deermaster

i guess i figured most people put familiy and friends and religion first and didnt mention it...should have, as you said, it should be first. so, i guess i really meant whats second to family and friends

thats the kinda post i was looking for. its cool to hear what you like the best, and also what other things you enjoy.

just wondering freshwater fishing is your 12 month a year hobby? i started out as a deer hunting nut, but lost all the land i had, poachers and baiters ruined the small tracts of public land, and it came down to me waiting all year to hunt, only to have one or two un ruined trips per year. it was a waste of my time. so i had to look elsewhere for an addiction, and i think ive found it. i absolutely love bass fishing, although i totally suk at it. its a blast. im now looking for a canoe or small tin boat to turn into a bass slayer. the cool thing about this sport is, you can go as big or little into it, and still be able to catch nice fish. fishing from the bank, a canoe or little tin boat, or thousands dollar bass boat, you can have fun and still catch nice bass. its all i can think about lol. i am planning to do some duck hunting in december and january, and that only leaves one slow month, febuary, and all the rest i can bass fish! is bass fishing what takes the main place of your hobbies? what else do you enjoy doing? im getting into knife collecting, its also an addicting hobby. may do some surf fishing this summer for drum on assatueage island, but other than that, i think ill try to catch some bass ;D ;D

i like the way you look at it ;D thanks for the replies!

looks like i wont be able to get motor for my 15 ft v hull, so ill have to fish from a duck boat. its a 10' "sneakboat", 36" bottom, super stable, has sides that really flare out. i can easily sit or stand and fish with no worries. will be running a 55lb trolling motor. my question is, does anyone else use your duck boats to fish? i may look like a nut out there in a camo sneak boat....i dunno...me and boats dont seem to be working out to well, and its all i got. whatcha think?

i live on the eastern shore of va, but the pocomoke river is the closest place to bass fish, other than some small farm ponds. i was wondering if any of you on here fish the river. i have a couple times, but plan to do alot this summer from a kayak.

whats a good trolling battery charger? i no nothing about em, so i was wondering, i see some that say fast charge, slow trickle, or something like that. which is better? id be charging 2-3 batteries, dont know if you can get a charger to do more than one... thanks.

last questions. 1) if i get a 24 or 36v motor, can i spread the batteries out around my boat so all the weight isnt in one spot? like can i put 2 under my middle bench seat, one under the back bench seat, and have em all wired together? 2) lets say i get a 24v motor, and it runs on 2 batteries. can i carry one spare battery, a total of 3, for emergency, and take one of the used batteries off and put a fully charged one on, or do they both have to be equally charged? 3) if you run a 105 motor at 50%, is it giving you 52.5 lbs of thrust, or is the 50%measured in some other way? 4) how long does it take to charge a battery after a normal day of use? thanks, i think these are the final questions. i appeciate all the help.

some more info: the boat is a '63, and what i can make out of the plate, is 45 hp and nothing else. i was told back then motors were rated for hp differently, as someone already said. there is no floor in the boat, and im not going to put one in. the old steering "dashboard" is going to be removed and a bench seat put there, properly braced. i measured the transom from the top, to the deepest part of the bottom, on the outside, and got 16". so with this info in mind, does that change anything?

i think i may just go with an outboard rather than a high trust trolling motor and heavy batteries. to get me a another person on plane, say about 450 lbs of people and gear, what size 2 stroke or 4 stroke would you get? its 15', v hull aluminum starcraft. thanks.

so going by what you said, would running a 109 at 50% get me 4 miles total? with some battery left? thanks. also, is 50% power in a 109 enough to push my 15' aluminum v hull and 2 people, in good weather? would push my boat and 2 people into a 20 mph wind at a higher setting if necessary?

also, i can get a brand new 2.5 yamaha for the same price as the 82-109 minn kotas. would that give me more power?

have a couple more questions and would appreciate any input, and appreciate the help on the other thread. so here are my questions. 1) if i get a 36v trolling motor, is my only option to wire 3 12v batterys together? 2) how much does a 12v battery weigh, and what is a rough price for a decent one? 3) on a 15' v hull aluminum boat, with 2 people, how long can i expect to run, wide open, not stop, on a 109lb 36v minn kota with one (or 3 12v) battery fully charged, no head or tail wind? 4) and finally, for a boat using a trolling motor as its primary propulsion, would a bow mount or transom mount give me the most control in wind? thanks for bearing with me, i am new to all this and want to be sure i know what its capable of before spending the money.

just wondering what to expect to pay for a battery for a 24 or 36 volt trolling motor. also, how much does one weigh? thanks, mike.

what kind of speed could i expect from a large trolling motor say a 60-80 and the load i described? 3 mph? 1? 5? i really have no idea. as for the sheltered water, the places i duck hunt are low marsh areas, and the wind really can whip across it, but do to the broken marsh, there is no real chance for seas to form, but you still feel the wind. kinda hard to describe unless you see it.

i dont have a pic showing the width, but it is fairly wide, 4' at the transom and 60" at the widest point in the bottom. will this make a difference in how much power is required?

yessir, great answers and very helpful links. memo, im from the eastern shore of va. some of the well known areas nearby are salisbury, md, about an hour north of me, and kipptopeake va, about an hour south of me. chincatueage va is about 30 miles north of me. just to give you an idea of where im at. plenty of great freshwater, saltwater fishing, and all the deer and duck hunting a person can stand...i love it.

well thats great news! i was looking at the 55-80 lb and was not looking foward to paying for it thanks again.

thanks!

i just got this, my first boat, a 15' aluminum, and would like to use just a trolling motor for my first year, while i save for a decent 25 hp or so. i know it needs some work and DEFINATLY a new paint job... :-X but the trailer is solid and the boat is in great shape. my question is what size trolling motor should i get for my primary propulsion? there will be 2 people in the boat, probably 400 lbs total weight of 2 people and out gear, weight of the battery and trolling motor not included. i will be in sheltered water, so there will be no seas, but i would like to be able to go out duck hunting in wondy conditions, about 20 mph wind MAX, and distance will be no more than a mile or 2 one way. so what size would you get to push a 15' with 2 people into a 15-20 mph wind? thanks for any info.

i just bought a 15' v hull starcraft riveted aluminum boat and trailer for 250$. the boat is in great shape and the trailer is ver solid, just needs a good wire brushing and paint. this is my first boat, so i ahd a couple of questions for va boat owners. 1) does my trailer have to pass an inspection to get registered and licensed by dmv? 2) does va require a boating course to operate a recreational boat? 3) does my boat or trailer need to be insured to be legal? thanks for any info!

i need power for a homemade boat, made for fishing small ponds and duck hunting. it is 12', shaped alot like a wide canoe with a square stern, and weights 80 lbs. can a trolling motor push this? i know nothing about motors, so it my be obvious to most. what kind of battery life can i expect? can i go 2 miles on it? speed is not an issue, anything is better than paddling. how powerful should i get? can it push it into a 15 mph head wind? also, it will be used in saltwater. does it HAVE to be made for saltwater? thanks for any help!

yep, its the eastern shore community college. will be transfering to ODU next year. we have ALOT of small farm ponds. i can think of 4 that anyone can go to and LOTS more that i could possibly get permission to fish. have one here that a guy caught a 7 lb bass. pretty good for a little farm pond lol. plenty of freshwater here. thanks for all the replies!

its really the only way i get to fish right now. i can go inbetween college classes, and cant get the canoe out. any one else do alot of shore fishing? i would love to get a boat, but college and gas is high, as if i had ta tell yall that...lol. so how do you fish?