons, of which include: They do not produce hydrogen gas when you charge them (#1 reason) , they need no 'topping up' of electrolyte, and they are non-spillable and can be mounted in any position.

However, when I went to CT to buy them this morning I noticed that they are only 50AH, and that bothered me a little. According to the bowmount manual, the motor will draw .75 amps per pound of thrust on the full setting....works out to 48.75 amps.....so to me that means that my batteries will only last me slightly over an hour (total time) if I use the motor on 100%.

I have no idea how this motor is going to perform with this boat so it remains to be seen to me how I will be using the motor and on what setting I will be using it on.

The dealer recommended a 50lb thrust motor, and this one is 65 so its more than need be, so I would think that I would have less tendency to use it at 100% too...

So I guess my real question would be: Are the Nautilus spriral cell batteries sufficient to give me a decent day on the water?

 

Also as a side note, I was considering getting one of the new Minn Kota on board alternator chargers to (In addition to the guest 2 bank charger I bought last year for on dry land) allow me to charge the batteries when the big engine is running.

 

Am I worrying too much?

 

Any help is greatly appreciated!!!

 

Bill

 

WOW, you got a lot of question here but I'll do my best.

 

1) Is this a new trolling motor. The reason I ask is you really don't need that much power for the boat you listed. You could go with a 12 volt system TM and save yourself a LOT of money not only on the motor but also on the batteries. If you can return the TM you might want to consider it but if not OK too much power is not a bad thing other than the extra weight of having two batteries instead of one. But it gets expensive every 3-4 years when TWO new batteries need to be purchased.

 

2) Optima batteries are WAY over priced IMHO and also way over rated. You do not need them and you can just open the hatch or just prop it open when charging. Not a big deal.

 

3) A on-board charging system is a GREAT investment. There are others that do just as good as the Minn Kota charger at a LOT less money. Cabela's has a VERY good one. It's called Cabela's ProSport II and I believe Bass Pro Shops has a similar one that they sell.

 

4) As far as shimming up the TM, you can go with what you mentioned or the rubber grommets.

 

5) Only if you are going to use the boat on one of the Great Lakes would the Quick Disconnect mount be necessary. On the big lakes the motor takes a beating and I find it best to remove it when I am on Lake Erie or Lake Ontario. If not save you money for expensive gasoline, looks like we will need all the gas money we can find this year and years to come.

 

Good Luck Fishing,

Bob

[bassboy]

Thanks Roy and LFW for the heads up on the Optimas at Wal-Mart!

 

 

 

 

I think your worrying too much myself.

 

You'll never need to run your TM at full throttle for an hour straight........unless of course the main motor dies,and you need the electric to get back to shore.......lets hope that doesn't happen.

 

I run a single battery to my 55lb minn kota, and I've never run out of juice......even on windy days when you tend to use it on higher power.

 

I used the rubber spacers for mounting mine......it just gives little play for bouncing down the road, and rough water. Its still solid on the boat though....

 

Sinker

 

 

Sinker...I figured I was worrying too much but still the idea of only being able to run for an hour if I need to does not overly excite me. I found the rubber spacers at BPS last night and I think I might pick some up next time I am there...I only popped in to have a look on my way home.

 

 

 

 

WOW, you got a lot of question here but I'll do my best.

 

1) Is this a new trolling motor. The reason I ask is you really don't need that much power for the boat you listed. You could go with a 12 volt

 

Nope....not a new one....bought it used and got what I thought was a good deal...and thats why I have it. Cost me about $200 less than what a new 12V would have cost me, and I thought that having the little bit extra was the way to go.

 

2) Optima batteries are WAY over priced IMHO and also way over rated. You do not need them and you can just open the hatch or just prop it open when charging. Not a big deal.

 

I know they are pretty good.......but have since found some AGM batteries (similar properties to the optimas...biggest one being no Hydrogen gas when charging) that are much cheaper.....think Ill be going with those.

 

3) A on-board charging system is a GREAT investment. There are others that do just as good as the Minn Kota charger at a LOT less money. Cabela's has a VERY good one. It's called Cabela's ProSport II and I believe Bass Pro Shops has a similar one that they sell.

 

I went and had a look at the Cabela's ProSport II, but it looks like its and AC charger only? The Minn Kota I mentioned is a DC charger and runs when the big motor is running to charge the TM batteries on the fly.....I saw a few like this on the Cabela's site but they were not as inexpensive as the Minn Kota, and although I have the Guest 2 bank AC I thought it might give me some peace of mind to have the DC charger as well.

 

4) As far as shimming up the TM, you can go with what you mentioned or the rubber grommets.

 

I was going to go with just shims but think I might get the rubber mounts....Does it make sense they would incorporate a little flex there, and leaving less chance of something breaking/cracking later on? That was my thought at least.

 

5) Only if you are going to use the boat on one of the Great Lakes would the Quick Disconnect mount be necessary. On the big lakes the motor

I dont get out on the GL much but I thought it might be a good idea to be able to take the TM off when I get home......I guess its a peace of mind/paranoia thing again

 

Thanks again to all that jumped in and made their comments!!!

 

Bill