# Which deep cycle for trolling?



## Knew2Fish (Apr 17, 2006)

Just curious how others might rate their experiences with Optima bluetops for trolling motor applications...I have the d34m for starting/everything other than trolling motor and have had no complaints whatsoever and was hoping the same would work for a 40# motorguide don bow of 16.5' tracker. have a 9.9 kicker so this would be used for much slower presentations or extra wind contol while drifting. Also debating if the d31m with extra 35min reserve is a better option? Anyone have experience with these? Gentleman at local sports shop did nothing more than DOG the optimas and declare them as junk for trolling which is why i'm hesitant...Thanks y'all


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## bhartman (Feb 26, 2009)

I use Die Hard deep cycle for my minkota #55 on a 19'6" deep v Fisher. It trolls us at least 6 hours on skeeter and was still strong. us them for my down riggers and electronics also never a problem. just my 2c


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## sylvan 17 (May 22, 2010)

Vics recommended the good diehards for my 70 v2 trolling motor and they are covered for 5yrs.


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## WiseEyes (Apr 7, 2010)

I don't think you can beat AC Delco deep cycle batteries. My old boats trolling batteries were delcos and they were 7 years old and still were strong held a charge and would fish all day. they are a little more money, but you get what you pay for IMO


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## soua0363 (Jun 10, 2005)

I have heard bad things about the Optima batteries as well. You can do a search on here and you will find a lot of complaints about them. The complaints were not about charge or run time but about longevity of battery life. Most of the complaints say that after a season they will not hold charge any more. I have not used one because of the reviews that I had read on here and other sites. 

For the money, the Wal-Mart deep cycles are very good. They will last at least 2 years before not holding a charge any more. I have one that is just now pooped out after 3 years of heavy use while the other is still going strong.


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## Evinrude58 (Apr 13, 2011)

I have 2 of the Walmart ones both from 06. Am replacing 1 this year but I don't always take the best care of them, have used them alot, and use the one more than the other.


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## CaptJoe (Jan 20, 2009)

I have 3 from Crown purchased from the place below. So far so good and it was less than I could get the same size at West Marine at the time. 

Warehouse Energy Supply (2455 Creekway Drive, Columbus, OH 43207-3432, (614) 274-7008)


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## Knew2Fish (Apr 17, 2006)

I stopped into advanced auto to have them check the life in an interstate and die hard deep cycles and both were shot. My father had bought them both and I haven't found the receipts for either so no way to check warranty. The guy at advanced sure had nothing but great things about their optimas so he may had had incentive to sell me one. What made the sale is the fact they were priced at $249.99 and I told him I was looking for the bigger model and already had the model they have for starting. Also told him it was $180 on amazon and he didn't bat an eye at matching the price! May turn out to be a mistake for trolling motor but the other has held up better than several other brands and with much less maintenance! also told i can run them in parallel if i ever upgrade to a 24v motor. Thanks for all the insight fellas!


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## Hetfieldinn (May 17, 2004)

You can't beat the Interstate deep cycle batteries. The key to making any deep cycle batteries last is to charge them as soon as you can after using them. Waiting a few days to put them on charge is a sure fire way to decrease their life.


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## I Fish (Sep 24, 2008)

I don't think you can beat the Optimas. I sorta think the problems people have are caused by incorrect/improper charging. I've got 2 in the boat hooked in a series and their getting so old, I truly don't remember. I think one is 8 and the other 9 years old now. I ran the trolling motor on high off and on all day fighting the wind. After using the old lead acid batteries in the past, it's like these have no end. 

I replaced the battery in the camper with one last year, and it's still going as well.


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## Shortdrift (Apr 5, 2004)

If you are looking to go to 24 volt, you will have to connect the batteries in series, not parallel. Interesting to hear the positive and negative comments on the Optima. I just installed three new Interstate in my boat. Two deep cycle and one starting. After speaking with several of my friends, some of them having experience with Optimas and all giving negative reports, I elected to go with the Interstate. The individuals I questioned are all hard core trollers that constantly use their 24 and 36 volt bow mounts. Two size 29 Interstate deep cycle were $202.46.


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## Star1pup (Aug 3, 2004)

Years ago I had a couple deep cycle batteries on my sailboat. I think one was called a Stowaway and the other a Voyager. They were sealed so no acid added. After a lot of use on the sailboat I transferred them to my fishing boats for trolling and they still lasted a long time. I don't see them these days so probably no longer sold.


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## K gonefishin (May 4, 2004)

I had issues with 2 optima's, didn't even get 2 full seasons out of them but I do have one that's going on 4 season surprisingly I waiting for it to croke, for what they cost there capacities aren't all that great. I'm replacing them with Die Hard Platinum's, 3 year free replacement (forgot what the pro rates is)and have TONS of reserve power, there specs are much better than anything else on the market, they are made by Odyssey which are all are military spec made batteries. I know alot of guys with them and no issues over the past couple years, as in nobody has killed one yet, versus, everyone killed the Optima's and it wasn't the charging our boats are set up properly.


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## crappiedude (Mar 12, 2006)

I had 2 blue top optimas I got less than 2 years out of. Never again.
I had been using Duralast form autozone and I always get 3 years from them. This year I put a pair of #29's from Walmart. Everyone I've talked to prefered the Wally World batteries.


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## cjbrown (May 22, 2007)

K gonefishin said:


> I had issues with 2 optima's, didn't even get 2 full seasons out of them but I do have one that's going on 4 season surprisingly I waiting for it to croke, for what they cost there capacities aren't all that great. I'm replacing them with Die Hard Platinum's, 3 year free replacement (forgot what the pro rates is)and have TONS of reserve power, there specs are much better than anything else on the market, they are made by Odyssey which are all are military spec made batteries. I know alot of guys with them and no issues over the past couple years, as in nobody has killed one yet, versus, everyone killed the Optima's and it wasn't the charging our boats are set up properly.


I'm with Kevin on this, I replaced mine with the Platinums. I did a lot of research b4 buying them and I'm confident in my decision. A lil pricey, but awesome reviews and recommendations from friends that use them.


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## claytonhaske (Apr 16, 2010)

Shortdrift said:


> If you are looking to go to 24 volt, you will have to connect the batteries in series, not parallel.


can you run 2 batteries on a 12v system if they are run parallel? thanks, clayton


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