I have purchased a 2012 dual console 205 freedom with a 225 yamaha. I will be fishing it in Lake Huron in Ontario Canada. We fish for salmon and trout trolling at about 2.7 miles an hour. We also fish for walleye trolling at about 1 mile an hour. Will the 225 troll slow enough or will a kicker be nessescary?
Trolling speed with a 225 Yamaha
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Doc Stressor
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You will definitely need a kicker.
The slowest I could troll with any of my Gradys was 3+ mph.
The Yamaha T9.9 or the older T8 are the best trolling motors. They are actually sailboat pushers that have a heavy duty lower unit, large prop diameter, and very low prop pitch. You can get down to about 1.4 mph. For walleye trolling you will either need to back troll or get an electric trolling motor.
The slowest I could troll with any of my Gradys was 3+ mph.
The Yamaha T9.9 or the older T8 are the best trolling motors. They are actually sailboat pushers that have a heavy duty lower unit, large prop diameter, and very low prop pitch. You can get down to about 1.4 mph. For walleye trolling you will either need to back troll or get an electric trolling motor.
You can drill a bunch of 1" holes in a 5 gallon bucket and drag it. If one is not enough drag two.
Some live bait King fisherman do this to help keep the pogies from drowning. You will need good handles on the buckets or you will lose them.
Some live bait King fisherman do this to help keep the pogies from drowning. You will need good handles on the buckets or you will lose them.
Drift anchors, one on each side of the bow, like this one http://store.minnkotamotors.com/products/392946/Minn_Kota_Drift_Sock. You'll have to add a little power if you want more the 1 mph. A little of a pain, but less so than fooling with buckets, and highly effective ... :wink:
I do the same kind of fishing you do in Lake Ontario and no way would I invest in a kicker. Drift socks, old mail bags, etc. etc all work real well and don't take up any room, are cheap and there is no maintance. If you are worried about the safety issue of having a second moter I'd suggest getting a 2nd VHF.
Doc Stressor
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Another thing to consider is that those big Yamahas don't like to be run at idle speed. They almost all "make oil" when used for trolling. They run rich at low speed and the fuel washes down past the rings. You can minimize the problem by making a fairly long high speed run at the end of each day in order to flash off some of the fuel from the oil.
A lot of folks who troll offshore only add enough oil to bring the level halfway up the dipstick indicator zone. When the level reaches the full mark after hours of trolling, they change the oil.
A lot of folks who troll offshore only add enough oil to bring the level halfway up the dipstick indicator zone. When the level reaches the full mark after hours of trolling, they change the oil.
Stay away from using drift sock when trolling. IF the thing comes loose --- It's going right back in to the prop(s). At least a bucket will break-up if it hits the prop. That sock will be a MESS to try and remove.Curmudgeon said:
Mine trail nearly amidships on the sides. The one didn't even know one had slipped the splice until the steering changed due to unbalanced drag ...
Thanks for the tips. I will be launching in the next couple of weeks and will let you know how slow it trolls.
We still have some ice floating here in Southern Lake Huron.
We still have some ice floating here in Southern Lake Huron.