Designed to fail..And I hate it...

[Baitbucket]

Im more a fan of setting autopilot and then being heads down tying, look up, almost on the shore.

I do the same alot as well.

I typically do all my trolling with just my trolling motor. I record a track using my main motor, then set my trolling motor to follow that track. Record the track doing an "S" pattern and let the trolling motor do its thing. Bump the speed down when you have a fish on if needed.

Its so nice not having to worry about driving while bringing in a fish. Especially if you are solo.

[Jethro]

Hey Jethro are you using the external GPS puck with your new unit?

Yes, it came with the puck and I mounted and calibrated it. It's attached to the same circuit breaker switch that my Helix 9 is on, so as long as the sonar is on, the puck is active. My older Powerdrives did not have i-pilot or anything, this is my first experience with it but I am amazed at the accuracy of the spot lock. The say it's a 5 foot circle but that must be a real worst case scenario or something. Since I have the Link system, I have that big, smart phone type of remote that shows the spot lock circle like a target and even in 15mph gusty winds it's never worse than 2 foot accuracy. I've confirmed this by spot locking right next to shore in some pretty stiff winds.

I do the same alot as well.

I typically do all my trolling with just my trolling motor. I record a track using my main motor, then set my trolling motor to follow that track. Record the track doing an "S" pattern and let the trolling motor do its thing. Bump the speed down when you have a fish on if needed.

Its so nice not having to worry about driving while bringing in a fish. Especially if you are solo.

If I'm only out for a half a day I won't start the gas kicker either. I need to record more routes with erratic patterns rather than being lazy and just shooting a heading. And yes, solo fishing it's a total game changer. No gear I have ever bought before I could say has made me more productive, but this motor certainly has. I can set my downriggers quickly and I'm more apt to change presentations without having to worry about the boat.

[Mac Attack]

It’s my understanding that the puck only enhances spotloc accuracy, not autopilot accuracy.

Is this correct?

[lowaccord66]

It’s my understanding that the puck only enhances spotloc accuracy, not autopilot accuracy.

Is this correct?

Thats correct.  Due to the fact that I am a unrefined mud chicken jigger its all I really need the thing for.

[Baitbucket]

I am a unrefined mud chicken jigger

Literally laughed out loud when i read that lol

[Jethro]

It’s my understanding that the puck only enhances spotloc accuracy, not autopilot accuracy.

Is this correct?

Pretty sure the only other real feature of the puck other than spot lock accuracy is the jog feature. While on spot lock or while trolling a route you can jog in 5 foot intervals. Haven't used that yet myself and don't really see myself doing so.

[Mac Attack]

Pretty sure the only other real feature of the puck other than spot lock accuracy is the jog feature. While on spot lock or while trolling a route you can jog in 5 foot intervals. Haven't used that yet myself and don't really see myself doing so.

Thanks

[Steve H.]

Pretty sure the only other real feature of the puck other than spot lock accuracy is the jog feature. While on spot lock or while trolling a route you can jog in 5 foot intervals. Haven't used that yet myself and don't really see myself doing so.

Yeah, same here.  I installed my puck when I first got the Terrova but haven't calibrated it yet.  Not sure if I'd use it.  Surprised you can't adjust the duration of stays, other than the 5 seconds.  Unless I'm missing something there.

[stripernut]

Have not set mine up yet, but I think one of the things it does is let the system know which direction your boat is facing. GPS only knows which direction you are moving, not where your bow is pointed. I can see many situations were that would help the trolling motor lock faster... Now I need to figure out which battery I want to hook the "puck" up to. I have not seen how much power it draws (I am sure very little), but if it is on all the time, it could drain a battery...

[lowaccord66]

Have not set mine up yet, but I think one of the things it does is let the system know which direction your boat is facing. GPS only knows which direction you are moving, not where your bow is pointed. I can see many situations were that would help the trolling motor lock faster... Now I need to figure out which battery I want to hook the "puck" up to. I have not seen how much power it draws (I am sure very little), but if it is on all the time, it could drain a battery...

Im starting to consider an upgrade because I do not have the puck and I need a bit more accuracy for laker jigging especially in light winds.  I figured if and when I'd probably hook the puck up my cranking battery.  Outboard alternator gets that to 14.5 when its running so I run the Garmin off it.

[Jethro]

Yeah, same here.  I installed my puck when I first got the Terrova but haven't calibrated it yet.  Not sure if I'd use it.  Surprised you can't adjust the duration of stays, other than the 5 seconds.  Unless I'm missing something there.

No it's not time, it's distance. You can use it to offset your spot lock or a route by 5 feet each time you push the button.

Have not set mine up yet, but I think one of the things it does is let the system know which direction your boat is facing. GPS only knows which direction you are moving, not where your bow is pointed. I can see many situations were that would help the trolling motor lock faster... Now I need to figure out which battery I want to hook the "puck" up to. I have not seen how much power it draws (I am sure very little), but if it is on all the time, it could drain a battery...

You got that exactly right. Everyone calls it a GPS puck, it's not actually GPS at all, it's a heading sensor. The GPS antenna is in the head of the trolling motor itself. The heading sensor tells you what direction your boat is heading. When you install it you need to align it to the keel. So if you think about it, for jogging off a spot lock by 5 feet in any direction, the GPS isn't smart enough to tell it what direction to move. The GPS only tells it exactly where the motor is at any given point. But say you are spot locked and you want to move 5 feet forward.. the GPS doesn't know which way is forward, it's only the difference between the heading sensor and the GPS location that tells the electronics which way is "left" or "forward". GPS only knows how fast you are moving and in what direction you are moving when you are moving. But on spot lock you need a heading sensor so the electronics knows what is forward and what is back. You can jog in all 4 directions.

I hooked mine up to a vacant toggle switch on my control panel that now is the power for my fish finder and the heading sensor. Otherwise it is supposed to shut down automatically after an hour and half of not receiving a "handshake" from the head unit. I just didn't understand how it starts up again when I turn the motor back on, so I put it on a switch.

Im starting to consider an upgrade because I do not have the puck and I need a bit more accuracy for laker jigging especially in light winds.  I figured if and when I'd probably hook the puck up my cranking battery.  Outboard alternator gets that to 14.5 when its running so I run the Garmin off it.

They say not to hook the heading sensor up to your trolling batteries, although I read about some people that have successfully.

The next time I go out I will have to see if I lose accuracy when I don't turn it on. I can tell you it's crazy how accurate my spot lock is. This weekend was the first time I fished the salt with it and OMG, what a game changer. We found a good rip where it was just cranking the current and spot locked about 20 feet on the other side of it. Throw the baits out and let the rip drag your presentation through to the deeper water and bam, fish every cast. An anchor would have been a pain to use and not as accurate. This motor is powerful, very glad I got the 36v.

[Steve H.]

No it's not time, it's distance. You can use it to offset your spot lock or a route by 5 feet each time you push the button.

Right, right...thanks.  That was the issue I had, only 5 feet of travel per stop.  Clearly i'm not fishing thoroughly enough.   

[Jethro]

Right, right...thanks.  That was the issue I had, only 5 feet of travel per stop.  Clearly i'm not fishing thoroughly enough.   

Yeah it seems kinda pointless to me as well. I will just drive where I want to go and then spot lock again. I know with my Helix 9 and the Link system my motor has I can change things like the offset I can troll on contour lines, maybe I can change that amount of travel. Even so, I don't see myself using the "jog" feature much. But it came in the box so I installed the thing.

[lowaccord66]

Jethro my trolling batteries are in a closed loop and do nothing but drive the terrova.  I have a giant Northstar agm that runs the Garmin all accessories and the main.  The heading sensor would be hooked to that battery as it gets charged by the main.  We used spot lock for seabass on a 31fter and destroyed them!

[stripernut]

I am looking forward to using the "Jog" feature for Tog and fishing rips... I could see it working well fishing big "pools" in a river, looking for walleye and smallies...