pelican

Keep an eye out in your suburb for boats that are not getting used and are just sitting in a front yard. Often an approach may find you a boat that is well maintainesd and just not wanted but the owner is too lazy to sell. You of course can find lemons and crap as well but that way you don't have the pressure of it already being advertised etc and can arrange water test etc. Depends a bit on what suburb you live in. Don't be worries about a older scratched boat as at least it hasn't had problems covered up and you will put a few scratches on it yourself. They may not look pretty but are just as good day to day. Money spent prettying them up can often make people suspicious like the "bunnings dulux" It is expensive to do properly and few do it well but some amature jobs can last a while and look OK depending on how much they get used. You are in that bracket of $ where you are going to find a lot of bodged up boats and old motors. I have seen mates cope with bodged up boats but troublesome motors are a nightmare and they spend more on their motor repairs than their whole original boat package. Sometimes better to forget the "4 people " idea as often you will be 1 up or 2 up and buy a but smaller with a quality motor especially if you ae not mechanically minded as older motors don't have alarms and often overheat etc without new owners realising there is a problem. I was nearly going to suggest that a mate throw in for half and you get a better boat between you but it is often a recipe for disaster being in a partnership be it family or friends. There is no exact answer so just keep putting up what you find and people will tell you good and bad points. Newer boats are in many cases a lot lighter and you can get away with smaller HP ( or lower speed with a different pitch prop) and props are avaliable as spares over the counter.

Don't actually know what is out there and what is in that price bracket but have a serious look around and don't get rushed into buying anything. Just about everyone on here will have a first or second boat ightmare story where they blew the budget as the trailer , hull or motor was a lemon in the end. There is a lot of genuine sellers out there and a lot of shonks. Don't buy it without taking someone along who knows boats and can also inspect the motor. That motor is pretty old and may be very hard to have work done if required I would really decide on what size you really need for the fishing you do, what use you will get and what is the smallest most modern powered rig you can get. A bare tiller steer boat is very easy to maintain and always resellable and with a modern motor you can move that motor to another boat.. How many people does it need to hold? Where do you want it to go? There should be afair few boats coming up with the boats shows not far away so it may be worth a wait and see what is takes your fancy. Talk with the site sponser and see what he has or knows of as people upgrade and often need to get rid of reliable boats that have a service history and yards won't take them on as stock when the market is so quiet. Has that boat had the bench seats modified?

Have seen a Ezi that was ally and was a good trailer. Is yours Ally Just a word of warning that many USA trailers although galvanized don't seem to last long in Aus and many are for fresh water applications. Get a quote for all work and make sure it includes compliance and rego. Heaps of blokes do trailers repairs but not many will actually rego it for you with blue slip etc Depeding on what trailer you have and what it looks like an option may be to offload it while it looks good and buy a new one designed for you that will last and be no hassle. Let someone else have the problem of a USA made trailer.

Simplest is just to slip a complete new axel under it and thet way all bearings and such will be standards. Getting brake mounts welded onto a old axel can be a pain and possibly more expensive tahn just bolting on a set of brakes. If it has not been registered before of has for some reason being singled out by police you need to read RTA building trailer specs to confirm all other specs on axels , loads, tyres wheels,hitch, lights etc are suitable before wasting your money Simple axel discs and cable overide operation are not that expensive to retrofit and there is quite a few trailer websites who with correct measurements will send you a complete kit complete. Get all gal and a bit overspec galvanised with bearing buddies or durahubs and quality bearings and grease to start wth and you will get many years service. If you are made of money you can fgo stainless aor bronze and have much less maintainance. See Kodiac Brakes

What tackle do you suggest at dancers?

Be very very quiet , you might get some bass or tweeter It is the pipe and pump wharf for the water intake and outlet for taronga salt water displays for seals etc. They have it locked well used to ( ages years since I have been there) and security did drop down. Signs always said no entry no fishing.

Gday Saltrix What is the weight of your current rig? Am thinking a single heavy duty axel will be a lot less maintainance and expense long term.

Can do it on soft tube with a forming spring over the outside packed with sand as well.. It is tough on the hands with copper and was really hard work 20 years ago on ally. Most exhaust shops won't carry dies small enough

Which side of the prop do you have it mounted? Is it electricl or is it airation from the prop? Some motors at low revs let a lot of "gas"from exhaust out via what should be a good fit betwee gearcase and prop hub. Some props are drilled to allow faster holeshot and can throw a mist of airbubles around transom. Sounds odd - small nick in hull or different bracket causing airation? To test if physical or ellectrical just attach sounder to seperate battert and if you want to prove if it is airation just unclip tranducer and move it further from motor. The other option is interference in teh engine harness or radio aerials if the tranducer cable travels in the sema conduit. Just slip the tranducer cable out ( leave a mouse rope in to get it back in later) and see if that solves the issue. Bit of trial and error

Can of worms this one as people will say that new outboards are so reliable you only need one and they don't even carry a 15hp kicker . These people rely on others to help them home when / if they breakdown or shut down to save $30K + of motor Twins are better in some aspects if both have totally independent fuel and electrical so in theory safer. Lose a water pump impeller you can still get home unaided. They will weigh more, use a little more fuel, possibly have better holeshot in bar conditions as they have 2 large surface area props in the water. The top speed will be possibly be down slightly HP for HP as you have the added drag and ineffeciency of 2 gearbox and props. Balance and trim of boat may be better and possibly no need for trim tabs and boat will run flat with counterrotators. Twins will have higher service costs and probably purchase price. Gives you 2 alternators for bilge and radios and capacity to run large electrical loads like winch, pot hauler big lights. Low troll speed on one motor . Twin setup must be done carefully by someone who has done a bit. I guess same for singles though. Would do twin 175s and that way you have a chance of planing on a single motor. This gets you home at a decent speed after a prop strike or motor issue. Can always carry spare homer props as well. Lot of stress on gear units on 250 plus hp motors and only as they try smaller casings so some say smaller hp may be more reliable or have better longevity. Manovourability with twins can be a advantage at close quarters , docking or holding station. Singles have advantages as well in pricing fuel consumption, less transom taken up ( although the big motors are huge). A lot depends on what you use it for , how remote your fishing grounds are and how independent you want to be. I'm sure others will add to the list of pros and cons and facts will depend on boat and application or even combination of motors and props.

As Above . You can check with wreckers for short shafts if you want to preserve yours or even buy a gearbox with shafts from a wrecker then you have a spare If no luck or expensive PM me and I will put you onto an engineer who will cut and reweld both shafts so you use existing splines etc. It is quite simple. Before you spend money or do anything are you 100% that the rest of the motor is otherwise OK? Are you measuring from cavitation plate just above prop to the top underside of transom bracket?

Hint - don't make it big enough to sleep in otherwise you might have to! They are never comfortable Have a look at the online auction sites as lots of peoples kids grow out of them and want them out of the backyard. Look over your neighbours fences as chances are there is one there they want rid of. Alll mates who have done the cubby house thing soon realised the kids grew up fast so buy a good sized one with activities so you get a few years out of it - depends how old the kids are and whether you are likely to move house in the next few years. Other big mistakes are putting them in a really sunny or shady areas as they got too hot or cold. After 1st go at building one from scratch that lasted a few years mate moved house and bought one from cubby house place - look on the web - and it was modular if he moves again. Bloody thing is a palace

I think this one has been looked at before and similar to the prawns where only bait prawns can be returned to the water same went for fish. Someone showed where it was written for prawns etc. Was designed that way so there is no chance of OS or interstate fish ( even when dead) transferring disease or parasites to local native population. All third hand as I haven;t read it about fish but it was definately the case with prawns Guess you would get done for pollution or littering if it wasn't a properly sourced bait?

What state or country is BA?

North Sydney - talk to the engineers - they are a good bunch and would be managing any work but have limited design input.

Please tell me that isn't so about the ramp. Only ramp deep v owners can use without goose extension or drowning the car and it is never real slippery. The lengthening they did made it shallower already. Hope they thought up a better pontoon design like one that floats next to the ramp so it makes it quicker for everyone. The thoughts of dredging the bay and all the fancy stuff they were thinking was in my mind a waste of money and unless the existing ramp is undermined again leaving it alone woukd be good. Stiring up the sediment in that end of the bay is not a good option and wouldn't want to know what is there as it is all reclaimed dump land. Hope you are wrong but it wouldn't surprise me. Off to beat head against a brick wall.

A lot of your issues could be very simple and be caused by one problem. If you have any mates who are electricaly aware and can use a multimeter you may be able to determin what is going on and then fix a specific problem. Unless there is a problem with the way the harness was done originally or it has been butchered by subsequent owners most wonýt require a expensive rewire. Auto electriciand ( good ones ) are good as well at diagnosis and on a slow day won't cost you the earth. Most motor starting issues start with the battery and terminal connections so that could be a starting point to check for corrosion and that your battery is OK. Look for obvious corrosion and also any places where wires may have rubbed through their insulation and be creating shorths . Look for any aftermarket work done where wires have not been propely terminated and shrinkwrapped etc. In diagnosing stuff you can disconnect everything and then check each circuit.

Ask your local mechanic as most have an oil sump to put it in or some will run it in their parts washing machine. Won't do a lot of harm to any old carby car if you only throw 10-15l into a full tank and use it pretty fast.

If you dont know the mix in the tank dispose of the fuel as it isn't worth screwing a motor for $40 of fuel. The idling issue is probably just the symptom from too much oil in the fuel. Get the correct fuel mix and use a quality semisynthetic oil and run the boat on the water pretty hard for half a day. I would then consider running a can of engine tuner through it as well as the extra oil can gum up rings and cause carbon deposits. After doing that I would inspect and probably change out the plugs if they show any signs of wear or carbon build up. The exhaust plugs are good and stop the 2 stroke crackle. They also give the motor the correct backpressure and should make it idle as if it was on the water. There is plenty of exhaust gas flow around the prop and through the idle port higher up on the leg. There are ones that don't require a strap as they have a rubber ring and a expander screw that goes up the exhaust . I like those more as on many motors even in neutral the prop tries to turn slightly. A lot cheaper than agro with teh neihbours or moving house I don't blame your neighbour at all as it is an offensive noise and is no different at a boat ramp as the noise travels over water a long way. If we want to keep boating we should all get an exhaust plug and make sure we only flush with motor at idle or just use manufacturers flush port with motor off. After all we go to the middle of the harbour and anchor up for 4 hours and don't flush the motor so you are getting as much scale then as what you would leaving it for an hour till you get home and can put it on the hose. Edit Ahhhh Huey is quicker on the ol' keyboard and a bit more concise!!!

It will turn off and not restart When your mate does it get him to show you the connector where you can disconnect it if you are troubleshooting on the water. Extensions on kill switches and kill switches in general have left a lot of people stranded. Get him to use tinned wire if starting from scratch but there is probably kits on the net or parts of a original wiring loom off a wrecked boat at a wrecker. Ensure the wires are well insulated and supported under the gunnel or in a conduit and up to your console.

That ain't gonna fit in garage is it? Looks good

Some respond well to low heat from a heat gun as it softens them and the glue up. Others I have just slipped the edge of a razor blade under and then used solvent to wipe off remainder of glue. At least you have stickers and not painted on. If you have owned the boat and the rego papers have those numbers it seems a bit odd ??? Best hint I can give if they don't look like coming off very easily ask MSB to issue you a number with an extra digit - ie add one extra number rather than have to remove all your stickers as they do leave a UV rash that a lot of the time won't polish out. Not sure if they will still do this but worth asking or see if there is a rego number with only one digit changed avaliable.

Ahhh Much better Now your wife is lop sided - can't have everything I guess .

Geeze you should make the accounant who buys the stuff wear it in rain at 60km?h and then you would get the good fancy stuff with! Mate used to test some of the stuff for Aussie post for the bikes and was always suspect that some of the sample stuff they got was better quality and better made than the final stuff ordered as time went on. Not really about where it is made but more about the honesty of the materials and consistancy. Thanks

What brand and style is the older postie stuff and the current IE stuff