Help with minn kota trolling motor

I have a minn kota edge 12v 55lb thrust TM that was bought new in 2015. It stop working while I was fishing today. I have the problem isolated to the TM. When I got home the battery was ok, I used a 12v tester and the receptical was ok and I took the plug off and put the bare wires on the battery and still nothing. Any ideas on where I should go from here? Thank in advance!

This maybe a simple idea, but make sure you didn't flip the switch on the foot pedal. I accidentally did that on my my 45 pound MK, not sure if your 55 has the same setup, but there is a switch between continuous and intermittent, on mind if in between it will be off.

Yeah a buddy of mine suggested the same thing lol! I wished it was that simple. I would rather feel like an idiot and have the trolling motor working!!

Good idea regarding the switch(es). Obviously, it could also be something really serious.

But, if you have a $5.00 Volt-ohm-meter, checking the function of both the 5-speed switch and the Momentary/OFF/Always-On switch would be worthwhile.

Take all power off; put the VOM on the Ohm setting, and check for continuity when the switch(es) are moved. If they check out, then it is something beyond my limited abilities.

I'd pull the head and look for a burned or loosened wire. I'm rarely lucky enough for that to be the problem, though. Take pictures of anything that you remove as you do it.

regards, richg99

Update? I'm curious.


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Check the breaker (you do have one installed right?), they do go bad at times.

MK Edge TM's are notorious for leaking seals. It happened to a 70lb Edge that I had about three years ago. It was two years old at the time. It would run OK at first when the foot switch was depressed, but would slow down quickly. At first I thought it was the batteries going bad, so I replaced them. Didn't help. This went on for a little while and finally the TM went completely dead, wouldn't run at all and it made a grinding sound when the prop was turned by hand. I took the end cap off and checked it out. Didn't take long to see that water had gotten into the motor and ruined the brushes and brush holders. The inside of motor housing and the armature were also covered with rust and crud. I cleaned it up, replaced all the bad parts and re-assembled it with new seals and it ran fine.

It wasn't hard to do the repairs and the parts didn't cost all that much, but I didn't trust the Edge after that and bought a new 80lb Terrova to replace it.

Yeah I checked the breaker and it was fine. I had just replaced it over the winter. I haven't worked on it yet. I e-mailed Minn Kota and I haven't got a real straight answer. I'm going to try and call them back. My warranty expired on 3-21-17 and that just so happened to be the day that I reported the problem. I lady that e-mailed me said my purchase order was enough proof to validate my warranty since the motor was built in October of 2014 but I never got a straight answer if they would cover the problem under warranty. They also said that it had to be taken to an authorized service center. I live in Missouri and the closest one was 210 miles away in Kansas. I'm not paying to ship a trolling motor all the way to Kansas unless they are going to give me a new one. What I haven't got an answer on is, if a local shop says that its a major problem and not a simple fix will they honor the warranty and replace it. I have my doubts. It looks like i'll have to dig into it this weekend. Thanks for the posts, it gives me some places to start looking.

I was recommended a place to take my TM to. My wife dropped it off for me while i was at work and told me there was a sign that said Minn Kota authorized dealer. I called the guy and he said they did warranty work all the time. He had it fixed in no time and submitted the warranty work to Minn Kota. The speed switch had gone out. I wish Minn Kota could actually tell you where their authorized dealers were. I just got lucky that the place I took it to just happened to be a service center. But it's fixed and ready to be put back on the boat. Thanks for the replies.

Glad its fixed! :beer: