Help me learn about trolling motors with spot lock

Not having spot lock on my trolling motor is the only thing keeping me from being a top tier angler. I thought it was not having an LX-9 but I bought one of those and that didn’t flip the switch so it must be my trolling motor.

Seriously though, I think upgrading my trolling motor from my older (late 90’s?) Minnkota with auto pilot to something produced in this decade would be money well spent. I’m planning on spending more time on the river, working wing dams current seams etc and I believe this would help, not to mention dealing with wind and current on any body of water.

As with any technology, it seems i’ve heard some early models had issues. Are there some specific models I should be wary of? Can software/firmware upgrades fix this on older models?

I currently don’t have electronics that I would be networking with but I’m thinking I should keep this in mind when making a decision. Currently I have a Hook2 7. If the future budget allowed it I could move to Humminbird or go with a motorguide with a higher end Lowrance than what I have. Contour following seems to be a very effective method in the little bit I’ve had the opportunity to tag along with friends that have it.

So, what are the basics I need to know and what should I be staying away from and why?

I’ve got a WTB ad in the classifieds too.

BoatsHateMe wrote:

Not having spot lock on my trolling motor is the only thing keeping me from being a top tier angler.

So its not just me that thinks this? I’m picking up my brand new minnkota on Wednesday. Can’t wait to start messing with it, I’ve never even owned a trolling motor before. Very curious to hear all the tips and tricks for the I-pilot and such. Curious to hear some tips on installation as well.

Two questions right of the bat- How important is a fuse? And is a bungee cord good enough to strap the shaft down to keep it from bouncing down the road/in big waves?

I upgraded to an iPilot on my little Alumacraft tiller a couple years ago, since then, I have upgraded my dad’s and both of my friends. The spot lock is really nice for fishing structure, but I get more out of the cruise control when rigging for Walleye, holds your speed at the set MPH, and it can make all the difference in the world having the right speed.

Spot Lock – it nice, I use it all the time, but keep in mind it is only accurate to 3 meters radius, so 9 feet in any direction, but it does seem more accurate than that. When fishing alone, I hit spot lock when I hook up, it holds my boat in one location.

Cruise Control – I have been fishing for Walleye in community locations, where guys are drifting, and it just doesn’t seem to be working well, so I will use the trolling motor and set the cruise control at like 1.0 MPH, then go up and down in speed, and it is amazing how a slight change in speed can make all the difference in the world. I have been in groups of boats where I am the only one catching fish.

Link – I personally don’t have it, but my buddy does. If you are using Link with the map chips, I really do not see any advantage because the map chips just are not accurate enough. If you have the new fancy graphs that map on the go, then I can see where it would be great, locking on to a depth contour and following it, huge advantage.

As far as models, I think it is a hit and miss thing, more than a model thing. The GPS in the unit is the key to accuracy, and they must not be that consistent, cuz we have seen good and bad units in different models. I don’t know if there is a better unit or not, have read the newer ones are more accurate, but the technology is what it is, so not sure, maybe it triangulates better or something to be more accurate, I don’t know.

All I can say is, I will never own another boat without it.

The improved Minnkota spot lock came out in 2017, which has bluetooth and the white heading sensor (puck), so you’ll want to look for that model of Minnkota. The heading sensor is for the jog feature when using spot lock and doesn’t actually help with the GPS accuracy, but it was first included with the first year of the improved GPS accuracy models in 2017. If I were you, I don’t think I’d be looking at any pre-2017 models.

If you don’t already have Humminbird electronics and since you mention that you’re fishing the river, I don’t think ipilot Link would be all that much of a benefit to you. Auto-pilot which is included with just the regular iPilot is usually plenty good for most fishing applications. The previous poster (toddrun) mentioned the chips not being accurate enough, and I’d have to disagree. The Lakemaster map chips are what the follow the contour (FTC) uses to function so if you’re fishing a body of water that has 1ft contours, FTC should work quite well. Personally, I have iPilot Link and I use FTC about half the time on the lakes I fish. Depending on the method of your fishing it can be really nice or unnecessary.

As far as software/firmware updates on older models, no, there isn’t such a thing to upgrade an older model, say pre-2017, to a newer model.

Good luck in your search. I will say, the spot lock feature on the 2017 and newer models is amazing.

blank wrote:

The improved Minnkota spot lock came out in 2017, which has bluetooth and the white heading sensor (puck), so you’ll want to look for that model of Minnkota. The heading sensor is for the jog feature when using spot lock

The jog feature is extremely worthwhile imo, worth the price of a newer unit or maybe an xi5.

Also, from what I understand, the iPilot works the same with both PowerDrive, Terrova, Ulterra, Ultrex models, but all of the models each have their own qualities and negatives away from iPilot. On a PowerDrive with iPilot, you CAN NOT use the foot pedal so you’re only able to use the remote to function the trolling motor. All of the other models allow you to use both the remote and foot pedal at any time.

______________ wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>blank wrote:</div>
The improved Minnkota spot lock came out in 2017, which has bluetooth and the white heading sensor (puck), so you’ll want to look for that model of Minnkota. The heading sensor is for the jog feature when using spot lock

The jog feature is extremely worthwhile imo, worth the price of a newer unit or maybe an xi5.

I completely agree, especially since the original poster mentioned fishing wingdams.

This phrase gets overused, but SpotLock truly is a “game changer.”

I’ve been using it for two years on my Ultrex and can’t think of fishing without it.

If you’re not in a hurry to make a purchase, Lowrance is introducing a trolling motor with their version of SpotLock that will be compatible with Lowrance electronics. I’m not clear on the release date; I’ve heard at the Bass Master Classic in March or ICAST in July. Also no idea on price.

The newer (someone said 2017) Minnkotas are pretty good. prior to that year I think Motorguide had the edge but haven’t seen on in use recently.

The big trick is to set it into the wind.

I love all and use most all the features of Ipilot. I run Lowrance so I don’t get to sync the unit to the motor but that wouldn’t stop me from buying it again! great tool!

Great information so far guys, thanks.

What is the jog feature and how exactly does it work? I think I have an idea just by context but I’ve not heard of this before.

Also I’m not limited to river fishing, it’s just the closest and most convenient. However the videos I’ve seen of the pro’s Working around wing dams, I always say to myself “that’s unpossible, I could never have that type of control”

tbro16 wrote:

Two questions right of the bat- How important is a fuse? And is a bungee cord good enough to strap the shaft down to keep it from bouncing down the road/in big waves?

I’ve melted a plug so I highly recommend a fuse. Use a bolted inline fuse. I have never had a bungee or a ram to support my trolling motor shaft and never had a problem. So, that being said, anything you use is good in my opinion.

BoatsHateMe wrote:

What is the jog feature and how exactly does it work? I think I have an idea just by context but I’ve not heard of this before.

The jog uses GPS for a location basis; the jog keypad feature bumps your position 5′ in the orthogonal selected.

BoatsHateMe wrote:

Great information so far guys, thanks.

What is the jog feature and how exactly does it work? I think I have an idea just by context but I’ve not heard of this before.

While in spot lock you can shift yourself in either direction and remain in spot lock.