Texas Fishing Forum

Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM

Posted By: James Biggs

Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/03/20 12:15 AM

I’m an Ultrex guy and considering switching. Anybody running them?
Posted By: Minner Bucket

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/03/20 12:25 AM

Good luck getting an honest review. “I’m running brand X and it’s the best ever”, is more likely the response you’ll get.
Posted By: Patrnflyr

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/03/20 12:52 AM

I wish I could get someone to honestly tell me if they’ve tried one on a low bow hull Bayboat. Some are saying the 57” is plenty and others are saying that I’ll regret it. I’ve done all the measuring off of their graph and my hull is 23.5” off the water. They say anything up to 26” should be ok with the 57” model.
Posted By: Neal G

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/03/20 01:57 AM

Originally Posted by James Biggs
I’m an Ultrex guy and considering switching. Anybody running them?


Travis is legit. He explains one of the problems several times throughout the video. At the 17 minute mark is an example and then towards the end
https://youtu.be/aQS78dmqG-E

Personally, I am not hearing good enough reasons to switch at retail pricing or up to a 50% discount but I would not want to go back to the two trolling motors on & in the boat days.
Posted By: Brent S

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/03/20 03:44 AM

Smallmouth crush had negative things to say in his end of season boat recap video.
Posted By: rj74955

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/03/20 04:38 AM

Originally Posted by Neal G
Originally Posted by James Biggs
I’m an Ultrex guy and considering switching. Anybody running them?


Travis is legit. He explains one of the problems several times throughout the video. At the 17 minute mark is an example and then towards the end
https://youtu.be/aQS78dmqG-E

Personally, I am not hearing good enough reasons to switch at retail pricing or up to a 50% discount but I would not want to go back to the two trolling motors on & in the boat days.

roflmao I can see making the mistake of having the 50" shaft the first time, but 3 times?
Posted By: Allison1

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/03/20 12:56 PM

Hop owns one I think.

I am sure if you contact him he would be proud to let you run his around on Fork.
Posted By: ring fry

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/03/20 01:22 PM

James, I will be at Fork from the 5th through the 10th. You are more than welcome to try mine while I’m there. I’ll be at LFM.

Retired grass grower
Posted By: MikeW07

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/03/20 01:32 PM

I put one on my 211 legend a month or so ago - its the 50" and I've had no issues with the length - does it pop out of the water in 3' wake board boat wakes sure it does but so did every longer motorguide and MK I ever had on it but probably couldn't lower it more than another inch or so due needing to keep 4" between the power and the head for the cable to move on turns. This setting keeps the motor unit right at the end of the bracket when stowed. Also because of the way a legend is built the 57" after mounting would have stuck out several inches past the gunnel when stowed - I've knocked of the head off the previous MK I had on it before so wanted to keep it as close the protection of the rub rail as possible.

The cable management system makes for a very clean install.

I can't really give a fair comparison since this is the first foot control one I have ever used. Have bad right leg so until they came out with remote controls I could never use the foot pedal but since this one is wireless it lets me move it to the left from the foot pedal hole I can now use the foot pedal most of the time with only using the remote for power and spot lock. You can adjust the tension on the foot pedal but since I never had one before can't tell whether is more or less pedal feel.

The stow assist it very helpful - way easier than my previous MK and the function of automatically turning the motor to the right position for stowing is great - anchor lock (or whatever garmin calls it) is spot on. Very quite on running but you can hear a little motor noise from where the motor to turn in is.

Power on full is very impressive - about 4+ MPH on a 211 legend.
Posted By: Chris G

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/03/20 01:57 PM

James - feel free to give me a call if you want more details but here is my assessment....I also went from an Ultrex to a Force.

I have had mine for about 8 or 9 months now and got it when they were first coming out.

Pros:
1. The speed, power and silence of the motor is crazy. When it's on 50% or less, you will tend to look down every once in a while to see if the motor is running because it's that quiet.
2. The power goes beyond speed as well as I have run it through some of the thickest grass mats you will find on lake Welsh with ease.
3. Stowing the motor is the easiest I've personally dealt with and the motor actually turns itself when you pull the cord to the correct stowing position.
4. Completely networked with all of my Garmin stuff on the boat, including the Active Captain App on my iPhone
5. The anchor mode seems to have a lot less "jog" than the Ultrex did...no more sliding 5' off your mark then full speed back to it. Seems to just quietly hold you in place

Cons:
1. The pedal itself and how it operates. It can go a little crazy on you at times and it's noisier than I would like. Not as noisy as the Ultrex but still noisy. I have adjusted the pedal and its works pretty good for the most part but there are times it gets a mind of its own but my BIL said it's because of my size 15 sasquatch foot. There was a software update about 3 months ago that seemed to really help calm the pedal down. The time its really an issue is in tight quarters if you are trying to make a hard turn or go in reverse quickly.

Lastly, and not really a pro or con......they don't clearly tell you that you need to set up the Force to connect to the Active Captain App separately so I kept trying to update the software on the Force when I was updating my Garmin Units and was having issues. Once I realized this and configured the Force and Foot Pedal to connect, everything is seamless.
Posted By: hopalong

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/03/20 02:02 PM

I have the 57" on a champion 202, had nothing but minn kota for years although I did try a couple of motorguide (they suck the big one imo).

what mike said is about the same for me, really makes it a lot easier for an old guy to sit on a spot and fish.
updates are super easy since they come thru your phone and the app.

one thing I have noticed is when you calibrate the compass in the tm do the 360 slow as you can, I rushed it the first time and while it worked it was off some, recalibrated and now anchor lock is spot on.
mine does stick out some but I can live with it as is, had the fortrex 52" before and the garmin is about the same as it was for overhang.
one nice feature is you can run it 24v or 36v with no modifications needed, just hook it up to either voltage and go. another is you have a space in the mount to accommodate the livescope transducer, you can barely see mine behind the strap. everything ties together with wifi instead of bluetooth, all built in and works great.

I would recommend it over the others after fishing boats with ultrex and ulterra.

[Linked Image]
Posted By: rj74955

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/03/20 07:10 PM

Originally Posted by ring fry
James, I will be at Fork from the 5th through the 10th. You are more than welcome to try mine while I’m there. I’ll be at LFM.

Retired grass grower

There you go James. Ring fry has probably ran one more than anyone anywhere, and is as knowledgeable as anyone in the country on Garmin.
Posted By: Minner Bucket

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/03/20 10:03 PM

Originally Posted by hopalong
I have the 57" on a champion 202, had nothing but minn kota for years although I did try a couple of motorguide (they suck the big one imo).

what mike said is about the same for me, really makes it a lot easier for an old guy to sit on a spot and fish.
updates are super easy since they come thru your phone and the app.

one thing I have noticed is when you calibrate the compass in the tm do the 360 slow as you can, I rushed it the first time and while it worked it was off some, recalibrated and now anchor lock is spot on.
mine does stick out some but I can live with it as is, had the fortrex 52" before and the garmin is about the same as it was for overhang.
one nice feature is you can run it 24v or 36v with no modifications needed, just hook it up to either voltage and go. another is you have a space in the mount to accommodate the livescope transducer, you can barely see mine behind the strap. everything ties together with wifi instead of bluetooth, all built in and works great.

I would recommend it over the others after fishing boats with ultrex and ulterra.

[Linked Image]

Dang Hop, beautiful boat, never seen that pic on here.......................
Posted By: ezbassin

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/04/20 01:42 AM

Go see Lake Fork Guide Johnny Guise. He has one on his bay boat. I bet he will take you out and show you all about it.
Posted By: dr14

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/04/20 12:47 PM

No input but would be interested in what you decide.
Posted By: James Biggs

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/04/20 03:57 PM

I appreciate all the input
Posted By: mcbassin

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/06/20 12:14 AM

I've been running the Force for over a year. I never owned an Ultrex so my opinion may be somewhat biased. I ran a Motorguide Tour for over a decade before I got the force.
Here is my honest opinions:
1. It's super quiet when you need it to be, I can turn the thrust down and sneak up on fish when I see them. Sight fishing is better. It's noisy when turning at high speeds. The majority of the noise comes from the servo above the water line not the brushless motor.

2. It's super powerful. I can pull my 20'2" boat at nearly 4 MPH. I love to use it instead of the big motor when running across a cove or short run. I have it linked to my Echomap, so I just lock it on the direction I want to go then engage auto pilot. This gives me time to grab a drink, retie or even take a leak in a pinch. I've ran it on 24v and 36v both are superior to my 82 thrust 24 v Motorguide. 36v it will run for two days in a row without charge with moderate use. I haven't ever ran out of battery during long windy days either.

3. Anchor lock works great when properly calibrated. This is awesome when working off shore targets. It will hold you right where you need to be. If you get on the down wind side of structure you can hold LiveScope on target. This is has helped me put bass in the boat that I actually saw on liveScope.

4. The hydraulic assist is awesome for stowing and lowering into the water. I like the auto rotate for stowing as well.

5. So far this puppy is durable. I'm rough on my equipment, I fish a lot of rough water Oklahoma lakes. The kickstand is a must for running. Also, the props are prone to breaking when you hit rocks or stumps. I think this may be by design to prevent damaging the motor. I think it's better to replace the prop than the motor/ shaft.

6. Doing updates can be a pain. I have to look up the instructions and it usually takes a few tries.

7. This thing is Heavy! You really need to install it properly to avoid glass damage on your bow. I suspect that if the hydraulic assist fails, it will be impossible to lift to stow position.
Overall, It's definitely worth the money.
Please feel free to ask any specific questions you have.
Posted By: James Biggs

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/06/20 02:17 AM

Great review thanks
Posted By: Minner Bucket

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/06/20 02:24 AM

Originally Posted by James Biggs
Great review thanks


James, still waiting on your Humminbird explanation.......let’s hear it.
Posted By: kscatman76

Re: Honest reviews on Garmin Force TM - 11/06/20 09:00 PM

I have one on my Tracker TXW 175, I didn't have a spot like style trolling motor before so keep that in mind. That being said it has completely changed the way I fish, it's so damn strong and quiet. It's great on the batteries, I can run it days without charging my batteries. It will move my boat 4.7 MPH. I have spent thousands and thousands of dollars on hunting and fishing equipment thru the years and it is without a doubt the best money i've ever spent on anything hunting or fishing related.
travis
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