Boats Trolling motor for Predator Lo Pro X

[Sportsman]

Basics only, because I don't know much more than that!
1. A stock motor draws the same amperage on either 1 or 5. The speed control is nothing more than a reostat. It dissipates the same amperage into heat instead of speed.
2. Voltage is always 12 volts.
3. A PWM cycles between 15,000 to 60,000 times a second! Higher the cycles costs more. No wasted amperage. Basically turns the motor on/off that many times a second.
4. A WT Pro will slow down the revolutions of the prop to where you can almost count them. No wasted amps. I know I tripled... probably more...how long my 40 amp AGM battery lasts.
5. The best benefit for a pram or pontoon is being able to slow down for trolling and having precise speed control depending on the wind. They really work.
6. Electrical geniuses are welcome to jump in. Always room to learn more!!

 

[Haggis57]

Further to Sportsman's info above, I found the following Thrust vs Amp draw info on a boating forum. The person posting this on the other forum stated that the thrust and amp columns comes from Minn Kota. I added the percentage information and the efficiency column to help get my mind around the benefits of PWM controllers. [When considering the chart, also NOTE that there isn't a 1 to 1 relationship between thrust and you boat speed.]

So according to Minn Kota, you aren't really drawing the same amps at all speeds. However the amp draw certainly isn't linear with thrust. In fact, the efficiency is worst at the lowest thrust levels.

With a WT Pro or other PWM controller, you set your trolling motor control to speed 5 which is the most efficient operating point for the motor - 30 amps @ 12 vts. Then, as Sportsman pointed out, the PWM controller pulses the amperage flow to the motor. The increase in battery life results from operating the motor at it's most efficient point regardless of the speed you've chosen on the PWM controller. The PWM controller only controls the number of pulses, it doesn't change the amperage or voltage of power to the motor.

Hopefully the above adds to the discussion. Kind of deep for a Saturday morning!