Tinny on a budget

[yepi'mon]

Looks like a good blank canvas mate... something that you can customise to suit your style of fishing as you get a bit more experience. I.e rod holders, rod storage, bait board, tacos etc etc.

I'm no expert in boats or motors but to me it looks like everything is very clean and well assembled. If someone takes care in putting things together you can generally assume that they have taken care with the things you might not be able to see.

My only query on the motor would be that you don't seem to be getting a lot of water/a constant stream of water out of the tell tale. This could be that you simply aren't getting enough water pressure through the hose but it could also mean your impeller is shot. It's pretty common and is an easy fix. Again, I am no expert and it could just be that it is hard to see in the video.... but you should be getting a constant stream. Other than that the motor sounds ok to me!

Congrats and good luck mate.

[efendy]

Looks like a good blank canvas mate... something that you can customise to suit your style of fishing as you get a bit more experience. I.e rod holders, rod storage, bait board, tacos etc etc.

I'm no expert in boats or motors but to me it looks like everything is very clean and well assembled. If someone takes care in putting things together you can generally assume that they have taken care with the things you might not be able to see.

My only query on the motor would be that you don't seem to be getting a lot of water/a constant stream of water out of the tell tale. This could be that you simply aren't getting enough water pressure through the hose but it could also mean your impeller is shot. It's pretty common and is an easy fix. Again, I am no expert and it could just be that it is hard to see in the video.... but you should be getting a constant stream. Other than that the motor sounds ok to me!

Congrats and good luck mate.

Thank you for the response mate, much appreciated.

Yes, absolutely it's got the basics and being a runabout it doesn't have any extensive rod holders part from 3 rod holders the bloke installed. For starters I will get two three way rod holders. I also consider a bimini top and a rocket launcher but I read mixed opinions on bimini tops for fishing boats.
First and foremost, I think I need to get a fish finder and would love to hear opinions on this for one that wouldn't break the bank.

I would also change the layout of the seats to make it more suitable for fishing - again would love to hear opinions about this.

yes, he came across a genuine person with very good attention to detail. He straight told me there were soft spots on the bottom of the boat when he first bought it and they fixed it - this shows that he is happy with his work as he wasn't reluctant to mention the condition of the boat when he first bought it.

Regarding the water not coming out of the tell tale. I had moderate pressure but I know the motor should pull the water, right? It could be the impeller as you said. I'll try again with more pressure again and see if I get water.
Very good point, thank you!

[yepi'mon]

Thank you for the response mate, much appreciated.

Yes, absolutely it's got the basics and being a runabout it doesn't have any extensive rod holders part from 3 rod holders the bloke installed. For starters I will get two three way rod holders. I also consider a bimini top and a rocket launcher but I read mixed opinions on bimini tops for fishing boats.
First and foremost, I think I need to get a fish finder and would love to hear opinions on this for one that wouldn't break the bank.

I would also change the layout of the seats to make it more suitable for fishing - again would love to hear opinions about this.

yes, he came across a genuine person with very good attention to detail. He straight told me there were soft spots on the bottom of the boat when he first bought it and they fixed it - this shows that he is happy with his work as he wasn't reluctant to mention the condition of the boat when he first bought it.

Regarding the water not coming out of the tell tale. I had moderate pressure but I know the motor should pull the water, right? It could be the impeller as you said. I'll try again with more pressure again and see if I get water.
Very good point, thank you!

No worries mate!

Our first boat was a Pride 4.3m runabout so very similar to the boat you have. You will probably find that space becomes a premium, especially if you have more than 1 person on the boat. My first priorities if I was in your situation would be to install some rod holders so that you don't have to travel with rods on the ground. No doubt they will get damaged that way.

If you plan to fish by yourself, then you will be able to make use of the 2 way rod holders (can only use 4 rods max anyway) but you might find with 3 people in the boat it's going to be pretty chaotic with 6 rods running.

Shade is going to be important for you, especially if you have a little one and your old man out there with you. When the suns out on a boat, it can really start to sting. I would definitely look at getting some sort of shade if you plan to spend more than an hour out on the boat. Whatever you do, make sure that it's elevated enough that it's not going to become more of a nuisance than a benefit. Your boat is very shallow so when you stand, you will find that you are high up. Our old pride had a little shade thing that extended of the windscreen. It was pretty much useless unless you wanted to crouch under it.

In regards to the rocket launchers... I wouldn't bother on this boat if it was me. Some upright rod holders (for storage / travel)on the side rails would do fine. I'd invest in a bait board at the back of the boat as that's one thing that you won't have to do on your lap. Ideally you could run a combined bait board/rod holder (for fishing) setup at the back of the boat which would make everything nice and clean. It will cost you more than buying some cheap 3 way rod holders but will work much better.

Basically, anything you can remove from the deck area of the boat is going to make it all that much easier to fish!

The motor should pull the water but if you don't have enough water to pull, then it's not going to get enough! The stream should be pretty constant.

As for the fish finder, I'd hold of on it for awhile. If you aren't going out to far in the bay then you should be able to see the sea floor so you can find your own weed patches, fall off's etc.

[Boonanza]

The boat looks ok but your impeller is gone and running the motor as long as you did will only kill it. I would recommend taking it to a proper mechanic for an inspection. This might be an expensive lesson

[ducky]

The hull itself looks very clean. The amount of un-glassed painted timber in it is a bit of a worry. Make sure no where structural is like that. Should be fine as a first boat to do your apprenticeship on.

[efendy]

No worries mate!

Our first boat was a Pride 4.3m runabout so very similar to the boat you have. You will probably find that space becomes a premium, especially if you have more than 1 person on the boat. My first priorities if I was in your situation would be to install some rod holders so that you don't have to travel with rods on the ground. No doubt they will get damaged that way.

If you plan to fish by yourself, then you will be able to make use of the 2 way rod holders (can only use 4 rods max anyway) but you might find with 3 people in the boat it's going to be pretty chaotic with 6 rods running.

Shade is going to be important for you, especially if you have a little one and your old man out there with you. When the suns out on a boat, it can really start to sting. I would definitely look at getting some sort of shade if you plan to spend more than an hour out on the boat. Whatever you do, make sure that it's elevated enough that it's not going to become more of a nuisance than a benefit. Your boat is very shallow so when you stand, you will find that you are high up. Our old pride had a little shade thing that extended of the windscreen. It was pretty much useless unless you wanted to crouch under it.

In regards to the rocket launchers... I wouldn't bother on this boat if it was me. Some upright rod holders (for storage / travel)on the side rails would do fine. I'd invest in a bait board at the back of the boat as that's one thing that you won't have to do on your lap. Ideally you could run a combined bait board/rod holder (for fishing) setup at the back of the boat which would make everything nice and clean. It will cost you more than buying some cheap 3 way rod holders but will work much better.

Basically, anything you can remove from the deck area of the boat is going to make it all that much easier to fish!

The motor should pull the water but if you don't have enough water to pull, then it's not going to get enough! The stream should be pretty constant.

As for the fish finder, I'd hold of on it for awhile. If you aren't going out to far in the bay then you should be able to see the sea floor so you can find your own weed patches, fall off's etc.

All suggestions have been taken on board with appreciation mate. Thank you!

Regarding not getting any water from the tell tale. I contacted the person who sold it to me. he said he didn't have any similar problems but suggested that sometimes insects might block it. I also read similar things on the net. I opened the cover and removed the tubing between the head(?) and the tell tale after finding out the tell tale was blocked with sand. The tubing also had some sand in it but not much. I cleaned both and started it again and water started to come from the tell tale. I touched the head, and it was cool to touch.
Below is the video:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/k6l3r57micuuq ... 6.mp4?dl=0

I don't know if the idle should sound like that though!

Just for clarification, Getting a mechanic to look at the motor was planned for next week but just wanted to start it to see if it did
Special thanks to you to realise the problem and let me know! I really owe you one!
Cheers

[efendy]

The boat looks ok but your impeller is gone and running the motor as long as you did will only kill it. I would recommend taking it to a proper mechanic for an inspection. This might be an expensive lesson

Turned out there was a lot of sand in the tubing going thorough the tell tale including the tell tale itself. It's good to see I didn't completely kill it :super:

I was going to take it to a mechanic next week anyway but wanted to see if it started!
Cheers

[efendy]

The hull itself looks very clean. The amount of un-glassed painted timber in it is a bit of a worry. Make sure no where structural is like that. Should be fine as a first boat to do your apprenticeship on.

Yeah, good point. I think they only had the timber on the sides and for under the seat. I didn't see any structural painted timber but I'll check it again.
Yes, that's the idea. something cheap to learn boating with. Hope I won't get much headache with the motor.
Cheers

[yepi'mon]

Looks much better to me mate! Well done on working out the fix!

[efendy]

Looks much better to me mate! Well done on working out the fix!

Thanks to you mate, thanks to you!