out of curiosity what drives you to believe the raptor is comparable to the PRO II?
out of curiosity what drives you to believe the raptor is comparable to the PRO II?
I see that Active Anchoring which is one of the key features Minn Kota is touting on this raptor is actually a $200 option on 8' poles. What a crappy bait and switch tactic!
out of curiosity what makes you think it compares to a blade outside the fact it comes in 8 and 10 foot and colors , it has no polymer core stern bracket sandwiched in stainless steel. It does not have the soft close system where the spike tucks into the uchannel and hides away. Its a exposed spike pole with no polymer core stern bracket with some holes down the rails hence a Pro II.. I dont know the spike diam yet of the raptor however looks same as a pro II with a slight over mold only a 1/3 of the way down not the larger diam spike of the blade with a 3/4 of the way down overmold. Hence to me more like a pro II then a blade. Ive notced minn Kota not mentioning anything about drive off protection like powerpole has , a very important feature especially with the design of that stern bracket the raptor has looks like a weak point to me. love to hear how minn kota handles a guy who backs into or pulls out of there garage with low clearence ( ones who normally do semi retraction but forgot just that once). bent mounting bracket, broken stern bracket. I already know how powerpole has handled this situation. Wonder how minn kota will deal with that? Warranty replacement for damage caused by you w a minn kota product? ..good luckOriginally Posted by pluggedtheboat
Last edited by KandKKustomz; 07-01-2020 at 05:26 PM.
IMO active anchoring is trying to solve a problem that doesnt exist and there banking on that feature to sell anchors, they really have nothing different outside of that... I dont know bout you but I dont fish in a hurricane, but good to know if i did my powerpoles "without active anchoring" would hold me just fine.... active anchoring IMO means more amp draw on the battery and more unneccessary cycling of the pump, possible leading to faster pump wear.
Last edited by KandKKustomz; 07-01-2020 at 05:19 PM.
I just sold my 8' blades yesterday and will have 8' Raptors on order soon. My hope is Humminbird will probably not have the early generation issues PP had. They get the advantage of borrowing from someone who came in front of them. That is free market and why patents exist. PP had a free run at the market to build brand, iron out bugs, and build loyalty. Now other guys get to jump in and drive PP to make better products or lose market share. My company deals with these issues just like most companies that develop products for consumers. It sucks when you are the developer, but in the end the competition drives innovation that may not have been developed if only one player existed in the market. We buy cars every day that leverage off of another builders development. This is no different.
To me more return force and active anchoring were the draws. I was hoping they would be lighter but that doesn't seem to be the case. We will see how they fair. I fish a ton of mixed terrain and the poles just didn't stay anchored in it. I also deployed deep often and if they got hung up on weeds it was a pain getting them back up and sometimes embarrassing when I was stuck someplace trying to get them up.
Last edited by River Rocket; 07-01-2020 at 05:23 PM.
Allison XB21 2+2
Mercury 300R
Odd Ive had Powerpoles for about 8 years never once have had mine not retract even with what seemed like 50 pounds of salad on them or jammed deep in mud. Sorry to see you go from Powerpole and hope the Raptors are everything they claim, only time will tell. Post some real world feedback on them after about 25 trips with them.
Electric spikes might be the best. MK smart now they can go after the whole market not just half of it. Ultrex, HB, anchors...they have a good thing going
I'm still waiting for PP Trolling Motor, but now those raptors are just a reverse engineered patent infringement, Talons are a joke, had them, sold them, wont buy them, got my PP blades from kevin at KandKkustomz ad couldn't be happier zero problems the entire time ive owed them and I use them on every trip.
As for the total boat theory.....based on my use of the ghost ...so far it is better than the Ultrex ....in about every way...I’m not sure that integration is the way to go....isn’t better to have the best one of anything...ie graphs trollers motors chargers etc....
If you look at 00:47-00:52 you will see the whole boat and power poles be lifted a bit. The boater loses his balance but recovers nicely. I have had my boat move from certain sized boat wakes or waves while fishing. Most times my PPs held great butnot all the time. I added Hydrilla Gear spike kit and it helped but would still occur occasionally. Is it a major problem...No. It would be nice to not have it at all though.
Look, I loved my PPs when I had them. Talons and their heavy brackets suck. I know several folks who like their Talons and do not like PPs. Choices are great. So these Raptors are a copy of your beloved Blades. The patent expired so there is no infringement. PP has had a great run and will continue to be great.
Quit bad mouthing a product that isn’t even on the market yet. It doesn’t make your business look very good.
USN Retired
2020 Basscat Caracal
2020 Mercury 225 ProXS 4s
Thanks for your reply. Id much rather have an extruded aluminum bracket compared to a plastic cored bracket? So a plastic bracket, a u channel, and an overmold on the spike makes the blade $400.00 more at List than the Pro II?
wow
Lets just think and say Minnkota did extensive testing on this, and on power pole. found all the weak spots, like the plastic bracket or that over molded spike or that weak pivot head, and well made is stronger, durable and more reliable.
also Active anchoring can be turned on or off. but in a river system, id much rather have the active anchoring then constantly having it tap a key fob.
But the biggest feature is the larger hydraulic ram... almost triple the retraction force of power pole, which is a game changer for not getting your spike stuck..
your probably going to want to become a minn kota dealer...
Thanks for your reply. Id much rather have an extruded aluminum bracket compared to a plastic cored bracket? So a plastic bracket, a u channel, and an overmold on the spike makes the blade $400.00 more at List than the Pro II?
wow
Lets just think and say Minnkota did extensive testing on this, and on power pole. found all the weak spots, like the plastic bracket or that over molded spike or that weak pivot head, and well made is stronger, durable and more reliable.
also Active anchoring can be turned on or off. but in a river system, id much rather have the active anchoring then constantly having it tap a key fob.
But the biggest feature is the larger hydraulic ram... almost triple the retraction force of power pole, which is a game changer for not getting your spike stuck..
your probably going to want to become a minn kota dealer...
im not bad mouthing anything im just stating facts and personal beliefs, like anyone else is free to do on the board.
My issue with you is you keep commenting on Powerpoles and stating facts when you clearly misinformed about the product i can't let the readers of this thread think that what you post about poles is true cause it simply isnt, you have told them you need to buy the c monster app ( its free) you have told them foot switches cost 120.00 (they dont) you have told them they need to buy c monster $120.00..(most outlandish thing I ever heard).. I didnt say that was the only difference between a blade and a Pro II either.. You did. And once again your misinformed. Now your saying it has a plastic stern bracket? I didnt say it had a plastic bracket, I said it has a polymer core bracket, ITS NOT A PLASTIC STERN BRACKET! Theres is no such thing as a weak pivot head ( what the hell that is I have no idea). The plastic overmold Blade spike is not weak at all.. your claims of weak this, weak that are all false honestly and by your references to powerpole I can tell you dont have a clue about them or have even owned one . If I wanted to be a minn kota dealer I could be quite simply. My company chooses to sell products from companies that have what we feel are quality products and provide outstanding customer service as we do with all our customers.
I take a slighty different business approach then most I dont look at a product and say wow I can make money selling that. I look at that company that makes the product, I look at how they handle problems should they arise, how there customer service is how they stand behind the product they make. Then I use it test it myself . If its something I wouldnt use on my own boat I wont sell it to a customer just to make a buck. Same as if its a great product but the company has terrible customer support or wont stand behind the product then its a no go. For us Power Pole is that total package. If minn kota becomes one of those companies id be happy to sell there products and promote and push them to our customers for us its just not there yet. for that reason im not looking to become a minn kota dealer as you suggested. I do like there precision chargers , never a issue with them just simply replaced it for a " better mouse trap" . and i love my ultrex even though is been to the asc warranty center 4 times, as all my customers know i will have the first PP trolling motor on my personal boat as soon as it comes thru the door, and if im selling them then my customers will know it must be good. Im happy to refer customers to places such as Russell Marine and FTO Marine if looking for Minn kota products, and I do so quite often as I know there in good hands with those 2 companies.
I make honest evaluations from what I see personally and what I hear from customers on a daily basis. Power poles and the power pole name simply sell themselves, Im not here to be bias in hopes to push sales my way at all. im here giveing my PERSONAL opinions and thoughts.
This thread has derailed I think from its intended purpose from the OP'S question so I believe its time to close it.
Last edited by KandKKustomz; 07-02-2020 at 12:48 PM.
It feels a little like you're bad mouthing them when you talk about Minn Kota "eating crow" and making a copy after marketing the Talons as a superior design.
I don't know how anyone can expect someone to market their product as inferior and hope people will buy it. After a few years they are looking to expand their market to Minn Kota customers who might prefer the other design and give them a choice.
It's smart business at this point. Too many people here take it personally and even seem angry and I'll never understand that.
It's great that you believe in the product that you sell and from what I understand people here have good experiences dealing with you which is awesome but the bias comes way through. I'm probably not going to ask a Ranger person what they think of me buying a BassCat instead.
