haggard

I'm a noob pushing 50 years old and launch/load a 16' and 14' solo without issues. Not sure you need a boat specific trailer, but a bunk style trailer should work well. Yes a rope and a trailer mounted winch is really all you need. For launch, keep the winch locked to the bow and back the van down the ramp until the boat just starts to float. Unhook winch, attach dock line and tie the boat off at the dock. Note how far the trailer is under water to make it easier for loading - you'll want to back down to the same depth. For loading, pull the boat (w/rope) onto the bunk getting it as lined up as possible, winch it up and lock it in. Depending on wind and current, may need to position the stern so that by the time you get into the the van to pull up, the boat has drifted and is centered on the trailer. Drive it out of the water slowly, water is heavy, let it drain off, and don't forget to get back out and strap down the stern. Practicing launch/load on a weekday may be less pressure than on a busy weekend.

Do you have an inline fuse or circuit breaker between the TM and the battery? Preferably as close to the battery as possible. This is a must have, not optional. Alternative: fire. If inline fuse clears or circuit breaker flips, there may be a short upstream towards (or in) the TM.

Hi - I had a 2016 Tracker 1448MVX Grizzly and ran into similar issues (sluggish). I found it sits somewhere between a short and long shaft and I think either one is okay but neither one is ideal. The short 15 hp I had on it seemed to churn a lot of air, and the long (after conversion) sat a little low, just as you said. I bought the 1448 about 8 months ago and built it up over the winter, taking most of the parts off my old boat (Haggard), including the 1976 Evinrude 15 hp 2-stroke, a short shaft motor. Haggard is a ~1966 Starcraft Jupiter riveted aluminum deep V and has a low transom, and got 15 mph max with that motor. It felt much lighter than the Tracker. The Tracker feels way more solid and has a higher transom and the cavitation plate sat almost flush with the bottom of the boat, maybe a tad higher, but got only 8 mph top speed with the same motor. I thought the problem might be I need a long shaft, so I converted the short to long (additional 5 inches). Literally no difference in top speed, even after adjusting the trim. I concluded either short or long shaft is fine, but just needed more than 15 hp for the boat. That tracker has nice thick gauge aluminum and seems a little heavy on the back. I got hit taking the boat to camp several weeks ago so boat and motor are totaled so never figured out what the magic solution was. The boat is rated at 25 hp max. Have you measured your top speed? What other equipment (weight) are you loading the boat with? You've got a great boat... I loved that 1448. Hope you can land in a good spot with the motor.

Third time's a charm, apparently! Congrats, and I wish you the bassed of luck in the BBWC

Nothing to do with how well you can swim, and all to do with how it keeps you on the surface when you're unconscious, fatigued or medically incapacitated. Always on. Last Saturday early evening on the local lake I'm yak fishing just a short ways off shore and a ski boat passed behind me, not even going that fast. Couple minutes later I hear a churning sound coming at me from behind, swore it was another boat slowly overtaking, so I prepared to give it some room. I turned around and see a massive wake bubbling, churning and spilling over itself rolling towards the stern, with white caps. Never seen anything like this on the lake. Fishing line was still in the water, left it there and grabbed the paddle, thought I might get swamped, but managed to ride out the waves. If the PFD wasn't on, there was clearly no time to break it out and put it on. Knowing I already had it on allowed me to focus on managing the waves. It was also a reminder that on a pedal drive yak, have the paddle ready to quickly deploy - not broken down into 2 pieces that you have to put together when you need it. Paddle is a safety device that you can use to make quick turns and use as outriggers for stability.

More important than catching fish. This is what lets you keep catching fish.

Lure: Texas rigged or wacky rigged 4 inch soft plastic worm Line: 100 yards of 10 lb test mono Trilene XL (30 size reel may take more, fine, load it up) Simple, relatively cheap, effective.

As far as I know Tracker still makes the 1448MVX. I had a 2016 (it just got hit....). All aluminim, all welded. It had a 48 x 53 inch "tub" with built-in very sturdy casting deck, front and rear pedestal seat mounts, and rated to 25 hp. I added seats and a console in the tub, bimini top, trolling motor, etc. it worked out great. Nice platform for building it up the way you want.

Tender vs charger - I figured a small motorcycle "battery tender" would be a good way to keep a battery charged and topped off, and on a previous RV/marine battery I used that tiny tender to charge over the off-season. Ended up replacing that battery. My local shop told me there's a difference: Charger is for charging, and tender is for maintaining a small "float" charge after the battery is charged (such as leaving it connected to tender while storing it on the off season). Woman who runs the shop seems to know her stuff, as comfortable with sales and advice as she is jumping to the work bench with the soldering iron. I'm still not sure what's right, but this season I switched to charging with dedicated ("smart") charger immediately after an outing, and plan to use the tender after a full charge when the battery is stored for the off season. From what I understand, the so called "battery tender" is not intended to be a charger; it's for maintaining a charge, not for actual charging. There may also be some confusion between a brand name ("Battery Tender") vs. function ("a battery tender"). I keep hearing batteries don't like to sit discharged, as they accumulate sulfate somethingorothers, so despite your being worn out after a day on the boat, at least try to throw them on the smart charger as soon as you can. For not-maintenance-free batteries, pop the caps off and check the water level, and add distilled water as needed - over-charging can cook off the water if your charger isn't "smart". Use caution as the stuff is corrosive and explosive.

For my Hook 4 finder on the yak I use a 9Ah AGM sealed, model DURA12-9F2. Measures 6 x 2.5 x 3.5 inches. Charger is a wall wart style with built-in somethingorother that doesn't overcharge it - it's a Werker WK12V500. No complaints at all about this setup, been using it since May. I've never run out of juice even when on the yak for 8 hours.

As far as recreational fishing goes, if I know they were on the water before I was, I just yield and leapfrog around them, like passing on a dock if you see the owners on site. When in question, just engage in conversation. Tournament fishing is probably different, much more competitive, I have no experience there so can't advise. Last month or so I was fishing from the yak on the home lake and a tournament was going on (4 or 5 bass boats) and I ended up in the vicinity of 2 of their boats. I was fishing ahead of them but they were closing in faster than I was moving; I gave them their space and I ended up moving on. I think we all understood each other and why we were there, without even saying a word, no problems.

For the first few months I thought the fishing was the best part. After 10 or 11 months, I'm reminded the people you meet while fishing are the best part. Thank you @jbmaine and the forum.

Funny part to this story... so when I was a kid my Dad (who some might call obsessive/compulsive) set each of us kids up with a tool box. Color coded, mine was yellow; two sisters had red and blue. Tools were also color coded. Still using those tools 35+ years later. Use them constantly. Today before heading to camp I reached for the yellow wrench set (Dad spray painted them yellow) to unbolt the basement door to put the kayak away before loading up the jon boat, and clearly recall thinking I can't believe I still haven't lost these over the years. Threw them in the boat to head to camp. A couple hours later, when the crash happened, this 5-pc wrench set was scattered in the roadway and hidden in grassy ditches. Literally one by one, found each of the 5 wrenches, and after some searching, the spring clip that held them together. I can't even believe 1) this is what I thought was important at the time and 2) all pieces were recovered, ready for more use. Can't wait to tell Dad the story

Sounds like a true friend and that's a tough loss. Savor those memories of you and him fishing on your boat. Remember he's at peace now, he's not in pain, no suffering, all at peace.

Supposedly he is insured - let's hope so. I'll find out more next week.

Got out on a beautiful local pond this morning in the kayak, caught a couple largemouth. Two fish for me is a good day! Heading up to camp to get the Tracker jon on the lake tomorrow, car coming at me head on entirely in my lane put and end to that. Driver in oncoming car for whatever reason did not have eyes on the road (dozed off?). I swerved into the other lane but it was too late. Bought the jon new six months ago and built it up over the winter; it was a blast while it lasted but trailer is gone, not sure about the boat (all welded aluminum... cracked welds?) - truck did surprisingly well (rim gone, bumper and sheet metal. Changed the wheel and drove it home). FD guy says "there's your motor" - the awesome strong-running little 1976 Evinrude 15hp 2 stroke broke off, took out a VFW sign post en route, and landed in a ditch on the side of the road. I still haven't figured out how this guy he me in like three different places at the same time Both drivers ok, thankfully. A few weeks ago less than a mile from that spot four people died due to improper passing. We'll be using the kayak for the rest of the season ^ 1976 Evinrude 15hp 2-stroke flew into a ditch, took out a sign post ^ glad the mushroom anchor brought the truck to a stop

YUM Dinger. It caught my first bass. It worked so I haven't changed it. I don't doubt Senkos are equally good.

Great fish young man! And what a great photo. I'm sure you'll remember that one

I run a 14' jon (guessing 1,000 lb rigged and loaded) with a 55 lb trolling motor using a single Group 27 RV/Marine battery. It pulls the boat along just great. Never ran it at more than speed 5 out of 10, it lasts an 8 hour fishing day (note: not all on the TM... I use a gas motor to get across the lake), never had it run out of power. For a jon, I like the simplicity and weight savings of a single battery, 12 V system. I recommend "digital control" version instead of conventional non digital, supposedly has better power management. 36" shaft does fine on my jon (mounting surface is less than a foot above the water line). True it's nice to have the power or increased running time but if you start getting too heavy, the weight can work against you and your motor. Keep the battery charged / topped off when done - they don't like to sit drained.

"One man's trash is another man's treasure"

Assuming you're looking at the exact same boat in 10 vs 12, the main difference will be the 10 may be slightly more nimble/agile but will require more input from you, while the 12 will be slightly faster and more controllable (better tracking). While yes overall length is a factor when thinking about toting the boat in the pickup bed, there are factors (IMHO) more important than length: Sit on top vs. Sit in; pedal drive vs paddle; stability; weight of boat; weight capacity; how much fishing you intend to do. Length is an obvious and easy measure for yaks, but like megapixels in digital cameras, there are measures that make a bigger practical difference. Good place to start is let us know what you are likely to do with this yak. Not what you want to do, but what you are actually likely to do, based on your location, your abilities and the species in your most often fished areas. Let that dictate your yak choice.

Nothing wrong with having fun on the lake but there's a right time and place... take it to the track... or deep open water and play it safe

Reading about other people's 70-fish days, I just can't even imagine... you all are catching monsters. Took about 8 hours in grueling heat on the home lake to land six fish. Best of which is here, a largemouth on a Texas rigged 5-in black/blue-flake worm fishing a dropoff at a tiny island. Worth it? Totally!

Mornings, from just before sunrise to a little after. And I'm not even much of a morning person. There's something great about knowing most everyone else is still asleep, and there's a quiet and still feeling on the water that just isn't the same in the evening. It seems to amplify the sounds of nature and water. Evenings are great too - an entirely different flavor - but I prefer mornings. I'll take that all day

If breakers are tripping, they are trying to tell you something, sending you a warning sign. Plugging it back in, even to diagnose the problem, is inviting fire, injury or death. The problem sounds frustrating for sure, but given that you already know there's a power problem, the worst thing you can do is to apply power. Do you have an ohm meter? You might try removing/unplugging as many components from the system as you can do easy (batteries, charger, etc) and ohm'ing out different segments trying to find where the short is.