BFB

Zedman, The mixing ratio will be 50:1. For petrol an unleaded fuel which does not contain ethanol will do the trick.

Great looking site. Well done to everyone involved.

Sounds interesting. Will be looking forward to the news.

My boat is a 1994 Haines Hunter towed by a 2008 HSV Maloo. Great pairing.

Is the boat you are looking a Haines Hunter or a Haines Signature? They are two different manufacturers. If it is a Haines Hunter 530f, I own a Haines Hunter 520SF and it is a great boat. I am very pleased with it. Price of the boat will depend on condition, brand, size and age of motor, etc. Therefore more information is probably required to help you out more.

The pitch of a propeller is the theoretical distance a propeller will move through the water for one rotation, i.e a 19 inch propeller will move a boat 19 inches for each one rotation. The pitch of the propeller does not take into account the diameter.

A normal car battery charger should do the job. It is always best to have the battery disconnected from the boat's electrics whilst charging although I have charged batteries without disconnecting electrics and have not had any problems but that could be sheer luck.

Many years ago when I had a smaller boat and did a lot of water skiing I used to have have 2 separate props. A smaller pitch one for pulling skiers. It had better pulling power out of the hole but lost top speed and had to be careful not to over rev the motor. Basically changing the prop is like changing gears in a car but remembering, unlike a car, you can not change gears on the go. Therefore a smaller pitched prop will give you better acceleration but loose top speed. A bigger pitched prop can increase top speed but the boat will take forever pulling out of the hole. Thus using huge amounts of fuel. The correct pitched prop is a compromise between power out of the hole and top speed. This is why some ski boats are fitted with such large motors for the size of the boat. To obtain a good top end but, more importantly, to have the power to get the boat out of the water whilst trying to drag skiers through it.

WOT stands for "wide open throttle". This is the maximum revs your motor should get, or gets, under a normal load at maximum speed.

It might overcome the static electricity factor but it will not overcome the problem with the vapours staying in the boat and they are what explodes. The static electricity only supplies the spark to make the vapours explode.

I have got to have one. It would be great for flicking those lightly weighted soft plastic. Does our sponsor carry them or do they have to be specially ordered?

You have done a great job on your boat. You should be very proud. Now take it out and enjoy it. It will be worth all the effort.

I would not think that a new motor should be having this problem. But the only true way to stop the plugs from fouling with a 2 stroke is every so often give the motor a good blast of revs whilst out trawling. This should help with it oiling up as it should clear any oil. I used to have to do this with an old 2 stroke I had when I was using it for water skiing and whilst waiting for the skiiers to be ready it would oil up the plugs but that was 20 years ago.

I have been on a number of charter boats and have never had an experience like yours. Most of the charters I have been on look at the weather the night and make a decision well before turning up. The one that I went on that did not made the call early to call the trip off, before reaching outside the heads, and all on board were given a full refund. Ensuring that you will catch, that is a different matter. I have spent good money not to turn a reel but it was not due to the lack of the operator trying it is just sometimes the fish will not co-operate.

Another problem with refueling a portable tank in the boat is the presence of vapours whilst the refueling is occurring. On an inbuilt tank these vapours are sent to the outside of the boat via a breather. A portable tank will only breath the vapours into the boat. As the vapours are heavier than air they can remain in the boat. You only need one spark from a piece of electrical equipment and you could have a very big explosion. This is why a number of inboard boat are now fitted with purging fans and gas detection units so to ensure all vapours are removed prior to starting any motors. My advice always fill a portable tank outside the boat.

Great photo and one to be treasured. Did he manage to keep the squid?

When you need to have a space like that in your tow vehicle to bring your catch home you know you have had a good day's fishing!

Gary a big well done. It is sponsors like Garry and Craig who make this site so great and, of course, all the other members who are willing to go that extra mile to help people out. I am glad and privileged to be a member.

I seeked clarification from MSB in regards to requirements for servicing of inflatable life jackets. The answer I received was that all need to be serviced every 12 months. If the manufacturer supplies details the user can carry out the service but if the manufacturer does not supply details they must be serviced by an authorised dealer. Hope this helps.

Thanks Stewy. Much appreciated. Have a good Christmas. May all your fish be large.

Did not get much. Has anyone got any suggestions for Port Kembla / Wollongong area? Merry Christmas to all

Hi 5 Star, My first boat was a Savage Avenger. A great little boat. We used it for water skiing and fishing. We would take it outside fishing around 5 kilometre off shore. I loved this boat. But that was 30 years ago. The original Avengers were built around the early 70s. The boat you are looking at has already been modified as the Avengers came out with 2 back to back bucket sits. You would sit on top of the seat to drive it for better vision. Another problem the Avengers had, and most of the Savage fibreglass boats built around that time, was the tendancy to put the nose very high in the air whilst getting onto the plane. We helped manage this a bit by carrying the spare fuel, etc in the nose of the boat. As far as water skiing went, they are under powered. Mine would pull a single skier out of the water but the skier would need to be very experienced and willing to be dragged through the water for a long period of time before standing up. The original Avenger was only rated to a maximum 70hp. Although I think they are a great little boat I would be a bit worried in regards to its age. My personal opinion: great little boat but these days there are certainly a lot better around. By the way I sold mine 25 years ago for $2,500.00

I will add my vote to Travacalm. Since using them I have never had a problem. Great stuff.

Hi Darkhorse, You will find that there is an adjusting bolt on the back of the pads. This may need to be loosened up. Also the slide which the caliper rides on may be seized and needs a clean and lubrication. I know that I need to continuely free mine up. Although I would not worry too much about it if you can push the trailer by hand the brakes must not be binding too much. Hope this helps.

--> QUOTE(Dave B @ Nov 21 2009, 08:31 AM) 331292[/snapback] I understand that motor size over 5hp requires the boat to be registered,probably where the confusion arose. Dave. The requirement for a boat registration is the same as the requirement for a license, i.e. if the boat can travel at a speed of 10 knots or more it is required to be registered.