# All Electric Bass Boat Buildup ***Video Added***



## Craigaria (May 19, 2008)

I wanted to start a thread to cover my buildup of converting my bass boat to all electric. I will also review every part I am using, and post pictures and videos of the progress...

The boat I am starting with is a 1996 Astro S-20 B. It is 20' 6". I have just sold the Merc 200 to buy a Whisper XT electric outboard to use for making the long trips. I have allready installed a Minn Kota Maxxum 101 and BPS 3 bank charger. I used one of the storage compartments up front to put the batteries and charger for the 101. Here are some pictures of the 101 and also of my boat before the electric outboard install.


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## Craigaria (May 19, 2008)

If any of you had had a Minn Kota trolling motor, then you know all about them. The 101 I am using is very strong, and will pull my boat into a 30 mph wind no problem. Be careful not to hit the motor while it is on high and turned sideways, YOU WILL be going swimming. The batteries I installed with the 101 are Wal Mart Everstart Marine Max batteries, and they are a couple of years old. They still do the job and last all day even though they are older. I just recently bought the BPS 3 bank XPS charger, and so far it does it's job without a hitch. 

I am ordering my electric outboard today, and hopefully I will have it in a week or so. Here is the link of the motor I am getting... It is the equivalent of a 15HP gas motor, and comes with a 2 year warranty. It is also much cheaper than the other electric outboards out there... I will let ya'll know if it is as good as they say it is, as soon as I get it up and running.

http://oemc.biz/motors/whisper-xt.html

And here is the motor for sale on ebay with additional pictures...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/High...018QQitemZ280228080433QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW


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## trickworm (May 19, 2008)

now that a boat MOD for ya .lookin good . boy them hybrid better watch out .


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## biggtruxx (May 19, 2008)

man i gotta see that thang run when you get it done........ can you post a video of it? when complete?


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## Corey (May 19, 2008)

You are not going to be able to fish for everyone coming up to 
you asking questions about your boat..  

Where did you get that motor, how fast will it go, how much 
was it..lol 

Going to be cool when you get done good luck and let us 
know how it turns out.


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## Craigaria (May 19, 2008)

trickworm said:


> now that a boat MOD for ya .lookin good . boy them hybrid better watch out .



Get ready, we are gonna have sore arms


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## Craigaria (May 19, 2008)

biggtruxx said:


> man i gotta see that thang run when you get it done........ can you post a video of it? when complete?



I will definately post videos as well as gps speed. I am hoping for 7mph with this heavy boat, we'll see...


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## HAWGHUNNA (May 19, 2008)

Craigaria said:


> I am hoping for 7mph with this heavy boat, we'll see...



Heavy.....Yeah,and 6 more Everstarts to add to the equation

I have a 16/44 Fish Master Aluminum Semi-V that I bought at Wally world,using what I feel like is the lightest materials possible I decked her out with 3"thick aluminum/styrofoam  panels (originally designed for sunroom roof panels) using all aluminum extrusions and I'm running a 3 hp.Briggs & Stratton proto-type electric out board 48 volts.I carry a total of 6 Everstart Max batteries and get 7 plus mph.

Good luck with your project and thanks for sharing the conversion with us all.


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## Craigaria (May 19, 2008)

HAWGHUNNA said:


> Heavy.....Yeah,and 6 more Everstarts to add to the equation
> 
> I have a 16/44 Fish Master Aluminum Semi-V that I bought at Wally world,using what I feel like is the lightest materials possible I decked her out with 3"thick aluminum/styrofoam  panels (originally designed for sunroom roof panels) using all aluminum extrusions and I'm running a 3 hp.Briggs & Stratton proto-type electric out board 48 volts.I carry a total of 6 Everstart Max batteries and get 7 plus mph.
> 
> Good luck with your project and thanks for sharing the conversion with us all.



I used to build those sunrooms so I know exactly waht you are talking about. That was a pretty good idea. Do you have any pics of your boat? Also 7 mph is moving pretty good, sounds like you built a sweet setup


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## JerkBait (May 20, 2008)

*yea but will it catch fish?*

the boat is gonna look great craigaria but  whether or not youre gonna be able to put me on the fish is what im wondering


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## Craigaria (May 20, 2008)

JerkBait said:


> the boat is gonna look great craigaria but  whether or not youre gonna be able to put me on the fish is what im wondering



Thanks! At least now I can take you and your brother at the same time, even if we don't catch anything. It is going to be nice not being all cramped up in that little jon boat like last year. Maybe one day next week we can go give it a try...


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## JerkBait (May 20, 2008)

Craigaria said:


> Maybe one day next week we can go give it a try...



ill hold you to that


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## HAWGHUNNA (May 22, 2008)

Yeah,
          I have pics of the entire decking process...if only my son can figure out which of the hundred unlabeled disk it was put on...I'll post them when I come across them but for now...I'll snap a couple of the finished product for ya.

Get you E.O.B yet?


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## Craigaria (May 22, 2008)

HAWGHUNNA said:


> Yeah,
> I have pics of the entire decking process...if only my son can figure out which of the hundred unlabeled disk it was put on...I'll post them when I come across them but for now...I'll snap a couple of the finished product for ya.
> 
> Get you E.O.B yet?



Thats cool, no hurry! They received my payment yesterday. I should get a tracking number tomorrow...


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## Craigaria (May 25, 2008)

I couldn't wait for the outboard, so we decided to go fishing with just the front motor. Everything went smooth until a boat came by us on Oconee and the wake came over the front of my boat. It seems that without the weight of the gas motor on the back, the boat is really nose heavy anf the front of the boat only sits about 5" out of the water It freaked us out and we thought my boat was going to end up on the bottom of the lake. All was OK though and we calmed down and managed to get 5 hybrids.

Can't wait to get the outboard so the weight of it and the batteries will offset the missing gas motor. Here are a few pics of the fish


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## trickworm (May 27, 2008)

Man what's the ETA on that new juice sucker


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## Craigaria (May 27, 2008)

trickworm said:


> Man what's the ETA on that new juice sucker



I talked to the guy and he said it was shipped last Friday. I should receive a tracking # today. Even if I get it tomorrow, I won't be able to do anything with it until I buy more batteries. I bought 1 battery so far


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## trickworm (May 27, 2008)

KC has got some old one's I think he just refreshed his boat up for the year ask him.


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## Craigaria (May 27, 2008)

He probably took them back to wally world. I'll ask him though, Thanks!


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## pcsolutions1 (Jun 11, 2008)

How about an update on this motor setup?  Surely it's been out by now.  

Tom


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## biggtruxx (Jun 11, 2008)

didnt you fish the tourney on varner saturday? in this boat?


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## trickworm (Jun 11, 2008)

well did ya get the new pusher yet ?


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## JarheadDad (Jun 11, 2008)

biggtruxx said:


> didnt you fish the tourney on varner saturday? in this boat?



Was that him? I thought that fiberglass boat out there Saturday was more red but then I am old, senile, and blind!


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## Craigaria (Jun 11, 2008)

They had a problem at the factory and it delayed shipping... They called and told me it shipped yesterday and they sent it 2 day air so it should be here tomorrow

I still have to buy 3 batteries and I'll be set. Also they tested the motor on a 22 foot center console this weekend and it did 8.5 mph gps. If my boat goes that fast I'll be really happy.

Btw, I was at Varner saturday but I wasn't in the tourney. I was hybrid fishing.


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## JarheadDad (Jun 11, 2008)

So that was you! heh! I saw a single electric on that boat and didn't figure it was you or I would've swung by and annoyed.... uh..... introduced myself!  

Boat does look different on the water too. Oh well, maybe next time we can hook up and you can give me some pointers!

I wasn't fishing that tourney either. Didn't know there was one going on.

Where are you going to test your big electric when it comes in? I'd like to see that.


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## Craigaria (Jun 11, 2008)

JarheadDad said:


> So that was you! heh! I saw a single electric on that boat and didn't figure it was you or I would've swung by and annoyed.... uh..... introduced myself!
> 
> Boat does look different on the water too. Oh well, maybe next time we can hook up and you can give me some pointers!
> 
> ...




That was me...  Next time you see me stop by and say hello, it won't bother me.

If things go right and I have enough time to install the motor, the maiden voyage will be saturday on Varner. But I may not have time to get it rigged before then...

If I'm there, I won't be too far from the boat ramp. I'll be out in the deep water pullin bluegills


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## biggtruxx (Jun 11, 2008)

thought i saw u there........... jarhead the other boat u saw was a guy in the tourney with us   it was just a small private tourney


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## JarheadDad (Jun 11, 2008)

I have a big horseshoe pitchin' cookout to go to on Sat Craigaria but I may take some time and fish a few hours early Sat. I'd love to see that thing move your boat. Post up if you get her in.

There were a ton of shellcrackers back down the right arm past the island a couple of weeks ago. I didn't get that far back Saturday so I don't know if they are still there but they were bigger than your hand and about six or seven beds worth. Took my granddaughters two weekends ago and they had me steppin' and fetchin' baiting hooks and taking fish off. Only brought home 30 so we left plenty although a bunch had sore mouths. My baby girls were wailing on them boy!   




biggtruxx said:


> thought i saw u there........... jarhead the other boat u saw was a guy in the tourney with us   it was just a small private tourney



Yeah Biggtruxx, I noticed it was private when y'all wouldn't let me weigh-in! Heh! Juuuust kiddin'! I had one of those dream mornings Varner gives you. About every two years. And then she kicks you in the teeth the rest of the time!


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## Craigaria (Jun 11, 2008)

We'll if I don't see you sat then I'm sure we will meet up sooner or later. I will also post a video and pictures on here as soon as I get the motor on...


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## wood wise (Jun 11, 2008)

so why did you sell the motor tired of 4.00 per gal i rember them john boat days could not wait till i had my 20-sb 60 mpg gps smooth sailing


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## Craigaria (Jun 11, 2008)

wood wise said:


> so why did you sell the motor tired of 4.00 per gal i rember them john boat days could not wait till i had my 20-sb 60 mpg gps smooth sailing



My favorite lakes are all electric only. The price of gas doesn't help either. I have had jon boats all my life, they are great but once I got a bass boat with all that storage and room, it was hard to go back to a small boat.


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## Craigaria (Jun 17, 2008)

The motor is in! Pics coming soon...


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## pcsolutions1 (Jun 17, 2008)

Looking forward to them.

Tom


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## Nitram4891 (Jul 7, 2008)

Got those pictures yet?  How fast does it go?


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## Craigaria (Jul 7, 2008)

Sorry no pics yet, been real busy, just barely enough time to squeeze in some fishing. I will try and post some this week. I have had the motor out twice now, and didn't take a gps either time. The first time out I only had it wired up at 36 volts and I was really impressed with the torque it made. The top speed was a good bit faster than my 101 minn kota, and it hit top speed almost instantly. That paticular trip I used the outboard all day trolling and it was still fully charged at the end of the day. Yesterday I took it out and this time I ran it at 60 volts. Still not the full 72 volt setup, and I was using 2 very old batteries with 3 new ones just to see how it would do. It was very impressive. I almost accidentaly threw my friends out of the boat a few times when we were taking off. The top speed was very strong too, I was passing boats on Varner and I had 3 guys in the boat, 2-  30 gallon bait tanks, 40 gallons of water in the gas tank, and all the tackle, etc... The battery gauge read in the low 50 volt range because of the old batterys I was using. I can't wait to see it run at 72 volts with all new batterys. My friend saw me running it and he thinks it would plane his boat out, he was very impressed. I'll get some pics and post them later, also once I get the rest of the batterys, I'll post some gps #'s...


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## NottelyBILL (Jul 7, 2008)

i been thinking about using my 71 lb thurst motor on my triton175 till the batteries run out. at half speed what kind'a run time do you think I will get??


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## Craigaria (Jul 7, 2008)

It is supposed to get 1 and 1/2 hour at full throttle, and I was told that every 10% you reduce the throttle you double the run time. I ran it 12 hours the other day at a very low speed, and it didn't run the batterys down at all...


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## JarheadDad (Jul 7, 2008)

I saw you out there yesterday Craigaria but you were busy taking pics. I spoke with one of your buddies and he gave me the rundown on how the boat performed. Gotta' say I was impressed with the design of the motor and the way it looks. If you can do that well on 60v that would be perfect for a jonboat. I only saw y'all come across to the ramp but it looked like you were moving pretty good. Sounds like it may be a better deal than a Ray's. Money-wise it already is that's for sure!


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## Craigaria (Jul 7, 2008)

JarheadDad said:


> I saw you out there yesterday Craigaria but you were busy taking pics. I spoke with one of your buddies and he gave me the rundown on how the boat performed. Gotta' say I was impressed with the design of the motor and the way it looks. If you can do that well on 60v that would be perfect for a jonboat. I only saw y'all come across to the ramp but it looked like you were moving pretty good. Sounds like it may be a better deal than a Ray's. Money-wise it already is that's for sure!



Dang, you should've said hello... I was weighing that guys bass. He didn't have a scale but he thought it was around 12.5 lbs. It ended up weighing 9.6, but it was a good fish, nice and fat. I hated to see that he took it with him but he said he was getting it mounted...

As for the motor, so far I'm pretty impressed with it and the company in general. They were a little slow to ship due to some problems with the factory foreman's health, but they called me every other day to keep me updated and also gave me a nice jacket for the trouble. They are also going to ship me their new high speed prop that is in developement when they get a prototype and let me test it on my boat. The prop now is a torque prop which explains how fast it is to hit max speed. I'm going to try to get it ready to make a long, wide open run this weekend and really put it to the test. It still may not be at full voltage for a while, but I'm getting there slowly...


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## JarheadDad (Jul 8, 2008)

I would've but you were real busy with that big ol' dead fish!  

I try to stay off Varner on the weekends but I may head over next Sunday. High Voltage is fishing Saturday so I don't want to get in their way but I may make it Sunday if you're going to be running then. As quick as y'all made it back up from where you were fishing down toward the dam I would really like to see that boat move up close.

Tell you what, when you start fishing tourneys I've got a 50' tow line on my bow that I'm hooking to your transom! Heh!


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## Craigaria (Jul 8, 2008)

Make it a point to say hello next time... I'll let you check it out, no problem. I'll tow ya if I can have some of the winnings


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## Craigaria (Aug 5, 2008)

Allright, it is finally time for an update. I apologize for not posting much about this lately but I have had alot going on including two S.C. trips and I just got back from Arizona... I am going fishing tomorrow at Varner and I will finally have the motor running on all 8 cylinders (72 VOLTS) with all new batterys!!! I am very excited and I will be taking the GPS with me to get a speed reading. Here are a few pictures of the motor mounted and fully wired. Also a pic of the throttle controller at the wheel...


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## JerkBait (Aug 5, 2008)

looks good man maybe we can try to meet up again and go soon!


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## Craigaria (Aug 5, 2008)

JerkBait said:


> looks good man maybe we can try to meet up again and go soon!



I called your bro a little bit ago and invited him to go tomorrow. It is an open invite for you if you want to go... Chris said he was too busy working to catch fish, can you believe that??? Call me if you want to go, I'll be leaving the house at 4:30


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## JerkBait (Aug 5, 2008)

Craigaria said:


> I called your bro a little bit ago and invited him to go tomorrow. It is an open invite for you if you want to go... Chris said he was too busy working to catch fish, can you believe that??? Call me if you want to go, I'll be leaving the house at 4:30


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## trickworm (Aug 6, 2008)

Dang it Son that thing looks like it would hall hiney . The Varner special is awake. here hyby here hyby . ripppin lips


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## Craigaria (Aug 6, 2008)

trickworm said:


> Dang it Son that thing looks like it would hall hiney . The Varner special is awake. here hyby here hyby . ripppin lips



It did good today but I didn't get a gps reading, for some reason my gps wouldn't work It was haulin tail though!!! We caught 16 hybrids and kept 7. I'll post some pics this eve. Let me know when you want to go. What are you doing this weekend?


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## Craigaria (Aug 6, 2008)

Kinda a crappy video, but here it is running...


<object width="425" height="350"> <param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/IddwnWFCVuQ"> </param> <embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/IddwnWFCVuQ" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="350"> </embed> </object>


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## KKirk (Aug 6, 2008)

thats a beast of a motor.  What do you think it was going since your gps wasn't working.


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## Craigaria (Aug 6, 2008)

KKirk said:


> thats a beast of a motor.  What do you think it was going since your gps wasn't working.



Not sure, it is hard to guess the speed. If I can't get my gps working, I'll borrow one my next trip out...

Also, keep in mind that there is 3 people in the boat, two full 30 gallon bait tanks, 40 gallons of water in the gas tank, and the boat is loaded down with tackle, anchor, full coolers x2, and 12 batteries


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## KKirk (Aug 6, 2008)

Craigaria said:


> Not sure, it is hard to guess the speed. If I can't get my gps working, I'll borrow one my next trip out...
> 
> Also, keep in mind that there is 3 people in the boat, two full 30 gallon bait tanks, 40 gallons of water in the gas tank, and the boat is loaded down with tackle, anchor, full coolers x2, and 12 batteries



12 batteries?  What else you powering on that thing?  100 gallons of water is about what, 650 pounds, 500 pound of people, 600 pounds in batteries, so you're pushing close to around a ton.  plus what does that boat weigh? 1800 pounds?  impressive.  wonder what that'd do on my 1448 jon.


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## Craigaria (Aug 7, 2008)

KKirk said:


> 12 batteries?  What else you powering on that thing?  100 gallons of water is about what, 650 pounds, 500 pound of people, 600 pounds in batteries, so you're pushing close to around a ton.  plus what does that boat weigh? 1800 pounds?  impressive.  wonder what that'd do on my 1448 jon.



3 batteries for the minn kota 101, 6 batteries for the outboard, 1 battery for fishfinders, and 2 batteries for the bait tanks. All of the batteries are the everstart max marine 29 series (the biggest wally world sells)


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## trickworm (Aug 7, 2008)

Hey craig your video is not playin


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## kylelever (Aug 7, 2008)

trickworm said:


> Hey craig your video is not playin



Video is working for me. I would love to be there when a Ranger comes up to you and finds out there isnt a gas motor on that thing.


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## Craigaria (Aug 7, 2008)

trickworm said:


> Hey craig your video is not playin



If it doesn't work for you here, search youtube.com for "whiper xt on a 20' bass boat". You will find it there


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## HAWGHUNNA (Aug 7, 2008)

Craigaria,
                  Congrats on your project...It want to many miles of water coverage for your Whisper XT to have payed for itself.

It looks as if your motor choice was a good one,the boat is moving along nicely in the video. 

In mentioning the purpose for your batteries...I did not see where you mentioned bilge pump(s).


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## mdhall (Aug 7, 2008)

how fast was it on the gps?


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## Craigaria (Aug 7, 2008)

dont know, my gps wouldn't get signal. I am going to borrow a friends this weekend...


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## Craigaria (Aug 7, 2008)

HAWGHUNNA said:


> In mentioning the purpose for your batteries...I did not see where you mentioned bilge pump(s).



I have bilge pumps and lights and all that stuff too, I just have to wire it up, it will all go on the fishfinder battery


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## bow_hunter125 (Aug 7, 2008)

Very nice! I can't wait to see what the GPS says.


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## JerkBait (Aug 7, 2008)

man i cant wait


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## gtparts (Aug 8, 2008)

*Commercial possibilities?*

How about getting someone to video from shore or maybe another boat? Vid was impressive.  Congrats on a truly unique form of water transportation. You might want to consider trawling.   .... uh , I mean trolling.  or maybe a full throttle hook set.


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## K-DAWG XB 2003 (Aug 8, 2008)

Craigaria,
What kind (Brand) of batteries did you use? I mean were they trolling motor batteries or Golfcart Batteries? 

I have done lots of upgrades to my golf cart. I am about to go to a 72 volts. I just need to buy the 72 volt controller and solenoid. Maybe we can help eah other out with info.


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## Craigaria (Aug 8, 2008)

K-DAWG XB 2003 said:


> Craigaria,
> What kind (Brand) of batteries did you use? I mean were they trolling motor batteries or Golfcart Batteries?
> 
> I have done lots of upgrades to my golf cart. I am about to go to a 72 volts. I just need to buy the 72 volt controller and solenoid. Maybe we can help eah other out with info.



I used the everstart max marine batts from wal mart, 29 series...

With 72 volts that golf cart ought to pop wheelies


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## Craigaria (Aug 8, 2008)

gtparts said:


> How about getting someone to video from shore or maybe another boat? Vid was impressive.  Congrats on a truly unique form of water transportation. You might want to consider trawling.   .... uh , I mean trolling.  or maybe a full throttle hook set.




Maybe a full throttle hook set in the near future


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## K-DAWG XB 2003 (Aug 8, 2008)

It already does pop wheelies with the 48 volt 500amp controller and a 18.6 HP D&D torque motor. I want more........lol

 If weight wasnt a real big issue I think you would get twice the run time out of 6 volt golf cart batteries. I was also wondering if you could increase your amperage for more power?


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## Craigaria (Aug 9, 2008)

K-DAWG XB 2003 said:


> It already does pop wheelies with the 48 volt 500amp controller and a 18.6 HP D&D torque motor. I want more........lol
> 
> If weight wasnt a real big issue I think you would get twice the run time out of 6 volt golf cart batteries. I was also wondering if you could increase your amperage for more power?




I'm not sure about this, I'll ask and see what the owner of the company says. I don't want to do anything that might void the warranty on the motor. They suggested AGM batteries for the longest life and the most power, but it was much cheaper to get the everstarts, plus they have the 18 month free replacement....


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## Cricket Chunker (Aug 9, 2008)

Wow!!!!

That's some nice deal you got going there Craig.

I'm the guy who bought the 24v Maxxum from you this spring.  And it pushes my 17' (17x56) alluminum just fine.  I bet I could ski with one of those 72v monsters!!!

Just curious, which XPS charger did you get?  The new model that looks like the ProMariner with the built in battery meter?


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## Craigaria (Aug 9, 2008)

Cricket Chunker said:


> Wow!!!!
> 
> That's some nice deal you got going there Craig.
> 
> ...




I guess it is the old style 3 bank. I bought them about 1 1/2 months ago and they were on sale. So far they are doing a good job. How is that 65 doing, hopefully it is treating you well!


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## HAWGHUNNA (Aug 10, 2008)

I saw you and your pals motoring around Varner today...The ole Astro was pushin' out some wake...thought about askin' for a drag race,but you were gettin' ready to leave.


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## Craigaria (Aug 10, 2008)

HAWGHUNNA said:


> I saw you and your pals motoring around Varner today...The ole Astro was pushin' out some wake...thought about askin' for a drag race,but you were gettin' ready to leave.



You should've said hello... Were you in the tournament? We were going to watch the weigh in but we had to split. We managed to hit 6.2 mph today but I didn't mess with the trim. It was definately faster with more weight towards the front of the boat so I am going to drain the 40 gallons of water out of the gas tank to see if that picks up any speed. That will eliminate 332 lbs and take away some of the rear weight. I am also going to remove one of the batteries. I still had a full load today though and I'm guessing my boat and all of the tackle weighs a hair shy of 2 tons. I don't think it is going to be too hard to get 7 mph out of this motor. I imagine without the bait tanks and just me in it and it would hit 7 easy... Maybe I'll take it to the lake one day this week to play with it a little and see how fast I can get it going...

btw, hope you won some $ in the tourney


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## K-DAWG XB 2003 (Aug 10, 2008)

Well, I know if I had went with 8  Six volt battieries instead of 6 Eight volt batteries. In fact I wish I would have went with 8 Six volts. I would have increased my run time. Some people go with 4 Twelve volt batteries and find they have no run time at all.  
My GolfCart:
Generally more amperage means more torque. By uping my amperage to 500 from the stock 225. I got a 40% increase in torque.


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## goodoleboy1012000 (Aug 10, 2008)

*How long can you run*

Wide open?


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## turkeyhunter835 (Aug 11, 2008)

I wont one for a john boat!!! lol


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## Craigaria (Aug 11, 2008)

goodoleboy1012000 said:


> Wide open?



It is supposed to run for 1 1/2 hours at wide open, and for every 10% that you back off the throttle, the run time doubles. I haven't put it to the test yet to see just how far I can go with it but I'll have to run it pretty hard the next time I take it to black shoals...


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