Jonboat Project

[airshot]

If you have a Minn Kota with Spot Lock, add the Position puck, and it does a MUCH better job, especially if you put the nose of the boat into the wind/current before engaging. That way, it doesn't clock around.

How would one know if they had this "puck" ? Have no clue if mine has one or not. I can say that when anchored ( spot lock) in a tight group of other boats mine does not appear to.move, even in 2' waves. I have been very impressed as to how well it holds location. Even in my anchoring days, I always headed bow into the wind and tried to get the boat in position before dropping anchor, do the same for my trolling motor.

 

[Bantou]

It's a small white disk about 1" thick and maybe 3" in circumference. Usually mounted to the hull either next to the driver or on the bow

 

[LDUBS]

How would one know if they had this "puck" ? Have no clue if mine has one or not. I can say that when anchored ( spot lock) in a tight group of other boats mine does not appear to.move, even in 2' waves. I have been very impressed as to how well it holds location. Even in my anchoring days, I always headed bow into the wind and tried to get the boat in position before dropping anchor, do the same for my trolling motor.

@airshot , I also operate spot lock without the puck. I was totally confused about the need for the puck. In addition to the spot lock, it is about the "jog" function. I finally "got it" with a little help (and a lot of patience) from the folks responding in this thread:

https://www.tinboats.net/threads/new-minn-kota-with-heading-sensor-install-s.51343/post-511474

 

[LDUBS]

It's a small white disk about 1" thick and maybe 3" in circumference. Usually mounted to the hull either next to the driver or on the bow

Wait, you mean I was supposed to keep that little white round thing?

 

[thill]

How would one know if they had this "puck" ? Have no clue if mine has one or not. I can say that when anchored ( spot lock) in a tight group of other boats mine does not appear to.move, even in 2' waves. I have been very impressed as to how well it holds location. Even in my anchoring days, I always headed bow into the wind and tried to get the boat in position before dropping anchor, do the same for my trolling motor.

It has to be installed somewhere on the boat with a power supply. Looks similar to a GPS puck. You aim the arrow forward, and it provides a second GPS signal, letting the unit know which way the boat is facing. That thread explains it better than I can.

 

[airshot]

Haven't found any puck... really don't think I need it, mine works great without !

 

[LDUBS]

Haven't found any puck... really don't think I need it, mine works great without !

Just to clarify, it is not something we need to operate the anchor function on our PowerDrives. I was just joking above. It was not included in the box. Think of it as an option.

 

[airshot]

Just to clarify, it is not something we need to operate the anchor function on our PowerDrives. I was just joking above. It was not included in the box. Think of it as an option.

Already came to that conclusion.....

 

[TNriverCAT]

Great minds think alike. I use the exact same gauge when backing the trailer in - side bunks 3/4 out of the water.

I agree with others about not worrying too much about the dents. You could put something like a piece of dark colored 1" thick dense foam across that front area. Like a bumper.

I use a Hummingbird Helix 7 with Down Imaging and Navionics charts. I don't use the down imaging. I use the charts and 2D sonar a lot. I suspect my fishing methods are different than yours. I do a lot of trolling in deep water and most of the time am not even showing the bottom. I like my Helix 7 but to be fair, I have not tried other brands so can't make an honest comparison. All I know is if I don't catch, it must be the fish finders fault! haha.

Haha that's my thoughts as well Dubs! Instead of chalking it up to reality and that I'm a terrible angler. I will be able to blame it on my electronics.

 

[FuzzyGrub]

We have a MG Xi3 with the Pinpoint GPS system. We routinely fish close to bridge abutments, boulders, etc, with a good amount of current. Low bridges can cause problems by blocking some of the satellites. If you loose WAAS, which is geosynchronous at the equator, accuracy is diminished significantly.

The older HBs, like the generation I have, the internal gps was not that great. I have added the external “puck” to all our boats. Assuming the latest is much better, and there is a way to add distance and offset to where the FF is located, it might have better position data than the MK power drive, at least the older ones.