@reelChris

Great suggestion! I never really thought about backing material and I might be able to kill two birds with one stone assuming that this 3/4 x 12" x 12" hdpe sheet when cut in half could do the same job as This hdpe transducer board. Thoughts?

Has anyone put a 93sv on the Ram-recommended 115-D ball mount? The thing is huge!! What on a plastic console is strong enough to hold the combined weight of the graph and mount?

I had to look those up. For anyone else who's baffled - "The Steer Stop prevents outboards equipped with hydraulic steering from 'wandering' when trailering. Units clip onto hydraulic steering rams on either side of outboard to keep engine straight and prevent damage to motor supports."

If you're talking about adding gas springs to hatches that don't have any, you're going to need to do some measuring to get the right spring length, stroke length and spring strength. You'll also need to closely examine the type of mounts they come with and the shape and style of your hatches. Even after all of that, you'll probably have to do some trial and error to find the right mounting locations. A gas spring calculator like this one will help tremendously in narrowing down the right springs. I added one to an aluminum hatch and found that a single 10lb spring was enough to open the hatch and hold it open:

The lower your budget, the more time and energy you'll have to spend looking. But, as long as you are open to basically anything that floats, you'll eventually find something that gets you on the water. There are plenty of old kayaks and small plastic or aluminum rowboats out there for a couple of hundred dollars. Obviously, you'll have better luck as it gets closer to spring, but there's probably something out there now. Start asking around and searching on facebook marketplace, Craigslist, let go and similar sites.

Is there any reason to use an in-line fuse when direct connecting to a battery?

I second Wrangler's, but I prefer their synthetic pants. They're comfortable, dry quickly and Walmart has them for $22/pair. Just remember to zip the phone pocket. See my post in the embarassing boating stories for the full story.

I was skipping docks during a tournament and a bad hop wrapped my line around a cable coming out of a pontoon boat's engine. I trolled closer but couldn't untangle it reaching from my front deck. I didn't want to cut my line and potentially foul the other boat's prop, so I stepped off my boat onto the pontoon and freed the worm. I turned around to discovered that my boat had floated out of reach. I didn't think it was that big a deal because the water was 80 degrees and only a foot deep. I took off my shoes and socks and threw them into my boat, then hiked up my pants and jumped into the water. I climbed aboard and started moving to the next dock until I realized that my phone was missing. When I jumped into the water, the phone flew out of my open cargo pocket and into the water. I spent several minutes looking for it until I found it with my feet. I dried it off and, to my surprise, it continued to work until weigh in, when the screen suddenly and permanently stopped accepting input.

I think it's impossible to avoid getting cold hands eventually, with or without gloves. However, if you keep hand warmers in your pockets, you can at least warm them back up when they get too cold. Some people like the chemical packs, but I think the fuel burning warmers are much better. You can get a pair for $30. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013HLGTL2/ref=dp_iou_view_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1 While they're lit they smell a bit like burning butane, but the fish won't notice.

I'm going to play devil's advocate and say green pumpkin.

My recommendation is pick your favorite store with black Friday deals - dick's, tw, bass pro, walmart, etc and find a combo in your price range. Ugly stick, berkeley, Abu garcia, 13 fishing, lew's and bass pro and others all have usable stuff starting at about $35. Any cheaper than that and you'll probably end up with junk.

I think it's always better to avoid putting holes in a hull, especially in a plastic boat that will flex and eventually breach any waterproofing you apply to rivets. I would second the suggestion to try an adhesive keel guard. If those don't work for the shape of the boat, then I would look at using 3M extreme tape and marine goop to adhere protective materials to the boat. So long as you are not working against gravity, marine goop will stick to polyethylene.

Various sellers on Ali Express are offering name brand (Penn, Shimano, Daiwa) reels. How likely is it that they are authentic and not counterfeit products?

I can't really tell from the video, but I assume you posted it because you installed the planned transom sleeve and larger motor. While the transom may not flex any more, you can't fight physics. I'm not an engineer, but I think that all you have accomplished is a shift of the flex point to the next weakest structure, which is probably the plastic deck.

Youtube to the rescue: Johnson 4hp impeller and lower unit oil change

If you're set on a plastic boat - the sun dolphin pro 120 is rated up to 10hp. https://sundolphin.com/pro-120/

Your work should start off the lake. Find lake link or navionics depth charts for the lake you're planning on fishing and compare them with google maps aerial views. Print out the maps as big as you can and mark points, humps, drop offs, docks, flats, etc. where fish should be in the fall. Then, do some googling to see if there are any online discussions you about popular spots and mark those as well. Once you get on the actual lake, you have two choices. If there's no wind, you can try shutting off the big motor and drifting towards decent spots, fan casting on the way there and once you get there. Use high percentage baits that target the whole water column - i.e. a topwater lure, something mid range like a chatter bait or crank bait, then bottom contact like jigs. If you find fish, target them until they stop biting. If not, move, and repeat. If there is wind, I'd do the same thing, except anchor so that the current carries you towards the area you want to hit.

Here's a good summary of the issues involved with aftermarket navigation lights Lone star outdoor news on unapproved lights

I'm interested in trying to fish some old lures. My guess is that they work almost as well as modern ones and that always chasing the next big bait is mostly a waste of time.

In my quest to prevent hatch doors from slamming on my hands, I ended up getting these 45N/10lb 9 11/16" gas struts from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01H18I46K/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Four struts for $17 wasn't bad, and the directions that came with them aren't terrible. However, the measurements they provided for mounting locations required drilling through the top of the hatch and I didn't want to do that. I wanted to utilize the center support. So, I experimented with the mounting location for a while before I found the right one. I only installed one strut because 10lb was the least powerful struts I could find and that's enough to open the hatch. I don't think that the torsion on the hinge will bend it, and I'm afraid two 10lb struts would pop the hatch open in rough water since the only thing that holds them shut is the friction produced by the carpet on the edges of the hatch. Here's a video of the operation: https://streamable.com/sltcww

If it's a mercury 110, sometimes the giant screw on the top of the pull starter mechanism tightens with normal operation. Try backing it out 1/4 to 1/2 a turn and see if that loosens the tension.

Long ago I had a malfunctioning spinning reel whose bail would sometimes snap closed mid cast. Well, it happened as I was casting past my small boat partner one day and when I looked up, I noticed my square bill hanging from his nose. Thankfully, it didn't sink to the barb and was fairly easy to remove, but it did bleed a lot.

I guess the tournaments I fish are too small and friendly to feel any pressure. To me, they're just a reason to spend the day out on the lake. If I place, great, if not, who cares? Try again next week.

Has anyone installed gas springs to hold the hatch doors open? I'm curious on how to determine mounting location.