What are those fancy trolling motors like? Are they worth buying?

[LuckyLittleFisher]

Recently I'm studying on some of the top trolling motors that offer very novel features, something like auto-lift, that may really save my arms when lift these metal lumps up and down.

And other features like autopilot the boat according to spots I set up and bla bla...save my effort and just fishing.

I should say in somehow those stuffs look really fancy.

But are these functions really as good as described?

Which features are really useful?

Have you ever used them?

How often you rich guys use them. Please give us your comments.

If you guys tell me this stuff is actually worth using, I'm gonna need to start saving up thousands of dollars, like 3500-4000 bucks.I don't understand!!!🤣

[Lottabass]

@LuckyLittleFisher  I'll give you my 2 cents worth.  I use a hand steer motor on my little boat and I have an Autoboat device (from Tiny Boat Nation) that I use in the late season when I'm fishing more open, deeper water.  This device gives me Anchor Mode, or spot lock, which is absolutely invaluable in the wind.  An electric steer motor is worthless when fishing shallow and in cover, which is what I do most of the year.  Now if I had a big bass boat I would have an Ultrex to provide foot control steering with the advantage of having Spot Lock.  Good luck with your decision!

[DinkDonkey30]

I use an 80lb Ulterra on my Triton. I’ve had it for 3 years. It’s gets used 3+ days a week 8 months or more a year. If you aren’t somewhat mechanically inclined/good with electrical I would stay away from them. They can be finicky and dealer support/Hummingbird support can be very lack luster or all together useless. When it functions as advertised the features are great but for the price I should have stuck with an Ultrex.

[LuckyLittleFisher]

21 minutes ago, DinkDonkey30 said:

I use an 80lb Ulterra on my Triton. I’ve had it for 3 years. It’s gets used 3+ days a week 8 months or more a year. If you aren’t somewhat mechanically inclined/good with electrical I would stay away from them. They can be finicky and dealer support/Hummingbird support can be very lack luster or all together useless. When it functions as advertised the features are great but for the price I should have stuck with an Ultrex.

Ulterra works well for you? Which function is greatest?

2 hours ago, Lottabass said:

@LuckyLittleFisher  I'll give you my 2 cents worth.  I use a hand steer motor on my little boat and I have an Autoboat device (from Tiny Boat Nation) that I use in the late season when I'm fishing more open, deeper water.  This device gives me Anchor Mode, or spot lock, which is absolutely invaluable in the wind.  An electric steer motor is worthless when fishing shallow and in cover, which is what I do most of the year.  Now if I had a big bass boat I would have an Ultrex to provide foot control steering with the advantage of having Spot Lock.  Good luck with your decision!

like ads said spot lock will keep you positioned in 5 ft?

[Bucks Bass and Bourbon]

I picked up a Garmin Force three years ago when I still had a 16 foot aluminum. Since then I have moved to a fiberglass 19 foot bass boat and swapped all my electronics over to it including the force. Before the Garmin I used a simple Minn Kota Edge hand troller with absolutely no features built in. With the smaller boat I was almost exclusively on small water but now I can fish larger waters like Lake St Clair and Saginaw Bay. I can definitively say the features on the Garmin (anchor lock, networking with Garmin graphs, its power, plotting routes, etc) are absolute must-haves for me now - especially anchor (spot) lock.

The Garmin does not have raise or lower assist but that means nothing to me so I can’t speak to any of those features but the others I can. Even in shallow water I am constantly adjusting my position with the foot pedal to navigate shallow obstacles like stumps or positioning along the shoreline, and can use it in as little as 2 feet of water with no issues if I have to. The anchor lock is absolutely mandatory on any open water or depths of about 7 feet or higher if you are in any current or wind. Non-negotiable. If you’re trying to stay on a piece of structure without it you are simply not going to be able to or will be very inefficient in doing so and will sacrifice fishing time. 

There is absolutely no way I would go back to a trolling motor without the essential features I described above. Expensive? Yes they are? Are those features gimmicks? No not at all. Hope that helps. 

[casts_by_fly]

I've had autopilot on my kayak for the past 4 years (effectively a powerdrive riptide shortened for the kayak) and also fished my dad's boat which is a basic cable steer no frills trolling motor on a 16' tracker.  I just bought a boat (it's getting rigged right now) and went ultrex (almost went terrova, details below).

 

For me, spot lock is great if you're fishing off shore.  Its also really nice when landing a fish.  When you hook up, hit the lock and don't worry about being blown off your spot or being pulled into the cover (more an issue with a kayak than a big boat).  Also nice when rerigging for the same reasons.  If you fish 5' most of the time and have poles, then this will be less useful, but if you're deeper than that often or don't have poles then spot lock is great.

 

Even more used for me on the kayak was navigation.  Set a direction and a speed then mostly forget about it.  When you're going down the bank casting, you can set the speed for 1/2 mph and the direction so you're a cast length away from the bank.  No fiddling with you controlling the boat unless you want to.  This is super useful in variable wind conditions.  Put the nose into the wind and tell it to maintain 1/2 mph despite the wind changing from 5 mph to 20 mph gusts.

 

I've not linked the motor in the past because the autopilot doesn't allow for it.  The new ultrex will, and I can see the contour following as being useful in a couple of my lakes.  I'll give it a try.  Navigate to waypoint will be a good one for me.  I'll mark waypoints on side imaging and then come back to them with live imaging.  I would use side by side maps and live imaging to manually motor back to the waypoint and then spotlock.  In this case, I can shut down the gas motor well out and have the trolling motor navigate to waypoint.  Not a critical feature, but I can see myself using it.

[DaubsNU1]

Fished with a Minn Kota cable steer 40lb bow mounted trolling motor for 20+ years. It served me well. Strapped the Garmin Echomap transducer to the TM motor...again, served me well.

 

When I upgraded boats, seriously considered the Garmin Force. Also considered the Ultrex and Birds for fish finders. But after fishing in my Brother's Lund, I went a different direction. Side and down imaging on the Humminbirds seemed much better than my Garmin. So I sent that route.

 

I really, REALLY love the Ulterra matched up with Helix 9's, all networked. Spot lock is amazing! Go-to-mark gets used a lot. Autopilot is great as well. 

 

I really like the auto-deploy and stow for the Ulterra. I don't use auto-deploy and stow if I'm the only one at the loading ramp, or weather is bad (it's old school rope on those days). I had to swim once when the deploy got hung up. Thankfully it was in June, and the water was warm.

 

I fish Saturday and Sunday's from April through October. Do two or three longer fishing trips a year...the Ulterra gets used a lot. Brother and I drove his Lund to Canada last summer...five straights days on the Churchill river system...no issues whatsoever. One downside of the Ulterra, I cannot attach FFS to that trolling motor.

[TnRiver46]

I’ve fished for many years without a trolling motor at all, if that tells you anything. Usually have better success that way too, quiet and sneaky 

 

the trolling motor I do have is hand operated 

[TOXIC]

I’ve owned 3 boats and 5 different trolling motors. My first was a pvc Bass Hunter with. 12v minnkota Endurance hand steer 46lb thrust.  Worked flawlessly.  Sold with boat.  Second was a 24v Motorguide 80lb foot control on a 20 foot NITRO 929 CDC.  Third was my current boat a 2005 Ranger Z21 that had a 109lb thrust 36v Motorguide on it when I bought it.  It failed multiple times letting water into the prop area.  I replaced it with a minnkota Fortrex 100lb + thrust that was working fine when I replaced it.  I replaced it with a Lowrance Ghost for one main reason.  Spotlock.  I am a slow adapter and pretty thrifty so I cannot take full advantage of all the advanced features of the Ghost even though I have lowrance electronics.  They are older.  It has the added capability, with the right electronics to follow contours, navigate to waypoints, etc.  brushless motor and added battery life is a benefit.  I only use the spotlock and remote control features.  Spotlock while fishing tidal rivers is almost a necessity.  My fishing partner has on his boat the newest version of Lowrance electronics, lithium batteries and a Power Pole Move trolling motor.  He can control everything from his remote including his Power Poles.  No need for stomp switches.  I am functional he is advanced. 😂 The spotlock feature was important enough to me to upgrade.  

[Logan S]

I prefer (by a wide margin) the cable steer trolling motors that were standard issue for decades before the GPS-enabled models came out....But I can't discount the convenience of spot lock and almost equally the heading-lock (or whatever the "keep me going this direction" button is called )....So I have an Ultrex now.  

 

They've become yet another crutch, boat control and positioning is becoming a lost art.  

[DinkDonkey30]

1 hour ago, LuckyLittleFisher said:

Ulterra works well for you? Which function is greatest?

like ads said spot lock will keep you positioned in 5 ft?

The Ulterra works but I wouldn’t say well. The “auto” stow and deploy is the best feature but not the most reliable. I’ve had to fix mine multiple times on the water due to mfg errors. Some times it just needs a reset sometimes I have to disassemble to address the magnet switch that controls the function, wiring issues, belt issues etc. Spot lock does stay within 5 ft when spot lock works it randomly kicks out at times. I haven’t figured out why but I believe it drops gps signal then kicks off. The problem is it doesn’t give any spot lock drop notification so you can be holding a tight spot around things you don’t want to hit and just drift off without warning. The ability to hold depth/contour lines if linked to a graph is very nice but is only as good as the mapping itself.The Ulterra is also a real pain to hook up a mega live transducer for forward facing sonar due to how the stow deployment design works so if you have plans for that I’d avoid the Ulterra. It’s possible to make work but isn’t easy. Overall my next boat will be rigged with Garmin electronics and troller. Hummingbird from my experience and from what I’ve seen of other anglers in a few clubs I fish just aren’t where it’s at. If I did stay with HB it would be an ultrex. They are much more durable/reliable. I had one on my bow fishing boat and it went through way more abuse than this ulterra with 0 issues. I also know many others who have had a better experience with them.

[Swamp Girl]

I don't use a trolling motor, but if I did, I would pay for SpotLock. I know I could catch more fish if I had that because I would spend more time fishing instead of paddling back into position. 

[A-Jay]

13 minutes ago, Logan S said:

They've become yet another crutch, boat control and positioning is becoming a lost art.  

Not for me ~ 

#fortrexforlife

A-Jay

[Logan S]

Hold strong @A-Jay .  My home lake, 20-minutes from my driveway to floating, is electric only...Getting around there easier was a big reason for my upgrade.  

[Scott F]

I’ve had a Minn Kota Terrova 80# thrust for several years now. My favorite feature is the low profile foot pedal. Those very tall foot pedals on the cable steer motors are out of the question for me. They do turn faster but I can operate my TM from anywhere in the boat, without trying to balance on one foot. With the short cable, you’re are limited to where you can place the pedal. I don’t have the space or desire to cut a hole in the deck to lower the pedal to a reasonable position that limits you even more. Sitting down, I can keep my feet almost flat on the floor and just use toe to steer and turn the Terrova motor on and off. The remote control is great but I use the foot pedal more often. I like having both hands free to fish with. Spot lock and direction lock are also features I can’t live without. Being able to connect the motor to my depth finder would be nice but not worth the additional money for me. 

[BrianMDTX]

1 hour ago, TnRiver46 said:

I’ve fished for many years without a trolling motor at all, if that tells you anything. Usually have better success that way too, quiet and sneaky 

 

the trolling motor I do have is hand operated 

My Minn Kota is 38-40 years old. I know not of these fancy features of which others speak. Spot Lock? I know spot luck, but that’s about it! 😂

[WRB]

You can get spot lock feature on several TM’s without upgrading to $3000/$4000 brushless TM’s.

Spot lock to me is essential after 50 years without it!

It comes down to your current boat, batteries and electronics being compatible to use the higher end TM’s.

IF AJay is happy with his Fortex check it out out.

Tom

[spartyon8]

2 hours ago, DinkDonkey30 said:

I use an 80lb Ulterra on my Triton. I’ve had it for 3 years. It’s gets used 3+ days a week 8 months or more a year. If you aren’t somewhat mechanically inclined/good with electrical I would stay away from them. They can be finicky and dealer support/Hummingbird support can be very lack luster or all together useless. When it functions as advertised the features are great but for the price I should have stuck with an Ultrex.

Agreed. I recently took a dip on 40* water when mine decided not to autodeploy when unloading. They are very voltage sensitive and when on the water it can turn a great day into a nightmare. 

[casts_by_fly]

2 hours ago, DaubsNU1 said:

One downside of the Ulterra, I cannot attach FFS to that trolling motor.

 

 

You can if you want.  There are a couple options, with this one being the best rated that I could see.  $350.  I was going to go terrova on my boat in progress but then would have needed this mount.  For the extra $350 I just went ultrex.  Its 40# heavier and cable steer (with power assist), but if I want to control from the back of the boat I can use the remote.

 

https://www.bassfishinelectronics.com/products/cornfield-fishing-live-view-transducer-mount-terrova-ulterra-power-drive?srsltid=AfmBOora-Otm8xdDYXHe1L_wj8IP_lzSR-f0jyNT9kOTZGTWBkkOC58C

[DinkDonkey30]

22 minutes ago, spartyon8 said:

Agreed. I recently took a dip on 40* water when mine decided not to autodeploy when unloading. They are very voltage sensitive and when on the water it can turn a great day into a nightmare. 

I’ve been pretty fortunate I haven’t gone overboard due to a malfunction yet but I can definitely understand how it happens. I’m a diesel tech by trade so I’m fairly capable of fixing stuff especially in less than ideal situations. I feel for the consumers who buy these units without the ability to work on them. I had mine less than 3 weeks the first time it went down. D and R sports who I bought it from told me it would be a month before they even looked at it and that was if I brought it in removed from the boat. Mind you they wouldn’t swap it or anything even though it was literally brand new. So I stood to loose who knows how many weeks on the water or fix it myself. 

[DaubsNU1]

13 minutes ago, casts_by_fly said:

You can if you want.  There are a couple options, with this one being the best rated that I could see.  $350.  I was going to go terrova on my boat in progress but then would have needed this mount.  For the extra $350 I just went ultrex.  Its 40# heavier and cable steer (with power assist), but if I want to control from the back of the boat I can use the remote.

 

https://www.bassfishinelectronics.com/products/cornfield-fishing-live-view-transducer-mount-terrova-ulterra-power-drive?srsltid=AfmBOora-Otm8xdDYXHe1L_wj8IP_lzSR-f0jyNT9kOTZGTWBkkOC58C

 

Thanks @casts_by_fly!

[Jig Man]

Yes they are worth buying.  I run an Ulterra 36 volt with a Humminbird one boat network.  The best feature is auto stow and deploy with being able to control that from the console via my HB Solix.  Spot lock, auto pilot and follow the contour are also great features.

 

 I would buy another one in a heartbeat.

[Alex from GA]

I've been using a cable controlled trolling motor for a long time and would like spot lock.  Being on a fixed income I don't ever see a way.

[MN Fisher]

8 hours ago, Alex from GA said:

Being on a fixed income I don't ever see a way.

My situation exactly.

[DogBone_384]

I put a Lowrance Ghost on my RT178.  It was worth every penny.