Fatherof4 Posted June 14, 2019 Report Share Posted June 14, 2019 Hello All. Purchased my first ever flats boat. 18.5 Maverick Master Angler. Have owned saltwater boats for over 30 years. This is my first with a trolling motor. I know ZERO about trolling motor batteries. What to buy, regular deep cycle vs AGM. I know zero about AGM's as well. It is a newer (2017) Minn Kota and is a 24v volt. About all I know about it. Any and all advice, what to buy, why or why not, etc. I doubt the trolling motor will get used very much, a few times a year, at most, with LONG pauses in between..like even months in between uses. Thanks for the help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JnamJnam Posted June 14, 2019 Report Share Posted June 14, 2019 https://www.optimabatteries.com/en-us/bluetop-dual-purpose-deep-cycle-and-starting/d34m In the mid-range price. 5-6 year battery no problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkh Posted June 14, 2019 Report Share Posted June 14, 2019 Nice boat purchase! I favor AGM primarily due to low maintenance and ability to remain on a charger for longer term storage. I know wet batteries can also be on a charger long term but I am just more comfortable with the AGM. I have two odyssey group 34for my 24v minn Kota and another of the same for the house battery. I have a minn Kota 3 bank charger. I too have months between uses, unfortunately, and have had no battery issues for the 3.5 years I have had them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fin-addict Posted June 14, 2019 Report Share Posted June 14, 2019 Been using Walmart ever start 27 DP for years. Also Deka, both wet cell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whichwaysup Posted June 14, 2019 Report Share Posted June 14, 2019 Fatherof4, Hello from a father of 5. Man, first of all, GREAT purchase! You just bought the Cadillac of Flats boats. I've owned two of them, and am basically re-buying my second one with the work I'm putting into it. They really are special boats. As for the TM, is it an Ipilot or hand controlled? If I-pilot (has a remote, looks cool, impresses women, wards off jetskiiers), I would challenge you to try it out a little before you relegate it to the EUDIE ("extra, unnecessary draft increasing equipment") category. It's an anchor, a co-pilot, and a charter captain all in one. As for batteries, I've run AGM and I've run wet cells. To be honest, I'm not sure the AGMs were really any improvement over the wet cells I have. I did find that Streetside auto.com had the best prices on Optima bluetop AGM batteries for whatever reason. The group 27s or 34s should be fine, but check the measurements/dimensions before you buy. Do me a favor, since my own MA is still under the knife for restoration, post up some pics of your new sled in the Maverick - Vintage Maverick photos section! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCFD rtrd. Posted June 14, 2019 Report Share Posted June 14, 2019 I buy my batteries at Sam's Club. Group 34 AGM for $130 each. I would suggest you also buy a 3 bank on-board battery charger. The worst thing you can do is leave the batteries idle for weeks or months. The on-board charger will keep all 3 batteries fully charged and they will last much longer. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fatherof4 Posted June 14, 2019 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2019 Thanks all. I appreciate it. I bought the Maverick that was in the for sale section of this website. It was the 1996 MA with dual rod lockers. Been piddling on it, changing plugs, the lower unit oil, new cranking battery, and general cleaning. Gonna buff the sides this weekend. It is an I-pilot and self deploying from what I understand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hawg Posted June 14, 2019 Report Share Posted June 14, 2019 I've had great luck with Optima Blue Tops. They are AGM. I like that they are maintenance free and non-spillable. Also, they can be stowed in any position. My first set of 2 lasted 8 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-linesider Posted June 14, 2019 Report Share Posted June 14, 2019 Sams club sells Duracell AGM batteries. By far the best bang for your buck. They are re-labeled Deka batteries for a fraction of the price. They are literally the same battery from the same manufacturer off the same assembly line just different decal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSN651 Posted June 14, 2019 Report Share Posted June 14, 2019 1 hour ago, D-linesider said: Sams club sells Duracell AGM batteries. By far the best bang for your buck. They are re-labeled Deka batteries for a fraction of the price. They are literally the same battery from the same manufacturer off the same assembly line just different decal. This... Chuck 😁 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bamaskeet Posted June 15, 2019 Report Share Posted June 15, 2019 I agree with using Sams Club AGM batteries. Get group 31’s so you never run out of juice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rubble Posted December 24, 2019 Report Share Posted December 24, 2019 Time to replace cranking battery for F150. Best battery for the money? Boat sits for months at at time. I turn the battery switches off but the Stealth still has that little LED light that stays on and likely drains the battery. My current Exide Cranking battery has been in the boat for exactly 3 years. Spent 3 days in the Glades and had to start from the Battery 2 backup almost every time. Cranking battery wouldn’t come close to turning turning the motor over. Danny at Stealth says just stick with the cheapest Walmart marine battery. Probably is spot on but I keep thinking I need something a little more substantial but after this last trip, a cheap walmart battery would have been just as effective as my nice Exide acid battery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polliwog Posted December 24, 2019 Report Share Posted December 24, 2019 If you're using the batteries for a couple of hours an outing get a good wet cell battery like interstate. I use my 24volt system the same way a couple hours at most on an outing. Mine last over 3yrs . Charged up after each trip on board charger is a great way to painlessly keep them up to full charge. If I was going to rely on the troller for all day use my answer would be a AGM or lithium ion , which are big bucks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunstone Posted December 24, 2019 Report Share Posted December 24, 2019 My 3 Interstate 29 batteries will be 5 years old next March and still going strong. Had to replace the cranking battery this year. Never in a full day of fishing have they been drained and I have no onboard charger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bamaskeet Posted December 25, 2019 Report Share Posted December 25, 2019 20 hours ago, rubble said: Time to replace cranking battery for F150. Best battery for the money? Boat sits for months at at time. I turn the battery switches off but the Stealth still has that little LED light that stays on and likely drains the battery. My current Exide Cranking battery has been in the boat for exactly 3 years. Spent 3 days in the Glades and had to start from the Battery 2 backup almost every time. Cranking battery wouldn’t come close to turning turning the motor over. Danny at Stealth says just stick with the cheapest Walmart marine battery. Probably is spot on but I keep thinking I need something a little more substantial but after this last trip, a cheap walmart battery would have been just as effective as my nice Exide acid battery. I’ve had good luck with Sams, group 31 AGM batteries. I use two for my trolling motor and one for my cranking battery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Felix Posted June 28, 2022 Report Share Posted June 28, 2022 Great topic. Lots of info. Now for a silly question. Where do you put a couple of batteries on a 2002 HPX-V? Thinking of installing a 24 volt trolling motor. Forward hatch seems like a no no. TIA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fin-addict Posted June 28, 2022 Report Share Posted June 28, 2022 I have been using Walmart Everstart wet cell 27 DP for years. They now don’t have them anymore. Lasted 5 years. Just now picked up Duracell but same style. Most made by same company but different stickers. Deka same as my Duracell’s but more expensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RacerxV6 Posted June 30, 2022 Report Share Posted June 30, 2022 Fatherof4, Welcome and congrats on the purchase. I recently bought a new battery for my house battery X2Power, it is on the higher end of the batteries but it comes with a 4 year warranty. Now when my current batteries go out for my Troller which is a Minn-Kota i-Pilot 24v, I will replace with the new X2Power batteries. The performance I experienced just in noticing how my VMax starts was amazing. Another thing to think of is what do you have on board for charging those puppies? You want to make sure that you have a good onboard charger system. I recently upgraded from a Minn-kota charger to the NOCO Gen 5. Extremely pleased with it's performance as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Team Geezer Posted July 23, 2022 Report Share Posted July 23, 2022 I'm a late to the thread but here is my install in an HPX-S. I have three batteries and an onboard NOCO Genius 3 bank charger under the console. All of them are Ionic Lithium Iron Phosphate. House battery is 125AH Dual Purpose Deep Cycle with 900 cranking amps. Trolling motor batteries are two Ionic 12V 50AH Deep Cycle in series for 24V. All three of the batteries weigh a total of 67lbs. I'm pretty sure the Noco charger weighs just short of a ton.🤣 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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