mikeg

Thanks for the replies. Sears doesn't carry parts for this any more. I did find 3 places on-line(4 if you count ebay) that carry at least some parts. I just didn't know if anyone knew of any other sites that might be dedicated to these. I did Google and found the places I mentioned above but didn't go past the first couple of pages of results. I'll dig deeper as I have the time. Keep them coming though if anybody else has any other sites or words of wisdom about them. I've already fixed the hole in the gas tank and have done a bit of cleaning. Next up, new plug and new gear oil. Thanks again, mik,eg

So, I got a Gamefisher (Tanaka) 3.0 in good running shape for $100 though it isn't pretty. The only immediate concern in that there's a crack in the gas tank but I already bought a patch kit for that. I'm just wondering if anybody knows of good resources for keeping these motors running since I'm seeing that they're discontinued and a lot of the parts are no longer available. It came with the owner's manual but any other info would be appreciated. Thanks in advance. mikeg

So, the days are getting shorter and colder. I'm not ready to hang up the canoe yet but was wondering, is it ok to suspend my 12' Raddison canoe by running rope through the handles at each end and suspending it horizontally near the ceiling in the garage? Or will months of hanging like that be bad for it? It just seems like the best way to not take up limited floor space in the garage. Thanks in advance, mikeg

I've got a wide transom Raddison canoe that I added the lobster pot stabilizers to and I've taken out my 15 year old daughter and my 21 year old son out in and we've both stood at the same time. Being a 12' canoe, I can only take one out at a time with me. It works very well with one of them or even by myself. I have no trouble tossing it into the truck by myself. mikeg

Nice looking rig. How long does it take to set it up or take it down?

That's why I went with the canoe, I stiffen up if I sit in one position for too long. With the outriggers on I switch all day long from sitting to standing. I can also do stretches if I get tight. That was the solution that worked for me. YMMV mikeg

x2

I have a little transistor radio. I usually have it on but the volume is usually low enough that I can't hear it when I'm moving the boat from place to place. Keep in mind, I'm moving with an electric TM! mikeg

Jim Mac, Get a little bilge pump or flip it over. I keep mine in the garage but bought a hand powered bilge pump after some waves washed over the canoe. It's only happened once and it was only an inch or two of water but it was a pain none the less. I tested the pump with a 5 gallon bucket of water and it works surprisingly quick and did a good job of getting darn near all of the water. I love my square back canoe, I do offset the TM as far to the side on the transom as possible to make it a bit more comfortable when I twist around and I do put the battery in the front of the canoe. Being a 12' Raddisson, it's ony about 40# empty but it is only rated for 450#, 500 with gear. I'm 210#, the battery, motor and gear is probably another 100#, so I'd be pushing my luck with another person my size. It's fine with my wife, daughter or 150# son though. It's a piece of cake for 2 of us to launch from the back of my truck. It's not even bad just by myself but I have to take out more of the gear before moving it. mikeg

I use mine with 5# dumbbells that I had in the basement so my potential loss isn't too great. I also made sure that runs for them are as frictionless as possible to reduce wear on the cord. So far so good!

Harbor Freight has 24' leashes for $5.99. I've got 2 on my canoe, one for the bow and one for the stern. I've only had them on for a couple of months and am using them strictly freshwater so I don't know how long they'll last. But you're right, they work very well. mikeg

In Vermont our Department of Fish and Wildlife has a website that lists many public access locations on various bodies of waters throughout the state as well as the types of fish you might catch there. You might see if Georgia has something similiar. mikeg

I love fish! Like aquaholic, I don't like salmon either. Unfortunately, I'm the only one in my house who does like fish which is a limiting factor in how often I can eat it.

It works great. Plus I can take each outrigger off with the twist of a knob or take the whole outrigger/dashboard assembly off by 2 different knobs.

d**n! Almost didn't post mine after seeing Tate's but here's my lean, green fishing machine. It's a Raddison 12' wide transom canoe. It's good for me and 1 light person. With the outriggers we can both stand comfortably. I've got an old Min Kota 40# motor and a marine battery. It gets the job done. My 15 yr old daughter and I have had fun in it while she was up from NC for a few weeks. mikeg

Couldn't view the article, it said the web session had expired.

Thanks for the info, those were the sorts of answers I was looking for. I like to think that I've combined the ability to fish shallow water, stand, and moderate comfort with my canoe. It has the added bonus of fitting in the back of my truck and be launched just about anywhere. I do admire the bass boats though! I suspect that if I got a bass boat, I'd also wind up buying more gear to fill it up! Sam, as far as the pole, good information. I was fishing for perch with my 15 yr old daughter and we were using the light rods and bass were occaisionally hitting on our lures or worms and they'd often jump and spit the lure at us before we got them in the canoe. I was thinking it was because of the size of the hooks but it may also have been that we couldn't set them hard enough with the rods we were using. I may use your logic on my wife for a new rod!

So, why is a bass boat a bass boat? What is it that makes it specific to bass? Why isn't it just called a fishing boat? It seems that everything that makes it good for fishing for bass makes it good for fishing for most other fish, so why is it called a bass boat? I mean I've caught a number of species of fish from my canoe. I'd probably call it a fishing canoe, but not a bass canoe, or a perch canoe. On a related note, why are some poles said to be for a specific species of fish? I'm very much an amateur fisherman and I've just got a few inexpensive rod&reels combos. Ones UL, ones medium action and the 3rd is a lighweight closed spinning pole. Just wondering. mikeg

I have one for the bow and one for the stern of my canoe. I bungee them to the braces for my seat. I got the leashes cheap at Harbor Freight. mikeg

I've been using a couple of retractable 24' dog leashes with 5# weighs. They work well for my canoe. Didn't know about the 3 times the depth rule though but I generally don't fish in big waves. Good to know though. mikeg

You Guessed It!

I've done a couple of things to my canoe to make it more fishing freindly. I got an idea from another site to use retractable dog leashes for my anchors. I got 2 24' leashes, one for the front and one for the back. I've tested it out a couple of times and it works pretty well. It was $5.99 each for them and I had the 5# dumbells kicking around as well as the rope I used to attach them to the leashes. Today, since it was raining and about 40, I started on outriggers. The crosspiece is 5/4 hardwood that is held on by a couple of bolts with washers that grab the gunwhale. Those are adjustable flag pole holders that the pvc outriggers are in. I used 2.5' of pool noodle on each side. I haven't glued it up yet because I want to see if that's going to be enough noodle on each side. I've also heard of people using floats for lobster traps which is another option. I had the hardwood and the other pieces were about $30. mikeg

Thanks guys, I guess I was overthinking it. But the tip about storing the canoe out of the sun is a good one. I plan to keep it in the garage when not in use. Goose, I've seen some pictures of your canoe, it's inspirational. I figure I'll do a little at a time as I decide what I need. But how did you mount your outriggers? mikeg

Thanks HY, keeping the sun off the foam makes sense but I hadn't thought of it. I read reviews and opinions on the Radisson before buying it. The thin hull was mentioned. Some said it isn't a problem and others wouldn't touch one beause of that. I figure that where and how I fish it shouldn't be a problem. Again, thanks for the info. mikeg

Thanks Felix, I may be overthinking this but it's my 1st boat and I want to treat it right. Have you mounted rod holders, beverage holders, or anything else? If so, how did you do it? mikeg