Great_Laker

Getting the center console ready for controls with the new outboard on the way. Had to cover all the old gauge, key, and control holes. Used 1/4” black Starboard which was a really easy material to work with. Decided not to get new gauges and just use the Lowrance units for engine gauges as they connect with NMEA 2000 and display all the information you could need (e.g., rpm, mpg, trim, gas level). Saves quite a bit of money in rigging if you already have a Lowrance. Waterproof Blue Seas switch board was also added to replace original switches. Cleaning up the wiring harness and bus bars coming next.

Its been a great boat so far. Tall gunnels make it feel pretty safe in rollers and only weighing 1,100 lbs makes trailering and solo launching and retrieving easy. The center console is also perfect for trolling solo, can drive into chop and reel in at the same time. Wish the floors were aluminum though, already replaced them once.

I bought a 1987 Sea Nymph 19.5' center console in 2017 and have been slowly restoring the boat to fit my fishing style in Lake Ontario and the Finger Lakes. A lot of the ideas and restoration tips/tricks have come from others on this site and lots of Youtube videos, so i thought i should post some pictures and descriptions as i go along in the future to help others that may be restoring an old fishing boat with modern gear and rigging. This winter i decided to take the engines off the back of the boat (sell them) and replace the transom which was..... not fun. Previous owners used pressure treated plywood as the transom which caused corrosion and pitting of the aluminum and the only through-bolts between the outside aluminum, wood transom, and inside aluminum frame were the four engine bolts, all other hardware was corroded (non stainless steel) and was only screwed into the wood, not bolted. That caused the outside aluminum to warp as the wood rotted and the main engine and kicker pulled the transom away from the rest of the boat and opened up a space in the splashwell for water to leak into the hull. We needed the bucket of a Kubota tractor to lift the old water logged transom board out of the boat with eye bolts drilled into the wood since it had swollen and wouldn't budge. The inside aluminum skin had so many corrosion pit holes that i had to replace it. Local metal shop cut a new sheet of 1/8" aluminum. The transom was 1 3/4" so used marine plywood and cut 3/4" and two 1/2" pieces, glued and screwed together. Coated the wood in fiber glass epoxy resin and reinstalled in the boat this time with stainless steel bolts. Waiting for warmer weather and then will repaint the aluminum and splashwell and seal the seams with 5200. New outboard coming in March

Sold

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Selling my 2021 Yamaha 8 hp kicker 4 stroke. Bought it brand new from the dealer last February. Engine still has 2 years factory transferable warranty. Comes with itroll speed controller with Hunt mode. Awesome engine super quiet, only weighs 87 pounds, fuel efficient and pushes my 19.5’ boat under 1mph up to 7 mph. Manual start and trim. Has alternator to charge batteries while running. Only selling it because I bought a new main and no longer need a trolling engine. $2400 for engine and itroll or $2,200 without itroll, pick up near Ithaca NY.

https://www.amazon.com/Unexcelled-Fishing-Portable-Transducer-Bracket/dp/B08R7XHT2G/ref=asc_df_B08R7XHT2G/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=509414665398&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=15451286597812447314&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9005570&hvtargid=pla-1220541776823&psc=1

How about one of these Scotty transducer mounts? https://www.amazon.com/Scotty-Transducer-Mounting-Included-Mounts/dp/B0174X6UNQ/ref=asc_df_B0174X6UNQ/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312139903133&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=15451286597812447314&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9005570&hvtargid=pla-641875989352&psc=1

Agreed, it was very cold out there last night and on Monday. The fog bank on the lake last night and right now is thick, cold water and hot air sitting on top. I could not find water warmer than 48 degrees yesterday from shore to 150’. Surface was 48 bottom was 41. Lakers were the only thing willing. Sent from my iPhone using Lake Ontario United

Slow day today. Fished from 80’ out to 480’ only two steel head in 5 hours on a FF and a steelhead candy down 60’ and 120’ on riggers. Temp was down 85’ nearshore but offshore it was down 130’. Lots of bait and good marks from 90-120’ but wouldn’t fire. Sent from my iPhone using Lake Ontario United

Hopefully the thermocline moves back up. Those fish at 100' are in bathwater right now. Better to fish for browns there than kings. South wind should help to move the water out by this weekend. If you cant get the stagers to hit, go deep. Good luck!

Quick outing solo tonight. Thermocline is 120’ down 70 degrees above that. Fished 100-150’ lots of marks but nothing would fire. Moved out to 400-460’ two steelhead right out of the gate. One on downrigger down 90’ and one on a 10 color core with a 3 Oz snap weight to get deeper. Speed was 2.9 at the ball in ~55 degree water. Move offshore if you are looking for a consistent bite. Kings are stacked in close but the bite isn’t there near Sandy. Sent from my iPhone using Lake Ontario United

kicker motor is on the other side of the main, never had an issue with interference

Front mounted connection is easy on easy off with a ball joint and much cheaper than the EZ-steer if your motors are both in-line. I use the iTroll for speed control, similar to the troll master but has a few extra settings. Good luck with your restoration.

Following up with this issue. Called Lowrance and they could not repair or replace transducer because it was 1 year out of warranty. I ended up using 3M 5200 on the mount and the backside of the transducer to seal the transducer back onto the mount and filled torn out threaded inserts with 5200 and inserted screws back in. It seems to be very sturdy but time will tell. Its not pretty but it works. Reminder to check your mounting screws on your total scan transducer boys, hopefully this was just a defect on mine.

My transom is similar in shape to yours. I was able to previously fit a 2015 Mercury 15 hp and this year fit a 2021 Yamaha 8 hp by the main motor. When the two are connected to each other they turn at the same time so there is no issue with the big engine hitting the kicker. Your transom may have less space compared to mine but the new Yamaha's are very slim. Weight is another consideration, the further from the center you put your kicker the more the boat will lean/roll. I got rid of the mercury because it weighed 45 pounds more than the Yamaha and that made a big difference in weight distribution on my 19.5' center console aluminum boat, just something to consider with a bracket on the edge of your boat.

Went out on Monday and noticed my Lowrance Ti-7 was a bit 'fuzzy' once i stopped to start trolling. Figured i had some weeds on the transducer so i went to clean them off and realized the transducer had separated from the mount and was pinwheeling behind the boat. It appears the screws holding the transducer to the mount loosened over time and as i was motoring out on the big motor, the water pressure separated the mount from the transducer enough to rip the two apart. Unfortunately, the pressure was severe enough to literally pull the threaded inserts out of the transducer, making it impossible to buy a new mount and screw the transducer back in. The only good news is that the transducer still works fine. It doesn't look like the transducer hit anything in the water because there are no scratches or anything on it and its slightly higher than the bottom of the hull. The transducer is a Lowrance total scan with down scan and side scan and of course it is out of warranty. I called the Lowrance tech team and they said there is nothing they can do because its out of warranty by 1 year. Since there is only one insert left to screw into, i guess ill just buy a new mount and 5200 glue it back on and see if that works, otherwise its a $300 replacement transducer. Anyone else ever have this problem with the new total scan Lowrance transducers? If you have one of these i suggest checking the screws every few trips to prevent the same thing from happening to you. Anyone have an extra they want to sell?

The Sandy Creek (Hamlin) cam is in the "Maps" tab right on the top of this website. Hit that tab and scroll down https://www.lakeontariounited.com/fishing-hunting/page/lakeontario_map/

Round two from Sandy today, took the afternoon off and fished with my boss (Aug- 25). Got a hot tip at the dock to go check out 150' near braddock. We boated over from sandy and picked up a double right away. 21.2 lb king came on a 10 color off an inline board with black NBK spoon (45-50' down) and the 16.8 lb laker on a green FF at the same time 120' on a down rigger over 150'. Went in after that, got blown off the lake by a Thunder Storm. Speed was 2.8 at the ball and the king was in ~55 degree water.

I have a 20' aluminum center console which gets pushed around easily by wind and waves but having the wheel in the middle of the boat helps with fighting the fish and steering, usually running two riggers and some sort of junk line on an inline board when I'm solo.

Thank you, its a blast. The last couple of years I've been considering auto pilot to make things easier when fishing alone. I think it would be a game changer regardless of whos on the boat

Fished solo from 6:00-7:00 PM tonight. Boated out to 135’ dropped the down riggers down to 100’ and 2 minutes later while I was letting out a 10 color, line started screaming. A bit of a circus getting the fish landed but that’s solo fishing. King took a DW mag rod father in 46 degree water going 2.5 mph at the ball. By the time I was done bleeding it out and cleaning up, I decided one fish was enough and headed in. 21.1 lb male with nothing in the stomach. Not a ton of marks but I only fished for a total of 10 minutes so they may be stacked up and staging out in front of Sandy. loop Sent from my iPhone using Lake Ontario United