Power Pole Tilt Brackets

[River Rocket]

I finally got the boat home from Dallas and went right to work in the shop.

After getting the poles and running them I came to the same conclusion as others, the wind drag from them slows me down and in mildly windy days can cause handling issues at high speeds. The weight I don't feel is an issue, as I compensated for it by removing ballast. I do believe they dig at takeoff, but I have another modification for that. I looked for tilting brackets, but none allowed for tilting and running. They just allowed for temporary tilting. I though I would make one that allowed the poles to be tilted and locked in place for running.

I'm currently off 1.5mph from my typical running speed with the poles. 5-85 times have not been impacted. In the data logging graphs you really see it drop off after 85. When I compare my 85-95 times you can see the boat fighting the wind drag. My 5-97 times are much slower. Some of the times show 10-15 more seconds to hit the higher speeds. Since I typically don't do a pull from 5-97 or higher I don't have a lot of data to look at. 97-100 on my boat (before poles) I usually crept into or hit from a run, so I don't have a lot of data for those speeds.

The brackets started out as Minn Kota Talon brackets. I looked at these and the Hydrilla Gear ones and the Minn Kota ones had a few features I liked more for ease of use and modifying so I went with them. It sealed the deal when I found a pair of them in the Cabela's bargain cave at 50% off. I machined a 3" hole in the center and slotted the center release handle so the hoses could run in the center. The kids swim off the back, so I didn't want the hoses out in a place they would feel tempted to grab. I also like them in the center so brush won't catch on them as easy when fishing.

I added wedges to adjust for the angle so the poles don't hit when folded down.

The side added pieces lock the poles in place tilted down. I'm hoping that is enough to get them out of the wind. I have another version with ready to be made that have 15 degrees more travel in the event I want to tilt them down further. I will start with 90 degrees and see how it goes.

I plan to powder coat everything after I test. The power pole mounting brackets are temporary, I will make my own after I get all the bugs worked out. They are a back a little far for my liking. I also plan to machine material out of the tilt brackets to drop the weight further. Right now they are 5lbs each and I have pulled a lot of weight out of them already.

[River Rocket]

[basser38]

I added a set of the hydrilla gear brackets to mine over the winter. They hit the boat when i tilt them but i can remove them or put them on in just a few minutes.. a set of wedges would cure the tilt problem , i just havent had a need for that as they dont lock in place..mine dont set back as far as yours and i had to add a couple of shims to get them away from the boat so they wouldnt rub.

[K-DAWG]

Yep, I found the same thing on mine. I think the poles scrubbed 4mph off mine on top. The poles hitting is what stopped me from going with the talon tilt brackets. Never thought about using a wedge to fix that.

[River Rocket]

My first choice was the Hydrilla brackets. They are a beautiful show piece. My main deterrent was ease of being able to flip them open from the boat. My poles are back farther and I didn't want to have to bend down, lean way out, and get wet every time I flip them up and down. The Talon brackets I just push a lever with my foot and they are ready to tilt. Dry and simple from inside the boat.

I got out and tested this morning. My hope was the testing would show similar results to the trolling motor wind tests and they did and more. Just by tilting the poles down I picked up 2mph on my 27 Promax and 1.5mph on my 28 P3. I was on a short lake, so I didn't run my 34 P3 beyond 90. I'm sure my numbers will be close to my previous no-pole numbers.

I took pass after pass with the Promax and you could feel it hit a wall. I stopped, tilted the poles down, and made another pass and it blew right by the previous numbers.

In addition, the boat felt alive again. Really impressed with the results.

I did find a cool side effect of tilting them up. When titled they will not deploy with an accidental press of the button.

[basser38]

I installed an utrex also durring the winter and i find i dont use my poles as much. This is the first ive ran the boat without them .definate difference in hole shot and handling.

[hooken203]

I did a couple test last summer. I started by taking everything out of my boat and went for a ride. I left 75 lbs of ballast on the LH side. Running by myself live wells empty this gained 2 mph I have weighed all my gear and come up with 140 lbs. The next weekend I took the poles off and gained the same 2 mph. I didn’t try both of these at the same time. I found that I can’t use the Hydrilla Gear tilt brackets and the Allison power pole brackets there just isn’t enough room. With the two consoles I don’t think the pole are exposed to as much straight air flow so I don’t think they have as big of effect as people think.

[K-DAWG]

My theory is that at speeds around 75 the air stops flowing between the poles and motor or is slowed down considerable.

[basser38]

I did a couple test last summer. I started by taking everything out of my boat and went for a ride. I left 75 lbs of ballast on the LH side. Running by myself live wells empty this gained 2 mph I have weighed all my gear and come up with 140 lbs. The next weekend I took the poles off and gained the same 2 mph. I didn’t try both of these at the same time. I found that I can’t use the Hydrilla Gear tilt brackets and the Allison power pole brackets there just isn’t enough room. With the two consoles I don’t think the pole are exposed to as much straight air flow so I don’t think they have as big of effect as people think.

I have the Allison bracket..i had to move the inside bracket from the inside of the mount to the outside (towards the motor) then added 1/4 inch shims to the inside of the bracket.(where the plate mounts).that gave me just enough room..

[hooken203]

But you still can’t fold them into the boat. But if you got the quick disconnects you could completely remove them easily.

[basser38]

Yes , there easy to remove..i think with a wedge i could tilt them but i wouldnt trust them as they dont lock tilted.

[JOEALLY]

Very nice work.

[River Rocket]

98.6 and plenty left. Had a mechanical issue or I would have made a few more shots to hit 100. Pretty certain it will hit or be just shy. Running fully loaded with poles folded down. Little over 20 gallons of gas.

[AllyFishing]

YOu've got some skills there in fabricating!!

[fishnfireman]

Very impressive !!!

[AllyFishing]

Here is a video I just found highlighting the new 4 stroke Merc and this guy has a power pole on his boat with it laid down on his back deck. Appears as though someone else figured out how to build one too. He's an Aussie too.

[River Rocket]

Funny. I saw that one as well yesterday. I zoomed the heck out of the video trying to figure out what they did. I think it is either tied down or just resting like that. Most likely tied down to the rear storage compartment as I couldn't see a lock on the bracket.

I thought about some sort of clip that went inside the rear latch and held the poles down, but my power pole brackets don't line up right. That is the upside to the huge minnkota adjustable brackets. You can get the pole to point straight down the boat. They have a lot of adjustability to them.