My baby!(!!!MORE PICS ADDED!!!)

Well guys/gals I just joined this week and wanted to get some pics of my baby. The only digital ones I could find so are of the ones the first week I had her. Many mods have been added and I'm going to get some pics up of those really soon. Only thing I added was the registration #'s/tags.

I just love this site and think I might be on the search for another project!

These were taken 5 years ago. Enjoy!

2003 Xpress 1650VJ - Mercury 25 horse, 4 stroke








Dave

Thanks for posting the pics!

Cant wait to see what you have done to it. It looks so nice and new like that, the way it was.

That's strange. I typed a post to this thread and then clicked submit and lo and behold, Jim had a post and mine is nowhere to be found. What are you doing to me Jim?

flounderhead59 said:

That's strange. I typed a post to this thread and then clicked submit and lo and behold, Jim had a post and mine is nowhere to be found. What are you doing to me Jim?

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Quick draw jim!

Yeah, but where did my post go? It's floating around in cyberspace waiting to land on some unsuspecting post?

Anyhow, I was asking about the way the line is on the anchors. Is there a fast/easy way to get the line off? I wrap mine around the vertical part and just slide it off. That usually results in kinks though.

flounderhead59
Is there a fast/easy way to get the line off? I wrap mine around the vertical part and just slide it off. That usually results in kinks though.

Click to expand...

I've since altered that with a very simple fix. Go to your local hardware store and pick up a couple 99 cent extension cord holders. Just like these, works like a charm for wrapping your anchor ropes.

Great looking ride! =D>

Good idea Dave!

Great looking rig! 8) Also like the anchor line idea!

Well I made it out to the lake today only to battle whitecaps and 22mph winds but I did manage to boat my first largie of the year on my favorite lure, a Rat-L-Trap! You'd of thought I was KVD or Ike out there after hooking up with the 16inch monster! I was excited to say the least. :lol:

Any I wanted to get some updated pics of the boat and provide a list of mods to help others with their builds so here goes.

Motor - Stock, I'm by no means an outboard mechanic!

Trailer - Glide on Bunk Slides, Grip tape on trailer tongue, polyurethane front roller

Boat - Since my boat was just a piece of aluminum and the only extra parts were the plug I had a lot of work to do, all done on my own. Here we go!

Electrical -
- Minn Kota 40lbs Power drive Bow Mount, quick disconnect bracket, 12 volt TM plug,
- Vexliar FL18 bow mount w/tm transducer,
- Humminbird Piranha 210 Rear mount Graph w/temp, suction cup transducer mount, no holes in this boat!
- Minn Kota dual bank on-board charger.
- 4 button switch panel
- Front and rear running lights
- 12 volt aux plug in

Non-Electrical-
- Grip tape on front deck, fell 2 times, that was enough of that.
- 4 Anchor holders
- Front Deck carpeted
- Flooring w/carpet
- two cargo nets
- Two custom locking battery\storage boxes
- Platform for toolbox and gas tank
- 4 spot rod holder
- 2 single rod/net holders
- Two fishing seats, 1 bass seat
- 46" Fish Measurer sticker, back deck
- Anchor holders, lead rope holder(ext cord holders)
- Padlocks for motor, conventional outboard locks do not work on some 4 strokes.
- Two Cabelas(Scotty) Rod Holders

There's probably more but that's what I can think of so far. Here are some pics.










Dave

Very nice Dave! =D>

Congrats on the first fish also! :beer:

nice boat
I have the same TM and bracket,I drilled another hole in the bracket that stays on the boat about 5 inches back.I can now pull the TM back so it doesn't overhang the bow when trailoring or docked.On mine I thought the TM might hit the winch when docking(loading) so I gave that a try;only a bit of the skag overhangs the bow now.

Great looking boat Dave. How do you like that TM? Any drawbacks? Do you like it as much as a cable steer? I am looking at TM's for my jon and I have no experience with the Power Drives or wireless.

phased said "How do you like that TM?"

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I've run both models, cable drive and power drive. The reason I went with what I have is it's what my dad has always had and it's what I was used to.

Now having said that I do like the responsiveness of the cable drive, the downfall with the cable drive for me is the foot control. The foot controls on Minn Kota cables drives is a beast of a thing, stands between 6-8 inches tall, this is ok if you sit and fish all day long. I however am known to stand for hours on end casting and since I don't have a huge front deck I like to keep both of my feet as close to the floor as possible. With the cable drive you will have to lift your foot up while standing to control the boat. With the power drive control like I have you can just slide your foot on and off of the control without the chance of loosing your balance.

If I could cut a whole in my front deck and recess the foot control for a cable drive like a lot of bass boats have, I might go that route, for now I'll stick with my PD.

Let me know if I can answer any other questions.

Dave

only thing that took awhile to get used to on the power drive was;it's alittle noisy...on calm days I still notice it
is yours noisy?...bought mine 2nd hand maybe it's just mine

Mine rattles a little with the bracket when running my big motor. I'm sure I could fix it with a little shim but it hasn't drove me crazy enough yet to bother.

As far as the motor sounds, mine is pretty quite.

thanks Dave, my situation is that I put a floor in my jon instead of a high deck. I have had both hips replaced so I was concerned about getting up and down a lot to reach over the side of the boat. Having said that...I am concerned that the cable on a cable controlled motor might not make the bend down to the floor without putting it in a bind. I don't know how long the cables are or how flexible. I read a review somewhere on a powerdrive type motor that you have to stop the prop then turn then start the prop back again. Is this true or will it steer and drive at the same time?

Phased, sounds like you might be better off with the PD model as the cable drive is not very long to the foot pedal and probably would not be good to have it at such an angle possibly causing binding. (Power Drive foot cord to pedal it 18 ft, I can run mine from the back of my 16ftr)

As far as starting and stopping the power drive when changing directions I don't think that it too accurate. I've had my motor for 5 years now and I often times, meaning most of the time, turn it to continuous and just keep changing directions. No problems yet, that is what they are made to do. Go with the power drive, I think you'll be happy. Also depending on the size of TM you want, check your local Wal-Mart, they usually carry 40 & sometimes 55 lb thrust motors and if you watch for sometime they will include the quick release bracket.

Let me know if you have any other questions, I'm happy to help.

Dave

Thanks again Dave. I was really concerned about the flexibility of the cable drive. Looks like I will be "boosting" our economy with the purchase of a PowerDrive unit.