Minn kota talon or power pole
 

AS stated in previous post and threads this is a common question, but now that the TALON has been out for a while, Id like everyones input that has seen BOTH OF THEM IN ACTION ON THE WATER...Im only buying one so the TWO factor does not need to come into play and should it be the 6 or 8...Thanks in advance....and it will be mounted to the transom...:cool:

can speak for the talon but regardless of what u choose get the 8ft . i have a 8ft powerpole the remotes stay messed up but never any major problems with the actual unit. i will never own another boat w/o a power pole i dont care if they go in cost to5000.00 it is wot=rth every penny in my eyes

X2 on the "motes" but otherwise my ppole has worked flawlessly and they are tough as nails. fished in a boat with a talon recently and it's quiet and fast. but the ppole has proven itself for years.

another positive for the ppole is that it is out of the way when down - something to consider if you have people fishin in the back.

I have owned both and both have their pros and cons. I currently have a Talon. It is faster than the PP and seems to hold better but it can get in the way. Also on more than one occassion it has driven in the ground with so much force that I had to back the boat up a little to get it to come back up. Of course with a PP I have had to rock the boat before. The biggest advantage with the Talon is the ability to anchor down with one touch of the button and not having to hold the down button. I also had three remotes go out on my PP. At the end of the day I think I like the Talon better but the PP is still not a bad option.

Ford v/s Chevy?

TALONS in my opinion are not as practical as the POWER POLE. When you drop the talon they dont get out of the way like a power pole does. If you get a buddy that likes to throw side arm the talon is worse than a cowling...Lake Area Marine won't order another talon b/c they can't get rid of them!! BTW my power pole is mounted to the jackplate and I really like it there...no holes in transom....:cool:

It' all abt the "THUMP!!"

Tough decision
 

I was in your shoes two months ago. I ended up going with the power pole. There were 3 things that stuck out in my mind.

1. The power pole is down and out of the way.

2. I don't need extra brackets to make clearance for trim tabs.

3. With the way the Talon is designed, marsh mud from the shaft will eventually get into the housing and wear something out.

You can't go wrong with either, but that's what helped me make my decision.

Sounds like I need to sale my Talon as soon as it shows up on my door step.........this is a hard decision to make man I went back and forth for a month or two. I may have made a good choice or maybe a mistake we shall see

Ive been reviewing and wheew they both have pro's and con's, so im undecided whch one and what size....it just seems like the eight is too tall but then again 6 might be too short, only gonna be in BIG LAKE....:help:

8ft without a doubt.........If you're in 5' of water & soft bottom with anykind of tide movement or wind a 6' won't work.

I dont have experience with the talon but get the 8 ft of whichever one you decide to buy... I must be lucky cause I havent had a single problem with my remotes

Haven't had a problem with mine either. Used mine for 3 years straight on avg of 4 days a week. Never an issue.

Sounds like user error to me...;)

8 ft. by all means. Have had and used both, currently with the Talon hanging on the back, and I can say that I'm impressed. Both will work great with the PP being tried and true, but minnkotta has a great thing going, and is not going away in a hurry either. mine works flawlessly, and realy cant see it being much more of an obstruction than the motor. the PP can get in the way while fighting a fish if only anchored in 2 to4 foot of water because it is stuck out of the back 4ft. Pros and cons, Pros and cons. both are great with the talon being a little cheaper for the whole package. You wont go wrong with either. :)

8 ft don't hold in 8th water mire like 6.5-7 ft

I sitll prefer my Talon over the PP's I have had in the past but both are fine. It is more quiet, faster and holds better based upon my personal experience. As others have stated the PP does have some advantages over the Talon but at the end of the day both do the job.

WHATEVER YOU DO, GET THE 8 FT VERSION OR YOU WILL REGRET IT.....

You can install the Talon yourself, no matter how mechanically inclined you are.
You can install it to the transom, drill thru the transom, or get a bracket that mounts to your motor mount/jack plate.
The easy thing is the Talon has a 3 wire hook up. 2 wires are the 12 volt supply, third optional wire is hooked to the ignition switch. If you use the wire to the ignition switch, it will alarm if you start up and still have the Talon down.

The Power Pole is a little more involved, it has a hydraulic system that needs to be installed under the deck. Most of the time, this is a mutha to do, so getting a professional to install makes it easier, but more expensive. But if Jsmoke can do it, I know I can... LOL

My opinion, if you get either installed when you buy the boat, you have more bargining power on the price of the boat. When they give you a price, you can haggle over the total price while getting options included in this price.
If you have to buy the Powerpole or Talon after you buy the boat, you pay full price for either and have to install it or pay to install it.

Saw a Talon at the sportsman show a few weeks ago. Seems to be a lot better technology/features than the power pole.

Minkota is a big company with reputation management. They are not going to put something out until it has been tested pretty good.
They don't want any bad publicity about the Talon, or all that $$$ spent on research and development and advertising is blown.
Each has it's advantages and disadvantages. You just gotta figger out which one you can live with.

I have a friend that bought a talon this year. He was fishing in BL and put his talon down. Went to leave and it would not come up. Had to dismantle the whole thing off his boat to be able to leave. He said that a role pin had come out and he was :pissed:

Great information guys!!!!!! I have been struggling with the same decision