adam lancia

I'll do that, I was wondering how I would check the transom other than just eyeballing it. I'm glad you asked for the link, I didn't think of posting that (DOH!). It's definitely a unique boat, I have my fingers crossed for a successful test on Monday.

I definitely appreciate all of the advice, it certainly isn't going in one ear and out the other by any means. Like I said, all said and done, we only need to haul about 150lbs of stuff in the boat at the most. We have a 2010 GMC Terrain and will be traveling with our 2 puppies (a 50lb Boxer and an 8lb Terrier) and our 4 year old daughter. We're going to have a couple of duffel bags and some rods and tackle in the boat, just bulky stuff that wont' fit in the vehicle. We'll be camping along the way so we'd like to keep the tent, sleeping bags and camping mats in the vehicle, plus my wife's wheelchair. You can see how it fills up quickly... I really appreciate the input, I'm going to trailer it behind my vehicle before handing any $$$ over to ensure things are kosher there. Thanks!!!

It's more than a little unorthodox to buy a boat when it's secondary function is to be a boat... Even if the damn thing doesn't know how to boat, it's still cheaper than buying a utility trailer. If we get a year or two out of it and piece it out afterwards, that'll still be a better investment than spending money we don't have on a utility trailer. I'll keep you all posted once we get it on the water on Monday. Thanks!!

A tinner isn't an option for a couple of reasons, the biggest one being that my wife is a paraplegic and needs to be able to sit in her wheelchair in the boat. Flat bottom inner floor and fairly stable are 2 big concerns. Hey Mike!!! A pontoon is in our future, just not right now. There's a nice lake nearby where we can rent a slip and just leave it there without worrying about trailering it around, I completely understand that there's lots that can go wrong with this boat due to its age. The thing is, even if it doesn't run well, isn't reliable and requires some work over the next 2 years or so, it's still less expensive and less effort (immediate future, i.e. this trip) than buying a utility trailer that will cost me twice as much (the cheapest trailer I have found is $1400) and then I'll probably have to sit on it when we get back. Not to mention that we aren't allowed to part a trailer in the driveway of the subdivision we live in (the boat will be parked at a friends place on the lake I like to fish). Even if the engine requires some tinkering to keep happy, I'm not opposed to that (I have a small engine mechanic down the street who loves older stuff) so I have some guidance there. I come from a family of mechanics who love older stuff. I've seen when a project goes bad simply due to age and nothing else, but I've also seen how simple and easy to maintain an older piece of equipment can be given that it's predisposed to stand the test of time and have been taken care of. Here's a link to the local Craigslist ad: https://tuscaloosa.craigslist.org/boa/6121706823.html

Thanks for the info. That's an interesting rule about boats and snowmobiles ;-) I hadn't thought of it that way before. I'll be checking iboats.com out tonight. This is the closest I could get on NADA (the motor is a '73 and not a '74, and I'm fairly certain the trailer is the same age as the boat ('72). He's asking $900 but has said he'd entertain an offer. He has also offered to get me on the water on Monday to try it out. I'm not going to be loading it up with a bunch of heavy stuff, just some lighter, bulky items that won't fit in the vehicle. I figure the total weight I'll be adding in cargo is about 150 lbs at the absolute high end. The trailer rental aspect isn't great because it will end up costing us just about as much as buying the boat. We're heading out east first, which would be one rental fee, then to Toronto (another fee), then back to Alabama (third fee). It would be one thing if we were doing all of this driving within the 7 day rental window but we'll probably be in Nova Scotia for almost a month alone. There absolutely isn't an inexpensive way to travel the distances we will be traveling, but there are more financially efficient methods. Ive been offered to have it inspected by a marine mechanic so if anything comes up there, I'll be taking appropriate action.

My family is going to be making the trek from Alabama back to Nova Scotia, across to Toronto, then back to Alabama this summer. We looked into buying a utility trailer, then renting one, then decided that didn't make much sense. So here's where we're at with it now: We figured that we won't have room for everything in our small SUV for the long drive back to Canada this summer (next week actually), and aren't really thrilled about spending money on a utility trailer. So we decided to look at cheap boats and found a 15' 1972 Terry Bass Boat with a 40hp Johnson 40EL-73D outboard and a 40lb MinnKota Edge (brand new battery too). It's listed as weighing 835 lbs without any other equipment on it. The stick steer is kind of cool (works, even the manual tension adjuster), and the fact that it has a flat floor with a fair amount of room is a big plus. The engine started right up but needs an electric choke override lever (an $11 part online from what I've seen). The trailer has new tires, bearing buddy's and freshly packed bearings, and it tilts. The guy had it on the water in March to ensure it ran and didn't take on water (passed both tests I'm told but he said he'll take me out on Monday for further proof). I think we're going to make an offer on the boat for the simple fact that we'd be killing 2 birds with one stone. It'll be big enough to haul the extra stuff that won't fit in the car for the trip back, and we'll have a boat! There were a couple of small dings in the front center of the hull, presumably from being driven up on shore. The transom looks good, no rot or cracks that I could see. What else do you think I need to look for once we get on the water? Lastly, and probably most importantly considering the drive we're about to do: how does towing capacity translate into actual weight of all items being towed...? Is there anything I need to be especially considerate of when towing? Obviously we won't be able to travel as quickly as we would without it behind us, but what else? I'll register it here in Alabama before we leave, what kind of documentation do I need to bring in order to cross into Canada and back into the U.S.? Do I need insurance for the boat/trailer as in Canada, or am I covered by my car insurance while towing it...? Is there anything else I need to take into consideration? Thanks!!!

That's awesome! I really want to do a fly in for trout one day, thanks for the motivation!

Merry Christmas from way down south! It's shorts and t-shirt weather today so I might be beating the bank somewhere going after a few spots and largies! Enjoy one and all!!!!!

Excellent read as always Bunk, thanks!

I use Seaguar Red Label, P-Line FC, and Berkley 100% FC (both XL and regular). I like them all to be honest.

Where can I find a mount kit for the transducer and a power cable for the head unit? I'm going to call SAIL once they open as well as Bass Pro and Radioworld. Failing those, where else could I find those items on short notice...? Thanks!

This is by far my favourite thread to keep up with, thanks Dave! Are you going to screen in the deck?

I'll need to see if we can get the back end out of the water, I don't think he had a trailer for it. A clamped on wooden mount might be the best option considering the lack of a trailer. Thanks guys!!!

Yanno something... My cousin is a contractor, I'm sure he has some 2x4 pressure treat treat lying around somewhere. And I'll be stunned if he doesn't have a c-clamp or two kicking around. Thanks both of you for the ideas!

Ok, I'll give them a call, thanks again!

John, that looks like exactly what I'm after! Unfortunately, it doesn't look like they carry anything like that in Barrie. Where else either in the city or on the way to Halliburton might I find something like that?

I did a little searching around for alternate mounting ideas in case my cousins pontoon doesn't have a bracket at the end of one of the logs. I came across this: https://www.sail.ca/en/humminbird-mhx-xnpt-montage-portable-180352Would that work with my transducer? If so, are there any potential pitfalls to using it on a pontoon?

Thanks, that's going to save me a fair amount of extra work. Much appreciated! EDIT #2: Answered my own question on temp, lol!

Quick couple of questions about a used PMAX 170: I'm going to be mounting the transducer on my cousins pontoon boat, where would it be best to mount it? Will I be fine to run it off the battery that is used to start the motor? It looks like it doesn't draw very much power but I don't know how up to snuff the battery on his pontoon is. Any pictures of the transducer mounting on a pontoon boat would be greatly appreciated, as well as a source for the mount (it wasn't included). Thanks in advance!

Well I'm glad someone said it!?!?!? LOLOL!!! Exceptional work Dave, especially for a single guy. Any chance you want to do some work in the Haliburton area of Ontario? ;-)

Awesome work! You're practically a machine the way you get things done!

Great info again gents, thanks! What is the difference between a cable drive and a power drive? Pros and cons of each...? Got the PM Tom, thank you! Raycaster, thanks for the pictures, that's a great idea with the pvc running transducer mount. OI: it would take some definite kind of guarantee to get me to buy from Kijiji, the forums are a little different though. Especially a community such as this one. Lol @ swervy Pete!

That would be great Tom, if it isn't too much trouble.

So it sounds like 24v will have me covered, is there a minimum amount of thrust I should aim for? Tom mentioned a minimum of 60 lbs, does would that take into account the fact that it's a pontoon?

That's good to know, I'll keep that formula in mind once I find out how much his boat weighs. Is there a good rule of thumb when it comes to amount of thrust versus weight?