# Trolling Motor (Minn Kota) 2 Prong Plug Disintegrated at connection point



## Captsammymcche (Sep 16, 2020)

Hey yall! I’ve had my Beavertail Mosquito for about 3 months and the trolling motor has been acting a little wonky lately (disconnecting from the remote, shutting off on its own, etc.). Today I was out and saw a big ole tarpon rolling about 40 yard off the beach in South Carolina and the plug itself literally disintegrated on the bow when I gave it a jiggle. What was left was a sparking (when prodded) 2 prong plug still connected to the female connector on the bow. Had to put my flip flops on my hand to remove it. I’ve been taking it in bigger water on a small number of occasions for jacks or tarpon, but its not like I’m taking water over the bow on a regular basis. Also, I clean/spray down with fresh water the hell outta my boat after every use.

A few questions about this incident as a first time trolling motor owner…

What went wrong here? I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed given what I paid for this rig. Is there a best practice for disconnecting and rinsing the connections on these I should’ve been doing? Answer seems to be obviously yes, but curious how common this level of corrosion is on a brand new unit.
I’ve anecdotally heard the 2 prong plugs aren’t the way to go.. what are the other options?
Upgrade to power pux?
Do I bother mentioning this to Minn Kota and/or Beavertail? Unit itself is under warranty, not sure about them insuring the installation decisions and wires though.

If the answer is to go with power pux.. any thoughts on that install process would be helpful too.

Thanks for any insights!

P.S. No we didn’t catch the tarpon sadly. So damn cool to have a shot at them in SC though. Tough with the water clarity, but safe to say I’ll be adding an 11wt to any future trips out of the inlet.


----------



## Captsammymcche (Sep 16, 2020)




----------



## Surffshr (Dec 28, 2017)

Those plugs suck. Probably just a janky connection that has been shorting due to a piss-poor design. I’ve have plenty of trouble with those plugs and butt spliced leads neither of which are on my current skiff. 
Battery Tender plugs are they way to go. The power puck looks cool, but I’ve no experience and they are expensive. I doubt any is under warranty but maybe BT will rig up the battery tender for you.

remove any butt-splices in your leads while at it. Both problems will Jack with the TM itself.


----------



## Vertigo (Jun 3, 2012)

Surffshr said:


> Those plugs suck.
> Battery Tender plugs are they way to go.


X2


https://static.summitracing.com/global/images/prod/xlarge/dtn-027-0004-kit_xl.jpg


----------



## Captsammymcche (Sep 16, 2020)

Thanks y'all! That plug does look better. Probably leaning power put but going to sleep on it and do some additional research as well. Will follow up on here with whatever I decide and install photos. 🙌


----------



## permitchaser (Aug 26, 2013)

Move your TM connection to the horizontal front portion of your front deck. Use dielectric grease. Mine is a Sierra can't take a picture cause my boat is in the shop for new ignition switch


----------



## Mako 181 (May 1, 2020)

It is a Beavertail Mosquito and it did not come with a Battery Tender plug?

Hmmmm !


----------



## Steve_Mevers (Feb 8, 2013)

Captsammymcche said:


> Hey yall! I’ve had my Beavertail Mosquito for about 3 months and the trolling motor has been acting a little wonky lately (disconnecting from the remote, shutting off on its own, etc.). Today I was out and saw a big ole tarpon rolling about 40 yard off the beach in South Carolina and the plug itself literally disintegrated on the bow when I gave it a jiggle. What was left was a sparking (when prodded) 2 prong plug still connected to the female connector on the bow. Had to put my flip flops on my hand to remove it. I’ve been taking it in bigger water on a small number of occasions for jacks or tarpon, but its not like I’m taking water over the bow on a regular basis. Also, I clean/spray down with fresh water the hell outta my boat after every use.
> 
> A few questions about this incident as a first time trolling motor owner…
> 
> ...


I think you are better direct wiring the trolling motor, I just don't see how any connection above the deck can survive saltwater.


----------



## Loogie (Jul 24, 2019)

Captsammy, that is a connection that was shorting, looks like the wires were not isolated when they connected them to the plug. The wires should have insulation all the way in, the only exposed part should be inside the plug where the screw tightens the wire. A recommended addition to that part of the plug is to use liquid tape which further seals the plug, then spray both make and female receptacle with Boeshield. The plug works well but it definitely needs to assembled correctly. In your picture you can see the dark wires exposed, that will definitely lead to arcing when salty water or any water gets in, and it will. I would just recommend buy a new plug, install it correctly.


----------



## john1234 (Jun 8, 2014)

I changed my Mosquito plug form Marinco (which is what you have) to the Battery Tender. It was fairly easy. All I had to do was drill a larger hole in the cap for the larger plug to slide down in. I used dielectric grease on all connections and shrink wrap. Also put the dielectric grease on the male and female plugs.


----------



## mavdog32 (Apr 5, 2019)

Surffshr said:


> Those plugs suck. Probably just a janky connection that has been shorting due to a piss-poor design. I’ve have plenty of trouble with those plugs and butt spliced leads neither of which are on my current skiff.
> Battery Tender plugs are they way to go. The power puck looks cool, but I’ve no experience and they are expensive. I doubt any is under warranty but maybe BT will rig up the battery tender for you.
> 
> remove any butt-splices in your leads while at it. Both problems will Jack with the TM itself.




X3


----------



## Mdees88 (Jun 23, 2021)

I've had a battery tender plug for four years and no complaints so far but if I were to do it again I would use blue sea feed through connectors..... simple and bulletproof. https://www.bluesea.com/products/category/27/Feed_Through_Connectors


----------



## Surffshr (Dec 28, 2017)

Mdees88 said:


> I've had a battery tender plug for four years and no complaints so far but if I were to do it again I would use blue sea feed through connectors..... simple and bulletproof. https://www.bluesea.com/products/category/27/Feed_Through_Connectors
> 
> 
> View attachment 180671


These look like through deck connections that wouldn’t give any protection from the elements. I’d like to see an install pic.


----------



## Mdees88 (Jun 23, 2021)

Surffshr said:


> These look like through deck connections that wouldn’t give any protection from the elements. I’d like to see an install pic.


It's a tinned stud like your battery posts. The fully exposed batteries in my small aluminum boat see quite a bit of salt spray and they're fine. Just coat in dielectric grease or spray with T9 to protect from the elements. It would eliminate loose TM connections. That said I haven't seen them used for a TM before. If my battery tender ever fails I will be trying them out......


----------



## CKEAT (Aug 26, 2015)

I use Yamalube on all electrical often, it’s cheap enough a and doesn’t leave nasty greasy film. Good corrosion inhibitor.


----------



## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

Since you are in maintenance mode on your boat/trolling motor, do your self a favor and strip back a few inches of the insulation on the power leads from the TM to the connector plug to check for corrosion. On my old Ulterra, the battery leads were not tinned copper so there was a bunch of copper oxide (black mold looking corrosion) on the wires. I ended up replacing the power leads with tinned copper wire. Make sure you have plenty dielectric grease for the leads and the plug ends. Also, don't store your boat or charge the battery/ies with the deck plug in. Always unplug the connector after you're done for the day.


----------



## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

Pretty clear that your plug was getting a saltwater bath pretty regularly - and I seriously doubt that whatever make TM you have - came with that plug... When I installed my TM a year and a half ago I took everyone's advice and went with a Battery Tender installation as my deck connection. Wasn't cheap... the Battery Tender cost about $80 on E-Bay but it runs rings around other plugs (can't comment on the new PowrPux unit since I've never seen one, but I hear they're more than a Battery Tender...). At any rate - I'm in hard commercial service as a guide in salt and brackish waters... Here's a pic or two of my installation... 

























One of the things I like about this plug is that, when removed there's a rubber seal that protects the in deck (female) side of the plug from any saltwater intrusion (seals it up perfectly). I was concerned that the plug itself would hinder fishing -but next to the trolling motor itself it's not a hazard at all. Getting my anglers to stay away from that trolling motor - that's always a problem.... 

Hope this helps... 

Be a hero... take a kid fishing..


----------



## finbully (Jan 26, 2013)

Besides those plugs (Marinco) are crap, dielectric grease is your friend!


----------



## JC Designs (Apr 5, 2020)

POWER PUX time!


----------



## Cork (Sep 10, 2020)

Those Marineco plugs are junk and should be outlawed. I have seen many other posts where they have melted and even caught fire.


----------



## marshrat (Feb 22, 2018)

Plug & Receptacle / MKR-26 | Minn Kota Motors


Trolling Motor Plug and Receptacle provides continuous power rated to 60 amps up to 48V. Designed for freshwater and saltwater applications. This plug is the recommended replacement for the MKR-18 Plug & Receptacle (part number 1865102).




minnkotamotors.johnsonoutdoors.com


----------



## JC Designs (Apr 5, 2020)

POWER PUX!😉🇺🇸


----------



## timogleason (Jul 27, 2013)

Gave up on Marinco plugs after going through couple in a couple of years. Was too cheap to buy the Battery Tender (probably should've) and ended up hard wiring it. Wrks great unless you have to take your TM off the boat which I really do. Need the big butt connectors and a good crimper if you do. It is rock solid though. Always used to have issues with TM but never do now.


----------



## jesseoshea (Jul 10, 2018)

Regardless of the plug chosen, load it up with dielectric grease once a season! Mine plugs last for years without issue. I do the same on my battery charger connections.


----------



## HunterOnFly (Apr 15, 2020)

Here’s another Marinco plug fire while fishing dock lights with 20 mph winds. It was getting run hard. Luckily I had noticed some heat in the wires earlier so I wasn’t totally caught off guard. Hindsight says “Duh, idiot” but it’s really hard to get me to stop fishing. Really fun with the gas tank up there and all that fiberglass.

Originally wired in 2008 I presume. Setup is a 12 V in front hatch with breaker.

Pic is of trolling motor wire corrosion, not THAT bad, but bad enough? Corrosion inside plug is probably worse. Plan is to rewire with bigger gauge and use either the aforementioned Minn Kota or Battery Tender plug.


----------



## Captsammymcche (Sep 16, 2020)

HunterOnFly said:


> View attachment 181804
> 
> 
> Here’s another Marinco plug fire while fishing dock lights with 20 mph winds. It was getting run hard. Luckily I had noticed some heat in the wires earlier so I wasn’t totally caught off guard. Hindsight says “Duh, idiot” but it’s really hard to get me to stop fishing. Really fun with the gas tank up there and all that fiberglass.
> ...



Woah. What solution did you end up going with after this happened? 

I opted for a power pux.. not installing till monday though so can't review


----------



## HunterOnFly (Apr 15, 2020)

Captsammymcche said:


> Woah. What solution did you end up going with after this happened?
> 
> I opted for a power pux.. not installing till monday though so can't review


 I think Power Pux would be the “correct” solution, but budgetary constraints think otherwise.


----------



## Jumbo Jet (Mar 18, 2018)

Same Mosquito, and I had BT install a Battery Tender plug during the build. Marinco should definitely be outlawed, it’s a fire starter, like having a Zippo on your bow. Had one start smoking on us while out dock light fishing Jupiter in my old Maverick....scary night. I check my connections every 6 months or so and reapply fresh dielectric grease on the Battery Tender, connections are still perfect. I had mine mounted pretty close to the TM, so my wire is fairly short, maybe 8-9”.


----------

