Derek's Tracker TX-17 rebuild

[Derek]

I have 2 batteries and 12 gallon tank. One battery (group 27 ~57lbs) for the gas motor and the 12 gallons of fuel (~72lbs when full) are in the rear most compartment. One battery (group 31 ~64lbs) for the trolling motor is in the front left compartment. I also have my tackle up front too. Which is the next heaviest thing in the boat, well other then myself :roll: . Nothing else is really "heavy".
Biggest problem with moving the other battery forward is it would require me to re-wire alot of my boat. I would also have to pull my boat apart to get the gas tank up front.
Would a hydrofoil help with porpoising? I have no problem getting on plane, which is what I though the purpose of a hydrofoil was. It porpoises after I'm on plane.

 

[Flatbotm]

They claim to help with porposing but I don't know from experience. One came on my 35 hp rude so I'm going to try it with and without to see what the effects are.

 

[mmf]

Darek, they will help with porposing but everyone of them I have put on, I lost some top end speed......

 

[Smokey496]

Lpp

 

[clarego]

still considering moving the batterys up front. i know i have to play with all the wiring if i want them gauges to work. i think this will be a winter project for sure :wink:

 

[Derek]

The porpoising goes away with a person sitting on the front deck, so I'm thinking I need to move more weight forward. I'm wondering if moving the trolling motor battery to under the front deck will help enough. Biggest problem with that is I currently need to remove the battery to charge it. So easy access is a must.

Also installed a radio in the boat. A friend gave me an old car CD player he had laying around in his garage. I made 2 simple angle brackets and mounted the unit under my console out of the weather. Picked up a set of 6.5" marine speakers by Boss. I mounted them under the seats facing into the floor area of the boat, they sound great. Also picked up a universal antenna from the parts store. I didn't want anything sticking up to get my lures caught on. But I found that the radio came in almost as clearly with the antenna laying on the deck. I currently have it just tucked in along the outside of the console and extending under my motor controls. Receives signal with no problems.

 

[Jonboat Jerry]

Nice ride Derek, sleek lines, very good work. =D>
The salvage work on the windshield was creative too.
If you have space under the console, an antenna can be mounted upside down as well.

 

[Derek]

Thanks Jerry. Good to know I could mount it upside down. I would have to cut it shorter tho as my console is not very tall.

 

[clarego]

starting to run into issues first i need to get my tracker in to get winterize it will be stored in a unheated garage, second im loosing pressure my outboard slowly creeps down when using just the trolling motor. my rpm's show on the dash(thats it). anyone know where to start looking for wiring problems ? should i winterize it myself or take it to the garage for almost 100 bucks ? it gets cold here in pa so im not sure if i need to antifreeze it
any help would be well appreciated
thanks

 

[Derek]

Its getting close to time to winterize mine as well. I also store mine in an unheated/uninsulated garage. I plan to run the motor out of fuel and fog the carbs and the cylinders. Make sure to drain all the water out of it. You shouldn't need antifreeze if you make sure to drain the water. Replace the lower unit oil. Stabilize the fuel. I will also be pulling mine off the boat this winter so I have a motor stand. You don't want to lay the motor down in the winter.

 

[mmf]

About winterization, when I worked for a marine dealer and our training on Mercury outboards, we did this when storing an outboard, add stabil to the gas tank and ran motor till warm, then unplugged the fuel line to empty the carb bowls, when the motor started to speed up (running lean) right before the gas runs out, we fogged the crap out of the carbs. When the motor stops, the motor was tilted up and when cooled, removed the spark plugs and added 1 tablespoon outboard motor oil per cylinder and rotated the flywheel by hand to distribute the oil. After this gearcase was drained and refilled and NEW gaskets put on the vent and fill screws (most owners DO NOT do this). Then we greased the entire outboard especially the tilt tube, pivot, and linkages, then the motor was tilted back down to a verticle position. Small pockets of water can be trapped in the powerhead etc if the motor is not verticle. DO NOT, especially on a boat left OUTSIDE, tilt the motor up during the winter!

 

[Derek]

Well its that time of year again. Going to be going through the boat this winter to do some things I wish I had done last year, and some new things that have come up. First order of business is to get the hull solid and leak free. I have a couple areas on the boat where small stress cracks have started forming from the rivet holes. I plan to have these cracks welded up.

2 weeks ago I pulled most of the boat apart. Disconnected all the wiring, everything was plugs/connectors. Pulled the console out, then portions of the front deck and compartments. Lastly the floor and foam underneath. Disconnected the motor and removed the trolling motor.

Last weekend we pulled the motor off, put it on the stand for some maintenance this winter. We then flipped the boat so I could inspect for cracks. My father and I then re-bucked every rivet we could get to.

Plans for the winter:
- Get the hull welded (still have to find who I am going to have do it)
- Steelflex the bottom of the hull to seal it all up. I'm thinking black steelflex
- Remove decals and paint the upper half of the boat. Still undecided on color.
- Maintenance on Johnson 70hp
- tach and other gauges for the motor
- New seating
- rerun some wiring, add interior lighting
- New springs/mounts and new bunks for the trailer
- on the wish list is power tilt/trim

 

[mmf]

Good luck on your updates and repairs brother!

 

[got2fish]

Wow, good looking build. I was just wondering, with everything included, how much did it cost you to rebuild this? I am planning on purchasing this type of boat and restoring it like you did. Let me know. Thanks.

 

[clarego]

i did follow your suggestions mmf and sorry about the delays its getting close to get her out and fire her up again maybe start looking into some modification. for one move some weight up front 2 i like the idea of getting it alumnium weld all over i may have a place just going to be a problem with the cash now

 

[Derek]

Sanding and decal removal is going slow, making it slower is the boat is stored about 1:20 away from me during the winter. Took me 2.5 hrs to remove the tracker decal down one side. ](*,) More sanding was done also. Steelflex and hopefully paint within 2 weeks is my goal.

 

[Derek]

Well I did not get as much as I wanted done this weekend, for multiple reasons. Anyway my cousin sprayed the sides of the boat Friday night. Etching primer, sealer, paint and 2 coats of clear. Painted to match my Dodge. I have the boat taped off and the bottom prepared for the steel flex. Hopefully I can do it this coming week.

 

[fool4fish1226]

Thats a nice paint job =D>

 

[dyeguy1212]

Nice! Lets see some more pictures of the paint job!

 

[Derek]

That is the only one I took. I will take more when i do the steel flex