72” vs 60” shaft Ulterra

[Lmbkiller]

Then u limit yourself to fishing smaller water or nice days only. U want spotlock on rough days in bigger water, with a bigger boat (20ft), better get 72� shaft, can always trim it up

[luv2huntnfish]

The rule I always go by is you can never have a long enough shaft or enough power.

You can always raise up the shaft if needed and lower the power but if you ever need either and you don't have the longer shaft or additional power you will find you are disappointed.

[DerHornen]

Had an 18' Lund and wished I had the 72" shaft. It would cavitate at the surface in a relatively small chop. In a 20' Ranger with a 60" Terrova I haven't had any issues so far that would make me want the 72.

[Ozark Bob]

The trimmed up 72" shaft will stick up an extra 12 ". It will get in your way casting the shallower you go. Keep your type of fishing in mind also. Bob

[Waxy]

I can't see ever needing to "trim up" the 72" shaft.

You lose about 12" of the shaft length due to how the trolling motor is mounted on the bow. So now you have about 5ft feet below your rub rail of actual length.

Picture your boat on the trailer, or better yet go out and actually do it, how far is your trolling motor below your keel? I'm guessing about 1', likely quite a bit less on a lot of boats, and maybe 2' below on some boats.

How often do you fish with less than 2-3' of water below your boat? If that's not something you find yourself doing, I wouldn't give it a second thought. Worst case scenario you might have to trim it up a ft. You'd have a whole 12" of trolling motor to work around. Would that really be an issue those times you were fishing ultra shallow?

That added length when you're out in big water makes a night and day difference on how well your bow mount is going to work, and if it's an Ulterra and you're not stowing it by hand, costs you nothing in terms of effort or efficiency.

Waxy

[Ozark Bob]

Musky, Call ranger and see what they say. Unless someone has the same boat you do they don't know what you need. If you bass fish,especially spawn time it could be an issue. If you troll open water on the high seas you may want the inconvenience in shallow water to get use in big waves. Long and short of it, it depends how you fish. Bob

[Muskie7144]

The Ranger people said it depended on the type of water you are fishing in. Most people have not switched from the Lund to the Ranger to give me height above the water comparison. Since most of the time I am in 6’ or greater I have gone with the 72” shaft. The boat will deliver in January.
Thanks for everyone’s input!

[Ozark Bob]

Originally Posted by Muskie7144

The Ranger people said it depended on the type of water you are fishing in. Most people have not switched from the Lund to the Ranger to give me height above the water comparison. Since most of the time I am in 6’ or greater I have gone with the 72” shaft. The boat will deliver in January.
Thanks for everyone’s input!

Enjoy!