CatFisher

Thanks, Dave, but that's a little out of our price range, and the MFG is basically a done deal. Thank you, though! -CatFisher

Hello again! I just wanted to report that we have found our new boat! I just wanted to thank everyone who messaged me with ideas and offers. So thanks, everyone! We wound up with a 1975 MFG Gypsy 16 foot with a 65 hp Evenrude outboard. OK, so it's not exactly a fishing boat, but we really liked it, it's in great shape for it's age, and it was in our budget. Here's hoping Spring comes early! Thanks again to everyone, I very much appreciate the help and support I find here at LOU! -CatFisher

Greetings, LOU Community! I'm just throwing a line out there, so to speak... My future wife and I are looking to buy an inexpensive fishing boat this Spring, but we are on a tight budget, and I can afford no more than about $2000, and hopefully less. We do understand this is a tall order, but we thought we try asking here. If anyone thinks they know of such a boat, please let me know. Ideally, I am looking for a boat and trailer package that weighs less than 2200 lbs. fully loaded, so I'm thinking 16' to 18' at most. We are hoping to find a boat that will be used primarily for fishing, but "enough boat" to take the nieces tubing occasionally. We have dock space on Keuka Lake for the season, and would primarily be using it there. We don't mind if it's old, and cosmetically rough, but we're hoping for one that's mechanically sound, has been well maintained, and is basically ready to go for the spring. We'd very much prefer an open bow as well. I've seen old Starcraft aluminum boats and other makes that would seem to fit us very well, now I'm just hoping someone has one they would sell for less than $2000. Thank you in advance! -CatFisher

Thank you again, rolmops! I think that once the weather gets warmer I'll be able to try and start the old motor and figure out what I've really got going on. Then I can decide for sure whether to sell it or fix it. But thanks very much for your input, and I'm sure I'll have lots more motor questions come Spring. -CatFisher

Hi guys! Sorry I didn't check back in sooner, but I have been watching the post and I definitely appreciate everyone's input! In particular, thanks again to rolmops, whose invest much of his time on my questions; your advice and help are very much appreciated! I'm still unsure what I should do, but to be honest I'm leaning toward getting rid of the old boat in favor of something newer and more reliable. I'm weighing the cost of repairs, as well as the time spent doing everything, against putting that money into something that is hopefully closer to ready-to-go, which would make us very happy. I've been pouring over eBay and Craigslist ads for used boats, and it seems to me that I can get a modest boat with a newer, more reliable motor in the plus/minus $1500 range (what I figure it will realistically cost to update the old SeaRay, which needs interior work in addition to the motor woes). In particular, I have taken notice of Starcraft boats, and a few others like them, which seem to offer a nice blend of a true fishing vessel that can also take the nieces tubing once in a while too. Ideally, our boat would be used 80% or 90% for fishing, but we'd like the option of skiing, tubing, and general boating as well. My old SeaRay is a great looking boat, but clearly more of a pleasure boat that a fishing boat. So without getting too far off my original post topic, does it seem likely that I could find a $1500 to maybe $2000, 16 or 17 foot boat and trailer that would be reliable and serve our purposes well, or would I likely just be buying junk at that price level? I am a student these days, and my future wife is a horribly underpaid social worker, so we couldn't afford any more than that this year. So I guess my question is, what would you guys do? Fix, buy, or wait until next year? Thanks again everyone!! I know I'm asking a lot of general questions that may be hard to answer, but we are very much new to boating and really appreciate all the feedback! Here's hoping Spring comes soon!!!! -CatFisher

Wow! Thanks to everyone for your help and input! Please feel free to keep it coming To rolmops: Thank you for the extra info, particularly the starter fluid issue, and the number for a decent marina who is willing to work on such an old motor. I already contact one guy who practically laughed at me when I told him the year of my motor. In my younger days, I completely disassembled, cleaned/fixed up, and reassembled an old motorcycle by working through the manual, and then placing all the nuts and bolts for that step in an individual plastic bag, with a note about what step they were from. That worked out great, and in this day and age I can employ a digital camera to really help keep things straight. I think that with an original manual, the help of the members here at LOU, and by letting a real mechanic do the steps I can not because of a lack of skill or equipment, I might be able to rebuild this beast myself. Let' see when the manual gets here, hopefully next week. To rolmops and anyone else interested: In fact I did some compression tests and decarbing last Summer, and I suspect my motor is going to need a rebuild. Here's a quick rundown on the tests we ran with a little $7 compression gauge: 1st. compression test (cyl/psi): 1) 96 psi 2) 52 psi 3) 105 psi 4) 90 psi Then, I decarbed it repeatedly using SeaFoam brand decarbing stuff (both the liquid that goes in the gas tank, and the spray). I did this several times over a couple days hoping for the best. I then several more compression tests, which reslted in: 2nd. compression test (cyl/psi): 1) 99 psi 2) 85 psi 3) 100 psi 4) 92 psi 3rd. compression test (cyl/psi): 1) 100 psi 2) 74 psi 3) 105 psi 4) 94 psi 4th. compression test (cyl/psi): 1) 98 psi 2) 75 psi 3) 99 psi 4) 93 psi I was able to get that second, bad cylinder to come up even a bit more by spraying fogging oil directly in the cyclinder before doing the compression test, but it's still noticeably lower than the rest. I have also determined that the second cylinder is not firing (so I'm running on 3 cylinders), but I have not determined if it's not firing because of low compression, or I believe that particular ignition coil is faulty too. I know I can get a new coil for $20 to $30, and that was going to be one of the first things I wanted to try this Spring. Thank you too for the link to the iboats forum, I do try to search there for help as well. In fact, that's where I learned what/how to decarb the motor. Please let me know what you think of my compression numbers and if it's worth trying to overhaul this motor. Could you, or someone else, take a guess as to how much it would cost to rebuild this motor? Thank you so very much for your help, I really appreciate it! To MCF: Thank you very much for your consideration! I am still trying to decide which way to go, and if I decide to sell it, whether or not to sell it as a package or part it out. I had initially thought I'd do better parting it out, but I will certainly consider your idea of selling the whole package. Thank you again for your input! To Sean Youngblood: Thank you for your reply! Honestly, ever since we got the little 12' boat last Spring we have been actively watching ads for a bigger boat. Recently, I again have been pouring over the eBay and Craigslist used boats and motors for sale, as well as the classifieds here. Although I am no expert, I definitely have a feel for the market, and what's available. That's why I'm strongly comparing the idea of putting a lot of money into this old boat, or spending that money on something that's a little newer and a little more ready to go for the Spring. Stuff to think about.... Thank you very much for your help with my situation! To all: So that's basically were I am right now. I have an old boat, which is solid in the transom and body, but need seats and interior frills. I have an outboard with low compression in at least one cylinder that starts hard and has no tilt. And the trailer is decent, but needs lots of rubber rollers and some other work. I did last summer add a new front jack, tongue coupler, wheels, and tires to the trailer just to get it home. That's really the only money I've spent on this package so far, and I figured if I scrap the project I could strip the new stuff and save it for future use. Just to be clear, I'm a student and working on a tight budget, maybe a couple grand at most. We just want a reliable boat to be used on Keuka primarily, and don't really mind if it's old and a little rough inside, but we want to be careful what we put our money into. I am mostly interested in fishing, but we need a more family oriented boat to take the nieces tubing too. I would be very grateful for any more insight from the LOU community on how to proceed, especially now that I've posted my compression numbers! Thanks again to all those who have considered my post!! -CatFisher

Great! Thank you so much for your help! -CatFisher

Hello, Broadhorizons, and thank you for your prompt reply! In the event that I have to scrap this boat, I would be very interested in hearing more about where you took your hull, or how I research where to find a similar scrap yard. My boat is located just Southeast of Rochester NY right now, but I would be willing to tow it a reasonable distance. The trailer is in decent shape, registered, and legal. Thank you very much for your help! -CatFisher

Hello, rolmops, and thank you for your prompt reply! In fact, I did buy the Seloc repair manual last year, and I have the original Johnson manual on order from an eBay vendor as we speak. I do understand from the information here on the LOU forums that the Selocs are no substitute for the originals I am reasonable handy, and have most basic hand tools. Would it be possible for me to disassemble this motor myself, and rebuild it, using a qualified mechanic to do the work I can not? Would it even be worth it? At least one person told me I should scrap this motor in favor of a newer model with tilt. And actually, the boat is rated for up to 110 hp, so my 115 isn't really that much over, plus I'm sure I'm not getting all 115 hp out of it currently. I'd be very appreciative of any more insight you might be able to offer me! Thanks very much for your help! -CatFisher

Hello everyone! Thank you in advance for considering my post! I joined LOU last Summer when my girlfriend and I got our first boat, which was a small 12' row boat and trailer. We are both very new to boating, and are very thankful to have a resource such as this to help us as we try to learn the ins and outs of owning boats. I'm posting today because late last Summer we were given our second boat, and I'm trying to decide what, if anything, we can do with it. The boat in question is a 1973 Sea Ray 900, it came with a 1974 Johnson 115, and a single axle trailer. It's an old boat, in need of seats, but fairly solid over all. The motor will not seem to start cold unless you spray some starter fluid in it. However, it's starts immediately once it's been hit with the starter fluid, and restarts easily once it's warmed up. I do have the registration for the boat and trailer, and everything was transfered in my name last year (lucky me!). Could anyone offer us some suggestions as to what we can do with such a rig? We understand the boat and motor are old, and we're considering whether it's even worth putting any money into such a vessel, or trying to get something newer and more reliable this Spring. If we abandon this boat, what would be our options for getting rid of it? I would think I could sell the trailer and probably the motor for at least a few hundred, but that leaves a hull to deal with. Does anyone know how to dispose of the hull? Can it be donated without a trailer or motor? Or, I've heard there are places that offer hull disposal at a fee; does anyone know how that would work? Any other idea would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks very much!! -CatFisher

Hello, silver bullets! Thanks very much for the reply! So are you suggesting that there may be some trout in close enough to cast to? I know later in the spring they are right up near the docks, but I was not sure about this time of year. What should we expect, lake trout? I understand they've become kind of the dominant salmonid in Keuka these days. If so, how deep would we need to get to in order to find them? We will be on the eastern shore just south of Bluff Point, and we were told there is no ice on the beach. I believe we could cast to about 30 feet of water at most. Do you think we might be able to hook up with something? I do have a variety of Little Cleos an spinners we could throw at 'em. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks again for your help! -CatFisher

Greetings, LOU community! Thank you in advance for considering my post. My future wife and I have both caught Spring Fever already We have an opportunity to spend this Valentine's Day weekend at her mother's place on Keuka lake, and we were wondering if there are any fishing opportunities to be found this time of year on the lake or nearby? We do not have an ice auger or a boat, so we are really looking for open water shore fishing. I know from experience that standing on her mom's beach we can cast to about 20 or 30 feet of water. We are also willing to drive to short distance to any other public area where we might have better success. We are open to just about any gamefish or panfish that might be available and in season, and are simply looking to start our fishing season early, if possible. Any thoughts on where to go or what to look for would be very, very helpful! Thank you again for your help! -CatFisher

Hello everyone! First, let me apologize for not replying any sooner. I had assumed that when someone replied to my post I would be notified by email, but I see now that I'm not getting those notifications. Thanks for all the great advice! I am definitely going to get a safety cable for the bow of the boat, so I'm not relying on the winch itself for safety. I ended up finding a reasonably priced winch that's rated for 1800 lbs, and my boat and motor weigh in at 1525 lbs, plus gear. So far, this winch seems to work well for me. Thanks again for all the great advice and help! -CatFisher

Hello LOU Community!! I'm brand new to boating and towing this season, and I just want to ensure I'm doing everything as safely as possible, so I'm hoping someone here can help me. I've just brought home my first "real" boat, and I'd like to replace the trailer winch, but I'm not sure what the winch should be rated for. I have a 1963 Sea Ray 900 17' closed bow, with a 115 hp Johnson outboard from 1974. When new, the boat should have weighed about 1200 lbs, and the motor about another 325 lbs. I also understand you have to account for additional gear and fuel, so let's assume the total weight of my rig to be about 1700 or 1800 lbs. My questions are; does the winch I select have to be rated for the full 1800 lbs? Doesn't some of the weight of the boat rest on the water and/or trailer as I'm winching the boat in place? And, does the winch actually serve to restrain the boat while in tow? Could someone maybe recommend and inexpensive, hand winch that would be suitable for my boat? Thanks in advance for your help!! -CatFisher

Wow, thanks so much for the great advice!! Unfortunately, I was still not able to strike a deal with the owner, and I think we are going to have to pass after all, but this was definitely a learning experience, and I will be using all this great advice as I continue to shop for our new boat. Thanks again to all of you who considered my questions. - CatFisher

Some pics... The wheel on the left is the one that has a slow leak. The jack is just keeping weight off that bad wheel. Thanks again!! - CatFisher

Greetings LOU Community!! I could really use some help, if some of you would be willing to try... Quickly, my girlfriend and I joined the LOU forum this spring when we found our way into our first "boat", a 12 foot Sears fiberglass row boat and 40 lb electric motor. We also picked up a decent little trailer shortly thereafter. Although we've been using our rig all summer, we still feel like we're new to boating, and more importantly towing. So on to my question; we've come across an old boat and trailer we're really considering. The boat is a 1969 16' Penn Yan Tornado with a 115 hp Johnson OB, in great shape mechanically, and priced right for our meager budget. However, our concern is with the trailer it sits on. I have no idea what make the trailer is, but it's a beefy, dual axle trailer that in it's prime would easily tow this boat. Today, the trailer looks to be horribly rusted pretty much everywhere. I've brought both my girlfriend, and a trusted friend, to see the rig. Both my "expert" friend and the previous owner say the rust is just on the surface, and they feel that with just a little love (such as air in the tires, etc.), the trailer will be more than safe, at least to go the 8 or 10 miles to my house. On the other hand, my girlfriend feels that the trailer is totally unsafe, and I am somewhere in between on it. I know this is difficult without actually seeing this trailer, but my question to the good folks here at LOU is how can I really determine the integrity of this trailer? What should I inspect to help determine its road worthiness? Any info or advice on this would be greatly appreciated. Obviously, safety is my biggest concern. Here's some more info, and I'll try to post some pictures of the trailer in just a few minutes. The boat and trailer were used extensively in the 2008 season, but they have been sitting exposed in a driveway ever since. The trailer is covered everywhere in a layer of rust (frame, wheels, jack, coupler, winch, everything rusty), however we can't find any places where it's completely rusted through or soft. Although rusty, the winch and front jack actually turn quite easily. It has dual axles, and the wheels are rusty, but they do seem sound to me. The tires look like they are in good shape, the previous owner says they were new in 2008, but I worry that they've been just sitting since then. One tire has a slow leak, but we have been assured it's just needs a new inner tube. The owner says the lights all work, but I have not yet verified that. If it helps, we believe that when new the hull of this boat weighed 705 lbs, and the motor about 320 lbs, putting the whole load at let's just say 1100 or 1200 lbs with gas and gear and whatnot. I know this is a difficult question to answer, but any help or advice would be greatly appreciated!! Thank you in advance for your help!! - CatFiaher

LOL, thanks for the welcome and the wisdom, Larry!! Yes, the girlfriend is definitely a keeper!! I hope to make it official real soon too Yes, I most certainly recognized the symptoms of a terrible, chronic disease!! Much like my aquariums and other projects, I can see already how owning a small boat just makes you want a larger boat more Fortunately for me I was able to find an oversized trailer, and my plan would certainly be to trade up to a larger boat in the near future. In the mean time, I think my little craft is a good intro to boating and trailering for me, and I'm looking forward to getting it all set up, with the help of the LOU forum members, of course. The wife and I are very much looking forward to getting out on the water this summer, and hopefully we'll see you and some of the other LOU members out there as well. Thanks again, Larry!! -CatFisher (Greg)

Thanks, Tom! The site looks great, and I'm sure I'll get the help I need to get my little boat floating right. Good luck on the water!! -CF

Thank you for the prompt reply and for the warm welcome, BlueEye. I'll be sure post some questions in the boating forum, and I'm sure more than a few LOU members will be able to help me out. Thanks again!! -CatFisher

Name: CatFisher Location: Pittsford, NY 14534 Home Port: N/A Boat Name/Type: 1970's Sears brand Ted William's Gamefisher 12 foot fiberglass V-hull rowboat I fish for: I like to focus on the smallest of the finger lakes, especially Canidice and Hemlock, with hopes for trout, pickerel and pike, bass, perch, and crappie. When all else fails, carp at the local Barge Canal sometimes has to do ================== Greetings LOU Community!! Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to introduce myself to everyone! My name is Greg, I'm in my mid 30's, and although I was born on Long Island and have lived for a short time in Baltimore, I basically consider myself to be from the Rochester area. I grew up in Pittsford, I have lived downtown on Park Avenue and off Culver Rd, and I now live with my girlfriend in Pittsford. After a lifetime love of biology, I decided to return to school to pursue a degree in the natural sciences, and so I am currently a full time student. I am close to completing my first two years of study at Monroe Community College, and will soon be transferring to either SUNY Brockport or Geneseo as a third year biology major. I hope to focus my studies heavily on ichthyology and herpetology, and I aspire to continue on to earn a graduate degree. Though I am far from an expert, and I don't get out nearly enough, I was introduced to fishing by my father as a youngster, as I'm sure many of you were too. My father has since passed on some years ago, but I still enjoy wetting my lines whenever I can. Unfortunately, with the exception of my inflatable raft project, no one in my immediate family has ever had a real boat of our own, and this has always made it very difficult to pursue the most sporting piscatorial quarries, due to the often limited and crowded public shore fishing. As a student with a meager budget, I had really given up hopes of having any kind of boat, anytime soon. But, I am very happy to report that only very recently, and through the magic of the internet, I was able to find an old row boat for free. It's an old Sears brand Ted William's Gamefisher 12 foot fiberglass row boat. I'm pretty sure these were made in the 70's. This is a V-hull styled boat, and not the popular, flat-bottomed, "Jon boats" Sears is well known for. On inspection at it's prior home, the mighty craft was found to be in sorry shape; it had sat in someone's back yard for many, many years uncovered and unattended to. No, this would not have been my first choice for a first boat, but I could not beat the price, and my girlfriend and I heaved it on top of my aging '98 Ford Ranger pickup (come to find that my tail gate no longer goes down, lol!), and off we went with it. In no time at all we had it cleaned up, and although still not super-pretty, it looks like a whole new boat, and we're quite happy with it. I patched the only half-inch hole I could find with some fiberglass epoxy, and sanded some of the patchwork done by previous owners. We dragged it once more atop my truck and out to Mendon Ponds Park for it's first float in probably more than a decade. Much to our amazement, the darn thing floats - and quite well! Although our humble craft, dubbed The CatFisher, is a small, light boat (about 168 lbs, I think), we quickly tired of lifting it on my truck and scratching the heck out of the truck in the process. After about 5 weeks of scouring a popular internet trading list, I was able to find a decent (I hope!), affordable trailer. For $200 I now have a clean-looking, galvanized trailer. I was told the trailer would handle a boat between 12 to 16 feet long, which I thought was great since I'd love to upgrade to a larger boat some day. Additionally, it came with a spare wheel, two new-in-the-box waterproof trailer lights, and the ball hitch I'm going to need to tow the trailer with my little truck. So I've joined the LOU forum for two primary reasons; to share information about fishing, hunting, and the great outdoors in general, and to ask for help in setting up my humble boat and trailer, so that I am safe to cruise smaller bodies of water, ranging from the Erie Canal and Mendon Ponds Park up to Hemlock and Canadice lakes. I am admittedly clueless on nearly all facets of boating, even in it's micro form, and I am graciously appealing to the LOU community for help with my project. I'd like to ask if this is an appropriate forum for me to seek advice concerning my little twelve foot rowboat project? I need help mostly with the trailer at this point. I have some concern for the condition of the wheels, and I'd like to be able to post some pictures of the trailer, in the hopes that someone can tell me just what I have, and how to ensure everything is safely setup. Although I do not have a gas motor, I do have a nearly new 40 lb thrust Minn-Kota electric, decent deep-cycle battery, a modest Eagle sonar unit, GPS, and some other "essentials", and I'd really appreciate some advice in getting my rig setup right, and in using all this fancy gear effectively. I would be very, very grateful to any and all LOU members who may be willing to help me with my project!! If this is not the place for small boat questions, could someone place direct me where to go for help? In closing, I'd like to add that my girlfriend and I have a wide rage of outdoor interests that include fishing, camping, hiking, backpacking the ADK's, biking, and just about any other excuse to be outside. I look forward to meeting all of you in this virtual community, and to sharing our adventures. Thank you to all who have taken a moment to get to know me, and for considering my boating concerns!! -Greg