Trolling Motor

Boy do I agree. Ive been asked that question many times over the years. The plus for a 52 is when you either have a very high freeboard boat (sits high in the water) or you fish in waves most ought not be in. The down-sides are (a) if you run it all the way down, you just reduced the minimum water depth you can fish in by 7″. If you dont run it all the way down, you just created another obstacle on the front of the boat for you to whack with a rod and break it, or else have to work around it while fishing. When retracted, it is now sitting 7″ farther back in the boat. The steering/power cables have to reach that much further adding more clutter to the front of the boat. Ive had one 52″ in all my years of fishing and I did NOT like it for the above (and other) reasons. Ive fished all kinds of water, including most rivers/lakes in Alabama and at least as far into Mississippi as Ross Barnett and points south, etc. Never really tried to fish where the waves were so bad the motor was coming out of the water. Most of the 52″ TMs I see are not run all the way down, they are sticking up about 6-7″ higher than what you would expect because they really need a 45. Not sure about a hull like the Jag, however. Never fished out of one. Fished out of some sort of Pro Craft several years ago that was so high above the water that a 52″ was marginal. Fortunately, at least my classic doesnt need that at all.2008 Pantera Classic2014 Mercury Pro XS 200

Wow thank for the great advice, I now know what I need, Tom.

The X5, although a good motor, is not the same quality as the older Tours. It went through a major design change, including steering cables, footpedal, head, shaft, mount, and control boards. It will not fit in the older Tour mounts since the upper shaft is a larger diameter than the Tour. It was made larger to accommodate the larger composite shaft. The mount holes will line up with the Gatormount/Tour mounting holes. The MinnKota Fortrex/Ultrex/Maxxum/Edge will all line up with the Motorguide holes. On the Fortrex/Ultrex the right side plate is removed to reveal the wider spaced holes. Not sure, but pretty sure Basscat uses the isolators to mount the Motorguides, but if they do, you can cut the “nut” part off the isolator and use the top as a bushing for the 1/4″ hole used by MinnKota. On the bottom side, Basscat uses an aluminum backer/stiffener.Not sure about the footpedal screws from the Tour aligning with the X5 footpedal, but they will not line up with the MinnKota footpedal.Hope this helps and if I can help you with your decision, give me a callJohn870 773 3474Jones Trolling Motor Services870 773 3474Motorguide/MinnKota/PowerPole/Lowrance/Humminbird

My first step would be to remove the prop, then the bolts that hold the motor together, and separate the pieces. Check the o-rings and make sure there is zero water intrusion inside the motor housing. And for the record, it is possible the motor stopped in the worst possible position where the brushes sit just right on the commutator and wont let it self-start. VERY rare, but always possible in a brushed motor that runs on DC current. If the o-rings check out, I would lightly coat them with 2-4-c and reassemble. And while in there, you might pull the armature out and clean the commutator anyway. Something like 1000 grit sandpaper will do the trick. You just want to brighten the copper, not remove enough to cause other issues.Be careful working with the armature, it is sitting in the middle of a POWERFUL magnetic field. Pulling it out against that is not all that hard. Putting it back in requires care so that you dont get your fingers in between steel and magnets. Magnets will win. Wont remove a finger unless you are way careless, but it can definitely make you exercise your FULL vocabulary if you get caught just right.2008 Pantera Classic2014 Mercury Pro XS 200

Bass cat doesnt use the isolators but a shimmed with a harder rubber or plastic to provide more space between bracket and cap of boat.I have ran an x5 since last fall with no problems.

PhilAddison wrote:Bass cat doesnt use the isolators but a shimmed with a harder rubber or plastic to provide more space between bracket and cap of boat.I have ran an x5 since last fall with no problems. I help my buddy put his ultrex on over the weekend. His puma has the thick plastic isolaters (maybe 2.5×4). My p2 doesnt have these. His puma is a 14 model my p2 is a 13 model. Mine is the original trolling motor. My thought was 1. This was a upgrade from 13. 2. These were for 36 volt trollers. 3. These were for the “premium line”. Are any of my thought right?2013 PANTERA 2MERCURY 200 PRO XSMINNKOTA 80LB FORTREX25 fury

smbass77, you can order comparable length. I think MG is 42″ and MK is 45″.96 Eyra/12 Mercury 175 Pro XS with 2015 single axle trailer2017 Victory Gunner