MY2SONS

www.speedymetals.com I've used these guys before. Very fast service, and cheap prices. They will even give discounts to returning customers.

I work at Johnson Controls, and I purchased two blue tops for my boat with my discount. We can buy two per year. Saweeet batteries! Highly recommend them. The can be mounted in an position since they're gel batterys. They won't spill.

:lol:

It depends on how much you use your boat. If you let it set in a slip all season, and only use it on the weekends it will last for a couple seasons. If your a true die hard, and your out a lot during the week too it may require a "smile" application after the first year. The wear areas (bow, sides, etc.) I was going to use VC-17, but it doesn't seem as durable as bottom paint. A few places I checked said the same thing. It is easier to reapply though. A good bottom paint is like a bar of soap. As you move through the water the paint wears off (ablaitive) so you have to apply a touchup coat ever year.

It's no work at all if you have someone else do it. You just need deeper pockets. I had Bowkers Fiberglass repair in Zeeland do mine. He stripped the layers off, applied two coats of epoxy, and sprayed on a coat of Interlux Micron CSC. Looked saweeeet! I highly recommend him for any fiberglass work. He does an awesome job. He repaired some fiberglass damage on my boat and you couldn't even see where the damage was, or where he worked on it even under high powered lights.:thumb:

I use to run LJ's for years, but ever since I tried the Walker's I've shelved the LJ's. Probably won't ever use them again so they may end up on Craigslist.

Oh crap! Don't tell Al Gore. He'll be back up on his soap box again.

I use Interlux Micron CSC on my Baha. It's not cheap ($150.00-$200.00/gallon), but it's worth it. My boat sat in Lake Macatawa all season (brown silty water), and when I pulled it out in the Fall the only growth I had on it was on my trim tabs which weren't covered with paint. That will change this year though as I'll be painting the tops of my tabs as well.

When I started out I had two manual cannon downriggers on my Lund. I used them successfully for a few years while I built up my rod/reel collection. When I went to a bigger boat (17' to 28') I thought it would be better to upgrade to electrics because I would have a wider spread, and flipping a few switches vs. winding up manual DR's would be a lot easier. I liked my manuals unless you went really deep, and you had some false releases.

I would suggest the nylon inserted locking nuts. They won't vibrate loose like a wingnut might. That would really suck. I'd just carry a socket wrench with the right size socket should you want to take them off. JMO. The carriage bolts are round on top so you can't get a good grip on them.

Isn't that day also called "wedding day"?

Let me know how your install goes. If you get a sec some pictures of the final install would be great. I'm especially interested in the quick disconnect fittings on the hydraulic lines.

Welcome aboard. Got any pics of your boat? Love to see 'em

I hope so. It's tough watching friends use your expensive gear when you're driving the boat. Tried a rotation before where each person takes turns driving so we all get a chance to fish. Not the same.

No worries. Thanks! She's put up with me for about 12 years now so she should be use to my addiction by now.

Thanks a lot. I've been trying to find these, but the marina where I was going to purchase them wouldn't give me the part numbers. Probably because they know I could get them a lot cheaper elsewhere.

No, sadly enough she hates my boat. She's only been on it twice since I bought it. Once for the test drive, and once when we took friends out for a cruise.

I'd just make sure your trebles are "sticky sharp". Maybe you can use the single hook as a stinger.

It looks relatively easy to set up. I'm guessing the hardest part is mounting the unit below deck since it can be tight quarters under there. What diameter hydraulic line do you have, and I'd like to find out the part number of the quick disconnects you're using. If mine is the same diameter I'm betting I'd use the same fittings. The outfitter where I was going to get my AP from said the quick disconnects are expensive, but that could be there mark up since they buy them from the local hydraulic supply store in Holland. I'd like some pics on how you set yours up to give me ideas. That would be great. Thanks a lot!

Man, I'm jealous. I'm still trying to convince the wife I need an AP for my rig. She's not buying my argument though. Are you putting quick disconnect fitting s on the hydraulic lines? I was told that it's a good idea because autopilots (doesn't matter what brand) will ultimately have to have the pumps serviced, and the quick disconnects will make removal, and installation a lot easier with minimal oil spillage since the fittings are checked.

My father-in-law bought my wife and I a natural gas powered Generac generator that has an automatic transfer switch about 10 years ago. It runs the whole house witout issues. :thumb:I haven't had any problems with it whatsoever with the exception of the housing rusting some. It has an exercise timer on it where it runs for 10 minutes once a week. I really like it since we live in the country. I see no reason to switch brands when it comes time to replace this unit. There may be better units in some peoples minds, but I can't bitch about this units performance.

I run SS carriage bolts through the tracks (one on each end) with lock nuts on the bottom. The would-be thieves cant get a grip on the round head, and the rod holders, or downriggers won't slide over the top. I've done this for my rod holders, and downriggers so it would be very difficult, and obvious if someone wanted to take them off. They would sure have to work for them. And if they're stealing to begin with they're too damn lazy to work for anything.

Anyone use the Z-Wing downrigger system rather than lead DR weights. Seems like a good concept, but want to hear feedback from those who may have used them.

Marina gas is almost $1.00 more per gallon than on-shore so filling up a BIG boat would be out of the question. It hurts like heck to fill my 28 footer up with twin 60 gallon tanks. OUCH!