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From the names you mentioned, I assume you looking at aluminum boats...good choice in my opinion !! Aluminum boats have very little wood in there structure, mostly in the transom and newer boats have all aluminum transoms. Most have some type of acess to that transom wood, might not be easy to reach or see, but you need to know that wood is solid or you will need to replace it. If it needs replaced, not a big deal if your handy. Far easier than a glass boat !! The decking, carpet etc are easily replaced if needed but be sure your offer reflects that extra work if not already in the asking price. Crawl around under the boat and look for damaged rivets, or cracks if a welded hull. A couple bad rivets is no big deal, nunerous cracks can spell trouble !! Stand back and look at the bottom and see if the cross ribs are standing proud of the hull, if the ribs are pronounced from the hull where it rides in the water, then the hull was abused and pounded in rough water...walk away. Look carefully for corrosion near seams, corners especially on the inside in the dark corners. Big corrosion can be a problem, small amounts are fixable. Look for loose fittings and hardware...if those are loose then the owner did not care for the boat so what else is hiding ?? Last summer I bought a 16' Sylvan side console, looked for over three months, found one in pristine condition other than some worn and threadbare carpet. Had to drive 200 mikes ea way, had cash in hand in case it turned out as good as owner said. Two others were waiting when I got there but owner knew how far I drove and made the others go wait in their car while I looked it over. There are nice boats out there...look at everyone you can, even bad ones, soon you will get a feel for knowing when the right one comes along. 16-18 is a popular size, lots of boats out there, lots of bad and a few good, look closely, one will come along, but don't be afraid to travel and look. Good luck and keep us posted !!

Not a very accurate video, no one uses methenol in there fuel, it is not allowed in any state ! Ethenol is the only type of alcohol allowed so why bother comparing methenol ?? Second is he talks about valve stem and cam lobe wear ???? Fuel never touches those areas so why would it cause any wear in that area ? Lots of fancy talk and big words to try and impress those that do not understand how an engine operates.

In my area we have a large refinery operation, have a number of friends that work there or for the refinery in some capacity. All fuel comming out of the refinery is the same except for octane ratings. When the tanker is filled, a bag of chemicals is added to create " Shell" , BP, Sunoco etc. From that, how the fuel is handled, stored, maintained, etc is the fuel you buy at the pump. Our state/ city requires inspections of inground storage tanks at refuel centers and gives out yearly reports on who maintains and who doesn't there fuel supplys. Many brand name fuel suppliers do not maintain their storage properly and this is where folks get poor quality fuels, especially the cheap discount fuel stations. I have had poor fuel at many of the brand name retailers in my area, even the popular ones that get used regularly. Currently buy all my fuel from a small farmer owned station that has scored the top scores on every inspection and not one fuel issue..

Actually I have had far more issues wuth non E fuels leaving a varnish buildup after setting for months. Befoe E fuels came out, I worked at a small marine repair/ outboard service shop. That was my job...cleaning out the varnish buildup in carbs that sat all winter with fuel in them. Used " gumout" by the case !! When forced unto E fuels, the E disolved all the varnish and made a sludge. It was highly recomended to clean your fuel system before switching to E fuel, then use a stabilizer for long term storage ( over 3 months) by the fuel mfgrs. I followed those recomendations and still do. No varnish buildup in any of my small engines or any fuel issues. Gotta follow the science...

Same thing for me and most of my neighbors and friends. Actually don't know anyone that has had issues other than those that flat out don't take care of anything!! My only difference is....I keep my tanks full when in storage, especially steel tanks, which I don't even own anymore, now that I think about it....everything is plastic today, even your car !!

Your fuel pickup should have a filter on it so that seal should not cause an issue. Someday you might be able to fish it out when you tank gets low, but I would not loose any sleep over it, to many filters to stop it from doing any harm.

All depends on what your doing or fishing for....I bought a boat last summer with the spot lock feature and let me tell you..it is awesome !! Went out for fourth Juky fireworks and still used the anchor, water was shallow and no wind or current to speak of, so just a drop over the side and we were good. On the big lake, especially in some wind and chop, this 73 yr old body is done wrestling an anchor in those conditions. Pushing a couple buttons on the bow mount is so much easier. Did have a battery conection go bad during a fishing trip earlier in the season, so had to use the anchor, glad I had it or would have to ended my day early !! Went home and cleaned and tightened all connections so the anchor can stay put in its locker !! Gotta have them so know how to use one in case of an emergency !!

Doesn't have the apporoved hoses and gaskets.

When varnish is put in contact with ethenol, the E fuel creates the goo by trying to dissolve it !! This is why for years, they tell you to clean your engine/ carbs before switching to E10 !! But most people don' t follow those recomendations, much easier to just complain about E fuels .. Neighbor collects old cars, has for 30 years, has about a dozen or more, Superbees, Dodge Daytona, 440 sixpac, Camaro and many more. He uses nothing but E10, has since it came out....all carbed engines, each gets driven only in summer, sits the rest of the year with partial tanks of fuel. But...he changed all the hoses, give each a thorough cleaning before switching to E fuels. Not one issue in 22 years of being my neighbor from E fuels !! Just adds a small blue stabile each tank. Proper care means no issues....

After running straight gas for all that time, it caused a varnish buildup, when the E gas was put in, it cleaned all the varnish and clogged things up !! Ask any fuel engineer. Nascar has proven many times over that corn fuel is cleaner, more powerfull, and far less problems than straight gas for years.

In both the videos he had to introduce water to get some corrosion....bottom line is, no matter what gas you get, make sure it doesn't have water in it !! If you keep the tank full, there is no room for condensation !! So as I have stated...watch where you buy your fuel !!

I had a 36 lb MK on my 12' jon boat, found a 50lb thrust at a garage sale to put on my jon. It got up to speed a little quicker, but top speed was barely .2 mph faster... Handled weight better but no advantage on speed.

With a small 10' boat and two persons, you need to save as much weight as possible !! Anything 40-60 lbs for trolling motor will be fine, but I highly recomend going LifePo4 battery to save the weight ! Longer run times and about 1/3 the weight.. Just be sure you have the right charger !! Looking for some pics when you get it on rhe water!!

In my area the non E is about 60 cents per gallon higher, x 13-14 gallons just to fill my boat, the treatment is far cheaper !! Plus far less issues, your reg non E gas will cause varnish issues sooner or later, the Gumout corp has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to show that you will. However... each to his own, we all have are own ways of dealing with issues. At least for rhe time being we still have the freedom to spend our money however we please.....

Ethenol is not the issue, it is how it is maintained and stored. Few gas stations follow storage requirements, most don't care if you get bad fuel, they just blame all the problems on ethenol ! Ethenol is a cleaning agent, if your system is clean to start, there wont be any issues, but, if your system is gunked up to start, then guess what?? Been around small engines for 60 years, was a small engine mechanic for 20 years, long before E fuels came out. Had far more issues in the old days with varnish buildup than I have ever saw with E10. In those days we bought gumout by the case for cleaning clogged carbs. Today, just add some stabile and fill your tank, will start right up in the spring with no issues if you have good fuel to start !! Getting good fuel is becomming a big issue, stations do not maintain there systems. Much easier to just blame ethenol for everything....

I do the opposite, fill the tanks and add stabile blue, never had an issue since E10 came out !! I have many toys !! Watching where you buy your gas is becomning more critical than whether it is E10 or non E fuel. Many stations do not maintain there tanks and filters as they should !!

All my two stroke toys start right up on first or second pull without issues and I run only E10...as does everyone in my community. Had far more issues in the old days with varnish buildup long before E10 came out. If your having issues that you think might be E10 related, go to a different station, lots of gas stations do not maintain there in ground tanks. A friend works at the local refinery and he claims the issues with E10 come from poor maintenence from the fuel stations, he gave me a list of stations near me where I should buy my fuel. Been using it since it came onto the market, no issues with E10 but I have had issues with water in fuel from the underground tanks. Not hard to test with a clear glass jar. Also..remember to never fuel up right when or right after the tanker filled the underground tanks !! Stirs up all the crud where the station doesn't maintain there tanks. Lots of poor quality fuel out there, according to the inspector from the refinery, he claims over 40% of the gas stations in my area do not maintain there tanks and there fuel is crap.

Can't beleieve all the so called ethenol problems. I followed the recomendations when it first came out, like changing the fuel lines to alcohol rated lines, cleaning the fuel system before using e10 fuel and have never had one single issue with e10 fuels. My buddy runs an auto repair service and every e10 fuel issue was brought on by the owner not following recomendations. In fact just look back in time, gumout fuel cleaner was a hot item long before e10 fuels hit the market, since e10 came out, gumout sales have dropped !! I had far more fuel issues before e10 hit the market, haven't had to use it at all since e10 came out. My neighbor has about a dozen old cars, from 50's to 70's, uses e10 in all of them, most only get driven about 100 miles per year. Gave the fuel systems a good thorough cleaning and changed the hoses....not one issue in all these years. Perhaps folks should rethink there maintenence and how they use it.

I have a Merc with oil injection and if it sits with the fuel line connected, the fuel in clear fulter becomes blue from the oil mixed fuel draining back toward the tank. Noticed it when I first bought it. If I unplug the fuel line the filter stays clear because the oul mixed fuel can't run back toward the tank. My injection oil is blue (Pennzoil) and slowly colors the fuel left in the line if left connected. not sure if this might be the posters issue or not....

How old is the fuel in your tank ? Was it ever treated with any type of stabilizer ? If suspect, I woukd pump out all the fuel in the tank and get rid of it. We need to know if it is premixed with oil ?? Need more info before we can help....

Those fittings use O rings that do go bad. I have replaced many omc O rings in the past but now have Mercury and not sure about these. However, new fittings are not that expensive, actually much cheaper than having to be towed in !!

With the poor quality of todays fuel lines a tiney crack in the line could create that. I replace mine when they get stiff. Soft and pliable is ok. I have also found that the ends of the fuel line become set and stiff where the fitting is attached. At the start of the season, I often trim the ends back an inch or so to get into more pliable line which creates a better seal where the fitting is clamped into the line. Unless your fuel hose is really old, it will be alcohol resistant, all fuel lines in the past...at least, 10-15 years are alcohol proof.

Not sure I follow what lead up to your issue. Fuel connectors on tight, any damage to orings on the connectors??

I grew up working at a marina back in the 60's, had to clean and rebuild carbs on all the rental boats. Had far more problems with crud buildup back then, before we had ethenol fuels...gumout was developed and sold by the case long before ethenol fuel came out !! Honestly can say I have never had a crud builup with ethenol and been using it sense it came out..

Do the LifePo4 batteries hold there charge thru the winter in the cold?? Looking to replace my trolling battery next year. In Ohio we can get -10 below and while my boat is stored in my pole barn it is not heated. I keep my agm batteries on a maintenence charger over the winter and it has added years onto there lives. Do these LifePo4 batteries need something like that ??