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  1. #1
    Member
    Join Date
    Jul 2004
    Location
    Alexandria, Minnesota
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    191

    Cant decide which i want

    Need some advice on which shallow water anchor i want. Ive been told that with our mucky bottom lakes that the talons can have an issue with the mud getting inside them. So i have been leaning towards PP's instead. But i have a few questions on them. Do they have a bracket to let them down like Talons have? I have several lakes that are connected by bridges but have limited height clearance issues so i would need to drop them down to go through. Or do you just drop the PP's down some to clear the low overhead. Which brings up my next question. Can you stop them at certain points or do they deploy until they hit something? Lastly, ive read of a few people driving off and breaking the brackets, has the drive off protection prevented breaking the brackets now?

  2. Member
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Cedar Falls, Iowa
    Posts
    9,639
    #2
    You can partially deploy them. I have to do that to get in the garage. The rest I’m not sure

  3. Member
    Join Date
    Dec 2015
    Location
    Bartlett, Illinois
    Posts
    547
    #3
    I have a few low bridges I go under and I have to take out the front butt seat and lower my 8 foot Blades even or a bit lower then the top of the motor and go under with no issues. Also I need to deploy them to get into and out of my garage.
    2019 Ranger Z 518 L
    200 Merc Pro XS 4 Stroke
    2016 Chaparral 246 SSI
    350 Mercruiser
    On new boat # 10

  4. BBC SPONSOR
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    South Florida
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    6,066
    #4
    We sell a lot of our Power Pole tilt brackets for individuals such as yourself and for those with garage door clearance issues etc. If you have any questions please feel free. In addition, I can Price you a Power Pole package.

    https://hydrillagear.com/collections...ovable-bracket

    Your hearing correct when it comes to the Talons which we sell as well. They do not care for muck, mud, or salt water environments over time

  5. BBC SPONSOR/ Shallow Water Anchors Moderator
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Location
    New York
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    #5
    Happy to price you a Power Pole package as well. For what you need to do I dont think you will need tilt brackets but if you want them Rich is the designer and manufacturer. You can simply deploy your poles stop at any height ( can stop the at any point of travel.) to clear the bridges, and just hit your dash switch once your clear and away you go. Thats one of the many advantages of poles over talons. I have yet to hear of anyone bracking a bracket driving off with poles down.. and I cant see why that would happen the way they are designed and with the drive off protection built in. We refuse to sell the Talon product however I agree with Rich about the Talons with the muck, Mud and Salt water over time. They will require a bunch of maintenance in those conditions or you will have problems retracting and deploying.

  6. Skeeterzx190
    Join Date
    Oct 2018
    Location
    Worcester MA
    Posts
    282
    #6
    I like my PP...I would think tilting on a bracket to get under a bridge with a talon would be aggravating...I just press remote and stop when it’s even with engine. If engine not fitting then You have bigger issues. And at this point the pole is not below the bottom of the boat so there are no worries of it hitting the bottom. You lower and raise by holding a button so when release it stops. I do like the idea of the talon not extending back into water as I always wondered if my line would get caught on it...but in two years it never has. At the same time when it is down and you are in the back there are never any issues of the lure striking it like it would with a talon. To me just seems bullet proof as couple of hinges. But they are both great. Side note....I would just get an 8’. If ur in 10’ of water might as well use spot lock in ultrex or new ghost. 10’ talon or PP is lot higher in back of boat and people I spoke to, including an owner of a dealership said they get in the way of casting or make u adjust ur casts a lot more. Just my two cents. I’m sure others have diff opinions

  7. Skeeterzx190
    Join Date
    Oct 2018
    Location
    Worcester MA
    Posts
    282
    #7
    Also PP cust service awesome! It’s a 2010 and they replaced for free the pole including shipping because glass flaking a bit. Then a leak in a connector on unit and again free and free shipping. Can’t beat it 9 years later

  8. Member
    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Location
    Lake Fork, Texas
    Posts
    235
    #8
    I have had both Poles and Talons. 8' blades and now have 12' Talons. For me it's a no brainer. The pp were a nightmare to install as I had no room in the bilge area to install the pumps. I was never happy with the installation and finally sold the pp. Put the Talons on and no problems with pumps etc. I will never go back to power poles. Just my 2 cents worth. Deploy the Talons in deep water and idle about 5 minutes once every few trips. That will wash all the mud and gunk off of them.
    Rick Collis
    903-473-8820

  9. BBC SPONSOR/ Shallow Water Anchors Moderator
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    Apr 2015
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    New York
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    #9
    Quote Originally Posted by Rick Collis View Post
    I have had both Poles and Talons. 8' blades and now have 12' Talons. For me it's a no brainer. The pp were a nightmare to install as I had no room in the bilge area to install the pumps. I was never happy with the installation and finally sold the pp. Put the Talons on and no problems with pumps etc. I will never go back to power poles. Just my 2 cents worth. Deploy the Talons in deep water and idle about 5 minutes once every few trips. That will wash all the mud and gunk off of them.
    Its always a Ford Chevy debate.. it comes down to about a 75 to 25 percent ratio however with Power Pole holding market share.

  10. Member
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Lima, Oh
    Posts
    2,707
    #10
    IF you are on the fence give Kevin a call at K&K and talk to him on the phone he's a great guy and will spend the time with you

  11. Member
    Join Date
    Mar 2018
    Location
    Kansas City, KS
    Posts
    1,289
    #11
    Here was my comparison list from when I was deciding:

    Pros of Talons:
    -Potential for holding better in deeper water, with better clearance height at operating position.
    -Better clearance (behind boat) when deployed (straight down vs. PPs which must have room to go back)
    -“Easier” installation, no pumps or fluid to manage

    Pros of PowerPoles:
    -Lighter when installed (including brackets)
    -Easier to change clearance height (no tilt bracket really required, just have to partially deploy when getting in the garage or going under stuff)
    -Can partially deploy when fishing off shore to make fishing off the back of the boat easier
    -moving parts are easy to get to for maintenance/repair

    I ultimately chose 8’ PowerPole blades because I have a smaller boat and didn’t want to compromise anymore weight. Plus at the time, they were cheaper than I could have gotten Talons, especially after the money I would have had to spend for the tilt brackets.

  12. BBC SPONSOR/ Shallow Water Anchors Moderator
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    Apr 2015
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    New York
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    #12
    Quote Originally Posted by Nowater2shallow View Post
    IF you are on the fence give Kevin a call at K&K and talk to him on the phone he's a great guy and will spend the time with you

  13. Member
    Join Date
    Mar 2015
    Location
    OK
    Posts
    1,813
    #13
    One of the biggest reasons I have ended up with neither is because I could never decide which ones are best for me. After trying to decide I just use my Ultrex, I know it’s probably not as good, but it’s got me by so far....someday I would like to buy something but I can never decide which.

  14. Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Location
    Wisconsin
    Posts
    93
    #14
    Completely agree with K&K, its a Ford / Chevy debate and you'll probably be happy with either.

    I went through this debate before going with Talons last Spring on my new boat. This came down to talking with close friends who have both. I ultimately decided I would have been happy with either. The reason I went Talon was one buddy had pump issues multiple times that left him in a mess on the water (watch Season 2 of 39 Hours - AP had this exact issue and this scare the daylights out of me) - Talon or anything can have issues zero questions about it - but ultimately being able to crank them up manually and get off the lake made me feel more comfortable (again, many guys probably never have an issue but I just felt like it would happen to me LOL).

    Another thing that factored for me was one buddy said in some of our soft bottom creeks / bays where we fish early in the year his Poles would get 'stuck' in the mud and he'd have to rock the boat like a mad man to get them out. I have to think this could happen with Talons too but I just don't know? My Talon buddies never mentioned it, and I never had either of mine get stuck and I use them pretty heavily in all bottom types (which means on my next trip out they will haha).

    My dealer was confident in the ability to move the batteries around in my Renegade to fit the pumps - they even showed me so that was a non-issue. I just ultimately felt there was less that could go wrong with Talons and I have been beyond happy with them and my choice. Ultimately, more bass guys run Poles than Talons (so that has to be worth something) and I'm just a single review among millions of anglers.... Again you'll probably be happy with either and personally I'd never have another boat without them.

  15. Member
    Join Date
    Jun 2018
    Location
    Roseville, Michigan
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    324
    #15
    Quote Originally Posted by wiel0059 View Post
    Talon or anything can have issues zero questions about it - but ultimately being able to crank them up manually and get off the lake made me feel more comfortable
    I agree, either option can have their problems. But ultimately for me, I felt I'd rather deal with the issues that could arise from the Talons vs Power Poles.

    Quote Originally Posted by wiel0059 View Post
    Another thing that factored for me was one buddy said in some of our soft bottom creeks / bays where we fish early in the year his Poles would get 'stuck' in the mud and he'd have to rock the boat like a mad man to get them out. I have to think this could happen with Talons too but I just don't know? My Talon buddies never mentioned it, and I never had either of mine get stuck and I use them pretty heavily in all bottom types (which means on my next trip out they will haha).
    I've had my Talons get stuck once. Fishing in a steady wind with waves pushing us, dropped the Talons and when we went to move they were stuck in the rocks. Deployed the TM and moved back towards the wind/waves while pressing the Talon up button and that did the trick.

  16. Member nikldac's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    so. IL
    Posts
    1,260
    #16
    There's one more reason for Talons. In our bass club; we fish both large motor and small motor lakes. I'm able to remove the Talon from my Phoenix and put it on the BassTracker in 5 minutes. This was the primary reason I originally went with the 8' Talon. Two years ago, I upgraded to the 15' Talons. I hear a lot of guys say they only need the Ultrex with spot lot. While that's a good beginning; it's much better with both. The Ultrex, and in my case, the Ulterra will constantly be kicking the TM on and off to reposition itself. One of our members' partner has the Ultrex and he could not believe the difference sitting in 13' of water and we barely moved. While the bracket system for the Talons are pricey; they are also, super strong. I attached my E-Ladder from TH Marine to the bracket just in case I should fall out of the boat and at 72, you don't pull yourself back up on the deck.

    Either system is definitely better than not having any. Spot lot is great....after 14'.