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Posts: 2091
Location: Stevens Point, WI | My Minnkota Powerdrive footpedal is not working real well. I believe the contacts are dirty in it. I noticed if it gets wet it works like a champ. Is there a easy way to clean it or should I take it somewhere? |
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Posts: 1936
Location: Eau Claire, WI | Derek,
Call Chuck at Sportsman's in Wauau.
With the PD's it's a good idea to keep a spare pedal in your boat. Some guys don't experience a problem but the majority I talk to have had issues with the PD series pedals. |
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| Mark H. is correct the foot pedals will fail. The one tip I got was to dunk the whole pedal in the water on a regular basis to clean the dirt out. The motors will run forever but the pedals are almost disposable after a couple of seasons. |
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| Get a Co-pilot and keep the foot pedal for a spare. Once use to the co-pilot will not go back to the footpedal again. |
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Posts: 2091
Location: Stevens Point, WI | Thanks for the info guys, I dipped it in the drink last time I was out and that made it work perfect. I'm not sure if its designed to do that but it worked. I'll have to see if it still works when I get out on Monday. |
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Posts: 156
Location: Oconomowoc, WI | I thought water is what hurt them. Glad to hear this works. I have 6 of them in my garage that are getting a bath my next time out!! Thanks. |
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| Take KJGMH's advise and get a Co-Piolt. I am going on the third year with mine with no problems at all. I have the control mounted on my rod (extra holders on other rods) and once you get used to it you will never use the footpad again. Best thing Minnkota has come out with in my opinion.
Fred |
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Posts: 169
| I had the same problem. I removed the screws & oopened up the unit & cleaned the contact pads for the On/Off switch. They looked like they had oxidized (spelling?) But after the cleaned they work great. |
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Posts: 147
Location: WI - Land of small muskies and big jawbones | I have a garage full of foot pedals also. I ended up going with a co-pilot. Its easier to run and I haven't had any problems since I switched. |
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Posts: 2091
Location: Stevens Point, WI | Worked great this morning again without having to do anything so I'll stick with it for awhile. The co-pilot will be the next step if it fails again.
Edited by MuskieMedic 5/25/2006 2:52 PM
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Posts: 63
Location: Maribel WI | Do what Brad suggests. Take it apart and wipe the contacts clean. It only takes a little dirt or film to cause problems. (I wouldn't recommend dipping it in water) However, expect to have to get a new one every 2 or 3 years. Keeping a spare in the boat is not a bad idea either. |
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Location: The Yahara Chain | Dunking it in the water is not a good idea....take it apart and clean it....it is easy to do. If she still doesn't work after you clean her, she is toast. Dunking it in the water is going to lead to a replacement for sure. |
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Posts: 5874
| My last Minn Kota foot pedal worked great for 4 plus years. But, I always stored it in the front compartment when I wasn't using it. Maybe that helped, but it certainly didn't hurt. |
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Posts: 21
| I've had PD's for the past 12 years and it seems that every 3-4 years they start acting up. I've dunked them, taken em apart and cleaned the contacts with an electrical cleaner, but in the end it's only a temporary fix.
Nothing worse than being out fishin in a little wind and the trolling motor takes a crap!!
Spend the $70 and get a new one. |
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Posts: 626
Location: ashtabula ohio | well, i just replaced mine for the 3rd time in 6 yrs. but a found a local guy who has just the circuit boards for 58.00 instead of replacing the whole pad {80.00} works fine with the new board . pm me if anyone wants the guys number{burton ohio}. |
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Posts: 2091
Location: Stevens Point, WI | I took it apart today and cleaned it out as good as I can and it seems to work good yet. I think a copilot will be on my birthday list this year. |
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Posts: 1938
Location: Black Creek, WI | Does this cleaning trick help improve the "slow left turn" issue?
I have two footpedals... and they both are sluggish on the left hand turn. I'd hate to buy a third pedal if this is not a pedal issue or if I can just clean both of them up and get them working again. Or at least get them working well enough to serve as spares.
What do ya think? |
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Posts: 734
Location: Watertown, MN | John
Sell 5 more spinnerbaits and buy a new one, have cleaned mine, stored them in dry storage all the time, unplugged when charging. The slow turn is the sign that it is going and it is a matter of time. Typical pad last me a few months, got a factory replacement last fall, used 1 weekend before heading to the fox, first spot, did not work, went to back up pad. These pad are junk, first pad failed less than a month out of the box on LOW, next year same thing at LOW.
Troyz |
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Posts: 1938
Location: Black Creek, WI | Well.... I took one of my footpads apart last night and cleaned it up good. Learned a few things too.... like the entire circuit board is sealed... so dirt and grit is only a wear issue on the sliding plastic parts that put pressure on the circuit board. Pretty simple device actually. Unfortunately, when I put it back together the unit won't turn right/left at all. Completely dead  On the positive side... I now know that I need to purchase another spare footpad 
Any chance my footpad is still salvageable???
Are there any other control options beside the co-pilot?
Does anyone want to buy a PD65?
Are the terrova pads immune to these issues? |
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| If you pay me a $100 I'll take your PD 65....
I would start sending emails to Minn Kota complaining about this problem, it will not be the first time they have heard of this issue, even though they will try to tell you that.. Don't stop until they have you send in the bad foot pad and send you a new one... I have had little success in getting them working again once they go bad.. |
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Posts: 3518
Location: north central wisconsin | jlong, your pedal is most likely salvagable. Could you have the knobs set incorrectly so they are not sliding over the micro switches? With it apart, press the switches and see if they 'click'. Yup, they are sealed and dust/grime are the death of them. The little fingers rub all day and the dust will wear through the plastic coating and get into the switch eventually(quicker for those like me who don't stow the pad religiously). Just picked up a Terrova for the other rig, and yes, the foot pads are different. Give me a year and i'l tell you if improved. I did order it from Chuck Brod and he told me that the micro sealed switchesd have been replaced by magnetic switches, which shouls fix the wear problem. i like the looks of my terrova pedal, but there are 3 times the switches/button/controls associated with it. So... if one thing was remedied, it seems there is 4 times the potential for new things to go wrong. That said, I am a loyal Minn Kota guy, and will continue to use and complain about them......
As a side note, one of my old motors started to turn slower when the armiturer(sp.?) or electric motor windings started to wear out and swell within the housing(could be one of your problems???). It needed a rebuild(new guts), which Chuck Brod completed and afforded me a couple more years from an otherwise dead rig.
Edited by Reef Hawg 5/31/2007 10:15 PM
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