skyking1 Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 I'm thinking of upgrading TM, I have a 2008 RF 18 with Riptide tiller steer 80# TM. The TM was on the boat when I bought it. I think I would like to upgrade to the Minnkota Ulterra ipilot 80#. I'm know spring chicken, and I think I would like the auto deploy and stow. I fish solo about 90% of the time. Wanted to get Pros and Cons / Tips & Tricks to mounting it....if I have to drill any new holes. (it is against my religion to drill holes into gelcoat) What do most do with the corded foot pedal.....I think I would like it, just not sure how to use it on a flat deck where it can slid around or off the deck..... Thanks for any input. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
szainey Posted January 13, 2017 Report Share Posted January 13, 2017 I did the same with my 2007 RF last year. I fish by myself a lot and the iPilot is a game changer. Makes life way easier. Minn Kota makes a quick adjust bracket that you can use to install using your existing holes - BUT only 4 lined up on mine and I ended up having to drill 2 new holes anyway. It is also a royal pain to reach underneath to get those nuts on the forward bolts and I ended up having to buy a long ratchet with a flexible head in order to get those nuts adequately tightened. I also lost use of that front cleat - but that really hasn't been an issue as there is the cleat in the anchor locker anyway. It took a little more time than I would have thought, mostly due to those front bolts and the long reach, but it was very worth it. I have neither the auto deploy nor the foot pedal. i usually have my yeti up front as a casting platform/bow weight anyway and the head of the motor usually has to be manipulated around it anyway. I would say get a long ratchet, get the bracket, and recruit someone with long arms who can reach into that anchor locker! But definitely go for it, there's no going back to tiller drive after using the remote and auto pilot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanjj Posted January 13, 2017 Report Share Posted January 13, 2017 You may want to check with Hewes, because my PF has a aluminum plate glassed in from the factory on upper LH deck for this purpose. I drilled and tapped the four mounting holes for my quick release into the aluminum plate and used locktite with installing the bolts, almost two years and over 100 hours later and it's still tight. This is the only picture I can pull up tonight, but it gives you an idea of where the aluminum plate is from the factory. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M.A. Posted January 14, 2017 Report Share Posted January 14, 2017 Have the Minn Kota iPilot with the quick disconnect plate. Deploys and stows very easily, but doesn't auto-deploy. I like to remove it based on what type of fishing I do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triplec Posted January 15, 2017 Report Share Posted January 15, 2017 On 1/12/2017 at 10:43 AM, skyking1 said: I'm thinking of upgrading TM, I have a 2008 RF 18 with Riptide tiller steer 80# TM. The TM was on the boat when I bought it. I think I would like to upgrade to the Minnkota Ulterra ipilot 80#. I'm know spring chicken, and I think I would like the auto deploy and stow. I fish solo about 90% of the time. Wanted to get Pros and Cons / Tips & Tricks to mounting it....if I have to drill any new holes. (it is against my religion to drill holes into gelcoat) What do most do with the corded foot pedal.....I think I would like it, just not sure how to use it on a flat deck where it can slid around or off the deck..... Thanks for any input. You will love the Ulterra. Exact reasons I went to one. The auto deploy/stow is great but the best feature I love is the trim! The ability to trim that motor up and down with the remote is awesome. Had several ipilots prior. No foot pedal necessary but can be added as option. The mount is different from what your running though. It is shorter so you will have couple holes exposed from your current mount. Likely too that one of the forward mounts will fall outside of the glassed in plate. Mine did on the MA. It is the same as last few gens of ipilot that use the RTA 17 quick mount which is in my opinion the only way to go! It will. By all means my advice is do the quick release. It will have to come off at some point whether is warranty work or boat in shop or repainting the foot. For some reason MK just can't get paint to stay on those suckers...can't be the oyster bars up here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meckles Posted March 27, 2017 Report Share Posted March 27, 2017 What size shaft are you boys using on the 18' boats, I'm about to the pull the trigger on MG xi5 and can't decide between the 48" or 60". I want the 48" because I feel like that'll be plenty of motor in the water (based on measurements) and will also cut down on how much is bouncing around and taking up space on the deck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VsteveV Posted March 27, 2017 Report Share Posted March 27, 2017 I have the 48" I pilot and to me its the perfect size. IMO the mounting is a real PITA and not many options out there to clear the bow roller. Other then that, I love mine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triplec Posted April 2, 2017 Report Share Posted April 2, 2017 On 3/27/2017 at 5:18 PM, meckles said: What size shaft are you boys using on the 18' boats, I'm about to the pull the trigger on MG xi5 and can't decide between the 48" or 60". I want the 48" because I feel like that'll be plenty of motor in the water (based on measurements) and will also cut down on how much is bouncing around and taking up space on the deck. I run the Ulterra for the trim and deploy but 54" works mighty fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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