mr475

Took our boat down there on Sunday 28 August. Still no pontoon wharf. Lots of sand on the ramp and one guy bogged when we got there. His trailer wasn't even in the water. Looks very shallow there now. A lot of sand has been shifted. I guess that is why there are so many groynes along the bayfront at Kurnell. No trailers were in the carpark either. Go somewhere else.

You were lucky. After a beautiful day weatherwise on Sunday, the wife and I decided to take the boat out on Botany Bay for a fish on Monday. Weather predicted 20 to 30kph winds. No drama. So out we went. After about half an hour fishing the wind picked up to 60-70kph and was blowing against the tide. BIG BUMMER. We upped anchor and headed back to the ramp taking a real pounding from 4ft seas which were nearly vertical. A trip that normally takes 2 minutes took about 20 minutes. (From Cook's landing place to the Kurnell ramp.) Our poor little 4.75m Quintrex took a pounding, crashing into and over waves. Even had the prop come out of the water a couple of times as we crested the waves. But it sure gave me confidence in what the boat would take, even though we had the life jackets at the ready. Every time a wave would come at us and it looked like the bow would bury into it, the bow would rise up and over. Fortunately there were some nice fellows at the ramp jetty who helped us dock and retrieve the boat. Saved more messing around. They had a boat to launch but decided to go home. We were wet and tired from bracing and holding on in the seas and didn't even catch a fish. And yet Sunday was glorious! Bugger.

Spending money wisely is seldom fun. When you indulge in a hobby, it costs and the money may not be recouped. That is the cost of enjoyment. We bought our first boat second hand to see if we liked it. We did and 5 years later we are looking at upsizing. And the model of our boat is currently selling for more than we bought it for. And we are not bound by hiring times and limits. Running costs are a part of it. If a new boat is what you want to feel happy, then a new boat you should have. Fun has a cost, it is not an investment. But you can compromise within reason. As the saying goes, "I SPENT MOST OF MY MONEY ON FAST WOMEN, FAST CARS AND BOATS. THE REST I JUST WASTED."

E10 is not recommended for marine use. It absorbs moisture. I even see signs on pumps at service stations which say not to use it in outboards or marine engines. If you only had the one tankful, then emptying it out and replacing it with ordinary 92 octane unleaded should solve your issues and get your motor running normally again.

Good fighting catch. Well done. You are a brave man holding the shark for the photos. I saw another guy do that once and the shark suddenly thrashed while he was holding it and latched onto his shoulder. His great day ended in the hospital.

Thank you for your input, guys. It is difficult not to get the springs wet even though I only put the trailer in the water halfway up the wheels. Never mind. !3 years is probably a reasonable life span so I can't complain.

We used prawns and chicken meat, but no luck. Chicken is pretty good bait, actually. Most things seem to like it. And I did catch a sweep or something which must have been feeding below the salmon. Not sure what it was, but it wasn't a trevally. Haven't caught one of these in Botany Bay before. More wives should get involved as we all have fun when the family gets together for a fish. She also drives the boat on and off the trailer which makes launch and retrieve a 2 minute job and she likes to have her turn at the helm so I can do the passengering. Bit of a speed demon, though.

My 13 year old trailer springs and axle are looking like they need replacing soon due to rust. The rest of the trailer is OK. Assuming I replace the springs and axle, how can I preserve them? Does a thick coat of grease work? Would that get into the area between the leaves of the springs and keep water out? Any other ideas?

How many fish out there are swimming around trailing lost rods behind them?

Yes, the wife loves fishing and boating and camping so she was sorry we didn't have the right gear as well. Just being there is great. We were in a white Quintrex with blue canopy. We saw one guy near us hook up with a yell but it took him a while to play it. And we saw another bloke bending his rod and losing the catch. Fun, wasn't it? What boat were you in, shaggytrevally?

We were out there yesterday as well. We were doing bait fishing but nothing was biting, probably because of the dolphins. We came across the salmon schools and tried to pull up ahead of them. Although we only had our baited hooks, we threw them into the schools anyway. The fish followed the baits but no hook up. We didn't even see what sort of prey the fish were chasing. But it sure was spectacular to watch them coming through the water towards us and to see them darting about in the water and then diving away. And the dolphins came past us at 20 metres while we were having a relaxing lunch in the sunshine. What a great day to be on the water. Guess we will have to get a spare rod with a lure on it in case we come across another school of salmon. Have caught these guys off the beach and they are great sport with their jumping and dashing back and forth.

If you are by yourself, you will need a lifejacket at all times.

Yes, it's all very well when everything is NEW like that. Looks like it is on a lake in the USA somewhere. Still, being fair like I am, I would be willing to give it a try before criticising and returning to my trailerboat.

Certainly sounds like a gradual blocking of the fuel flow. Check the filter to see if gunk is blocking it and have a look inside a fuel line to see if it is becoming soft with bits coming off.

I had a problem a couple of years ago in that the charge when the engine was running was down to about 12.5 to 13 volts instead of the usual 14.2volts. In addition, sometimes the electrics would go on holiday and I could not restart the engine when time to up anchor to go home. Fotunately, pulling various leads got the engine started so I got home. I thought I had the dreaded "intermittent" problem. But, starting with the easy stuff first, I undid the cables that went to the earth point on the stern near the isolator switch. They seemed to have a little oxidation on all of them, so I cleaned them with a wire brush and put them back. All problems solved. No more loss of electricity and the recharging was back to 14.2volts as usual. And no money spent. Just a thought. My boat is a 2000 model Quintrex but the principle may still apply to other boats.

I was looking at these at the boat show as well. They seem to have design features that not many of the other boats have and are well built for the price. If I was after a glass boat, then I would certainly consider these. Good value for money.

I agree. Encourage her to get her licence. My wife has hers and she loves zooming over the water. She says why should she miss out on the fun? ANd launching and retrieving is a breeze and only takes a couple of minutes. She drives the boat on and off the trailer and never has to get her feet wet. Everybody happy.

Thank you, puppydawg. I presume I have to take out the whole floor to get at it? I can't tell where it is.

My fuel gauge has suddenly taken to flicking all over the place from showing full to showing empty, and everything in between. Is this likely to be a gauge problem or a sender unit replacement? I have a Quintrex 475 Bayhunter Caprice with 70hp Yamaha and under-floor 63 litre fuel tank. The gauges are original with the boat and engine in 2000. If it is the sender unit, is the replacement a job I can do myself? I can pull up a floor and undo screws and rewire the trailer but I won't do stuff like pulling outboards apart.

Today I heard a disturbing report from a regular Botany Bay fisherman about a poor practice taking place on the Bay at the moment. He observed a boat nearby to him where a group of men of asian appearance were pulling in undersize fish and apparently running them through a mincer on board so that they won't be caught by the Fisheries patrols. Not only that, they asked this gentleman not to throw back his undersize fish but to give the fish to them. This is a pathetic disregard for the law. What can be done? Has anyone else seen this as I haven't been on the Bay for a few months?

We bought our Quintrex runabout when it was 10 years old and that model is selling 4 years later for a couple of grand more than we paid and we paid not much less than the original new peice.

Yes, just check the conditions each time you go near Circular Quay as it can get quite rough. Some 20 years ago I was watching a guy in a low-slung green speedboat crashing through the wakes opposite the Quay. He then stopped as a container ship went past under the bridge. I watched in fascination as the bow wave from the ship moved toward the sitting speedboat and then went completely over the top of it. The boat disappeared momentarily but appeared again, still on the surface but now full of water. Obviously the wick had also gone out on the engine as there was no forward motion any more. Anyway, it wasn't too long before the police boat was on the scene to pull the occupants out and tow the boat to safety. This is just an illustration of placing a boat in conditions unsuitable for it. That speedboat was one of those ski things with a one foot freeboard. It pierced the oncoming bow wave instead of riding over it. So just ease into the situation. If it starts to get a bit rough and you feel unsure, turn back to where you feel comfortable and just take it a step at a time. You will grow in confidence as you see what your boat does and what it can take. Good luck.

Well done. I hope it serves you well.

Personally, I think the bigger the better with more power. Botany Bay can get really choppy when the wind comes up and it can be dangerous for small boats. Also the Harbour can get pretty uncomfortable when you have ferries creating large wakes all over the place. It is common to see a 4 foot wake wave coming at you from private cruisers giving it heaps or even pilot boats so you can get tossed around a fair bit. I really wouldn't fancy anything under 4.5 mteres unless you only go when all is calm.

That looks like a great improvement. What a pity the local council undertook landscaping works lat year that reduced the number of trailer parking spaces.