Happy troller?

[slipbobber]

Finally got my new boat in the water today. Tried trolling for Pike today while We did catch a few I think We were trolling to fast. According to the GPS on the fishfinder the slowest the boat would go was around 3mph. The boat has a 90hp motor on it. Has anyone tried a Happy Troller to slow down there trolling speed?

[jts1]

My grandfather used to just drag a bucket or two behind the boat on a rope.

[outdoors forever]

I thought someone was trolling the fishing discussion and was happy! :)

[splake0]

Is your motor a 4 stroke? I have a 90 Hp Honda and installed the easy trol (I think that's what's it called). I can slow to 3 kph without using the easytrol. That being said with the easytrol I can troll very very slow.

[liar]

i have a 90 evinrude 2 stroke and have had a happy troller for years . it probably cuts the speed in half . works good as long as you dont forget it down when speeding up . i have had to bend mine down a few times . use it lots for lake trout .

[Krisrf]

I regularly troll for pike in that 3.5 mph area. With that said, if you want to slow it down to about 2 mph then try back trolling... Send a PM if you want to discuss a bit more...

[hunted]

I have one on a 125hp merc and think it is great! The only complaint I have is when it comes it is either all the way up or all the way down. I find this too slow. So I notched out holes at 45 degrees so can put it to half way down and this is what I use all the time.

[Overdrawn]

Finally got my new boat in the water today. Tried trolling for Pike today while We did catch a few I think We were trolling to fast. According to the GPS on the fishfinder the slowest the boat would go was around 3mph. The boat has a 90hp motor on it. Has anyone tried a Happy Troller to slow down there trolling speed?

I have a 115 Merc 4strk with a 17pitch prop and it trolls at 2.4 to 2.5mph. But I noticed if I rip across the lake and start trolling with the motor trimmed up a bit it trolls to fast. Did you try trimming it all the way down. I know it cuts my trolling speed by .5mph. I have heard happy troller can take out your bottom end bearing because of current back lash. My buddy ties a 5 gallon pail on a rope and tows it behind his boat when he trolls to slow him down.

[Dark Horn]

For a number of years I used one on my 135 johnson. Went from about 5mph at idle to around 2-2.5 at the most. Worked flawlessly. I now have a 200verado and with using the smartcraft gauges can go down to 2.8mph at idle.

[npauls]

Trolling a drift sock might be cheaper and easier then getting a happy troller. The good part about the drift sock is that it is useful for more then just trolling also.

[tyee33]

Save your $$ and get the HydraTroll from Cabelas, 1/2 the price of the Happytroller and has the hydrafoil fin attached to get you on plane faster.Had the Happy troller, ripped it off and bought the hydratroll, 10 times better and wayyy cheaper:bad_boys_20:

[Mark]

I used have a 16 ft. Glascon with a 75hp motor. Trolled too fast for lake trout on downriggers so I installed a happy troller. Worked great, would use it again if I didn't have a kicker.