Another boat for me

[ah_long]

So after I sold my Monark to a buddy, I was looking for a new to me boat again.

 

So I went from a 14ft aluminum tiller to a Ranger R61 to a Monark King 160SC and now I'm back with a Ranger R61

 

Jackie found this boat for me and went down to the US with me to pick it up (third boat from the US), the only difference is I'm towing my own boat this time

 

The owner was originally reluctant to sell but after a month of phone calls, I finally got my hands on her. The price was right so I didn't ask for a single dollar of discount off this baby.

 

Boat rides really nice, the 90hp ELPTO pulls hard (pulls even harder than Jackie's R61 w/ 115 Optimax & Jack Plate)

 

Boat comes with a 70lb maxxum already so I saved quite a bit of money as I won't need to upgrade the trolling motor. The trailer fenders are recently redone and powder coated, there are new alloy/aluminum wheels on the trailer as well.

 

I got two 858C Di and a ProMariner Pro Sport Plus 3 bank charger. Installed a float switch to the bilge and the boat is almost done. Just need to order a deck extension, do some cleaning, get a new custom cover done, install a water pressure gauge and that's pretty much it.

 

The only quirk with the boat is the torn seats, I'm debating whether to buy new seats or to re-upholster. If I'm going for new seats, I'm deciding between these four. Getting a skin from Ranger is probably out of the question as Ranger wants more than what a new set of seats would cost for just the skin. Suggestions would be appreciated.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 16, 2012 by ah_long

[ProFishermanJones]

seat dosent look bad at all!!

 

& by the way, BADASS boat!!! i hope to have one similar one day.

[Skipper D]

Nice , i'd be proud to have it in my fleet .

[davey buoy]

Really nice looking!!!!

[Nipfisher]

What about the Nitro you have listed in the classifieds?

[mistaredone]

Second set of seats in white would look sharp. Sweet ride! Congrats

[ah_long]

What about the Nitro you have listed in the classifieds?

 

That's just for a friend

[Garnet]

Think I would recover that piece my self. That center section is most likely Velcro in. Take apart carefully find matching color. Trace pattern and re install.

[RangerGuy]

NICE! When I retire I will have a ranger again , new!

[ah_long]

Think I would recover that piece my self. That center section is most likely Velcro in. Take apart carefully find matching color. Trace pattern and re install.

 

the whole bench is one piece.

The only thing that can be 'removed' easily is the cushion in the middle and it can be removed and flipped upside down like you saw in the pics

[Dutch]

Boat looks real nice.

 

Seats don't look terrible, I'd wait until they get really shoddy, then recover after that. Should be a reasonable after-market place to get some on-line. May want to check BBC.

 

When replacing, I'd look at getting rid of the centre seat entirely. It just invites people to step on it, which is what leads to tears. People sometimes miss stepping on the centre and slide off the sides and step on the driver or passenger seat, which rips them.

 

One other suggestion - replace that old bow roller with one of the yellow plastic ones, much softer and easier on loading. Those older ones get cracked and hard as rock in the sun, unless they've changed them somehow.

 

Congrats on the boat.

[Wolf 3]

Congrats ah_long! Nice ride!

[Stoty]

Not sure where you're located but LakeView Marine in Port Perry re-upholsters seats. My buddy had his re-done and is very happy with their work.

[Andrew Grant]

.

Edited January 30, 2014 by XxX

[ah_long]

white on blue boat eh.. hmm..

[GBW]

Me, I would keep it as is for now for a few reasons.

1, you tend to flip stuff so why pay extra when not needed

2, it looks like it will last for a season or 4 for that matter

3, do you really need to spend more for something that works

4, I can go on and on but NICE BOAT!

Edited October 17, 2012 by GBW

[ah_long]

Me, I would keep it as is for now for a few reasons.

1, you tend to flip stuff so why pay extra when not needed

2, it looks like it will last for a season or 4 for that matter

3, do you really need to spend more for something that works

4, I can go on and on but NICE BOAT!

 

I'm probably going to get a nice deal on the seats .. I can tell you already that the whole set of seats cost less than just the seat skin from Ranger

[aplumma]

Replace the seats I did on my Ranger and the technology in the way the new seats cushion and support you is like night and day. I have a 68 year old fishing buddy who went from grimacing to smiling on rough days and it makes me feel better too. Very nice ride to fish and tool around in no matter which seats you decide on.

 

 

Art

[ah_long]

just got her back from Paul @ Ravencraft, top notch quality as usual. I'm not affiliated with them in any way but their work is impeccable.

 

Paul did a ratchet system for me as I don't want to do buttons on a fibreglass hull. There's two small ratchets on each side of the back of the boat with a small pouch holding each of them. Three vents with individual support, openings for fender buoys/docking rope. Reinforced at high stress area such as windshield, gas cap and trolling motor. I'm using the top gun material again as I have had good experiences with it.