SlowPoke

I think you're right about the warranty to the original owner. When I asked you on Sunday if you knew the original owner, I was thinking you could ask him to put it through under his name. As I mentioned, I think it could be welded from the inside. I think the metel is weak there from being stretched over the form to create that chine. Welding from the inside could fill that cavity but might make the next bend prone to cracking (beside the weld as Wayne mentioned). Because it is accessable from the inside it at least makes it easier for a repair estimate. You might have to remove the floor and some of the foam for the actual repair but since aluminium cools so quickly when welding I don't think you'll have to tear everything out. Another possibility would be an epoxy repair. West System Epoxy is expensive but a terrific product. You may be able to fill the cavity with thier two-part epoxy with a fiber filler mixed in over glass or carbon fiber tape. This may be a good fix for you... done in a weekend and give it a week to cure. I love this stuff but ask someone with a lot more experiance about it's bonding ability with aluminium. http://www.westsystem.com/ -Brian

Forgive my steelhead ignorance but isn't this just another day-at-the-office for you? Nice fish, great numbers... just a little warmer than usual. -Brian

Thanks for the kind remarks... I hope if ever I break down some guy in a plane can help me out! LOL, I think I'll pass. I blame that on Clive... for no particular reason We looked for better cover and found either clear sandy bottoms or thick dead growth. We never ventured over to the south side. I assumed it was much the same because Turkey Point has a clear sandy bottom with some cabbage patches. Next time I fish LPB I'll slide by your place and pick you up. I didn't realize that was a 2-stroke... I know it was a 4 cyl. 100HP with water cooled heads, air cooled engine. His name might of been Gary, not Glen but I know it wasn't Gwen or George for that matter. I'm terrible with names Wade He did have boots and socks, a life jacket and a cool multi-tool... don't know about a lighter. You'd think somewhere in that plane he'd have room to store another cute little battery! -Brian

Wtg Mike and Ryan! Can Ryan be an honourary member of Team L4F? I'm still trying to contribute for the team but my 07' skunk is alive and well. -Brian

Just your average day in the Bermuda Triangle... Picked up Clive (mepps) at 4:20 and went back home to grab the boat. Arrived at Long Point Old Cut for the Toonie Tournament a little after 6:00. After lauching the boat I quickly realized that something was askew. The fishfinder was reading 72' at the dock. Seemed a little deep for a channel leading into the bay with an average depth of 4 feet. We made our way to the west end of the bay which looked inviting from our drive in. It turned out to be a nice secluded spot to run over my line with the electric... no fish. At this point the fishfinder was hit and miss for depth so I followed our GPS tracks back out closer to the channel leading to EC10. We spotted a few boats around EC10, perching I suppose and moved a little further south for a few dozen casts that produced a follow-up for Clive... no bite. We decided to troll further south inland into some of the bays. Saw a few more boats there and thought this would be a good place to run over my line again. The bow-mount electric is new to me but I learn fast, I don't need to run over my line three times to realize that this is unproductive... no kidding. Out of the bay we went to follow the shoreline eastward. From a distance I spotted a little channal separating an island east of "the cottages". It looked inviting so we ventured in. With the fishfinder reading 900' imagine our surprise when we hit sand. Not a big deal, the water was fairly clear and we were going very slow... trim up the motor and got out of there... no damage. We went around the island and began casting. I happened to notice a float plane moored on the island and joked to Clive that he's probably be stranded there since November. A few minutes later I heard a faint cry for help "you guys got a battery?". Turns out this guy was stranded. We began approaching him and proceeded to hit sand, this time with the electric. Out come the paddles and we push ourselves towards the plane in about 6" of water... This guy "Glen" had built this plane from a kit and flew in from Brantford. After mooring and hiking on the island he returned to his plane and was unable to start it. The plane was equipped with a 12v motorcycle battery buried somewhere in the fuselage. I didn't have jumper cables thinking that two batteries on board would not require hauling a set of cables. Naturally, the full size batteries would not fit into the battery compartment on the plane. Glen turned the plane around to try starting it manually. Click to see the video... No luck starting it manually. I figured our last hope was to remove his battery and hook it up to my motor to recharge. Remember, we're in six inches of water.... I trimmed the motor down and buried the skeg into the sand and started the motor. Pheww, a good solid pee from the side of the motor means the water pickup is low enough for engine cooling. We hooked the cute little wristwatch battery and began charging it. In the meantime, Glen decided to check his email. After about ten minutes Glen put it back into the plane and it was reading 12v. "I've got one shot at this. If it works, thanks a lot guys. If it doesn't, I'll talk to you in a minute." dramatic cliffhanger.... pause for effect..... rrrrrr........rrrrrrrrrrrrrr........rrrrrrrrrr..........vvvvrrrrrooooooooooommmmmm! By this time it was 11:32 and we had to be back at the launch for 12:00. The wind had picked up quite a bit. Whitecaps and 2-3' waves made the 7 mile return trip a little harsh but we managed to get back by 12:02. The only casualty on the return trip was my hat. It wasn't until we got back to the launch that we learned our day could have been worse, much worse. One of the participants sustained some pretty serious hull damage. Everyone in the boat was safe thankfully. They took on some water but I think everything was under control. Hopefully it is repairable and he won't be off the water for long. That's it for my no-fish fishing report. I really don't see myself getting back to the Bermuda Triangle anytime soon but I still had a good time sharing the boat with Clive and meeting some OFNer's. Well worth the loonie, three quarters, two dimes and a nickle. -Brian

Ah, come on buck... let's see the guitar pose with the mount! -Brian

Andre The Giant called, he wants his glove back. Nice fish! -Brian

I have a Loonie, 3 Quarters, 2 Dimes and a Nickle... will you make an exception for me? Clive willl need someone to hold the net and take pictures for him. -Brian

Welcome back Jamie, it hasn't been the same without you... literally! Some nice changes and more user features. Look forward to your reports. -Brian

I know a bunch of guys that did it to the interior floors in Jeeps. The smell never quie goes away but it was effective.

There was, I heard them from here.

Good job Cliff, thanks for the heads up!

Happy Birthday John!! Clive (mepps) and I have big plans to celebrate on Sunday with some birthday gators. Still room for you if your plans change. Best wishes and many more. -Brian

Consider it an offer... I'll PM you.

Hey Roger, where in Long Point? I'll have room in the boat for two people (any takers?)... I was going to go Saturday, maybe Sunday too!!! -Brian

Brian...I bought 2 adapter plate mounts with the S-17's on them and 2 of the dovetails with the S-17's mounted on them to see which works better as of course one is higher than the other off the track. The adapter is the same base as the rigger mounts and yes it does have some holes peaking out..but all top quality and perfect hole centering. They fit nice in the tracks. I also bought a set of 4 dovetail salty mounts (last picture) as I already have 6 clamp on style saltys that I was using on the window frame brace in my Glastron. This gives me 6 dovetail mounts if I don't like the S-17's. I went with the S-17's and the adapter plates for a couple reasons. They look less bulky without the clamps and I saved $120 (plates vs. Salty brackets)... actually, even more since Goran made up some plates for me and the Bert's are going back. Since you already had the clamp-ons, the Salty brackets were a no-brainer. I figured while using the saltys to troll for lakers/pike/muskie...that a rod tube mounted beside it, or elsewhere in the boat, would work nice for when the fish has been netted gives a quick place to stick the rod instead of laying it in the boat/etc. Other than that tubes are for when using the planner mast so I can put each rod at a different angle to keep the lines apart on similar length rods. Now that is positive thinking... here I am thinking the tubes would be nice for untangling lines and re-tying after break offs! As for "ratcheting". No Pursuit doesn't offer a ratcheting holder like Berts. Pursuits are the pin and hole for each location as you can see in the 3rd picture. This is what I might swap out in my collection to get the ratcheting ones from Bert...but I need to see what their satin finish looks like, to see if it matches or is close at least to the pursuits. I see what you mean now after looking at the picture. The Bert's ratchets are nice, very stout. I have the "new satin" finish on my Bert's tracks and I could take a macro shot of the finish if you like. I would have for this post but it's pouring rain and I have to take the cover off the boat. If my memory is correct, it's more of a brushed finish than peened. Also...on that 30"...you could have bought a 36" and just cut it down. Alum cuts very easily with just a wood blade in your mitre saw, and if you are concerned about matching the finish a quick bead blast on the cut end would clean it up. I had considered doing that but when I asked Jocelyn (Angling Outfitters) about it he said it would have to be re-anodized. I'm not sure if that is a must or just a proper way to do it... don't know much about aluminium and I only recently learned how to spell it. It's not a heart breaker because I like the idea of having a 6" gap for sliding in accessories between the tracks (X=2") XXX....XXXXXXXXXXXXThe Bert's also come with nice end caps. -Brian

Hi Tony, I had room for a 30" track and would have went with it but 30" is custom order from Bert's... don't know about the other guys. I ended up with a 24" track and I can add a 6" inline or leave a 6" opening and place the 6" track aft of the opening. When I mounted the 24" track I realized that I would be able to use a rigger mount and two rod holds comfortably on the same 24" track but I would have to hold onto my own balls If you have room for a 48" track go fer it! I had too many other issues in the way... bimini mount, anchor light and mooring cleat. -Brian

I love the Pursuit and Bert's track systems... clean, functional and flexible! I like the Bert's ratchet holders you mentioned as well. Are yours not ratcheting? I went with the Salty's for now but I like tubes as well.... nice for rigging up a rod - drop it in, do what you have to do and send your line out. I will probably end up with some Bert's tubes in the near future. That's going to look good on the new boat Wayne... I just installed some Bert's on my old tin can and it brought the value up! I like the powder coated Salty S-17... I wanted them but they're special order. It was hard enough to find the ugly ones and I'm still waiting for two more (have 4, need 6). I also bought the Bert's adapter plates but didn't like them. The holes were mis-aligned down the center line and the Scotty mount holes peek out from where the Salty's mount. I also found them to be a little sloppy in the track. I sent some measurements to UncleBuck and he made up eight plates for me. They look great and fit better inside the track. Cheaper than Bert's too! I have some knurled knobs on order for the machine screws to finish it off. -Brian

I wouldn't advise passenger car radials for everybody but for a light outfit like yours they'll be fine. Trailer tires are ST (Special Trailer) rated and have stronger sidewalls. The sidewalls are intended to withstand prolonged storage and reduce sway. If your trailer is prone to swaying, passenger car radials will accentuate the sway. -Brian

Hi Emil, your tire may or may not be repairable. It is losing air four possible ways; -Leaking from the bead: rusty rim not allowing the tire to seal against the rim. -Puncture: nail, screw or cut. -Rot: tire rotting from the inside out and leaking through weather cracks in the sidewall. -Valve: dirt preventing the valve from sealing or corrosion causing it to stick. With the tire off the ground and fully inflated, take soapy water and a sponge and squeeze a little on the tread as you rotate the tire. Watch for the soap bubbles where it is leaking. Keep wetting the tire working inwards toward the rim. If you still don't see bubbles try around the valve. If the tire is wheather cracked, toss it. Valves can be replaced, rims can be cleaned for a good seal and punctures can be patched. If you're replacing one tire, make sure it's the same size obviously but also make sure it is of the same construction as the other tire... radial/radial or bias ply/bias ply. -Brian

Throw a handfull of roadsalt in your reciever, mist some water in there and you won't need a lock. I should invest in a lock system and I like the single key idea. -Brian

It's not a bad idea. As a truck driver, I need a Dangerous Goods Card to carry pool chemicals in our case. The DG test is dead easy and simply covers the basics in case of an emergancy. I find that the test does not necessarily quiz your knowledge on product or handling so much as it does illustrate your (in)ability to use the guide and apply it to your situation. It's easy to achieve a perfect score if you know how to use the guide - all the answers are there. A fishing test doesn't need to quiz your knowledge on fish identification or zones but to test your ability to use and inturpret the guide. It won't put an end to poaching but it would help those that want to fish within thier rights. -Brian

Snip. Snap. Splash. (I probably wouldn't snap a picture for a 4 lber though) If it's kept, it WON'T live. If it's released, it MIGHT live. -Brian

Well done boys. We were there Saturday and decided to leave them for you. -Brian

I don't mind playing by the rules Great report, lots of pictures, dial-up friendly... I don't know why you guys are whining! The trouble with multi-part posts is scattered comments... people asking the same Q's in different threads etc. Instead of different threads try blogging your report and start a thread with a link to your blog. Guy's, cut this man some slack. I want to see more reports like this. Pete, maybe next trip you can carry the pack while your father carries the 3 OZ digital camara -Brian