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Posts: 131
| not in a million years did i think i'd put an electric steer motor up front but yesterday i had the chance to run a new terrova 80 with i-pilot out on the river[in heavy current!] and all i can say is wow,what an awesome machine!this new gps enabled trolling motor is the future of boat control!with the i-pilot you have 3 different options to control the motor from anywhere in the boat,2 of them on the foot control and one on the i-pilot.the "front to back" motion on the foot pedal is similar to steering with a standard cable steer motor[although more sensitive]but the touch control on the rear of the foot pedal is very smooth and easy to operate.the steering control on the i-pilot is seamless and a breeze to run but it takes a hand off the rod to operate it.i think with practice it would become very easy to do,kind of like a teenage chick texting and putting on makeup while driving:).the track saving fetaure is going to be a great tool.it enables you to save a route and retrace it without having anything else but fish from anywhere in the boat.i ran it down a narrow slough brushing up against shoreline trees then back out into the slough to make some tight turns then hit the back track button in amazement as the motor turned the boat taking me exactly where i had just been nearly hitting the trees as i had just done but turning just as i had done.this is going to be a valuable tool for fishing weedlines,wingdams,points,ect.i took it out in the current[we're almost at flood stage]and locked in the "anchor" mode.the motor kept the boat almost exactly on the spot despite the heavy current.purposely i moved about 4 boat lengths off the anchor icon and then told the i-pilot to go back to that spot, it returned to exactly that same anchor position[gps confirmed] while i sat in the drivers seat not doing nothing but smiling,what an amazing usefull feature for fishing that "spot on the spot"!the motor i tested was on a customers boat,if he had come back in and told me how great the motor was i probably would have had some doubt as i have NEVER liked electric steering and have been doing the "shore bird" stance on the front deck for over 20 years so i'm used to it.this new motor has me very excited[as if you can't tell]because of the extra boat control the system offers plus the super user freindly features of the i-pilot.if anybody wants to test drive one on the mississippi river just let me know,you're gonna be impressed! | |
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Posts: 307
| Are you going out on Pool 4? | |
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Posts: 1901
Location: MN | I like the idea of the track saver feature, unfortunate they limited it to 3 I think. Do you know the length each can be? If it is limited say by the total length, you'd think it may be possible to do more than 3 if you did shorter ones. I'm thinking pretty hard on one myself. | |
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Posts: 315
| watch the video on it on the website......the track feature can hold a track up to 2 miles long!!
this is awesome | |
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Posts: 131
| sorry, i should of said mississippi river pool 14. our minnkota tech guy has one mounted on his boat now and will give demos whenever ,mine will be mounted on my 1760t as soon as it gets here.minnkota is out of these motors right now,i can see why! | |
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Posts: 80
Location: Geneva, IL | For my maiden Terrova-iPilot voyage I just could not wait to get out on soft water. The first open lake near me was Lake Shabbona in IL. Who cares if the wind was blowing 15-25 mph with snow and sleet on Saturday 3/20. We had the entire lake and preserve to ourselves.
I upgraded from a 12v 50 Legacy Power Drive to a 24v 80 pound thrust Terrova/US2/iPilot. Just the ease of deployment from the old PD was worth the expensive upgrade. BTW my boat is a 2000 Lund 1650 Angler SS/Yamaha F80.
I first just tested the manual (CoPilot) functions and was pleased with the quick responsiveness (AND THE EXTRA POWER!).
I did not like the harsh feeling of the remote on my thumb. I imagine that tactile feel will soften up when it is warmer out. The LCD display feedback was great (GPS status, prop spinning, modes, etc).
Next I threw a marker out in the middle of the lake, pulled within 3 feet of it and hit Spot Lock. The wind was roaring and the iPilot kept me close to the spot without ever overshooting.
Then I pointed the boat towards the submerged trees across the lake and engaged the advanced AutoPilot. 3+ mph aross the wind and waves and right to my destination.
We then headed directly into the strong wind all the way across the lake to the campground. 2.5 mph and the iPilot kept me on course.
After a couple more impressive spot lock tests I navigated and learned a figure 8 pattern. Then I tracked to the start of that pattern... then tracked to the end of the pattern. My gps showed that my boat followed the exact path that I had just learned minutes before, all the while sitting back in amazement.
It is going to be a great fishing tool for years to come. | |
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minnkota terrove with i-pilot!