Garmin Force Long Term Review

Justin and Josh discuss the pros and cons of the Garmin Force after two years of running it through its paces.
www.russellmarineproducts.com...

[@timkasten7177]

I bought the Garmin force 50" for my boat and it is amazing in so many ways i love it and would buy again... Super powerful, quiet, and i love it integrated with my 2 93 uhd fish finder's... I troll alot for walleye and love creating a route on my couch and then using it on the lake

[@viking_fisherman]

Thanks for this review. I’ve just been made aware of this unit through my research into other Garmin electronics. I was “probably” going to upgrade to this motor, but now that you’ve addressed the major concerns I had about investing so much money in such a new offering, it’s a definite. I really appreciated the honesty on the history of your experiences over the last couple years. Shows me you’re not just trying to sell this thing with overblown hype. I’ll have to see what else you two have produced. I’ll probably learn something else useful.

[@Crawford515]

Thanks for the review been waiting for them to get all the kinks out before I buy!

[@PurplePatchFishing]

Some great info in there, Thanks for the review. We are seriously considering upgrading to a Garmin Force on our boat 💜🎣

[@ronniekotler9265]

I have only placed a small order with your Company but I certainly tell everyone about about Russel Marine Products. You have some awesome informative videos. Thank you.

[@RussellMarineProductsLLC]

Thank you Ronnie, we really appreciate it.

[@MarkH0508]

Excellent video!! I agree with everything you say,I’ve had the force for a year and a half and I put it through hell and back. I’ve ripped off two Skaggs destroyed two propellers ripped off the head, and was able to take it apart and put it back together all by myself without a repair shop. Super powerful motor anchor “gain on low” remote super responsive anger lock great as well! They sent me the latch kit as well which fixed that problem great review Justin, Eye of the Tiger!

[@morganboyd581]

Going on my 3rd year with mine. I'm on my second motor, replaced fast by Garmin, second foot pedal, replaced quickly by Garmin, and I love it. The motor itself had a loose collar (tightening nut) and wouldn't stay calibrated some days. Some other small things and Garmin said enough was enough and sent me a new motor, no mount as I didn't need one. The foot pedal just failed one day, had to use the remote, but it's all good with the new one. Extremely powerful and lasts a long long time. It's also nearly silent and that alone is better than any other I've used. Learning to upgrade the software is kind of a pain, but not too bad and glad they keep making it better. I'd buy another for sure but would hope it has a little light on the arrow for early morning fishing.

[@allusrnameswrtakn]

My foot pedal failed and had to be replaced. The replacement experience was awesome. Luckily while on the water I could still Control the Force with my Echomap Ultra. I also had connectivity issues with my graph but a simple reset resolves that issue. Bought all my Garmin equipment from RMP!

[@Michaelpruis]

My force was one of the first runs... pre ordered it as soon as it was announced! I've had one foot pedal go out, which a replacement was overnighted to me and otherwise it's been great!

[@cclawman]

OMG if Garmin would bring out a 62-65" shaft they would OWN the walleye market. All of that power and awesome handheld with a long shaft WOW that would be a killer!!

[@christopherwilde6673]

I’d honestly like to seen them offer even longer options than that for the center console market as well.

[@kingscatfishing671]

Awesome review

[@FishcastAngling]

I bought a force last summer. I use my gear pretty hard in big water. It’s not perfect but I haven’t had any major complaints/issues and I’d buy it again for sure. The main issue I had originally was the guardian mode would often shut off the motor when the trolling motor would pop out of large waves but they addressed that now so it’s a non issue. Anchor lock is a smidge hit and miss on how good it is IMO but I found when I adjusted the anchor gain throughout the day (higher with stronger winds and lower with calm winds) it definitely seems to perform better. Garmin definitely needs to add a longer shaft option to the market. With previous brand trolling motors I owned before I had the force, it seemed like I’d run into an issue every year that would cause me downtime not to mention screws etc would always be coming loose it seemed.

[@johnpatterson5234]

Great products no issue that hasn’t been corrected without sending it off will buy more

[@thorgren1316]

I’m excited for the Garmin force on my boat. I’ve ran the minnkota stuff for years. And they might have experience but there a cheap ass unit to. Everyone I’ve ever owned has had needed a lot of love and often. Brushes are a yearly thing, milfoil tears them up and the motor case is always finding a new way to leak, the plastic doesn’t do particularly well in the sun and so on. I don’t expect the Garmin to be this amazing unit. But I’m assuming it’s gotta be of better quality than the minnkota anything and it makes sense considering the Garmin graphs. Also no more brush changes sounds great.

[@pastorbillyedgar4986]

Have you done a review on the motor guide tour pro longevity and reliability?

[@charliecfh]

Nice video! I've had my Garmin Force for a year and a half now, and overall I think it's great. Things I would change would be the layout of the buttons on the foot pedal, the sensitivity of the foot pedal when turning, and the prop. Last year I hit a rock and took a huge chunk out of the prop, so I replaced it with the MK prop and it's been good ever since.

[@muskylounge]

If I am running all garmin electronics 8600 series what do I lose by using ulterra versus ghost. I really like the self deploy / stow via remote. It would be nice to control mapping or direction of ghost from helm.

[@ronbeckybeasley3566]

There customer service is awesome. I love garmin

[@michaeldoll3505]

When will they come out with a longer shaft!!!! Yes I have a Ranger 622 and am running a 57”. It works for the most part but has to be all the way down

[@nbkndjd]

Hi. Excellent review. I also bought very early in the process. First kink was spot lock went out and would only turn 360’s. Garmin sent me a new one. Then the latching system failed and spring system failed. They sent me another one. Then they sent a third one and I had to fish and went with the Ghost. The power of the Force second to none, the software and ability to control and blue tooth system with no wires was awesome. I probably gave up too soon but I was off the water so much I gave up. I have two tourney fishing boats and now have two Ghosts. The force is a little, quieter, faster has better remote and no wires. Overall I like the Force better, but I live the two Ghosts with zero issues. Garmin customer service was great!

[@nathanmoretz3870]

The problem with their great customer service/sending you a new motor each time there was an issue: service centers are never going to know how to fix it. At least Lowrance has a system for warranty repairs. Garmin just sends a new one when there is a hiccup... great but scary.

[@zimks]

@@nathanmoretz3870 after all the bad stories I have heard from lowrances CS, I will take Garmins approach to customer service gladly

[@tommypv2]

Would love to see a similar review of the Ghost.

[@rhatter]

Will you be doing a video like this for the ghost?

[@masomaf]

Very curious.. gonna start this video. I am now owner of minnkota terrova ipilot 80 lb, but the remote (260 euro’s over here) is already useless after 2 years(only use weekend), just outside warranty. Also you have to replace the standard bearrings for stainless ones..

[@markciminelli5457]

I am curious how frequently your customers experience the well known back up problem when spot lock is first engaged. This has been a constant problem with my motor despite re-calibrating over and over, setting the servo zero, updating to software version 4.0. So frustrating dealing with this issue while fishing and on some occasions is flat out dangerous.

[@bassfishingtexas2637]

How do you ( or i ) fix the disengagement problem? Meaning I can’t lift the trolling motor without it wanting to stow. It turns and I can’t do anything!

[@richardjohnson6695]

Obviously we can guess the outcome but would like to see a 24v trolling motor shootout.

[@roberthaynie3124]

So what motor do you guys now reccomend?

[@andrewroyal624]

How well do they hold up in saltwater? Ocean side? Great video by the way very informative!

[@KhristianG]

would have liked to also see this question answered.

[@kerwinlewis3093]

Is the 4.20 the newest update for the force trolling motor?

[@tomonincx1394]

I run a GT56 transduser on the back of my boat, wat are the benefits of the GT54 on the Force fronttroller?

[@stevefoulks4245]

Didn’t really see any comments on spot lock. I will be sitting there and all the sudden take off. All the updates have been done and it still happens. Could we get a video from you guys on this or is there one I can watch? Thanks

[@olgierdsamborski]

Maybe now a video with comparison between force, ghost and ultrex?

[@uploadtime1780]

This for sure. What about motor guide?

[@3flgator]

Hey guys I'm looking for a quiet remote controled electric trolling motor with 10 to 12 hours of battery life per day. I'll be putting it in the back of a montgomery 10 fiberglass sailing dinghy that weights 125lbs and will cruise at a very low speed with 2 people inside the boat only or a max person load of 400lbs not including the motor. Great video, thank you for sharing and I very much look forward to your feedback.

[@phillamoore157]

Interesting. I've got an opportunity to get a couple Echomap sonars that Bass Pro is having an insane sale on. But, it obviously requires me to get the Force. I've heard Garmin's customer service is outstanding, which is great, but I have no desire to be having any issues. This motor isn't cheap. It's criminal that these motors don't integrate with the top fish finders. I would like to think that, as of this comment, Gamin has fixed whatever durability issues are going on with it, because I will be saving close to 3K by going with Garmin, during this sale.

[@flipper2473]

Can this trolling motor operate half deployed , as sometimes a person gets too shallow?

[@anglingcru3846]

Pedal gone out twice. Foot pedal tension adjustment is poor and does not tighten even enough. Took a couple waves over the bow and trolling stopped working. This happened several times over the season . If shaft loaded up with grass a common very scenario in every day bass fishing the motor would send a servo error. It impacted cover same error code would happen. Had to obtain a neck sleeve for the unit and shaft to limit the error and issue. NOTE IF YOU DO DIRECT POWER (hard wire) you pedal and your crank battery dies YOU CANT OPERATE YOUR FOOT PEDAL. It may be better to run batteries in the pedal instead. Have tour off the heading foot switch because it would activate when my size 10 shoe would clip the foot switch . Which brings me to the fact the pedal is too small and you will activate other buttons unfortunately. With all that said , I really really believe Garmin has a chance to do ale over the trolling motor industry if the can make the improvements. The motor is quieter than most and I would argue it is the most powerful . I love the potential of this system but it literally cost me thousands in pro tournaments. I am very bummed about this. Customer service is excellent but honestly the failures this motor has has are not necessary. I wish they would have a much more diverse RnD testing team. Several of the issues I experienced would have easily been detected. I’m in the lure RnD field. Again I want badly for Garmin to achieve the ultimate success with this item

[@hermangeldenhuys8548]

Can you fit a mega 360 on a force trolling motor?

[@jessecooper9795]

Yep

[@shijingchen2334]

I cannot upgrade me garmin motor and cant connect my ecomap 106 garmin. I don’t know why

[@davidgosper3842]

Ordered a Garmin, it will be arriving, with new boat in a week. Should I hard wire or go wireless?

[@RussellMarineProductsLLC]

always hardwire sir.

[@davidgosper3842]

@@RussellMarineProductsLLC Thank you,

[@phillamoore157]

Hate to ask a stupid question, but what are you referring to? The connection between fish-finders? I want to make sure I get this right, as well.

[@chadlair2458]

Ordered the 50” cause I thought it would be longer than my Minn Kota 45”. Then found out it’s the same. UGH!! Why do these high priced trolling motors not have a light on top? For the money, they should.

[@kapnbill]

Is it true that their warranty doesn't cover labor unless the entire trolling motor is replaced? I was told this by my local dealer. That might be enough of an issue to steer me to a different brand.

[@niklasheikinheimo2324]

I have a Ghost and im quite sure the Force is more powerful, the Garmin will tripp a 50a bms on full power but the Ghost wont.

[@dieseldood]

I've had mine just over a year now. (July 2020 with 2.0 software) I've had one goofy issue, that I'll call a glitch. I unplugged it, plugged it back in and it was ready to go. The short version, I was fishing between 2 rock spines and the wind changed direction suddenly, and doubled. I went from calm west wind 5-10, to south wind and white caps. To its credit, the trolling motor stayed RIGHT where I hit anchor lock, but that was closer than I was comfortable with when the back of the boat swung around. Knowing I had about 100 yards of this before I was safe, I figured I better use the big motor to idle out. So I fired it up, and before I started moving I turned off the anchor lock with my graph. I idled with it down to a safer area, hopped up, pulled the trolling motor up and went to a different part of the lake. When I dropped it back in, I could turn it, but I had no speed control. Reset fixed it and I haven't had another problem all season. You guys mentioned it running a long time. I prefished a different tourney for 13 hours, then the next morning got up and found nothing had charged. The breaker for the charger popped. I ran the entire tourney day on top of prefishing and it JUST started dropping into the yellow. That's 36v standard lead acid batteries in a Champion 184. When it comes time to buy another one, I'll be happy to. After using the Force, I feel like the ultrex is clunky. The cable clunks, motor moves and clunks, you stop it clunks again. My one request, make the speed adjustment slightly easier. If you are out in the rain and your footwear gets wet and you are in some waves, it can be tough to just knock it up or down ONE notch. Lol Oh... and if you break a steering fitting 14 miles from the landing... it doesn't care. 4mph top speed the trip wasn't so bad! Lol Keep up the great work guys!

[@Amputee_Angler]

Yea the new latch system didnt fix it. Ive been running one for a year up here on the great lakes have had half a dozen accidental deployments

[@ricqik]

Nowadays, you don't need 50yrs of history. All new competitors dissects their competitors and improves on it. So with Garmin and Lowrance, there isn't much credit to being new to the market. It's not like they started from scratch, they have Minn Kota to template off of.

[@sobborisouth3814]

I don't feel special now I went through 3 also

[@chrisroberts3963]

You didn’t mention all of the motors things that drive you nuts 🤷‍♂️ No mention of Anchor Lock problems (always backs up 5 ft). No mention of the prop always turning off if switching between different modes with the remote. No mention of how it can’t stay on course when you draw a course line to follow on the map. No mention of that the heading hold that doesn’t hold a heading. The only reason I put up with it is because it works with the graphs. Other than that I am starting not to recommend it to people. Sorry, simple software fixes that need to be done to make this a great motor. Customer service is awesome but the engineers need to get their act together.

[@bobbarnhill8557]

Software update 4.0 fixes the back up issue when anchor lock is engaged.

[@markciminelli5457]

@@bobbarnhill8557 No it helped a lot of people, but it is by no means a fix for everyone. My motor still has the back up problem when using spot lock in the worst way.

[@greghurdle4021]

My Minn Kota always backs up when spot lock is engaged.