Way2slow

I always recommend looking at the reserve minutes (RM) on the battery. That's typically based on a 25 amp draw, but some batteries will use a 20 amp draw so do a little homework for the battery you want and see how it's rated. Typical good, deep cycle batteries will have about 200 RM, Trojan has a 225. Now, since that RM is based on a fully charged battery and is until the battery can no longer produce power will want to subtract approximately 25% from that number. This is because it's harmful to a battery to fully discharge it and you should not take one to below a 25% charge. By then it's going to be so low it probably won't be very useful anyway. You can figure a 50# thrust TM is going to be pulling 20 -25 amps at a medium speed so the number you come up with after subtracting 25%, is probably pretty close to how much run time you can expect to get if you are only using it at medium speed or below. That number will be greatly reduced if you start running on max thrust trying to move from one point to another. So, no matter how you do math, it's going to be hard to stretch 150 minutes into eight hours unless a large part of that time is spent without the TM running. There are times you are going to be running at less than a medium speed and current draw will be less, so that adds time to your run time, but still don't think you are going to get that much of an increase. Digital TMs will help add to the runtime if kept off max, because they tend to pull less current at the same mid speed.

Take that outboard off the back and see how many times you can say that. Batteries have a very finite amount of power, based on the amount of use. Anyone that's having a 12V battery last all day long, is not using it a lot.

No, I'm suggesting if you are considering two batteries, you would get more run time out of two batteries in series for a 24V system that you would with two batteries in parallel for a 12V system. If you do very much moving around during an eight hour fishing trip, you will need two batteries. Some people like to use one and then swap it for the second when the first goes dead on a 12V motor. That is absolutely the worst, most inefficient way you can do it and will get the least run time of all, it places all the current draw on just one battery. As the current draw increases on a battery, the amp hour capacity of the battery decreases. Meaning, if the battery is advertised as 120 Ah, you put a 30 amp load on it, then it's only rated at maybe a 80Ah battery, not 120, (These numbers are just for examples not factual). The problem comes in the fact the batteries weigh approximately 65 pounds each, so hauling two of them back and fourth, in and out of the boat gets very labor intensive. Working out of a truck bed, a 14' jon is going to weigh close to 130 pounds, add another 130 pounds of battery, you are not going to be moving without taking everything out and in every time. That don't count for the TM weight, seats, cooler and gear. That's why when I was doing that fishing in south Texas with my son, who was also over 6' and 200 pounds, it wasn't long before I bought a 12' jon that only weighed about 80 pounds, one big battery and one digital 12V TM. However, we were only fishing a few hours

I've had to deal with an icy ramp one time. That convinced me I don't want to be near again. One winter while striper fishing, it started to rain and the rain quickly turned into sleet. The stripers were hammering everything we threw at them so we were not interest in quieting. When the boat had developed such a sheet of ice that it was dangerous to move around in, we decided, want to or not, we had better call it a day. Well, we had not thought about the fact that if ice was building the boat, it was also probably building on the ramp, that was probably at least a 15 degree incline. Even in a four wheel drive with positive traction front and rear axles and large tires, I still ended up using the winch. Pulling 3,200 pounds up hill on ice when it was wanting to slide backwards easier than going forward was not fun. As soon as the back tires came out of the water onto the ice, it would slide back.

If you are going with two batteries, it makes absolutely no since to go with two in parallel vs two in series. 1. 24V motor is about 25% more efficient that a 12V 2. The fact that a 24v only uses haft the current of a 12V to make the same power even adds to that. 3. For an all day trip, a digital motor is almost a must. Now, the draw backs to going 24V. Those batteries are heavy, and hauling one in and out of the boat gets old, double that and it's gets old twice as fast. With a 14' boat in the back of a pickup, you better plan on having a strong partner, that's going get old real quick also. Been there, done that out in Texas, wasn't long before I bought and old beat up 12', about half the weight of that 14'

Adding a jack plate is required if you want to tweak that last little bit of performance out of one, however, they also go hand in hand with a good SS prop. Doesn't make since to put a jack plate on it with an aluminum prop that's going to kill most anything the jack plate might gain. Plus, there is a little bit of math used to determine just how much jack plate. Usually you want to have about 1 1/4" from the bottom at the back of the pad to the front edge of the motor with the motor trimmed so the anti cav plate is level with the bottom of the boat for each foot of boat length. Also, if that's a fairly new boat, check with Ranger. They get pretty strict about how much if any setback you can add without voiding the warranty on the hull.

That should make you a nice radio. One thing though, a good antenna is critical to how far you are going to talk and listen. Doesn't do any good to talk 30 miles is you can only hear 5 miles. Kinda like buying a nice high performance bass boat and then putting a cheap aluminum prop on it. So, pay attention to what the DB gain is and what the wave pattern is. Different types of antennas have different signal lobes which affect the DB gain of the antenna. For instance, Yagi antenna's (those long things you see with all the little cross bars) are like a rifle shot and have tremendous gain, but only the direction they are pointed. Some omni directional antennas have patterns like a big dome, which is good if you are going to be talking to airplanes also and have almost no DB gain. By reshaping the signal to a more useful horizontal plane, they can get 6 or more DB gain, ground to ground antennas and still cover a 360 degree circle. 3 DB is equal to double the signal power which can be huge when you are trying to push the limits of how far you can talk/receive. The higher in the air the more distance it will cover also. They say line of sight, which is somewhat true but you do get some bending of the signal from the earth. Should mention, handhelds are limited to 5 watt max, to keep from cooking your brain, so stick to one that size if you are looking at one of those also. The smaller wattage are just for closer range use. One other critical thing I failed to mention. When installing the antenna, it's critical to check or have checked the Standing Wave Ration (SWR/VSWR). Why? That is the amount of signal that's basically trapped inside the coax that's wasted power and too high can damage the radio. A perfect ratio is 1:1 and about the max you want to see is 2:1 measured in the center of the frequency band of the radio. As the frequency changes the length of the signal changes and you want the null to be right at the tip of the antenna. This can be tuned by various ways. The overall goal is to change the length of the antenna so it matches the length of the signal. Sometimes the base loaded antenna my have a tunable capacitor in the base. Some require shortening the coax in small increments until you hit the null point. Sometimes you will see radios have a VSWR switch that you can check it from the signal strength meter on the radio, if not, you have to connect a meter inline. Kind of a broad description but the key is to Check The SWR. I mentioned base loaded antenna's. Antennas have to be a precise length for the signal they are designed for. That can be one solid length of wire which makes them very long. They can coil a piece of wire around a rod to get make the physical length shorter but still have the same signal length. For really short antenna's they will make a coil, usually at the base, but sometimes in the center with a short element coming out of it to shorten the antennas physical length. Hand held radio antennas are usually nothing but one big coil of wire in a short physical length of housing. OK, that should take care of Radio 101.

Nine year old water should be replaced first thing.

The main question on that deal is how much you can do yourself. Most likely it will need a load of work. Rat/mouse damage could be significant, and wiring eat up, they luv to chew wiring. Gauges and switch problems from sitting un used cause the to want to oxidize over and gauges stick and not move. If left with fuel in the tank, the tank will have to come out and see if it can be cleaned and may need to be replaced. See if steering works freely, the cables with sometimes get stuck and need replaced Engine wiring will need to be checked for drying and cracking. Most fuel lines will probably have gotten hard a brittle, water pump will definitely need to be replaced, carbs and fuel pump will probably need to be rebuilt. Without a doubt, it's going to need 2 (3 if 24V tm) batteries so that's a few hundred right there. It could be you may get away with just the water pump, and fuel system, but a qualified mechanic will need to make that call. You can easily get a mega repair bill or you might can come out with less that $1,000, if you have to pay a shop to get it back to a usable condition. Now, if he's going to pay for everything it needs to get back in good condition, that might be an OK deal, but I would still want a second set of eyes to make sure nothing was (over looked). If he just wants to negotiate it as is after he gets it back and not do everything, bad deal.

I would luv to have the Colt Delta Elite but there were none available when I bought mine. Because of a special deal going for military at the time and getting it through the BX, I was able to get my Glock 20 (I have rather large hands) for $405 out the door (a few year ago) so that helped seal the deal on my getting the Glock. I luv the 1911 based guns, best looking handgun made, but don't own one. I'm not much of a pistol shooter and only have a couple. Several years ago, my wife decided we needed handguns (shocked me) so I bought my 10mm and her a baby Glock in 40S&W I bought a 40S&W barrel for mine for practice. The 10mm gave the arthritis in my hand a fit. With lighter 13# spring and light 130gr 40S&W loads, it didn't bother my hand and I didn't have to look for brass, it just pilled them up at my feet. Since I had never done much pistol shooting, it took at least 2,000 - 3,000 rounds for me to get competent with it. However now, you don't want me shooting at you with a rifle, at any range, you will end up in a place you probably don't want to be. Clayton86, I think you are going to find powder and primers next to impossible to get. While I'm in pretty good shape for most anything that could come along, I have quite a major amount of my just shooting for fun. I used to shoot several thousand rounds are year between pistol and rifle, I've only shot about 500 rounds in the past six months, and most of that was just working up loads for a 6.5 Creedmoor I built. I have been on couple suppliers notify list for several different primers and powders for over seven months and I have only be notified once on Mag Rifle Primes and then they limited to 1,000. I don't own or shoot neither of yours but they are the two most popular, so I have serious doubts about anything being available for them. And don't plan on things getting any better for quite a while.

Wow, I pay $30 for a carry permit that's good for five years. All I pay when I buy a gun is the price of the gun and state sales tax. Now, if you buy one that has to be shipped, you have to pay what ever the FFL holder wants to rip you off for. Which I'm lucky with that. There is a guy near me that does them just to p**s others off for $5. Most want $35 or more but some will do it for military ID for just $20, how nice of them.

Here, if you have a carry permit, they don't have to do a background check, and we don't have one of those stupid cooling off laws where you have to wait a certain time before you can take possession of a gun. Here, you fill out the two page form, give em the money and go out the door with it. Some places have it where you have to wait as much as a week after doing the paper work before you can take possession.

I've never cared for stakes because they have to be somewhat close in length to what you need to anchor. In one spot you might be in two or three foot of water, another you might be in eight foot. If you keep a long enough stake to cover both, it can be hard getting that long pole knocked in the ground in shallow water. In GA, we have this stuff called RED CLAY, and even in the bottom of a pond it can be hard enough you are not going to push a rod very deep in the ground.

Yea, you can find a few 40S&W bullets here and there, if you are willing to pay the stupid prices some of them want, which with the 10mm, I'm not sure there is much of anything specific to it. Now, Starline has their 10mm Mag brass in stock but no 10mm Auto. If you want to spend the time and effort to trim down the Mag brass to Auto length, you should be able to get all you want. If you like doing hot loads, like my 180gr @1,350FPS, the mag brass might suit you better. You can find a few sources for plated bullets but not of that does you any good if you don't have plenty of powder and primers because I don't thing you will find either of those. Especially with the threat of making powder a controlled substances. I have four pounds of Blue Dot and have been trying to order another four ponds for seven months.

For me, I have different ones for different situations. The ones I use most are 13# mushrooms. Drop one, move a distance in the direction I want the boat to be pointed, drop the other and then pull back toward the first until the boat is secure with both anchor ropes out at an angle. There are times I will just use sash weights when I'm not concerned with the boat moving a little. Sometimes I will use a sash weight as a drag, similar to a wind sock. Then I have a couple of those hook type with the rope release on them. I have not found no one anchor that works in all situations. The last thing I want to do is get positioned just right on a bream bed and have the boat start moving around on me.

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I've always used carpeted PT 2x4's for two reason. First, that's usually what's on the trailer when I get it and if good, I don't see the need in spending money on fixing what ain't broke. If they need replacing, I've never had the desire to spend hundreds of dollars when $30 will do just fine. Years back I had a customer that made those synthetic wear guides they used on John Deere combines and other pieces of farm equipment. It's about the same material as that white stuff you can buy in strips to put on top of your bunks. He gave me enough to cover the bunks on my Javelin. After a few trips to the lake, I took them back off. Yes, it made the boat slide on and off the trailer a lot easier, but it made it too easy. The ramp is a little steep and if you didn't leave the winch strap connected, you would launch the boat right onto the ramp and that became more of an aggravation than a help.

They are extremely dangerous and can cause the boat to stand on end and flip over backwards. I would suggest you just send it to me and let me dispose of it for you?. However, if you insist on using one, especially on a river boat, shallow water boat, tunnel hull boat or hi-performance bass boat. You will wonder why you didn't do it a long time ago.

NO, not in the 3.0L motors. The 200 and the 225 are the same motors, just different carbs and intakes. The 250/225HO has larger exhaust ports and smaller relief holes, but then everything else is the same as the 225. When you get to the 200-250, 3.3L motors, I think the only major difference in those is the ECM . I haven't messed with the factory stock motors so I wouldn't bet the farm on that. Understand, I'm not an outboard mechanic and never have been. I have worked on them most of my life but it has always been my stuff. For many years, I bought boats in need of repair for pennies on the dollar, fixed them and sold them for supplemental income, but other than for a few close friends I didn't work on boat or motors for other people. Same with cars, I've raced and built cars all my life. There's nothing about one I can't do. I do my own paint and body work, my own upholstery, engines, automatic transmissions and anything else about one. Other than a few warranty failures, I've never had anyone to fix anything of mine, and I mean "anything". Refrigeration, construction, appliances, electronics (I have an engineering degree in electronics) and the list goes on. You name it, I probably do it or have done it but it's normally all my own personal stuff. Sometimes, I will do something for someone else as a favor when I think they really need the help, but that is strictly to help them out, and not for payment. I have always said, someone owning you a favor is much more valuable than money. I can't sit around do nothing and watch very little TV. I'm always picking up something new that strikes my interest and pretty much go at it until I master it. Then it get's put aside for something else. Little over a year ago, I saw a guy making a flute from PVC pipe, thought that would be something neat for the grandkids for less than a dollar apiece. Now I'm making professional quality Native American Style Flutes and two professional native American flute players are playing a flute I gave them. Just one of those things that caught my interest and I don't make them to sell, but have given a number of them away. Probably won't be long before those go on the back burner for something else.

Actually, if possible, I would want one a little larger if fishing big water. I have been in some hairy situations on large inland lakes that were only a couple miles wide in a 20' bass boat when a sudden afternoon thunder storm popped up. The great lakes have the potential to make those inland lakes look like farm ponds.

Tried one at 300dpi and it was worse. For some reason, the pages in the manual don't scan that well. Actually it's in the conversion. If I scan it as a PDF it looks fine, but when it converts to JPG, it loose a lot of clarity. If these prove to be useless, I can email you a PDF copy that looks fine. Also, some of the stuff I referred to is actually the carbureted motor and this one is a little different, so you will probably need to refer to the manual. Most of the my work is one the carbureted, my ficht is the only one of these I've messed with and that has been years ago. To answer you question about knowing them. It's just I've done so much work on them building hot rod motors. I used to take a 200hp 3.0 motor and build it to over 300hp with monster torque. The 3.3 block will give around 450hp. Haven't done much in several years now because of surgery I had to have on my hands from doing so much and the die grinder vibrating, over time damaged my hands and the arthritis got the best of them. Now, I can't even use a bait caster reel because I can't get my thumb up high enough to press the release.

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If it's the way it's supposed to be. There is a small steel post sticking up that's fastened to the linkage at the cam. Then there is a roller that slides on that post and held by a small o-ring at the top. The roller is made in two layers. There is a small black section about a 1/4" in diameter and that has clear layer over it that makes it about 3/8" in diameter. Over time the outer layer wears away and comes off, leaving nothing but the black. That's not an expensive it and needs to be replaced and not jerry rigged. If the diameter is off, it throws the whole setup off. You will probably want to get the small o-ring also, they dry and brake. It's been a few years since I've touched mine so if I'm off on my description and you are not understanding. I can dig out my factory service manual and see what it shows.

The first thing you have to do is make sure all six throttle bodies are fully closed, and they all start to open at the same time. There is a screw on the linkage side of each one the lets the the butterflies be adjusted independently if needed. This adjustment is critical to the way the motor will idle and run, so take your time and don't mind doing it several times until it's as near perfect as you can get it. The next step is to adjust the lever the throttle cable connects to. You will see an arrow on it. Adjust the stop screw that goes to the block until the arrows line up there. NEVER use that stop to adjust the idle. It's easier if you have the throttle cable off of it. Once you get the throttle bodies and that lever set, then you set your NEW post (roller). you adjust it so as you advance the arm on the side, that roller makes contact with the cam right on the arrow. NOW, that part is set and should never be touched. The timing controls the idle speed and that is set by that rod going from that cam to back under the flywheel. Wide open timing is adjusted by a stop on the other side under the flywheel.

Yes, and you can't do that! If you look on top of that cam that pushing against the post you have that crap on, you will see a small arrow. That roller/post is supposed to make contact with that cam precisely at that arrow as the throttle advances, but there are some points that must align also, all at the same time.