I have an older Minn Kota 555 Turbo.  Up until this season,  no problems.  Now,  while I do still have all 5 speeds,  I need to have it on 5 to really have any power.  I thought it was the battery at first so,  I tried another battery.  No real difference.  Any ideas?

Maybe bad wire connections. Did you check to make sure your prop was tightend all the way?

Pull the prop and look for mono behind it.  As stated check the connections.

It may be time for a new set of brushes and a good lower unit cleaning.

Yes,  I had actually taken the prop off to make sure there was nothing wrapped around the shaft.  It does seem like there is a possible loss of electrical current but,  where and why is the question.    This one has come all of a sudden this season.  Never any problems until now.

Pull the prop and look for mono behind it.  As stated check the connections.

It may be time for a new set of brushes and a good lower unit cleaning.

That is one of the things I was thinking about.  Is that I home maintenance deal or a qualified service guy?

It wouldn't be a home repair thing at my house.  I'd have to take to someone who makes his living off people like me.

I have a friend that is a guide.  He has learned to fix things himself to save money over the years.  He'll say that something is easy to fix and start rambling off what you have to do.  I usually zone out about the 3rd or 4th step.   I think I could do it.  It be nice to find a schematic to see what I'm getting into.

How did the motor respond to incremental speed increases? Did each step give you a little more power, even tho less than what was expected? When on WOT, was the speed as much as it used to be?

If the WOT was less, then you probably need to have the motor brushes looked at. If the lower speed steps behaves differently, some OK some no increase, then one or more of the the resistors in the motor have failed, or the switch in the head has failed. Either way you may want ot find a friendly motor doctor.  :-?

I still have all 5 speeds just,  not anything close to what it was.