What have you done for your boat lately?

ffb said:
Well, this has been in the works for awhile. Finally pulled the trigger when some factory remanufactured units became available at almost $1000 off new. As luck would have it, my unit got beat up in shipping resulting in grinding noises from the lower unit. Because the nearest authorized service center is an hour and a half away, Minn Kota just sent me a brand new lower unit/shaft assembly and authorized me to replace it under warranty. Big kudos to Minn Kota.

Went with a Group 24 sized PowerQueen 24v 50ah LifePo4 battery. To limit the amount of wire running around on the deck I decided to fit the battery in the front anchor locker which required adding a notch to the hatch cover.

On the classic whaler forums there are multiple people running trolling motors without modifying the railing. Deploying and retrieving with the railing is doable but really a PITA. I'll be cutting a short section out and adding a hinge once those parts get here.

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how did you mount the motor bracket?
 
jasmillo said:
Not a boat upgrade but one for the carport a lot of my fishing flotation devices are stored in. Lighting so I can actually mess with the boat as needed after dark. These, some $7.99 stick on magnets from Amazon, plus my jackery unit or an extension cord.
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My wife got me some similar lights for Xmas a few years ago and I friggen love em. My carport sits right up against our house, but the porch lights and a single motion light behind the carport were the only light source so backing the boat in after a long day on the water or something was such a hassle. Being the lazy SOB that I am, I just dealt with it. Being the thoughtful and practical woman that my wife is, she found a solution.

Mine just plug into the side of our house, and came with a remote so I can turn them off when I leave in the morning and turn them on at the end of the day when I go back in. Love the damn things.
 
Like most rafts, the Striker comes with a fixed seat for the rower and a swivel seat for the passenger. Normal stuff.
Well, I spent $20 on an Attwood seat swivel and installed it on the rower seat. Now both seats can swivel for a little 2-man bobber fishing out of my little rubber pram. Don't worry, will only use the swivel driver's seat for still water.
Not optimal, but better than making my buddy sit in his Commander in low 40s water. I'll give him the "right-handed" front/side so he doesn't hook me. 😁
 
Getting to the fuel lines on my boat is no easy task, especially the filler hose. So I kept procrastinating. Finally got to it to find out both hoses are 30yrs old. So getting those out has been fun.

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Nick Clayton said:
Stupid question, but what's stopping you from just backing it into the garage with your tow vehicle?
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Skills 🤣 not enough skills is stopping me from backing it all the way in.

It’s tight though, there is about 6 inches of clearance on both sides between the side rollers and garage door sides. I would have to line it perfectly since there are two rollers on each side to not hit anything.
 
Kfish said:
Skills 🤣 not enough skills is stopping me from backing it all the way in.

It’s tight though, there is about 6 inches of clearance on both sides between the side rollers and garage door sides. I would have to line it perfectly since there are two rollers on each side to not hit anything.
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Fair enough! I was just curious if there was something not obvious in the picture.

I definitely get it. My driveway and carport require some unique maneuvering when bringing my boat home. I've got it pretty dialed in at this point but oh boy I've managed to put myself into some sticky situations over the years lol
 
Nick Clayton said:
Fair enough! I was just curious if there was something not obvious in the picture.

I definitely get it. My driveway and carport require some unique maneuvering when bringing my boat home. I've got it pretty dialed in at this point but oh boy I've managed to put myself into some sticky situations over the years lol
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Same here I have to back mine in next to a concrete wall on the passenger side. I've only damaged the light on that side twice. Once I have it in there though I place a tire bump down and line the trailer tire up to it. But I can't line up straight to it and have to turn at a certain point. I'm going to have to start from scratch next week as I've been using that space as a work station for the van project. However, next week it's time to go fishing!.
 
_WW_ said:
Same here I have to back mine in next to a concrete wall on the passenger side. I've only damaged the light on that side twice. Once I have it in there though I place a tire bump down and line the trailer tire up to it. But I can't line up straight to it and have to turn at a certain point. I'm going to have to start from scratch next week as I've been using that space as a work station for the van project. However, next week it's time to go fishing!.
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Ya I can relate. I have a very tight, ninety degree turn at the driveway off the main street. My truck/boat combo as it currently sits is about the maximum length I could possibly make that turn with.

Once the boat is straight headed up the driveway, I then have to put it in the carport up against our house, straight back. The problem is I have a small travel trailer parked along the edge of the driveway in the right if you're looking at the carport. So I can't just back straight into the carport, I have to kick the boat out to clear the travel trailer, then immediately swing it back in to angle it into the carport. Even if I do everything perfectly I can't ever totally back the boat into the carport because the travel trailer prevents my truck from ever being at a straight enough angle to get the boat all the way in.
I can get it very close though, and I just get it close then unhook it and muscle it back the last few feet or so. I'm pretty good at it by now, lots of practice and all, but it can be a real pain. I really need to get rid of that damn travel trailer. We've used it twice in the 15 years we've owned it lol. With the trailer gone I could damn near back the boat in blindfolded.
 
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