Electric motor ...

[D-mo]

I just picked up a old Shakespear 623 trolling motor, circa 1972, and am slamming this on my new canoe, (The Snot Rocket).
The motor has 23lbs of thrust, has 3 speeds, low, med,high. When running a medium cheep/size Deep Cycle battery , how long could I expect this motor to run on a single charge ...(in other words ... I dont want to get stranded on the Ottawa River)
I expect to run it only on low and med.
thanks ..
d-mo

[FromTheNorth]

Hey D-mo,

That's kind of a tough question. My buddy and I use a 20lb thrust motor with a smaller marine battery on a little Sports Pal. When the battery actually held a better charge we could get about 4 hours of steady running and gunning, but not with the motor on all the time. But... Those batteries can be tricky. Is it a new battery??

My suggestion is, BRING A PADDLE! Many a time we had to make the paddle of shame. It would be even worse to be making the portage of shame.

Hope that helps a little.

FromTheNorth

[D-mo]

Yep, its a new medium size battery .. on a new Sportspal .. like your buddy's, so bringing a paddle is not a problem.
I had it out yesterday on its maiden voyage .. and we did 3hrs of fishing, with what seemed to be lots of juice left, but i really dont know much about deep cycle batteries. From what i read they keep their charge right to the end and then just kinda die out ..
d-mo

[FromTheNorth]

I was chatting with my buddy just a couple of minutes ago, he has owned the battery longer than I thought. From brand new he figured he could get near to 5 hours!

You've got a great setup there. Goes anywhere, portages easily, and is quiet as a mouse. I've never banged so many fish right beside the boat as I have with that setup.

Have Fun,

FromTheNorth

[katch moore]

hey d-mo, i also just got a new trolling motor (minn kota 30lb thrust), now how do you mount the motor to the canoe? what type of motor mount do you use?


ps people, minn kota trolling motor 129.99$ at lebarons.

[D-mo]

hey Wannafish ..
The boat comes with motor mount included.
When I was looking at other canoes I was also looking for motor mounts, they clamp on to the gunwales of your canoe... you can pick them up on Ebay .. or buy them at your local canoe outlet ...
looks like this ... but a combination of aluninum and wood.
http://pelican-intl.com/motor-mount.html
d-mo

[Haybay Larry]

You get what you pay for with deep cycle batteries. Don't use a starting type of battery for a deep cycle application[trolling motor]. It won't last.
The deep cycle batteries have different ratings according to size. One thig for certain-you can never have to big a capacity battery. I have a trojan SCS 225, for my money it's one of the best on the market. It's BIG and it wieghs 65lb.! It will move my boat 17.5 wide legend around all day and never die. It is 9 years old and going strong...larry

[katch moore]

haybay larry, how much did you pay for you battery, 9 years ago....???

i'm looking to get a good battery, myself.

[Haybay Larry]

My Trojan then was about $140.00 I have never regretted buying it. There's an old saying-you can never get a battery that's too big.
I believe it !...Larry

[bass ackwards]

I've got a new 100 ampere hour, deep cycle, sealed gel cell (never used) $170.00 it as big as they come. (Genesis is a commercial make)

[bucketbass]

While having a big battery might be worth thinknig about, I'd also think about the extra weight you would be adding to your canoe.

To give you a good idea of consumption, I have a 44lb Minn Kota, on a 12 foot Boat and I have the regular sized Marine deep cycle batt, not the huge size. On this battery I guess I could run the engine on a speed 3 or Med, for about 10-12 hours. Easily enough for a weekend of fishing.

The battery I have is Energizer Marine Batt from Walmart, paid $ 68.

[bass ackwards]

Like I always say go big or go home, I like overkill