Back around 1980 I started fishing the Redman Tobacco Co. bass tournaments. Being from MO, the closest lakes they fished were in KY, IL,and TN.  One of the first things I noticed was that many of the top rated contenders were using Eagle trolling motors from Byrd Industries in Deyersburg, TN.  They made bow mounted trollers, both hand and foot controlled. and 6/12 volt models vs. the 12/24 volts common today.  The 6/12v. models powered by two 6v golf car batteries were awesome.  They could handle a 18' Ranger even in 25 MPH winds.

 

The steering system was patented, but Motor Guide and others circumvented the patent by reversing the gears.  Remember, this was in the era of "Draw Your Partner" tournaments.  The rules were you had to share the front of the boat 50/50 with your partner.  Well, guess what?  About 90 % of the partners I drew, went crazy when they tried to use my "backasswards" trolling motor to my advantage.

 

The HUGE downside on the Byrd Industries 'Eagles' was the armature shaft.  The motors were so powerful that the shaft would bend, causing the O rings to allow water to enter the motor and causing a failure.  This could have been easily fixed with either a larger shaft or a hardened one.  Personally, I carried a hand controlled spare in the rod box.

 

I heard Byrd sold out to somebody like Tohotsu or Nissan... in any event, the foot petal on these things were great.  There was a hinged plate that allowed you to touch the pedal and turn the motor on.  No messing around trying to find a micro switch or 1 inch button.

 

Question:  What ever happened to this design?  The motor was fragile but that foot pedal was AWESOME?

No idea lol

But my Fortrex kicks arse!

You are talking about the Laz-troll by Byrd Outboard Motor co, MO, they closed in 1989.

There are some exceptional electric OB's on the market, however bass boats use Motorguide and Minnkota today because the are very reliable and high thrust power.

Tom

I worked at the Aluminum shop in Charlotte Mi that made all the black anodized aluminum for this and let me tell you there was a LOT of hand buffing that went into these parts not to mention all the fabrication and machining, but when it all came together, a very attractive well made unit.

Darwin says that if it was any good, it would have survived...

 

"Evolution in Action"...

8 minutes ago, Further North said:

Darwin says that if it was any good, it would have survived...

 

"Evolution in Action"...

Darwin would $hit if he lived in the 21st century! ?

35 minutes ago, PolarKraft195Pro said:

Darwin would $hit if he lived in the 21st century! ?

Nah...

 

He'd look at data that showed how many people looked at objective data vs. subjective "feelings" and say, "Looks about right."