stfreed

The way my garage and rear patio are configured and due to narrow garage door and wide ranger beam, I pull my boat into the garage tongue first and use a 12V ATV winch with a remote that I got at Harbor freight for $59. That way I can pull it in the garage while "steering" the tongue manually to clear the garage. I have a 2" ball welded onto a piece of steel shackled to the winch cable, so I just hitch up the cable and pull her into the garage.

The Ranger Console is better too because it is separated from the gunnel which allows you to slide the rods back and gives the rod tips a place to lay and this frees up a lot of front deck space. I really like the new RT198 from the news release photos. :-)

Check your bilge pump while launching. If I launch my boat on a steep ramp water gets up over the back bilge pump outlets for a few seconds and will put a small amount of water into my bilge area. Easiest way to check is to be on the back deck with the hatch open as some one dumps you in. If you see nothing come backflushing out of your bilge pumps then my next test would be to fill the bilge with a garden hose while the boat is sitting on the trailer in the driveway. If you have a cracked pump housing or bad hose you will be able to see water dripping from the boat and can back track it from there. Also one other word of advise... especially if leaving a boat docked overnight. Add an Automatic bilge pump. I added one mainly for added piece of mind on Erie. A day in big waves can wash a lot of water overboard that you may not realize until it is too late. Also kicks on during a big rain.

Maybe it is luck maybe the name brand oil is hype. :-) I know lots of Etec guys in my area that have had blown engines while running the Evinrude brand oil. 650 hours is proof to me that Pennzoil makes a good product. In fact there are only so many oil producers and they re-brand the bottles and sell them under several brand names. In the end each person can spend their money however they want. I love the guys that spend $40 for oil then go to speedway and fill the tank with ethanol laden gasoline to save a few pennies on gas.

My Ranger came with some Lucas Slick Mist wax. I love the smell and the shine.

No need to buy $40 Mercury two stroke oil !!! I have been running Mercury Pro XS motors since 2011 on Pennzoil XLF oil from Wally World for $17 a gallon. Put over 420 hours on my 2011 175 Pro XS then traded it off for my current 2014 225 Pro XS and I have 250+ hours on it now in two and half seasons. Neither motor has ever been to the dealer for work, other than a small piece of a wooden twig that got lodged in my 225 thermostat causing the horn to beep due to uneven head temperature at extended idle speed. I used 15 gallons last year and this year so far I am on my 10th gallon and still have four months of fishing to go. So if you do the math 15 gallons of oil per year at $40 is $600. I spend $255 per year for Pennzoil XLF.

Awesome video. Thanks

I recommend Goodyear Marathon radial ST. I blew 3 Carlisles in a year on my RV and finally Carlisle settled my claim. Used that claim money to buy all new Goodyear Marathons and have never had another issue in 10 years. Run them on my RV and Utility trailer and will be switching the Ranger to them next year.

The new Z21 I looked at a couple months ago sat on a box steel framed trailer.

No where did I say "every nitro will fall apart in 20 years". Heck I saw a Chevette the other day. Maintain it and it will last longer than most. Not everyone keeps their equipment in top notch. I am glad your friend's 97 is still on the water. Count the number of 1990 era Rangers on the water vs 1990 era Nitro's. Let me know how that stat comes out. I was simply giving this guy some advise on buying a life long keeper boat. My son just bought a Nitro. It was a 2003 and we spent several days repairing it and fixing things to make the trailer road worthy due to internal rust. It will be a good boat for him for the next few years until he is ready to upgrade. But a life long keeper boat it is not.

Beware of Nitro for a Life Long boat they are cheaper than a Ranger for a reason.... Trailers are made of cheap box steel that rusts from the inside out. The Pro's only use their Nitro's for one season so they do not have to worry about trailer rot or transom issues 5-10 years down the road. Ranger trailers are made from C channel and get painted on all sides. I would set a budget and look for a used Ranger, Phoenix, or Legend. I settled on the Z119c series (cheaper line) of Ranger. Did not need all the bells and whistles of the 519 series. Bit the bullet on a new Ranger because I too am planning on this being my lifer boat and I wanted the lifetime hull warranty.

I disagree. TCW3 2 cycle oil is TCW3 oil. I use Pennzoil XLF 2 cycle oil from Walmart. It is cheap and you can pick it up anywhere in the country. Used it in my 2011 Mercury Proxs 175 HP for four years putting over 450 hours on that motor with no issue when I traded it in for my new Ranger in 2014 with Mercury 225 Pro xs. Used up the two gallons of Merc oil they gave me with the boat then switched to Pennzoil XLF. Two years 250 hours later and 22 gallons of Pennzoil have ran through my Mercury with no issues and at $18 per gallon I have saved well over $350 on oil in two years.

They will absolutely affect top end. I have one Talon 8' three stage and love it but won't get a second due to the top end loss! About 3 mph. It is nearly like having another person on board. 71 lbs with Shortest Talon they make and bracket. And keep in mind you subtract about a foot for the depth it will hold your boat in. So 10' pole = 9' real world depth it will hold you in. 8' pole = 7' hold

What do you mean when you say "fill engine with propylene glycol"? Just curious? I have heard of inboard boat doing this in the engine block but Outboards are designed to self drain so I am wondering what you are filling. Thanks

Fill your tank all the way up with ethanol free gas before storage and you will be fine. The less head space in the tank, the less the tank breathes each day as the temps fluctuate, thus the less moisture laden air that gets in the tank. Stored mine for years this way never had an issue. However my boat is really only not used less than three months : part of December, January, and February.

Getting on plane is when your boat breaks over and pops up on the pad. This is where it is no longer plowing through the water and only a small amount of the hull is in the water so less drag and more speed and better efficiency.

:-) Dwight knows ! Have not seen his red aluminum can out on the lake yet this year.

Now is the best time!

I have an Atlas 8" and frankly mine runs great all the way down so I rarely raise it under way. Maybe an inch if I am light and in a "race". I use mine to jack up and go shallow, and occasionally jump up on plane in shallow water then jack it down as it gets up on plane.

may be normal wear. Depends on when the last time you changed the lower unit oil. If you do it twice a year then yes that is too much wear. If you have not changed it in a couple of years than that may be normal. I would change it again in a month or so and see if the metal shavings are back. This could indicate you have problems on the horizon.

I am loving the Mitchell 308 pro models.

Yep they are in and out!

Did not want the 12' sticking up to limit it going under low bridges and into the garage, didn't want to install the tilt bracket and prop needed, and most importantly didn't want to have it in the way of the rear angler, which a lot of times is myself when my son is running the front of the boat. Now that I have spent several weeks fishing Guntersville, Chickamauga and Lake Murray I must say I am SO GLAD I waited for and went with the new short 8 foot Talon.

Was up there April 21-24. Caught 152 Smallies that weekend and 35 of those were in the bay when the wind whipped up. Jerkbaits, Jerkbaits, Jerkbaits. :-) 2 over 5 pounds and 10 over 4 pounds. This is the earliest I have been up and due to the mild winter, water temps are up early. Main lake was 46-49 f and the bay was in the mid 50's!!!

Awesome ! Congrats