From what I have read fewer people seem to have issues with poles, but I like how the talons stick up much less. 68" for poles pp blade vs 49" for the talons (10 ft versions). Since I have a bimini I need to side arm back there and I imagine that nearly 20 inch difference would be nice. Do talons suck?

5 minutes ago, LakeWinni said:

Do talons suck?

I've got a 12 foot model.  I've had it since I owned the boat in 2015.  Its mounted on a sandwich bracket.  I have never had an issue with it.  While one does not hold me in true position, it acts more as a pivot point with my bow mount.  Two is better than one for holding in a solid singular position.  I think they make a 15 foot model now.  Minn Kota also makes a power pole type shallow water anchor called a Raptor.  Quite often I find myself using the talon more when I'm unloading/loading at the dock and access than I do when I'm fishing.

Do you know that they are compatible with different sonar units?

Both are good. I prefer PP because I believe they are stronger. If your concerned about them being in the way while fishing all you need to do with the PP is lower them and there out of the way.

both will serve you well in shallow water. 

I had a Gen 1 Talon on my Lund. 9 years trouble free. My only complaint was it didn't like cold weather. If the temps were in the 30's or below, getting it to deploy for the first time during the day would sometimes take multiple pushes of the deploy button on the remote and/or the Talon itself. After getting it going the first time, it would work fine the rest of the day.

I've got a 12 foot Talon on my Lund since 2018 and it does what you'd expect it to. Bottom composition can be pretty determinate for how well it works. For example if you try to anchor in 11' of rocky bottom it's not going to be as effective as say 11' of a soft or sandy bottom. If it's calm, you'll hold there fine in either situation, but typically you aren't using one of these anchors when it's calm. 

 

I also think the simplicity of the electronic Talon is a selling point compared to the hydraulic Power Poles. If I could do it all over again I'd just get a trolling motor with spot lock and skip the anchors all together. 

45 minutes ago, Krux5506 said:

46 minutes ago, Krux5506 said:

 If I could do it all over again I'd just get a trolling motor with spot lock and skip the anchors all together. 

THIS ^^^^^^^^

 

 

16 hours ago, LakeWinni said:

From what I have read fewer people seem to have issues with poles, but I like how the talons stick up much less. 68" for poles pp blade vs 49" for the talons (10 ft versions). Since I have a bimini I need to side arm back there and I imagine that nearly 20 inch difference would be nice. Do talons suck?

 

 Been running have twin 12 ft talons on my rig since 2016.

These are the reason I chose them:

Electric unit requires no hydraulics

I prefer the vertical deployment.

My 12 ft models are effective to a depth of 10-11 feet in calm conditions.

(a 15 ft version is now available)

The user selectable modes for various bottom conditions as well as the 'wave absorption' features have proven very effective for my fishing.

One unit is better than none but two offers more of a pinned down feeling when I need it.  

btw - your bimini top seems like it would restrict casting far more than shallow water anchors ever will; regardless of brand. 

Good Luck with your decision.

A-Jay

Bottom here is mostly rock, when I go shallow I dont trust spot lock to keep from moving into rocks that might only be 10-15 feet away. Otherwise I would just spot lock and done, just a matter of talon vs pp for those reasons, I think lol 

27 minutes ago, LakeWinni said:

I dont trust spot lock to keep from moving into rocks that might only be 10-15 feet away

 

If your spot lock is moving you 10-15 feet away, then there's a problem with it.

42 minutes ago, LakeWinni said:

Bottom here is mostly rock, when I go shallow I dont trust spot lock to keep from moving into rocks that might only be 10-15 feet away. Otherwise I would just spot lock and done, just a matter of talon vs pp for those reasons, I think lol 

My Talons are Least Effective on a rock bottom.

Especially when there is wind and wave action.

When I fish these conditions I fore go the talons,  go old school and simply stay on the trolling motor.

A-Jay

Yea you will need to re-calibrate your TM if you are drifting that far off. Depending on the size of your boat you may need to adjust the boat scaling. The smaller the boat, the lower you go on the scale. This will ensure that the TM is not over-correcting when trying to keep you within your given spot because the TM is thinking your boat is bigger. I believe the scale is 2, 1, 0, -1, -2. I used -1 for a 17ft boat and an Ultrex and it worked out great!

 

As far as Talons vs Power poles. I think this decision should be made with some forward thought. If the graphs you have or you want to have will be hummingbird, then go with Talons so they will link together. If you have an Ultrex or a compatible Minnkota TM then talons would be the best option.

 

If you are using Lowrance units, or want Lowrance units I would go with Power pole for the same reason of linking together. 

I mean moving that distance after a 28 foot cobalt goes by at 40. Big wakes on my lake will push you quite a ways and I dont know how well spot lock will do. 

Vs two poles 

2 minutes ago, LakeWinni said:

I mean moving that distance after a 28 foot cobalt goes by at 40. Big wakes on my lake will push you quite a ways and I dont know how well spot lock will do. 

Vs two poles 

I'm finding an area with a little less 'traffic'.

A-Jay

17 minutes ago, LakeWinni said:

I mean moving that distance after a 28 foot cobalt goes by at 40. Big wakes on my lake will push you quite a ways and I dont know how well spot lock will do. 

Vs two poles 

Static PP won't help either - as the wake-waves will lift them off the bottom...don't know if the active anchoring system can respond quick enough in that situation either.

 

14 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

I'm finding an area with a little less 'traffic'.

A-Jay

Best idea - quieter bay/cove...probably better fishing there too without all the noise.

1 hour ago, LakeWinni said:

I mean moving that distance after a 28 foot cobalt goes by at 40. Big wakes on my lake will push you quite a ways and I dont know how well spot lock will do. 

Vs two poles 

This is where the Talon I have can be a bit of an issue. If it's nearly maxed out length wise going into a rocky bottom, it's not going to take much of a wake to lift you off and push you out a bit. If it's a constant depth it might not be a very noticeable move off your spot but if say you're on a drop off, you can get swept right off pretty easily. But of course 2 would be better than my 1. 

 

Anything works well in calm conditions, but the reason I bought my Talon was for the seemingly often times I'm not in calm conditions. If it's calm, I'm on the TM. I don't regret the purchase at all though, since it's pretty nice to have when you do want to use it. 

9 minutes ago, Krux5506 said:

Anything works well in calm conditions, but the reason I bought my Talon was for the seemingly often times I'm not in calm conditions. If it's calm, I'm on the TM. I don't regret the purchase at all though, since it's pretty nice to have when you do want to use it. 

 

Being that I only have 1 talon, if there's current or wind, my boat will not face into the wind or waves.  The stern does.  And since I have a true bass boat, my transom sits low on the water.  It doesn't take much for water to start coming over mine.  This is where 2 really has an advantage because it holds the bow into the waves or wind.

7 minutes ago, gimruis said:

This is where 2 really has an advantage because it holds the bow into the waves or wind.

That's an interesting point I haven't thought of - keeping your spot straight into the wind/waves. I knew with just getting one, it would act as it does in the wind. If I wanted to cast into the wind with my setup now I'd just go off the stern for a bit. My boat is a deep v and doesn't really have issue with water crashing over the stern, but if it was rough enough I think I wouldn't try anchoring anyway

11 minutes ago, gimruis said:

 

Being that I only have 1 talon, if there's current or wind, my boat will not face into the wind or waves.  The stern does.  And since I have a true bass boat, my transom sits low on the water.  It doesn't take much for water to start coming over mine.  This is where 2 really has an advantage because it holds the bow into the waves or wind.

Any wind over say 10 mph,

my rig will still spin stern to the wind even with two Talons.

I fish with the wind at my back all the time.

Actually prefer it.

So using one talon works here for me too. 

The 25 inch stern helps but when it's cranking, my bilge pump comes on.

A-Jay

I have the original 8ft power poles.  No remotes and I have to deploy either in my seat with a switch on the dash or on the very front of the boat via wired foot switches.  I’m happy with them.  I would be just as happy with Talons I’m sure but the deal popped up for the power poles and I jumped on it.  The debate about just getting a TM with spotlock is moot because they don’t do the same thing.  Spot lock is fantastic in some situations and power poles are fantastic in some situations.  I have used the power poles on my buddies boat to fish a 1/2 day straight and never put his TM in the water.  Likewise we have spot locked in river current 20 feet deep where power poles are worthless.