Took delivery last Friday and have been installing a chart-plotter and getting familiar with things before we take to the water tomorrow, wx permitting in NE Florida.
This is not our first pontoon. We had a Sun Tracker 24' Party Barge back in the early 1990's but sold it to get an off shore boat. Now we're older and my knees and back can't take the pounding so we decided to get another pontoon. The fishing platform on this boat fits our needs perfectly for river and inland lake fishing and cruising.
I just had a chance to look at the covering and uncovering video so many of those questions and tips have been mostly covered.
Some questions:
I have a Mighty Mite anchor and 150' of line with 15' of chain. Probably overkill but the Saint Johns river around Jacksonville has a wicked tidal flow and the wind can also be tough.
** On that thought... Where do most folks stow the anchor? On the other boat I kept the line, chain, and anchor in a tall kitchen type trash can and lashed it to a railing. The top rails on this boat don't have clearance for the line to go between them and the side panels.
** The lockable compartment door at the helm is a waste. Why lock a compartment that's accessible by lifting the seat in front of the helm?
** The standard steering cable sure makes steering in a turn tough. Has anyone upgraded to a hydraulic, no feedback system? If so, at what cost?
** The courtesy light on the side of the helm is always on when either NAV or Anchor lights are on. Can it be turned off or do I need to add an on/off switch at the light?
** Battery?? Of course the dealership installed a small start battery but I don't trust it to run the chart-plotter, stereo, and the live-well pump when the engine is shut down for any period of time. I'm thinking about getting a marine AGM but don't know what group size would be preferred.
** Upholstery treatment... I get 1 gallon jugs of Starbrite water proofing and spray on the awning of the RV. Should that work well or is something else preferred?
** Prop size/pitch... It came with an aluminum 13 3/4" x 15 pitch prop from the dealer. Not looking for a speedboat but want to be sure the 115 Yamaha can tach out to the preferred RPM of, I think, 5800. I think my previous Yamaha 250 4 stroke would tack out at 6200 if trimmed properly. I was told to run this boat with the trim down as it doesn't have any real effect when trimmed up like a v-hull boat.
I know that's a lot for now and there will probably be more after a few trips to the water but thanks for any and all inputs.
This is not our first pontoon. We had a Sun Tracker 24' Party Barge back in the early 1990's but sold it to get an off shore boat. Now we're older and my knees and back can't take the pounding so we decided to get another pontoon. The fishing platform on this boat fits our needs perfectly for river and inland lake fishing and cruising.
I just had a chance to look at the covering and uncovering video so many of those questions and tips have been mostly covered.
Some questions:
I have a Mighty Mite anchor and 150' of line with 15' of chain. Probably overkill but the Saint Johns river around Jacksonville has a wicked tidal flow and the wind can also be tough.
** On that thought... Where do most folks stow the anchor? On the other boat I kept the line, chain, and anchor in a tall kitchen type trash can and lashed it to a railing. The top rails on this boat don't have clearance for the line to go between them and the side panels.
** The lockable compartment door at the helm is a waste. Why lock a compartment that's accessible by lifting the seat in front of the helm?
** The standard steering cable sure makes steering in a turn tough. Has anyone upgraded to a hydraulic, no feedback system? If so, at what cost?
** The courtesy light on the side of the helm is always on when either NAV or Anchor lights are on. Can it be turned off or do I need to add an on/off switch at the light?
** Battery?? Of course the dealership installed a small start battery but I don't trust it to run the chart-plotter, stereo, and the live-well pump when the engine is shut down for any period of time. I'm thinking about getting a marine AGM but don't know what group size would be preferred.
** Upholstery treatment... I get 1 gallon jugs of Starbrite water proofing and spray on the awning of the RV. Should that work well or is something else preferred?
** Prop size/pitch... It came with an aluminum 13 3/4" x 15 pitch prop from the dealer. Not looking for a speedboat but want to be sure the 115 Yamaha can tach out to the preferred RPM of, I think, 5800. I think my previous Yamaha 250 4 stroke would tack out at 6200 if trimmed properly. I was told to run this boat with the trim down as it doesn't have any real effect when trimmed up like a v-hull boat.
I know that's a lot for now and there will probably be more after a few trips to the water but thanks for any and all inputs.
