borderline 350

Dear Ray K and other Deep Draft boat owners, Dear Ray, The guy that pushes the buttons for waterflow and level was probably affected "by the NYS budget problems". You can only react to the present low water levels. I have to believe that come next spring, life could get real miserable for trailer boats & fisherman. My recent observations (Sept. 22) of Pultneyville harbor indicate that any BOAT trying to enter with a North/NE wind and 2 footers will bottom out and sustain hull damage or worse. Yes...Lake Ontario is very lowwww!!! Braddock Bay Channel, Sandy Ponds on the East End etc. will be close to bike paths........if we have another short winter and warm spring.............X-Jet Boat Bill

Dear Moon Shine, This type of repair will test any/all of your boat wrench...fabrication skills. It requires engine removal and outdrive major removal..(inner & outer transom removal) etc. ..............Of course you can cut the entire transom around the drive and remove the entire drive line..ala Florida salvage style.....but you lose the mounting hole locations and the front motor mounts locations....NG. THEN you have to cut a new transom hole etc. with factory fixture or a lot of "Kentucky windage"!!!! The best way is to remove all the mechanicals and take it to a boat repair shop that specializes in transom repair. None of this is easy, fast or cheap. Correct transom repair will exceed the value of the boat. This is a major $$$$ repair that will test your wallet and patience. If you are retired and have a lot of free time....give it a go! But I would rather go fishing then replace a transom! ....Respectfully submitted.....X-Jet Boat Bill

Dear NitroMusky, Thank you for pointing out the "new" ST trailer tire speed rating of 65 MPH. HOWEVER, the RMA that states that this is the MAXIMUM SPEED!!! Goodyear may claim you can run faster with higher tire pressure, but my example clearly shows that you are rolling the dice!! P.S. My info on speeds was from 2005 info! Example: In 2006 trailered my 3700 lb. boat, 7200 GVW Shorelander trailer, 900 lbs net, with ST 205/75/14 Goodyear Marathons to SW Florida and back, using I95 and I75. Speeds were 65 to 70 MPH towing and several blizzards encountered in March. South bound trip was event free. North bound trip was a NASCAR tire change event Had 3 tires blow before North Carolina and the fourth one blistered a side wall and went flat upon arriving in my driveway. Three of these were made in China Goodyear Marathons. The fouth one was made in USA. The new owner of my rig put 4 Made in USA Goodyear ST radials on and hasn't had any problems. My final opinion is ST rated tires are another cost down feature brought on by the tire industry and trailer mfg's. LT rated tires can be used on boat trailers and should be used by anyone doing long distance trailering......Respectfully Submitted....X-Jet Boat Bill

Dear Trailer tire users!, Trailer tires are only rated for 55 MPH. Speeds above this drastically lower a trailer tires life, especially those rated LOAD RANGE B. Try to buy load range C for replacements. The bigger boat rigs should have LOAD RANGE D. And yes, they cost ......more. Weigh your rig loaded some time and most people would be shocked to see how far overweight, their trolling rig is! If you have a rough riding trailer, it probably is an aluminum boat. The only solution is to take out one spring leaf on each side. Which I did...and run a load range C tire @ 50 lbs pressure. Normally recommended 70 PSI on load range C...unless you have torsion axles and then you can't remove a spring leaf. ... Respectfully submitted....X-Jet Boat Bill

Dear HB, If there is a discoloration line thru the black coating in the short stop board, Your unit may have been hit by LIGHTNING! If the motor works in both directions by jumping to to a 12V source. I would try the switch in the circuit with a good 12 V battery. An ohm meter will show you continuity, but the internal contact terminals may be burned. The Delco motor takes a 10 AMP draw so if the internal switch contacts are bad,....no go! ....I have repaired several of the early black case MAG 10's that took a LIGHTNING hit including three on my old boat. When properly assembled with no worn shaft or bushings...The unit should operate very quietly! I am afraid your past due for major maintainence...........Respectfully Submitted....X-Jet Boat Bill P.S. Dear Ray K,.... Black case (SK Company) Mag 10's had the shortstop feature in 1986. I have not seen white case Mag 10's with the SS features. And when I fix the first mistake I made.....no one will know!!

Dear Has been, The internal circuit board only controls the short stop "UP" feature. I would suspect the switch termination or the switch itself. Use extreme care, as internal parts for these old Cannons are not available. The rigger plug terminals have been eaten away on many of these old cannons also. ............Respectfully Submitted.....X-Jet boat Bill

Dear Machzrcr,....Sent you a PM....X-Jet Boat Bill 11:40 AM Thursday

Dear BT80, The primary reason for melting a battery ground terminal is caused by very high resistance in the ground cable. If the cable end melts, replace the entire ground cable and be sure that you have clean bright contact bolts & unpainted contact areas. When you get the old cable off, check the resistance value with an Ohm meter. SHOULD BE ZERO OHMS resistance...bend the cable in several places while watching the ohm meter, any fluctuations tell you that the cable needs to be replaced. Check your new cable before you install it and it should be ZERO OHMS resistance. Use #2 marine battery cable for a replacement. I get to see one or more bad ground cables every year on 1990 and earlier boats. Such melting conditions can easily cause a fire or worse! ...Respectfully Submitted....X-Jet Boat Bill

Dear Jack, If these are just pencil marks(Graphite pencil) Spray Nine should work well. If marks are from a "Sharpie or permanent marker" try acetone or lacquer thinner. But the porosity of the HDPE Starboard material may be defeating any kind of good cleanup.....Respectfully Submitted....X-Jet Boat Bill

Dear Saeva, The quantity of white "pancake batter" in your pictures and crank case indicate that you almost surely have a substanial crack/s in the engine block. Definitely have a discussion with the person who "winterized" this engine. Just draining the petcocks w/o unplugging internal sand blocks AND adding antifreeze can lead to only one side of the block cracking also! Blown head gaskets usually show as an engine skip first, but rarely show PANCAKE BATTER in the crankcase. This stuff comes from the crankshaft "whipping large quantities of water and oil together. And this starboard engine may be reverse rotation depending on what transmission is behind it. Sorry to hear your situation. Respectfully submitted....Ex-Jet Boat Bill P.S. Check your transmission oil on that engine also! That has an internal trans cooler if it's a Volvo MS4. If the trans. oil has water in it, they missed getting antifreeze pass the cooler! If that is cracked......call your attorney.....

Dear Hank, Excellent timing on the warning! Forecast for tonite is a hard freeze! 24 degrees!! And the wind will blow 10 to 20 out of the NorthWest.The trailable guys better have it well drained and a wire up the drain holes to be sure that a sand plug is not holding any water!! My bird bath was frozen this morning and I am only 3/4 mile from Lake Ontario!....Respectfully submitted.....X-Jet Boat Bill

Dear Early In........your risking a lot of very expensive equipment and they will freeze up "IN THE WATER" Seen it happen in mid April @ Sodus Bay.....if the wind blows and the outside temp. is 28 F. It happened last winter in the SOUTHERN STATES NC, SC, GEORGIA....They never use antifreeze, they never had freeze problems....until last YEAR. Go ahead, trust MOTHER NATURE....but not until Mid-April and you had better run to the Marina when they forecast COLD weather. Miss that day and your engine & manifolds will be FUBAR! See it all the time. Even had a I/O bell housing crack due to water trapped in the line! .....Miss one drain plug due to sand blocking the exit hole and that side of the block will crack! ..............I love the early fishing too, but it requires extreme care of equipment.......Respectfully submitted....X-Jet Boat Bill

Dear Captain VP, That gives me about 9 hours to formulate a real "winner of a question" !!! Maybe I just will listen in and not be a kibitzer!!!! Good luck on the radio show!! Sincerely, Ex-Jet Boat Bill ......or "What do I do if I get seasick trolling parallel to 8 ft. waves?????

Dear JD, More important then spark plug maker is the oil type and BRAND for trolling with 2 cycles. The Yamaha oil & Mercruiser oil is the cleanest burning in my experience. And gives the longest spark plug life! ...before fouling! Try different brands of oil until you find the one that burns the cleanest. (Visually examine the plugs for deposits also). Respectfully submitted, ....Ex-Jet Boat Bill

Dear Rugger, A Teleflex hydraulic helm with the ST1000 is just the ticket for steering and fishing auto-pilot. Have installed 3 of the ST1000's and two teleflex hyd. helm pumps. The teleflex helm brings steering effort down to near zero effort. While the cost is higher then push/pull cables, it will absolutely astound you on the ease of steering. Maximum performance for your money. ST-1000 easily connects with Tee-fittings during installation. Respectfully submitted,.....Ex-Jet Boat Bill

Dear Rolmops, Si-Tex has reorganized and regouped. Their sales & Service is now located on Long Island, N. Y. (No longer in Clearwater, Florida) Their phone numbers are on their website. Call them and ask if parts and repairs are available for that particular model number. Ted Botmann can answer your questions or give you to a "Tech/Repair person. I do not have a 800 number for them. You have to call them on your dime! Their professional line of equipment is targeted for the commercial fisherman..... As far as anything made in USA electronic fishing equipment. Haven't seen any since the beginning! Taiwan, Japan, England etc. actually from all over the globe and assembled MAYBE in the USA. Only thing made in USA are the transducers...AIRMAR... and they buy components from all over the world. Welcome to the world of multi-national sourcing.......about 1981!!!....Respectfully submitted....Ex-Jet Boat Bill

Dear IDN, The mercury is not ELEMENTAL mercury. It is a complex compound that exists in the fish and is considered beneficial by some experts. This type of compund has been found in L. O.fish specimens datng back to 1890 to 1900! The PCB's are so low in parts per billion that it takes expert analysis labs to agree on several results before they issue a report. These very trace amounts IN MY OPINION are being used by environmental extremeists to further their own agendas. I.E. DEC Commisioner Peter Berle shutting down the LO salmon fishery in the 1970's to protect the "public". ......I eat the fish I catch after very carefull cleaning & trimming. That includes Chinook, Rainbows, Brown's & smallmouth bass, perch & walleye. I do not like the taste of the Lake Trout, so they stay in the lake.....since the 1940's.....Ex-Jet Boat Bill

Dear Fellow fishermen, Anybody see the pictures of the latest HUGE PIKE from Rainy Lake in Canada...new record 50+ lbs??? Or has photoshop struck again?? Will try to upload the pics tomorrow. Ex-Jet Boat Bill

Anyone who wants to see a fox/coyote contest of the highest order should visit the GCL Club in Penfield, NY this Sunday at 1:00 PM. Park wherever you can and walk in. It is outside, so come dressed for the weather. It will open your eyes to how many coyotes are out there! P.S. You will only get to see the Contest.... results....... Get IT!!

Dear Doug, No matter what you buy, go for a ride in one FIRST! Aluminum boats in the NorthWest US Style are very rugged built and have many different bottom shapes and intended uses. You should look for a combo bottom...Lake & Bay style bottom usually a 12 to 15 degree aft "V"deadrise. A lot of the western river boats are set up with very flat bottoms (called sled bottoms) with 1/4 inch thick HDPE bolted to the 3/16 or 1/4" thickness aluminum bottom. This is for traversing gravel bars!! Your choice of Twin outboards is the way to go for minimum weight and high performance for your intended use. An aluminum western style boat is not light! Almost as heavy as a comparable fiberglass boat. An aluminum boat such as Hewes, Duckworth etc. will last your lifetime. Most of the fiberglass boats from the 1980's have many hull problems and aging problems. The aluminum plate boats are readily repairable and will survive almost any collision. Example: I hit the sunken verticle end of a 6 inch diameter bridge piling at 30 MPH in the Upper Genesse River. Had four people aboard including another Captain friend. The hit was on the port side half way up to the chine. We examined the bottom after putting it back on the trailer. The only evidence of contact was a shiny mark from stem to stern. No visible or physical deformation could be found! The boat came out of the water about a foot and came down straight...luckily no one was injured but the 15 mile trip back to the launch ramp was very nervous for everyone! A fiberglass boat would have a huge hole in it!! This was a 23' ft. Stanley/Connors Industries hull that I had built in 1998 in Parry Sound Ontario, Canada. They do very nice metal work and have the only rounded transom corners in the Industry.(705-746-5875).....I sold the boat this past spring to another intense boat lover who researched aluminum boats for a year. He couldn't find one east of the Mississippi.....And now the only problem is cost and freight charges. A new one will cost over 100K with engines. Used HD aluminum boats are very very hard to find. I gave up in 1997 and had a hull built. ...And one of the finest fishing boats (in aluminum) built...Stryker...will cost you a winning lottery ticket!.... Respectfull Submitted, Ex Jet Boat Bill

Dear Lund SSS, Comgrats. on a fine shot with open sights! On an ever moving target that is smarter then any other critter in my book. I'll also bet that this coyote suffered loss of hearing just before he died!!( FROM THE MUZZLE BLAST OF THAT S&W HAND CANNON!! Respectfully submitted......EX-Jet Boat Bill

Dear Chowder, I first saw the "Black Cloud" ammo display at the June Pa. State Trap Shoot in Elysburg, Pa. in 2009. The Federal Ammo rep. had pictures of coyotes that had "expired" using "BC". Actual distances and number of pellet counts were displayed. I asked some pointed questions at the time, because of the ammo performance. I would think that the data/pictures are available thru Federal Cartridge Company. The price of this ammo will stop your breathing, but it is the ammo for long range....The US government has some special shotgun ammo that costs around 8.00 a round that video performances have been seen on the internet. ......Respectfully submitted,..... Ex-Jet Boat Bill

Dear Chowder & Users of Black Cloud Ammo, This shotgun load was developed for premium performance on game. The pellets will go THRU a coyote @ 60 YDS. The heavy duty plastic unslit wad stays with the pellets until approx. 40 yards. It performs as designed and is truly a fine unit for long range shotgun performance & costs a very pretty PENNY!.......And now some interesting info on frequent users of this ammo. Some high volume serious waterfowl hunters in the upper Midwest (2500 to 3000 rounds per season) have seen very small internal barrel dents just before the choke area....approx. .005 to .010" in depth. These were in high quality Beretta & Benilli barrels designed for steel shot. Actually feels like very small bumps on the outside of the barrel..(when running your fingers down the outside of the barrel just before the choke area.)...A few instances of this were reported on Trapshooting.com....I would suggest very carefull inspection of your barrel often. This type of barrel damage was very prevalent when steel shot ammo first came out. And remember the Copper sabot warnings from Hastings when used in a rifled barrel!! As far as blowups.......It takes a considerable blockage to blowup a shotgun or the wrong combination of reloading components to burst modern receivers and barrels. Federal makes fine shotgun ammo and the "Black Cloud" ammo is a great product when used as intended.....Respectfully Submitted....Ex-Jet Boat Bill.....150K reloads in my lifetime....

Dear FishTails....Rod, That really has a distinctive good looking profile. You have done a great job. Enjoy the limelight & the oohhhs & Ahhh's from your fishing friends. You have actually improved the profile of a Searay HT. The boat will ride better w/o the bridge and should catch more fish!!! And you won't knock yourself out on the top!!! .....Respectfully submitted....Ex-Jet Boat Bill

Dear Kevin, Sent you a PM with a local phone number.possible source....Ex-Jet Boat Bill