Thanks for the tip. I will keep this in mind. Anyway, I assume a 18-ft
boat should not have a very high bow. Therefore, I am thinking that I
should not have a problem finding a trolling motor that has a long
enough shaft.

That depends on the style of the boat. I have a 21' SeaPro (
http://www.seaproboats.net/interface.html ) which requires a 52" shaft
and it barely reaches sufficient depth.



Good to know this. I intend to operate this boat in some electric-only
lakes. Therefore, a powerful trolling motor is something that I would
like to have. I am also thinking of something like 60 to 100-lb of
thrust. How long is your Range bay boat? I am trying to see how large a
boat a 67-lb thrust trolling motor can pull.

I put a Minn-Kota 70# thrust (24 v ) on mine and it moves it quite
nicely. Easy to hold position most of the time on the first two
positions with moderate wind and will make good headway on final 3
speeds.

Yes. I assume those two batteries are quite heavy, and I probably need
to carefully position them (and the people seating positions) to make
sure the boat will be balanced.

The dealer mounted mine under the console along with an on board
battery charger. He then tied one to the battery switch along with the
cranking battery so I have a backup without having a fourth battery.

Not a safe assumption. Be sure you take into account how high the bow rides
when you're sitting where you normally do, and you've got a typical amount
of weight, like a full tank of gas, ice chest, etc. Another thing that Tom
can address (because I'm not sure) is what happens if the bow is bobbing up
& down and the prop assembly leaves the water. Other than losing speed &
control, does it hurt the motor?

Different Tom but mine leaves the water when the bay is rough but I
don't think it stays out of the water long enough to hurt it. The prop
just slaps the water until it submerges again. Irritating but no real
problem.

Tom...........

I assume you mean a high freeboard can be a problem with
remote control type. Why is that? Does the remote control
type tend to have a short shaft?

No, but the control box cables may be only four or so feet
long - that doesn't leave you a lot of room to put the
foot control box anywhere comfortable.

I see. Four feet cable seems to be quite short with a boat that has a
high freeboard. Seem like I may need to build up the deck at the bow if
the bow deck is sunken too deep from the gunwhale if I need remote
control. This is probably a better idea anyway to give me a better view
of the water in front of the boat.

... How long is your Range bay boat? I am trying to see
how large a boat a 67-lb thrust trolling motor can pull.

The Ranger is twenty feet long and weight just short of
2700 lbs loaded.

This is more boat than I would want within the next couple years. If
the 67-lb thrust trolling motor works great on your large boat. I
should have no problem using the same trolling motor in a smaller 18-ft
boat. Great to hear this. This means I can use a 67-lb thrust trolling
motor instead of an expensive 100+ lb thrust version.

Thanks for the info.

Jay Chan

That depends on the style of the boat. I have a 21'
SeaPro (http://www.seaproboats.net/interface.html )
which requires a 52" shaft and it barely reaches
sufficient depth.

Thanks for the warning. If the bow of the boat is too high above the
water that I cannot get any trolling motor to have a long enough shaft
for the boat, I will not be able to run the boat in electric-only
lakes. Therefore, I will need to pay close attention to this in boat
selection.

I put a Minn-Kota 70# thrust (24 v ) on mine and it
moves it quite nicely. Easy to hold position most of
the time on the first two positions with moderate
wind and will make good headway on final 3 speeds.

Thanks for the info. Seem like 60-lb to 70-lb thrust is the right kind
of trolling motor that I should look for.

The dealer mounted mine under the console along with an
on board battery charger. He then tied one to the
battery switch along with the cranking battery so
I have a backup without having a fourth battery.

Thanks for telling me the placement of batteries in your boat. This
makes sense to put the batteries in the protected area inside the
console. But if I don't have a big gas engine in my boat for the next
two years, my boat will tend to be bow heavy, and I may need to move
the batteries near the stern. Or may be not -- I may simply move big
coolers near the stern.

Jay Chan