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boating and travel · intermediate · 4 min

bow-mount electric motor

What it's for, how to use the virtual anchor, sizing the battery and range, and reaching structure without spooking fish.

what it's for

The bow-mount electric motor is the angler's positioning tool. It's not for traveling far: it's for fishing better.

tips

  • Quiet approach: a gas engine spooks fish in the shallows; the electric one arrives almost silently.
  • Fine positioning: keeps the boat at the right casting distance along the bank.
  • Virtual anchor (spot-lock): holds the boat in one place using GPS.
  • Drift control: corrects wind and current when fishing vertically and when slow-trolling (corrico).
  • On many models: follow a heading, a track or a depth contour.

virtual anchor

The motor uses GPS and a compass to return to the spot whenever the boat drifts off it. It keeps the boat a few meters from the spot, with no anchor, no anchor chain and no noise.

tips

  • Great for fishing structure in deep water, schools seen on the sonar and spots where an anchor would snag.
  • Turn it on before you reach the spot: stop at casting distance and engage the virtual anchor there.
  • Strong wind and current make the motor work nonstop and drain the battery.
  • The boat rotates around the spot. Correct your casting angle.
  • Accuracy is within a few meters. For a small target, confirm on the sonar.

battery and range

Use a deep-cycle battery, never a car starter battery. Range is the usable capacity (Ah) divided by average draw (A).

tips

  • Thrust: the common manufacturer rule is about 2 lb of thrust for every 100 lb (45 kg) of loaded boat, with margin for wind and current.
  • Voltage: 12 V handles motors up to about 55 lb; 24 V, about 70 to 80 lb; 36 V, over 100 lb. Check your motor's manual.
  • Lead-acid (AGM, gel or flooded): use up to about 50% of capacity to avoid shortening battery life. A 100 Ah battery gives about 50 Ah usable.
  • Lithium (LiFePO4): lighter, lets you use most of the capacity and holds voltage almost to the end. It's more expensive and needs a compatible charger.
  • Example: 50 usable Ah at an average draw of 15 A gives about 3 hours. At full power, a 12 V motor can pull 40 to 50 A, and the same battery lasts an hour or less.
  • Install a circuit breaker or fuse near the battery, with the rating and cable gauge specified in the manual.
  • Recharge after every fishing trip. A lead battery stored discharged gets ruined.

quiet approach

Fish hear the hull and motor long before they see the boat.

  1. Shut off the gas engine well away from the spot: in shallow, clear water, at least 50 to 100 m before.
  2. Lower the electric motor carefully, without banging the shaft against the hull.
  3. Use low, steady speed. Switching on and off at high power makes more noise than continuous low speed.
  4. Approach into the wind or into the current. That way you control the approach and aren't pushed right on top of the spot.
  5. Stop at casting distance. Don't pass over the structure.
  6. Along the bank, keep a constant distance and a speed that lets you cast to every target.
  7. Talk quietly, don't bang the lid, and don't drop pliers or gear on the deck.

care

A few minutes of care prevent a broken motor in the middle of a trip.

tips

  • Retract and lock the trolling motor before running the main engine.
  • Check the propeller every day. Line wound around the shaft destroys the seal and lets water into the motor.
  • Cut the power before touching the propeller.
  • Don't let the motor hit shallow bottom: the shaft bends.
  • After saltwater, rinse with fresh water and dry the contacts.

checklist

Check off what's ready. Saved on this device.

sources and references

  1. technical Minn Kota — Trolling Motor Power ConsiderationsVoltage by thrust: up to 55 lb at 12 V, up to 80 lb at 24 V, above that 36 V. Also battery types (lead-acid, AGM, gel, lithium), range and circuit breaker..
  2. technical Minn Kota — Boat Drifting or has Erratic Steering when in Spot-Lock (i-Pilot or i-Pilot Link)How Spot-Lock (arrival circle) works and the expected accuracy: 5 feet on the Bluetooth models, 10 to 15 feet on the older ones. Wind, current and a weak battery worsen the accuracy.
  3. technical Minn Kota — Adjusting the Boat Scale for Bluetooth i-Pilot (2017-2023)Recommends at least 2 lb of thrust for every 100 lb of loaded boat.

keep reading

gear

basic sonar: how to read the fishfinder

Understand how sonar sees underwater, what each mark on the screen means, and how to adjust the unit to find bottom, structure and fish.

boating and travel

GPS and marking spots

Waypoints, routes, tracks, nautical charts, and how to save and share fishing spots without losing secrecy or safety.

technical

precision casting

Overhead, sidearm, pitching, flipping and skipping: when to use each, how to aim at structure, and why the first cast to a spot is the one that gets the most bites.