battery question

[GeoFisher]

I have a 190 TX Bass Tracker. It has a 12V trolling motor with 46 or 48 lbs. thrust. The problem I'm having is that after just a few hours of use, the battery is getting really weak. I've had the battery tested and it tested fine. A buddy suggested that the trolling motor was too weak for the size boat. Rather than getting a stronger trolling motor, he suggested getting two 6V golf cart batteries and hooking them in series. Good idea, but those things are over $100 each. Any other suggestions? Paying for another trolling motor, even with trade-in, is a last option. Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

I have the SAME boat..............pull that crappy series 27 battery out........put in a bigger tray and put in a series 29 or 31 battery.........

Better yet..........put in a 24v system with two 31's.............TALK about ROCKING.

OK, OK...............I know you said no new motor...........so STILL put in two 12v 31's, and run them Parallel........BUT you will need new trays, and they will barely fit........

Finally, BPS now has a dual battery tray that will work in your boat, and still leave enough room for a starting battery.

Later,

Geo

[Jabbo]

I've got a Nitro 180TF. I was having the same problem with mine. It came out with a 48# Motorguide 12/24. Even after I replaced the batteries it was still slower than I would like. I stopped by Cave Run RV outlet and spoke to Rob. He often has used trolling motors for sale. I bought a 67# thrust for $75 and my trade in. This worked great for me.. While I was trying to decide how to fix my issue I asked a lot of questions about the same thing. I talked to Dave Smoot who owns KY Trolling Motor Service and my brother in law who is an electrical engineer. Their advise was to Run heavier gauge wires even with my new motor. this allows for less resistance and pull on your batteries giving them a little longer life. If you have a tracker you probably have 8 gauge wire. you can go up to 4 if you want to try and run it through your gunnels and add in line circuit breaker. This may give you a little more time on the water. I also agree with a couple of the other fellas. get another battery and run two of them in sequence. Your trolling motor will only pull 12v and two batteries offers longer life because your motor is pulling from both of them rather than just one.

[gillman]

Old Buddy if your trolling motor is pulling fine but the battery falls off fast,I think the wire is big enough. Try to charge slower, like 2 amps to get a deep cycle on your battery. If your wire is to small, find it and see if it is getting hot when in use. I used a 12 volt lawnmorer battery on a little 14' boat I once had with a 42lb TM and it would run 5 to 6 hr.s , But I had to slow charge it all night.

[gillman]

Brothers I been using that little TM motor on my old bumble bee, my bigger motor was down, and I like setting in the low seat because my back don,t hurt and i don't feel like I'll been working all day. But on the other hand I'll missing the contol of the old foot job. Think there someway to have both?