help with electric motor

[eimeo]

i have a 4.1 polycraft and want to fish for barra in the dams and lakes in nth queensland.this is all new to me and i need some help in picking which electric motor and what size i need.Price is not the main consideration-i would rather pay more and have good quality,it will be used a lot.which brand has the best battery life and how long could i expect before i have to charge batteries.
your help is greatly appreciated
thanks
dave

[Pete62]

Difficult one to answer Dave. I think the general responses u will get is that u get what u pay for, having said that many of the cheaper leckies owners (myself included) are very happy with theirs.

I have a 55 Watersnake which is now almost 3 yrs old and has seen a lot of work, it is showing signs of wear, getting noisier in the steering and showing some corrosion around the motor, but it has NEVER broken down.

I had a mate onboard for a weekend trip recently who owns a MK and he said mine was noisier than his (in the steering) but the foot control was a lot more user friendly.

In regards to re-charging, depends on the size of the battery, how much you use it in a day and the weather conditions(wind and tide)

A 44 will pull the 4.1 but I would prefer a bit more than just enough, 55 for sure.

Hope that helps.

Pete.

[krazyfisher]

I have a 55 on a 4mtr and it can only just hold against a run out tide in the pioneer river. and its good in dams.

Mine is a water snake I went with a cheap on as I dont use it that much, still going well

[tim barra master]

I have always had minnkota motors of 55lb thrust or bigger both in tiller and autopilot as they have a battery maximiser costly upfront but worth it
Minnkota has the patent on autopilot steering
Point it in a direction you want to go and the motor pulls that way regardless of the wind or current direction or direction of the boat at the time.
Once the boat is being pulled along the steering straightens up much like your car does
I am not saying these are the greatest product But I recon the yanks have nailed it here.

[NAGG]

A 55lber should be the minimum you should look at ( specially having a heavy poly) ...... If you can afford it - go a 24 volt system ( 70lb ish) & just use 2 x 100 amp batteries ( you will get a good run as you will be running on a lower power setting). As for charging set the boat up with an on board charger ( just plug it in to 240 volt & away you go )

Now .... Brands

My MK has been problematic since I bought it ( It knows its own way back to BLA) ..... but having said that - It is fixed everytime & returned quickly at no charge. The last time it was rebuilt completely & has worked fine for the past 9 months ......... I may have been unlucky , but the back up will have me considering another when the need arises. ( the auto pilot alone is well worth it)

Chris

[Kleyny]

Nagg,

I see you have finally made it to gods' country.

congrats


neil

[Bear001]

I have 4m Hornet Trophy - with 40ETEC and it matches nicely with the 55lb Minn Kota. (about 325kg dry weight)

I have a 120amp Supercharge allrounder (deep-cycle and cranking) battery that lasts about 6hrs with 2 decent sized people, 2 cartons of beer , ice and all the gear on board. That is also trolling at about 3/4 flat bicci. So putting a fair bit of pressure on the MK. But when by myself, empty esky and mixing trolling and casting I get about 8hrs.

I ended up lashing out and got the Terrova model -with Auto Pilot and the little hand remote - BEST MONEY I EVER SPENT!!!! Being a smaller boat - I hate crap on the floor, so I love the remote, plus I can just pass it to someone esle. I have had no problems with my MK at all.

[NAGG]

Nagg,

I see you have finally made it to gods' country.

congrats


neil

Thanks Neil

It took me a while , but I got here

Chris

[Apollo]

Dave

I have a 54lb watersnake on my 4m cruisecraft. Boat is light (<200kg dry) and the electric powers along. I have mine coupled to two T105 6v batteries (had a couple of spares) and I can fish two days on a dam (calm weather) before it needs a recharge.

[trilogy]

Have a look at www.polyboatowners.com plenty of help there.