mr 580

Don’t believe you’ll find many people using mono for divers.  Before braid and multi strand wire were available, we used to use mono and even 30lb was a PIA due to stretch.  If you want an alternative to wire go with 30lb braid- it is more forgiving than wire with the downside that braid and fleas are not good partners.  You can leader from the diver with your flasher with mono or preferably fluorocarbon.  For depth wire is the clear winner with divers.  Braid divers work well higher in the water column.

Probably the angle of your photo made tongue appear longer.  I have a Venture tandem a couple models up from yours I’ve had since 2008 that has been fine.  Are their “ better” trailers out there -yes, but the Venture has worked for me.  If I had a situation like yours I’d suggest taking the time to weigh your setup fully loaded as you tow it to make sure load center is correct and not overloaded.   Printed spec sheet weights often are understated and don’t include full fuel/water plus what we add in trolling gear puts on the pounds.  Weighing takes some time, but might save a second problem.  Hope you don’t have future problems.

Is that a longer tongue due to camper?  Wonder how that effects load position?  Might be worth the time to have it scaled.  With a longer tongue, it might mean axles need to come forward to balance load.  With a low mile failure worth doing some checking.

Couple years ago I shot a 2 1/2 year old male bear.  The taxidermist I used suggested I get summer sausage, Italian sausage, ground and some steaks.  Meat was OK and we eat it.  Would I shoot another one - no thanks - I checked bear off my list and one was enough.

Joe, beautiful 10 point.  Impressed with your dedication in spite of being down physically.  Glad your efforts were rewarded.

If the shop didn’t want to work on an Johnson they did you a favor by telling you upfront rather than halfway through the job.  Likely they have had some bad experiences with Johnson/Evinrude.  OMC went bankrupt in early 2000’s (twenty years ago) and BRP didn’t do the brands any favors especially in how they shut it down a couple years ago.  Best bet get your own parts, check out some You Tube video’s and do it yourself.  Outdoor businesses have been swamped last couple years- try to get a boat or a motor.  Not surprised shops can pick and choose.

For downriggers I’ve always used backer material and fender washers.  Without knowing the thickness of the material on your boat it is hard to say for sure but backer material never hurts.  Some aluminum boats have pretty thin gunnel material.  Looks like your boat has rails for mounting t brackets- it might not hurt to tie into that as well.  A downrigger with riser, swivel base, long arm and heavy weight in rough water can put a lot of stress on mounting.  Might consider longer track section too as that would spread load.

Couple things to consider.  What shaft length do you need for the Islander to keep TM in water?  Also what do you have for bow access as I believe the Ulterra has an on/off switch even though it self deploys?  Also need access in case of a malfunction.  Should go to 24volt power which means two more batteries or even 36 volt which would mean three batteries.  Probably a doable project but pretty involved- a consideration if an I pilot is a must would be a boat swap to a bow rider, center console or a bow style with better bow access.

Think you would quickly find that putting boat in neutral with planer boards and one/two lines out would fall in category of “bad idea”.  Better to idle boat in gear and if still fast then slow down by putting out trolling bags or 5 gallon buckets.  Years ago when I trolled with an I/o I would use 2 buckets when trolling and when I was hooked up had 2 more to toss out to slow down.  Much better to land fish with some forward momentum.

Cutter, scroll down about 10 topics and this question was discussed in a topic titled “kicker question” by Phil 2.  Answer with a picture of a Honda on a Tiara with kicker tied to rudders.

Simrad Drive Pilot for hydraulic steering with Precision 9 and Nac1 installs easily and is controlled with Simrad Go Series or several Lowrance units.  Pretty much the same AP as the Lowrance hydraulic steer unit but has the Precision 9 upgrade which shows up when it gets “sloppy”.  Holds dead steady at trolling speed into the wind.

20” inch shaft is considered as “long” and is fine.  The 25” inch are normally referred to as a sailboat model or “extra long”.  For horsepower a 9.9 should do all you want on a 21 foot to troll.

Check wiring and connections- Ulterra’s are voltage sensitive.  I’d look close at the plug-I’ve been told that a Battery Tender brand plug is a good one to use on that model TM.  Check voltage to see if in spec.

Keeping motor in the water a bigger issue than power.  80” might not be enough in the wind on that size boat.  A 60” is barely enough on a 17’ or 18’.

X2 on mounting riggers in front of driver position so both driver and passenger can access.  Using tracks and manual riggers is good for a multi species tiller setup.  If you are big water trolling most of the time then a bow rider with wheel is better than a tiller.  Tillers excel for boat control and rod in hand fishing.

Walkarounds offer good storage space and accessibility to the front/sides for docking.  Downside is you give up width of cockpit space and cabin space for sleeping.  Rear deck space can be good especially if you get a bracket mounted outboard.  If you look at I/O’s then a doghouse can take up deck room.  IMO in today’s market, I would take hours and condition over brand with a 20 to 30k budget. Fall is a good time to look and prices likely less than next spring.  Might not be a bad idea in your initial search to open top end up to see what an extra 10k gets you.  Good luck and have fun looking.

Location of drain is probably most important piece of installation of live well or fish box.  You want overboard drain so your location needs to be above water line.  Draining into bilge is not the way to go especially if your boat is in a slip.  If you have floor out and a blank sheet for your layout then having a cooler for a piece of your seating might be an option that would save a lot of plumbing, pumps and valves along with holes in the hull.

Looks like an active Facebook group “Lonestar Classic Aluminum and Fiberglass Boats”.  Could be a good source of info for your project.

If I didn’t think the steering was right on a brand new boat, I’d be talking with the dealer’s service manager about the issue.  Maybe something was overtightened.  I have Sea Star steering in my boat and it steers one handed no problem.  Let them know your concerns.

With air in the system I think you would skips/jerks in steering.  I guess I’d be talking with dealer and seeing if any setup adjustments. I’d be asking if factory install of motor or dealer install.  Shouldn’t take two hands to steer.  Beyond checking fluid level and looking for an obvious problem, I’d be letting dealer sort it out.

Are you adjusting your trim position at higher rpm?  You should have a different feel to steering when motor is”trimmed” correctly.  If your steering is smooth, I wouldn’t be concerned with fluid level.  Sea Star takes a specific fluid so I’d suggest you leave that alone.  IMO run the boat and adjust trim- get used to the feel of the new boat.  

Changing environment with clearer water and spiny water flea have driven different line presentations more than preference or “fun” factor.  When fleas choke up your rod guides so you can’t reel in kings, you have to adapt.  Guys will run 30lb then leader down to 15 to 20lb fluorocarbon to get around the problem.  If the fleas aren’t around, you can still run your 15 to 17lb like the old days just add the fluorocarbon leader.

X3 on staying away from pancakes.  Torpedo/sharks are better for deep faster trolling on Lake Ontario.  Going to 150’ you’d want 15lb if your riggers would handle them.  Over 100’ 12’s start getting pretty good blow back.

Might be helpful if you posted a picture of the back of your boat and the swim platform.  Some swim platforms will carry a kicker others will not.  A 9.9 kicker should be all you need (100 to 120lbs).  Auto pilot choices vary depending on what type of steering your main motor has and whether you want tied to kicker or a stand alone kicker system.  More info will get more help for you.

The higher and farther forward you run your board lines, the farther out and better your boards will run.  I’d suggest running your board line through a pulley on each side and attaching to the rails on the top as a starting point.  Front mast also a consideration.  Nice looking outfit, enjoy it!