Making the jump to LifePo4 trolling motor battery

[john from md]

Folks,

Age is finally wearing me down so I have to ditch the lead acid batts for my trolling motors. I know several snaggedline members have converted over to them in the past and a couple even made their own battery.

I'm hoping to get some up to date suggestions as to which manufacturer sells a reliable batteries within the 50 to 75AH range.

TIA

[Oldbayrunner]

I was the first person to use and recommend Lifepo4 batteries for Kayak motor use awhile ago now. If your Looking for Quality then my top 3 suggestions would be Battle Born, Bioenno & Re-lion... If price is your concern then Amped Outdoors is popular... I've been using a Bioenno for the last 3 years.

[john from md]

I was the first person to use and recommend Lifepo4 batteries for Kayak motor use awhile ago now. If your Looking for Quality then my top 3 suggestions would be Battle Born, Bioenno & Re-lion... If price is your concern then Amped Outdoors is popular... I've been using a Bioenno for the last 3 years.

I'm almost 70 to cost isn't a big deal as long as I only pay once and don't buy junk. My biggest motor is a MK 40 Endura Max so I was figuring something between 75AH and 100AH should work for me. I only fish 4 to 6 hours these days but I may run 10 to 15 miles. I do paddle as well but my arthritis is catching up with me.

[Oldbayrunner]

I'm 72 soon to be 73 so I am right there with you on the arthritis and why I motor... I would suggest given your motor size and distance I would recommend the 100ah Battle Born Or Bioenno. The Bioenno will cost around the same with a lithium charger. I also recommend using a battery Monitoring system. A few years ago I added a Victron BMV712 to my system. That made it much easier for me to know how much to use and how much I had left for me to stay out on the water for hours at a time without concern of running out of power. Plus it lets me know my amp draw at any given speed for trolling etc. via the meter or bluetooth on my phone.

Now another thing I have discovered and changed to is switching from using 12V Brushed trolling motors to 12V Brushless. They use roughly 30% less amp draw at the same speeds in low to mid high then my brushed motors did and weigh about 1/2 the weight. My old 55# MK or Newport weighed in at around 24lbs My 65# Brushless weigh in around 13 lbs. They only use more because of the increased thrust if one is running a high throttle.

[john from md]

I'm 72 soon to be 73 so I am right there with you on the arthritis and why I motor... I would suggest given your motor size and distance I would recommend the 100ah Battle Born Or Bioenno. The Bioenno will cost around the same with a lithium charger. I also recommend using a battery Monitoring system. A few years ago I added a Victron BMV712 to my system. That made it much easier for me to know how much to use and how much I had left for me to stay out on the water for hours at a time without concern of running out of power. Plus it lets me know my amp draw at any given speed for trolling etc. via the meter or bluetooth on my phone.

Now another thing I have discovered and changed to is switching from using 12V Brushed trolling motors to 12V Brushless. They use roughly 30% less amp draw at the same speeds in low to mid high then my brushed motors did and weigh about 1/2 the weight. My old 55# MK or Newport weighed in at around 24lbs My 65# Brushless weigh in around 13 lbs. They only use more because of the increased thrust if one is running a high throttle.

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I agree, I am going to go with a Battle Born battery. I don't fish every day so can I get away with a 10 amp charger vs a 20 amp charger? a

I don't use a smart phone so app programs won't work for me. I am good about tracking fuel use (for aircraft and boats) so I don't think I'll have a problem managing my battery capacity. Are brushless motors any lighter than the brushed type? Weight is my enemy.

[Oldbayrunner]

I agree, I am going to go with a Battle Born battery. I don't fish every day so can I get away with a 10 amp charger vs a 20 amp charger? a

I don't use a smart phone so app programs won't work for me. I am good about tracking fuel use (for aircraft and boats) so I don't think I'll have a problem managing my battery capacity. Are brushless motors any lighter than the brushed type? Weight is my enemy.

Battle Born is a great choice they are really built well and use the best BMS management system there is plus a 10 year warranty.

Yes, your Enduramax 40 weighs around 19lbs The 65# Seamax brushless weighs around 13lbs, not bad for 25 more lbs of thrust. I easily pull the Susky with the generators running around 90,000cfs. Also the currents down south by the bay bridge tunnel. The Enduramax uses a built in variable pwm control. The Seamax brushless Has a Hall Effect Sensor and is controlled with a stepless controller in the head so to date you would still use the head as a controller. My New 80# Brushless is sensorless so I don't have to use the head as a controller and can use any type of control module. I've got 2 different type pwm controllers I'm trying with it.
This is they way I set up my 65# ..... Combined weight, brushless motor with my 100ah lifepo4 battery is a respectable 41lbs.

[john from md]

Well, I got a Lifpo battery but not the Battle Born. The Batttle Born was too big to fit inside my yak so I went with a Bioenno 60AH which they actually market to the Kayak community. I also have a couple of new 35AH SLA's that were gifted to me so I can take one of them along. I contacted Minn Kota and found out that the 12v steering head is the same on all models so I just got a 55# lower and just finished configuring it for my yak. Now all I need is for 60 degree water and I'll be set to go.

[Oldbayrunner]

That's what I bought 3 years ago, you wont be disappointed with the Bioenno battery. I switched over to using brushless motors they're 1/2 the weight of a brushed motor and use around 30% less amp draw then 55# brushed motors as long as your not running them at high speeds. I can troll at 2-2.5 mph and use only 5-6amps or at 3-3.5 mph and be using 10-11amps where as when I had a 55# MK with a variable controller I would use 8-10 amp & 15-18 amps for the same speeds.. These are the 2 I use The first is a 65# brushless and the 2nd an 80#

[john from md]

That's what I bought 3 years ago, you wont be disappointed with the Bioenno battery. I switched over to using brushless motors they're 1/2 the weight of a brushed motor and use around 30% less amp draw then 55# brushed motors as long as your not running them at high speeds. I can troll at 2-2.5 mph and use only 5-6amps or at 3-3.5 mph and be using 10-11amps where as when I had a 55# MK with a variable controller I would use 8-10 amp & 15-18 amps for the same speeds.. These are the 2 I use The first is a 65# brushless and the 2nd an 80#
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I know that it must be easier to pull up your motor than that 55 I just put on.

I started researching the brushless motors but everyplace I found didn't have any and in some cases had no idea when they would get some.

[Redfish12]

Looks great! What mounts are you all using for your motors? I have a 40lb endura c2 sitting around that would be good to convert.

[john from md]

I bought a rectangular piece of aluminum pipe from ebay (that's what THEY call it). It is 6" long, 4" high, 2" wide and only cost like $13. I also bought a 4X6 piece of 1/8 aluminum and bolted that to the bottom of the mount and a straight piece which I bolted back of the mount by going up through the bottom. I used the existing rudder nuts to secure the rear aluminum strap and drilled a couple of holes for hull nuts on the top for the flat plate. Here are some pics.

It's pretty sturdy and, with the bull rudder I have on the motor shaft, my yak turns quickly.

[Oldbayrunner]

I made mine out of 1/2" & 3/4" hdpe cutting board..... I can see why you'd have difficulty tilting your motor due to the shaft length. Mine tilts via a pulley system to a point near my seat where the rope goes through a clam cleat to lock it, then in front of that I have an upright pulley for more leverage. It comes up quick and easy. Also with the clam cleat I can lock the tilt in any position so I can still power through grass beds and very shallow water. A way you can detach your motor without having to unscrew those motor mount screws is knock out the pin that holds the motor tilt and install a quick locking pin. That way you just pull the pin to release the motor from the mount.

[john from md]

The only time having the motor down is an issue is when coming into the beach. In that case, I paddle in until I feel the skeg touch and then jump out and lift it up. I fish mostly in the rivers and the bay but don't go into the real skinny water. Yours looks like a nice setup though.