jemackinnon83

I bought a air powered HVLP sprayer from Harbor Freight for 15 bucks. I used an oil based exterior enamel from Sherwin Williams. Right out of the can the paint was too thick for the sprayer, I thinned it down with a few cap fulls of mineral spirits and it sprayed nicely. Harbor Freight is great for some things, especially when you need a tool that you know you won't use much, so any cheapo will do. Here's a pic of the sprayer.

I bought this 12 footer last week. It's in good shape, just needed the paint freshened up. I just painted it, next will be a small deck and some seats. It's my first boat, can't wait til it's done:) Before After

When wiring for electronics in a jon boat can you use the boat as a common ground like you use the chassis in a car? Say the tm was up front and the battery was in the back, it'd be easier to run only the positive wire and just connect the negative of each to the boat. I can't see why it wouldn't work, but I'd rather ask than go through the trouble of doing it wrong:)

Give it a shot. When/if it works you'll be back here to say it did. Then we all might start using it:). Nobody replies to tell you they don't know anything about it, so I guess no one does. Take it for the forum, be the guinea pig.

Thanks guys. Guess the styrofoam is stayin.

If your wife asks you to go grocery shopping and you go to Walmart and come home with milk, eggs, 2 fishin poles, trolling motor battery, fishin magazine and some new lures:)

I just bought a jon boat and would like to make a few modifications to it. I'd like to remove the back side of the middle bench and the styrofoam to store life jackets, tackle, etc. Is the styrofoam really necessary? I think it's there to keep the boat afloat if it gets full of water, but how often does that happen? And losing support for the bench won't be an issue as I plan on building a small deck above it that will be supported by other means. Thanks.

Ok..thanks guys...just wasn't sure because i've seen photos of jon boats on this site without reg. numbers on the side. I'll register it.

If all goes well, tomorrow I will buy my first boat. A 12' jon boat with a trolling motor. I wasn't sure if I needed to register the boat since it was just powered by a trolling motor. The Texas parks and wildlife says any motorized boat needs to be registered. Does this apply for electric motors too?

Last weekend. Caught a few small catfish. Did manage to catch a pretty nasty cold though, and a buzz

Thanks guys for the input. Do you think it'd be better mounted on the bow or transom? I'm sure it's all about personal preference but I'm interested in hearing the goods and bads of each.

I'm relatively new to fishing and have only fished off the banks of a nearby lake. I think i'm going to buy a 10 or 12' jon boat pretty soon so I can access more fishing spots. I'm not sure whether I should put a small outboard on it or just a trolling motor and a couple of batteries. It would be much cheaper going with the tm, I think. I'm just a little concerned with the range I will get. How long do you think I could troll around with the trolling motor? Thanks.