Battery for Minn Kota

[Brenno]

Hi

i have a Minn Kota 55lb and i'm looking at getting a battery to go with it.

will be using it for a few hours a day when i get it set up.

can anyone tell me what would be the best type and what type of charge would go with it.

and of course how much, would i need to spend.

[ANYFISH]

gday mate ive got a 55 pound minn kota and use a century durathon deep cycle 86t wich is an 85 amp hour battery. dunnow about a price though. i got mine real cheep through a mate. its the same battery used in electric forklifts.
this battery lasts me a full weekend when i go to the severn river trolling and casting lures all day.
cheers anyfish

[gif]

I read that you MUST use a deep cycle battery.

These cope with the lond deep recycling.

A regular car battery will self destruct very quickly when used as a deep cycle

Some of the web sites ( eg exide) have lots to read about this.
Gary

[SNELLY]

Brenno,

I use a Century 86B #Battery it is not a deep cycle but here in Cairns I can buy them from battery world for $89- . You may get them cheaper down south.

I have a 50lb Minkota with a maximiser and these batteries last all day. I figure why spend twice as much for a deep cycle when these do the job fine. Gary is right do not just use a car battery - The battery I'm talking about is a truck and tractor size so it can handle the discharge and recharge.

With your charger get at least a 10amp charger it will cost you a few bucks more than a lower rated one but the lower amp one will not do the job properly on the large batteries and can do more harm than good to your battery

Cheers JON

[Harry_In_Toowoomba]

G'day Brenno, Mate, i've got a few batteries here that i use and they include 85 amp/hr deep cycle, same size and weight in a 4x4/truck/tractor battery and a 135 amp/hr deep cycle.

The 85 amp/hr deep cycle is the miinimum recommended for the electrics and barely does a full day with a 46lb thrust minn kota. The other one the same size is totally stuffed after being run down a number of times and is now virtually useless and was by the time it was 4 months old.

I'd recommend going for the 135 amp/hr deep cycle battery and paying the extra bucks for it. If it comes to a choice between 2 different batteries of the same rating or similar - go for the heaviest one (in weight). It'll last the longest and hold charge better than a lighter version. You'll be looking at somewhere in the vicinity of 180-200 dollars for one. Well worth it in the long run. Don't skimp where it counts - time on the water is short enough.

Cheers,
"Harry"
http://groups.msn.com/FlyFishingDownUnder

[Zeeke]

i couldnt go past recommending a Trojan Deep cycle battery, its what all the bass guys and girls over in the states use aswell as the saltwater guides on the flats over there for there electrics.. ive got a 130amp/hr deep cycle Trojan.. cost $290 from Battery World.. has 2 screw on terminals built in, so you dont need to add clips and such..

Tim

[Fisherman02]

hey mate about the charging,
as snell y said dont go for a charger less then 10amps however! I got a electronic charger from super cheap for 79 bucks and it is a 7amp charger but with a peak of 14 amp. Also it has auto shutoff and it tells u if u have put the negative clip on the pos side and the pos on the neg side (good in the dark) however i do disagree with snelly as he seems to be saying that small chargers do more damage then good. This is not true as a slower charge is better for the battery then a fast charge. But u do need that extra charge at the end which is why i reckon the charger i got was a real bargain. Anyways if u want the model number send us a pm and ill give u the details
cheers jack

[jeffo]

dont trust any of the stuff lie that from super cheap jack! sometimes there "auto shutoff" doesnt AUTO SHUTOFF like they should..... >

[aquarius]

Brenno i have a 55lb thrust salt water minn kota and am on my second battery......the first lasted several years but i always keep it fully charged.....Don,t let it go completly flat.
My battery i bought from battery world is a century durathon deep cycle 85 amp....weighs a ton but lasts for hours at 50% power.....cost was $150 last year but they may have gone up in price by now.
I have a 15amp battery charger and a 5 amp one to trickle charge......best to buy yourself a hydrometer to test the battery to make sure its not getting overcharged.
Remember if you look after your battery it will look after you!!
Cheers Brent

[basserman]

i run a century durathon 75amp deep cycle
runs my 55lb bowmount for two full day in the fresh and a little over 1 full all day in the salt (diffrance being tide and curant) carges up over night with a 10amp charger (important not to charge longer than a single 8 hour stink as longer can and will buckle the plates) but all in all a bute battery but than again it is only moving a 385 explorer trophie

[basserman]

opps price would be $160.00 icludes gst ofcouse!

[Brenno]

Thanks heaps guys.

now i've got some idea of what type of battery and changer i need so i wont sound like a complete fool when i walk into the shop to get one.