Lowe Big John 1648

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toothpick

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I have been looking at this site for a while now, and decided I needed a project. I began looking for a tin boat and found this 1984 Lowe Big John and 1984(I think) 30 HP Evinrude. I had called about a 1448, but it was just sold. The man said his father would sell his boat, so I discussed it and then went to see it and bought it. The old boy who sold it to me fed me a line about how he had bought it intending to go catfishing on the Tennessee River, but worked so much he never got to. Come to find out, he buys, restores and resells boats all the time. Be that as it may, I liked it and bought it. I look forward to modifying it like so many on this site. I would appreciate any suggestions.
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That is a really nice rig. Very clean.

If the seller is into flipping boats, it means he got this one really cheap for some reason or another. Maybe it was just dirty and he cleaned it up. Maybe it was just sitting around for years and someone wanted it gone. Or maybe something else was wrong. As long as it doesn't leak and the motor runs well, I'd say you got a great boat!

Any modification plans, or just leaving it as is?
 
Looks like a great boat. A couple seats, some closed cell foam between the ribs on the floor, and either an Aluminum or Plywood floor and your in buisiness.

30hp should push you along on plane very nicely. I think most 1648's have a max of 30-35. So you should be just right.
 
I haven't decided yet what mods I want to make. Nothing too radical. I'm sure about adding seats and a floor with carpet or vinyl. The only leaks I noticed when I added water to the inside of the boat in the driveway, were a couple where some transducer had been at one time and somewhere inside the livewell. The livewell has a screw plug in the bottom and seems to fit tight, so I don't think the plug is the problem. May be in the corners or around the perimeter inside the livewell. I think I will attempt to fill the perimeter with a clear sealant. If that does it, walla! If not, it's not too difficult to remove it. I know this sounds dumb, but how do you rebuck rivets? I read some of the posts, but haven't gotten the hang of it yet. I tried to hold a mushroom 15lb anchor against the outside of one rivet with my knee while striking the inside of it, only to drop the anchor on my toe, breaking it! Duh! I would appreciate input on this. I liked the way the boat looked when I saw it and felt it was a good platform to begin with. The motor runs great in a garbage can. Haven't taken it out yet. I'll keep reading and watching then formulate a plan for mods. I am thinking about adding a bimini top. Anybody tried that? Mama and I don't need too much sun, as we have both had radiation for tumors, mine Prostate, hers Optic Nerve. Not something I would wish on anyone. Men! Get your Prostate checked. PSA and digital exam. My PSA was misleading and registered good, but my doctor was thorough and found the nodule by digital exam and pursued it and found it contained cancer cells. Early stage, very treatable. Later, not so much!
 
Good looking boat. I have a 1652 Lowe that I put a bimini on. For fishing in open water where you are soaking a bait it worked well. Sitting in the middle of Galveston Bay drifting was when it came in very handy. Although half the time the sun was too low (early morning or late evening) for it to be effective.

Mostly bass fish in fresh water now. The problem got to be the wind and braces. If you are working a trolling motor along a shoreline and wanting to fan cast you really need to work to keep everything lined up or you are slapping the top on your backcast. It can be lowered but that became a pain as well.

I'll use ithe bimini occassionally when we are crappie or catfishing with the wife and kids (and dog); again not alot of precise casting required and the shade is nice.
 
Thanks for the input on the bimini top. I am thinking of mounting it on a sliding track so that it can be moved to the very back when not deployed. I have had one like that on a runabout before and it worked well. I would leave it down unless we were exposed to long periods of sitting in the sun. We are panfishermen 100% of the time(Crappie & Bluegill). I used to cast and blast for Bass, but people got too serious about Bass fishing for me. I still have my bassboat, but have about run out of mods to do to it. It stays in the garage.
 

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