Shakemsam

it's labor intensive but once to start drilling out the rivets to remove the splash well, you will see it's not that bad. Plus you can get to replace all those thru transom bolts and seal everything with 5200.. Replacing the foam is optional. lots of info out there about the pros and cons.

Generally, I would say it's picking up some trash.  Look at the board itself for something bent.

I would keep looking. Not a 4winns fan and not really a fish friendly boat. I would put it in the category of a family day cruiser that dad can occasionally. fish on until the wife sees you drilling holes!

The Cobra's are ok. A step up from the previous OMC's but still not as easy to work on or for parts as merc.

I can't imagine you will find anything in the Rochester area. Should be somebody in Sodus or between there and Henderson.

38 minutes ago, rolmops said:

And for good reason. The group that I fish with usually rents a place in Olcot for a week. It makes for a lot more action.

Besides, it is sort of a yearly tradition to start the season.

Agreed. And I do the same, usually at the Oak.

Just another reason why there is not another weigh station. 

12 hours ago, GAMBLER said:

I doubt it would make a difference in their sales.  The number of fishermen that fish the derby from Ibay is low.  IF they use the launch and fish out of Ibay, they are not going to pay for gas on the water when they can get it way cheaper on land.  

Agreed, the numbers out of I bay or even Rochester in general are crazy low compared to the west end or Sodus.

Long ago when it was locally owned, the weigh station was at the Port of Rochester and then it was moved to Rochester Hollow Grinder. Back then, it was truly an event!

Water is kryptonite to wood, regardless of type or strength. Make sure to seal both side and extra coats on the edges.

6 hours ago, Mikeyman104 said:

Thanks all! I hadn't thought of wiring the riggers to the cranking battery because I did that in my old boat and the riggers drained it. This was cause my kicker didn't have electric start or an alternator so while I was trolling and using the riggers, it was just draining my crank battery the whole 6 hours. I do need to buy a kicker for my new rig so i'll be looking to see if i can get a deal on one with an alternator. 

 

I'm not an electrical guy by any means, so i've never really wanted to dive into the battery switch and isolator world. Then again, in my old boat i only had 2 batteries and everything was just wired directly to where it needed to be. I got to read up more on both the switches and isolators to get a better understanding of them. 

 

thanks again all for the suggestions and input!

Unless you are running your riggers constantly, they should not drain your cranking battery.  It may have been something else that was a constant drain, combined with the riggers. Keep in mind, it is not enough to just have a kicker with electric start. it is about the size of the stator and how many amps it puts out. 

17 hours ago, walleye wizzard said:

Beware of  DONALD 3 they are scammers he and his buddy scammed me on a rod holder deal.

From LOU?

just have them recovered.

I went to a 4 blade and ha a bit higher rpm and more control at low speeds including trolling.

Either will treat you well. The only issue I see is finding one. A buddy at work was on a waiting list for a 70 Yam for over a year.

TM should have it's own  battery(s). Riggers and other electronics off the cranking battery, or a house battery from a perko type switch. JMO

cone isn't narrow enough. a basic 2d transducer 83/200 or 50/200 gives much better results. 

chirp has it's place as well as side view but not for trolling. I run a basic 2d for trolling and another ff with chirp and dv and sv for sm and perch. JMO

17 hours ago, Long time fisherman said:

I would consider something else if your main fishing is trolling.

A pontoon with canvas on a windy day will eat those batts up. 36v will help but still...,IMO

Your Merc will probably not be enough... it still has to charge the cranking battery as well.

An onboard charger if you have shore power will work and will keep you fishing everyday, but still your run time will still suffer depending on all the variables being use and wind.

A troll bridge unit is another possibility. you can google it for information.

On 1/3/2024 at 3:26 PM, Yankee Troller said:

 

The Striker series isn't a great series for Great Lakes fishing. The GT52HW transducer it comes with has high wide CHIRP sonar and has a power rating of 250 W, which is low. That transducer puts out a sonar cone angle that's < 24*. 

 

The cone angle of the Airmar I mentioned above is 45* and has a power rating of 600w. These transducers have been staples on the Great Lakes for many years. You can get them in transom or thru-hull models. For your boat I'd recommend a transom mount, which is the P66. Since you like Garmin the series just above the Striker series would be the way to go. I have 7" ECHOMAP units in stock for $440. I can pair it with the Airmar P66 for $160. If you wanted to save a few bucks you could also purchase a Garmin Dual Beam (77/200) transom mount transducer for $80 and still be ahead of the Striker you mentioned. Both transducers I mentioned are traditional sonar transducers and no fancy side/down imaging, which isn't needed for trolling the Great Lakes.

x2

15 hours ago, rolmops said:

There is one thing about the Penn down riggers that nobody seems to use. The second switch.  The second switch has wires coming out of the downrigger and can be run to the dash so the riggers can be raised or lowered  from the the dash board as well. The switch is connected to to a solenoid like setup on the circuit board so it only activates the motor ,but it does not feed it. I really like that idea and installed momentary switches on the dash. Now when moving into shallower water I don't have to go to the back of the boat to raise the riggers.

I am curious as to why no other downriggers have this simple gimmick. Is there a reason that I am not aware of?

I can see the convenience of that, but I would still have to get up adjust the lines.

53 minutes ago, Kevin J Legg said:

No badgers around here. Perhaps an otter or martin.

Could have been an otter

 It was well over 40 years ago. And badger's do exist in NY, although rarely are they seen.

Trolling off of Braddocks one spring, I noticed a small doe outside of me heading deep. Knowing she most likely was chased into the lake, I figured she would keep heading north till her lungs gave out. We pulled up our gear and cut her off, forcing her back to shore.

While fishing in Black River Bay just outside of the river, I noticed something swimming in a tight circle. When we got close enough, my dad reached for it with the net and then realized it was a badger that had most likely been hit by a prop. Dam lucky he didn't bring it into the boat.

Another early evening on the Black, I saw a couple odd shapes in the sky coming toward me from over Sackets. Not even a minute later, I got buzzed by 2 Stealth Fighters, most likely out of Ft Drum. Scared the hell out of me and almost went in the drink!

Drifting for SM east of Bear Creek near Pultneyville, without a GPS or any other idea where I was for that matter, I had apparently drifted into the NO Boat Zone near Guinnea Power Plant. Soon, I was given a nice reception both by air and water. It's surprising how much water, those helicopter blades can move.

I had a 308. great rifle , Although it was a late model with the detachable magazine(clip) . My dad has 4-5 of the early models. Much more valuable. 

I'm in the middle of a floor repair myself on my Sea Nymph. It's a good winter project. Good Luck!

1 hour ago, leadcore troller said:

Transom is solid, the floor rotted out from previous owner . Boat had a 2 stroke with an oil tank in the rear, either a leaky tank or just a lot of spillage trying to fill it the floor was oil rotted, once that started water compounded the problem. Instead of doing a piece meal job I removed the entire floor. Stringers all look good , i would replace all the styrefoam weather it has life left in it or not. 

Original floor had carpet, I was thinking about an Epoxy floor instead of a covering. Guessing the ACX plywood should be covered with an oil based paint or clear polyurethene.

Not sure what you're referring to by stringers? Never seen an aluminum boat with stringers, An epoxy floor is fine but you would not apply an epoxy over paint or poly. Only over the bare wood. I would not use poly regardless. Generally, becomes brittle with age and does not soak into the wood like a good resin or even a good oil paint.

Use the same size as what was original to the boat. Generally, that is 1/2".  ACX is exterior grade with less voids.

Paint or seal the ply for protection from moisture. Use vinyl on the surface. It's possible you have more than a soft floor issue.

You may have to remove a bunch of waterlogged foam and you may have transom issues. Everything is doable and you can get lots of info on Youtube, Iboats, and here as well.