Trolling Motor - Spot Lock

MakoMatt

Angler
In another discussion, on another topic, Captain Mike brought up the subject of trolling motors with Spot Lock. I have been thinking about getting one too.

These things are a game changer. In a small fraction of the time it takes you to set the hook with your traditional ground gear, you can be soaking a line fishing. And on the reverse side, it takes once again, a small fraction of the time to pick up your lines and be on your way to perhaps more productive piece.

Spending at least 6 months and a day in Sunny Florida each year, I can tell you that they are extremely popular down there. And so are center consoles, which these are easily deployed from.

But I have some concerns……….

My last vessel, that I kept down in SW FL was a 31’ Steiger Miami. It had a great anchoring system with a level 5 commercial drum, 45 pound anchor, 600’ of line, and 30’ of chain. It worked very well, but took forever to set the hook and retrieve it. There were plenty of times after going through all that there was no bite on the piece, ledge, whatever we were on, and killed considerable time setting, picking up, and moving on to another piece.

All that work, and seeing other vessels come and go in minutes really peaked my interest in getting a spot lock. I researched on line, got some real life testimonials from people that had them, and had a couple of estimates as well.

I didn’t pull the trigger on having one installed. My issue was I wanted a self deploying unit. If I had to send someone up to the bow to deploy, and set it back in its cradle it defeated one of my main objectives. I had not heard very good things about the self deploying units. Lots of problems at the time with them, and at least one major marine supply store that sold trolling motors, stop selling the self deploying units. In my mind it was not an inexpensive add on. Estimates started north of $10k for the unit, battery, etc., and that didn’t include the modifications that would be needed to the bow rail.

Roll the calendar ahead 3 years, does anyone have any information on how the self deploying units are working today? Does anyone have one? Have they worked out the bugs? Would love to have one on the 28’ Albin.
IMG_2958.webp
IMG_2957.webp
 
Last edited:
I purchased my boat back in 2023 and bought / installed one of the first generation self deploying Minn Kota trolling motors. Absolute bust. It honestly never worked. Spent way to many hours on a bench, or as a "boat ornament" on my boat.

Fast forward to early 2025 and I went to Brad Greaves down at Riptide Marine in Patchogue. He is an authorized dealer and repair shop for Minn Kota. He stopped selling them in 2023 as the problems were very common. Wish I had met him earlier!! He navigated the bureaucracy of that corporation to provide some compensation on the old motor and purchase the newer generation self deploying trolling motor. Since then it has been fantastic.

He matched it up with a single Abyss 36v battery and the system has been amazing.

And, I barely charge that battery and it is always ready to run.

 
Sportsman 23 CC

I know, very different from your application. But for example, seeing bigger boats with them. One example is a 35 Carolina Classic in my marina. And on others.

I saw the ease of use, it saved time and frustration, and just downright necessary if fishing alone. It is used a lot in the bay in the dark, positioning myself perfectly on rips and drop offs allowing me toss plugs in prime spots. And deadly this year, spot locking and casting small offerings to fluke that otherwise the drift would rip the boat along to fast to really hit the best spots.

I use it to move around bunker schools in shallow water to avoid the engine start. Bunker do not sound, and the bass do not seem to mind. I cut the engine sooner and "troll" up into them.

And minor or more than minor adjustments at the push of a button. Surgically fishing a small spot to find a fish.

I could go on and on if I thought of other scenarios this year.
 
Last edited:
Well that’s some good news. I figured that sooner or later they would work out some of the bugs. What type boat is it mounted on?
And I met a bunch of folks that had the same experience with the first generation motors and are completely satisfied with the updated models. No issue with the self deploying.
 
I don't have very much information regarding the first generation Minn Kota units, but I had the newer version installed on my 21' Steiger Miami, a pilothouse boat, this spring, & has been flawless, it is the auto deploy unit. Most times I fish along on the boat, & I'm just not climbing up to the bow to deploy the unit. Setting the anchor over a small, deep piece in the wind & current just isn't one of the things I do best, & the spot lock is a game changer for sure. 36 volt 100 amp hour battery lasts for ever.
 
I have a 2021 84 inch Rhodan on my 24 ft CC which is not an auto deploy. The unit has worked well for the majority of the time, and this year it needed some attention. Luckily, the Rhodan units are fairly simple to work on. I have changed the High Current Board this year ($400) as well as took apart the lower unit and replaced the armature. The Rhodan gets its fair share of negative reviews because of the older models, but honestly I can't complain. They do get high praise because of their customer service.
They all have their issues considering its an electric motor in a saltwater environment. The older Minnkota self deploy was unreliable and when it wouldn't work, there was no manual option to deploy the unit. The newest TM from Minnkota with the 100 inch shaft has breakage problems...I think its the Instinct model. Garmin also has a TM with a titanium shaft that is supposedly the cats meow.
 
Are they cheaper for a small, 17-foot boat?

I have spots I can get to with a kayak that would get me concerned with my boat.

When I heard the cost, I never considered one. Now I see they can be used for trolling and spot lock. Plus, I have never been great at staying on a spot even with 2 anchors.

If anyone has a good website on these, please attach. I will do a Google and see what I come up with.
 

Latest posts

Latest posts

Fishing Reports

Latest articles

Latest posts

Back
Top