The Coho King
Smolt
Any advice or opinions on using an electric trolling motor on a pontoon? Mine has a mount but never considered until I recently forgot my oars. Also maybe a good backup for windy days or larger lakes?
Trolling Pontoons?
- Thread starter The Coho King
- Start date
Use the smallest electric motor you can find-usually about 30# thrust nowadays-and the smallest battery that is sufficient to do the job. A 35 AH sealed battery weighs in at about 22#. cost <$100. I assume you will use the motor for moving place to place as the stock trolling motors run too fast at the lowest speed to actually troll with.
If trolling is your thing then look into using a PWM to lower the speed of the motor and extend battery life. There has been a ton of discussion on Pulse Width Modulators on here recently so refer to that if you need more information.
If trolling is your thing then look into using a PWM to lower the speed of the motor and extend battery life. There has been a ton of discussion on Pulse Width Modulators on here recently so refer to that if you need more information.
I put one on my frameless pontoon, using a mount I built based off pics from another member here. 30 lb thrust with a 40 ah life pro lithium battery. I don’t troll with it unless I decide to put a line out while moving around the lake, which is what I have it for. Works really well for that though.
The Coho King
Smolt
Thanks, good to know bigger is not better for a toon. Think Cabela's carries good motor and battery? Ignorant on battery, what is AH? I read something about 12v and not sure if lithium, or if lithium bad. Could be useful to hit the far side of a lake for once.
The Coho King
Smolt
Looks nice. Where to buy and approx run time?
I bought the battery off Amazon and the motor from WallyMart just because it was closest place to me that carried them. Sportmans has them as well as would Cabelas. I am very new to this…like 2 months in so cannot offer much advice There is some good info on batteries for trolling motors in the lake and/or watercraft sub forums that helped me a lot.
Run time: not sure yet. I prefer to kick or row so have only used it to make big moves. Most time I’ve used it on any given day was 30-45 minutes to date.
Run time: not sure yet. I prefer to kick or row so have only used it to make big moves. Most time I’ve used it on any given day was 30-45 minutes to date.
RCF
Life of the Party
On my rowboat a Minnkota 30 will run at least 5 hours trolling the entire time on a 35 AH AGM battery without PWM. It may be using more than recommended discharge though...
I wish I could troll slower so looking at PWM now plus the battery will last a lot longer. On a pontoon you will troll way faster than me without PWM due to lower boat weight and reduced boat resistance. Too fast IMHO.
Getting a lower thrust motor may sound great. But if winds are above 8 mph my 10' boat with 30 lb. thrust motor is barely enough to get me back home if I have enough battery charge left on top speed. Note: PWM would help with this.
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Volt, Amps, Amp-hour, Watt and Watt-hour: terminology and guide
On this page we explain in detail what these terms mean and how to use the most important formulas: V x A = W | Wh = Ah x V | Ah = A x h
www.rebel-cell.com
I have a 36 pound trolling motor I put on my Bucks Bags Southfork. I don't troll; I just use it to move around the lake. Works well. Bucks Bags makes a motor mount for the toon, but I just built my own out of plywood.
Don't ditch your oars. Many pontoons track poorly under power. I leave my oars in the oarlocks, and with the shafts in their rests the blades hang in the water a bit and provide the stability to keep it going in a straight line. I can even put my hand on the oar shaft and steer by twisting it left or right a bit. That's much easier than having to reach the handle of the motor, which tends to be behind my head. Also, you need the oars for backup in case you run out of battery or the motor fails.
I use a 100 Ah lead-acid battery ($75 at Walmart). I tend to motor at top speed up to 2-3 miles in a day's fishing. (According to the GPS on my depth finder, top speed is about 2.8 mph.) The battery will handle 2-3 days of that before getting noticeably low. (I take 2 of them when I go out for 4-5 days.) The battery is heavy at 40+ pounds. I don't think 35 Ah would handle it for me. The 50 Ah lithium batteries would probably be good, since you can discharge them more than the 50% recommended for lead-acid, but at $200+ each I'm still lugging the big batteries.
The motor has a shear pin, so I carry a spare, though I've never had to use it. I run my depth finder on the same battery, so I installed quick connects on both the motor and depth finder to make it easy to connect and disconnect everything in one operation.
One important thing... Don't know about where you live, but in Colorado if you put a motor of any kind on a boat of any kind, you then have to have it registered and display the registration numbers. With the required ANS stamp, registration runs $60 per year for me--the same as for an 18 footer with a 100 hp motor
Don't ditch your oars. Many pontoons track poorly under power. I leave my oars in the oarlocks, and with the shafts in their rests the blades hang in the water a bit and provide the stability to keep it going in a straight line. I can even put my hand on the oar shaft and steer by twisting it left or right a bit. That's much easier than having to reach the handle of the motor, which tends to be behind my head. Also, you need the oars for backup in case you run out of battery or the motor fails.
I use a 100 Ah lead-acid battery ($75 at Walmart). I tend to motor at top speed up to 2-3 miles in a day's fishing. (According to the GPS on my depth finder, top speed is about 2.8 mph.) The battery will handle 2-3 days of that before getting noticeably low. (I take 2 of them when I go out for 4-5 days.) The battery is heavy at 40+ pounds. I don't think 35 Ah would handle it for me. The 50 Ah lithium batteries would probably be good, since you can discharge them more than the 50% recommended for lead-acid, but at $200+ each I'm still lugging the big batteries.
The motor has a shear pin, so I carry a spare, though I've never had to use it. I run my depth finder on the same battery, so I installed quick connects on both the motor and depth finder to make it easy to connect and disconnect everything in one operation.
One important thing... Don't know about where you live, but in Colorado if you put a motor of any kind on a boat of any kind, you then have to have it registered and display the registration numbers. With the required ANS stamp, registration runs $60 per year for me--the same as for an 18 footer with a 100 hp motor
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The Coho King
Smolt
Sounds like a plan. Cowlitz Bottomfeeder said he has set up to let me demo. Just want to try it and toon came with a mount...that I removed for weight. Do you know if WA requires registration for any motorized boat as Triggw mentions above?
“To navigate, operate, employ or moor your vessel in Washington, you must have a Washington title, registration card and registration decals, except:
- If your vessel is a canoe, kayak, or a vessel not propelled by a motor or sail
- If your vessel is less than 16 feet in length and has a motor of 10 horsepower or less and is used on non-federal waters only
- If your vessel is properly registered by a resident of another state or country who uses Washington waters for 60 days or fewer
Boat Registration | Washington State Parks
The Coho King
Smolt
Thanks for this info. Good news then for WA. 9 foot pontoons with 40 thrust electric I'd like .55 HP...so exempt. Not sure of non-federal waters, but should be safe in freshwater lakes. I'll give it it go but oars enough for most lakes and may just cost me time on lake or other fly fishing needs.“To navigate, operate, employ or moor your vessel in Washington, you must have a Washington title, registration card and registration decals, except:
The registration card (the cutout portion of the Vessel Registration Certificate) must be onboard whenever you use your vessel.”
- If your vessel is a canoe, kayak, or a vessel not propelled by a motor or sail
- If your vessel is less than 16 feet in length and has a motor of 10 horsepower or less and is used on non-federal waters only
- If your vessel is properly registered by a resident of another state or country who uses Washington waters for 60 days or fewer
Boat Registration | Washington State Parks
www.parks.wa.gov
You can look that up, too. Lakes Washington and Sammamish are navigable aka federal waters. https://www.nws.usace.army.mil/Port...0List-v20200212.pdf?ver=2020-02-12-191659-707Thanks for this info. Good news then for WA. 9 foot pontoons with 40 thrust electric I'd like .55 HP...so exempt. Not sure of non-federal waters, but should be safe in freshwater lakes. I'll give it it go but oars enough for most lakes and may just cost me time on lake or other fly fishing needs.
The Coho King
Smolt
Caveat, a good source tells me federal waters means more than waters declared navigable, can mean on federal or nat park lands. The larger lakes I may use for fun are safe both ways.
I have a 40 thrust MotorGuide that I run on a Scadden Outlaw X 10 footer . Variable speed throttle , just clicked on it barely moves the boat , too slow to troll . But yes most of the 5 speeds are either too slow or too fast depending on the speed set . My first motor was the Minn Kota 30 , 5 speeds forward , 2 reverse . Turned the head to have 5 speeds reverse . Hated that motor for reasons mentioned , gave it away , and went with the Variable speed .
Any speed I want trolling , slow enough that sinking line hits bottom if enough line is out if running in 20 feet or less . I would suggest anyone buying a electric trolling motor to go variable for the little bit of money extra it’s well worth it .
I have a 36 pound trolling motor I put on my Bucks Bags Southfork. I don't troll; I just use it to move around the lake. Works well. Bucks Bags makes a motor mount for the toon, but I just built my own out of plywood.
Don't ditch your oars. Many pontoons track poorly under power. I leave my oars in the oarlocks, and with the shafts in their rests the blades hang in the water a bit and provide the stability to keep it going in a straight line. I can even put my hand on the oar shaft and steer by twisting it left or right a bit. That's much easier than having to reach the handle of the motor, which tends to be behind my head. Also, you need the oars for backup in case you run out of battery or the motor fails.
I use a 100 Ah lead-acid battery ($75 at Walmart). I tend to motor at top speed up to 2-3 miles in a day's fishing. (According to the GPS on my depth finder, top speed is about 2.8 mph.) The battery will handle 2-3 days of that before getting noticeably low. (I take 2 of them when I go out for 4-5 days.) The battery is heavy at 40+ pounds. I don't think 35 Ah would handle it for me. The 50 Ah lithium batteries would probably be good, since you can discharge them more than the 50% recommended for lead-acid, but at $200+ each I'm still lugging the big batteries.
The motor has a shear pin, so I carry a spare, though I've never had to use it. I run my depth finder on the same battery, so I installed quick connects on both the motor and depth finder to make it easy to connect and disconnect everything in one operation.
One important thing... Don't know about where you live, but in Colorado if you put a motor of any kind on a boat of any kind, you then have to have it registered and display the registration numbers. With the required ANS stamp, registration runs $60 per year for me--the same as for an 18 footer with a 100 hp motor
Although I take oars , I seldom use them . I have fins , and I keep the boat running straight , and do everything with the fins , I can turn around in less then 10’, and be going the other direction with just the fins guiding me . A bit further with this Scadden , then with my other Scadden being 9’ .
The only time I even turn the motor is if I’ve got a side wind that I have to fight with the fins to keep the boat straight . I like my hands free to fish , strip the line etc . I wouldn’t even take oars if it wasn’t for the fact my motor could quit , or dead battery , and get caught in a wind that I can’t handle getting to shore with just fins .
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That would be nice , here in Utah a motorized boat has to be registered. I believe it’s about $50 per year now for my pontoon boat . Yes 40 thrust is nice on a 9 footer , if I ever need a new motor I’ll go 55 just for the extra if needed , price wise not a big deal , plus as mentioned before variable speed IMO is the only way to go .Thanks for this info. Good news then for WA. 9 foot pontoons with 40 thrust electric I'd like .55 HP...so exempt. Not sure of non-federal waters, but should be safe in freshwater lakes. I'll give it it go but oars enough for most lakes and may just cost me time on lake or other fly fishing needs.
My little 30# Minn Kota pushes my pontoon boat around wonderfully. I have it on reverse speed 1 much of the time I am fishing, using my fins to steer and move about. It is amazing how poorly it tracks going forward! I agree about the oars: that is how I control direction when racing (?!?) forward to my next fishing hole... or back to the dock. Fins up, oars out, feathering the water to steer. I registered mine in Oregon.
Do you know that you can reverse the head on that motor , and have 5 speeds in reverse . That way if you want to motor in quickly or to the next fishing hole you can , won’t need to deal with going forward .
