First day on boat

[Justbass11]

Today was the first day that I was able to take my boat out for a full day of fishing which was great except for 2 things. The trolling motor (Motor Guild )has seen its better days along with my fish finder. The trolling motor works but its not so good, and for some reason I can not get the fish finder to find fish, or speed of the boat or the depth of the water. I could be wrong but....I think that might be a problem, I plan on getting new a lot sooner than later. My boat is a 03 Triton TR185 with a 150 Mercury and as 2 little knobs on the bow to run the trolling motor and one of those don't work, I am looking for a new trolling motor with a foot controller and fish finder which is a old Lowrance X52. (I hope that this is making since) My budget is around the $400ish for the fish finder and $500ish for the trolling motor, Any thought on this would be great, and one more thing, I'm not so good at this kind of things to mount myself. This all being said, I had a great time on my boat. Have a great Easter weekend and remember that Jesus loves us all.

Jeff

PS going to try and post pics of the boat this weekend after it has a bath

[Fishes in trees]

Just for the record, you don't make " since".  "Since " is an adjective, having to do with time, i.e. from then til now, as it were.  Perhaps you were referring to making " sense "?     It isn't my intention to be grammar narc, but really, you can't make "since".

 

[J._Bricker]

Justbass11, you didn't state in your original post what pound thrust your current trolling motor is rated or the age/condition of the batteries.  I'd just suggest going up a little in thrust if you're looking at buying a new trolling motor as you'll probably appreciate the added speed and maneuverability.  And Happy Easter and good fishing Jeff

 

[Justbass11]

Thanks J._Bricker for making since of what I was trying to say...lol...Its has 45lbs of thrust on a 12v batteries. I am not saying that Motor Guild is the problem its just old and warned out.

[J._Bricker]

No worries Jeff, had a 50lb thrust 24v Motorguide motor on an 18ft boat when I bought it.  I soon replaced that motor with a 67lb Motorguide and it  made BIG difference, especially in the delta river current.  Boat actually maybe a little wake when spooled up!  It wasn't to difficult of a DIY project Jeff if I remember correctly, and I have found YouTube to be very helpful when it comes to these kind of projects.  Just swapped out the three station valve for my live wells with minimal difficulty....

[Justbass11]

I believe that you are right J_Bricker about going with a bigger motor. I am looking at staying with the Motorguide motor, Not sure about which fish finder yet. I will be looking at youtube for how to do it all that is for sure.

[WIGuide]

Those will be two nice upgrades. My advice is get the biggest tm you can afford and can make work on you boat. (don't buy a 36v if you only have room for 2 batteries). I've never heard anyone wish their trolling motor wasn't as strong. Also, try to get one with a variable dial instead of preset speeds. Not only will it allow you to dial in your speed better, but it'll help to extend your batteries too.