jigstick

Gel Coat Repair I have some spider cracks around a cleat on my 1997 Bayliner Cierra Cruiser. Id like to fill these cracks before water intrudes or they get worse. Looked around online, and it seems I can grind out the spider cracks with a dremel, then fill with gel coat, then wet sand to get a smooth finish? Anybody ever do something like this? Doug

dang. My boat is pushing 4700lbs before gas / tackle / gear.

yeah whats the load rating on those axles? Id be interested if it will support and fit my 22.5ft express cruiser

Terrible day time fishing. cold water, 52*. picked up a few but it was slooooow

going out in a few hours. Will post some updates. Anybody else out recently?

see thats the thing. If I could have the exact boat but 2ft longer and 2ft wider....like the 2452 model of mine, it would be PERFECT. But my current boat works for us, and its easy to tow back and forth from Erie and Ontario. its not "too big" is what I'm getting at. So I'm really thinking it could be worth updating this one the best i can. Ive never looked in to having such extensive work done, and I'm assuming the local marinas aren't going to be capable of this type of overhaul. Are there "ship yards" near Dunkirk, Erie, Buffalo...that do quality work like Im looking for?

Fix or Buy I have a 1997 Bayliner 2252 Sierra Express Cruiser. It has a cuddy with nice interior, head, sink, microwave, etc. Roof. Helm and deck are all in pretty good shape. I had the boat surveyed 2 years ago and was told the boat is in "pretty good shape". That the stringers and transom where "85%" intact. Im assuming thats good? The engine is only 5yrs old with 300hrs on it...Merc V6. The boat is working awesome for my family and fishing style. But I'm torn about what to do . Im always looking at boats, but I'm not really seeing anything like mine that is comparable but more new. Im debating on weather or not to do an overhaul on this boat, and keep it for the long run. Like putting in a new solid composite transom, stringers, hydraulic steering, kicker, and having all the moldings and windows resealed with gaskets etc. for one, where would I take the boat to have work like this done? and what type of cost would be involved with this plan? $5000? $10,000? It may not be worth doing it if it costs that much.

Having two batteries on a boat is one of the most basic safety checks you can have in my opinion. Very few things would suck more than not being able to start your motor because of a truly dead battery. Installing a 2 battery setup and Perko switch is very easy. Use a "starting battery" to turn over the motor, and a "deep cycle" to use while your engine is off. Keep them isolated. And always have power to start your engine.

Looks like Ill be heading out this thursday - sunday. Has anyone been out lately? Marking any fish schools?

Im not familiar with walleye fishing on Ontario, but I can tell you that on Erie, this time of year, you're looking for the post spawn bite. The fish should be fairly shallow at night, and slightly deeper during the day. If they are truly post spawn, you can get into some feeding frenzy. Line diameter and mono vs fluorocarbon may not make as much of a difference. Later in the season walleye on Erie can become a little "line shy" if you ask me. 17lb mono would be way to thick if you ask me. This is the reason that I just spool my entire reels with 12lb Trilene Professional Fluorocarbon. When the walleye get picky I think it definitely helps. Ill use 15lb flouro leader on my dipsy rods. The other small detail that I think has made a difference is which swivel you use. Use good barrel swivels with the smallest snap lock you can find. Like 12-15lb size. Using larger clunky swivels / clasps put a horrible action on stick baits. If your stick baits are running funky the bite seems to go down.

I use Okuma Classic Pro GLT "Downrigger" and "Dipsy" rods. For the price you just can not beat them. They have plenty of backbone to take king salmon, lakers, and steelhead, while having enough action to see light walleye bites. I use these rods on Erie and Ontario. I use a mix of Diawa Accudepths, , Okuma Cold Waters, Magda Pros, and Convectors. All of never given me an issue. I spools my rods with Berkley Trilene 100% Flouro Professional line. It has by far been the best line for me. Seagur was awful

Clear. Ive used purple and black as well, but the Clear ones always seem to catch more fish... regardless of wether its walleye, steel, or salmon

Correct. For cable steered boats you can't use the hydraulic pumps. You need hydraulic steering to do so. Switching completely over to hydraulic steering isn't cheap. But the hydraulic autopilot pumps are EXTREMELY robust and reliable. For cable steered boats you are pretty much left with using the Raymarine Sport Pilot, or an Octopus drive or similar styled product. The Octopus drives have MUCH more substantial motors and clutches compared to the Raymarine Sportpilo. The Sportpilot is super easy to install. If my power assist cylinder was easier to get access to I would have installed an Octopus. But its a **** getting back there on my boat.

In terms of the Octopus drive: The Helm Octopus drive replaces your current helm. The steering cable connected to your power assist cylinder goes through the motor on the Octopus drive. There is a clutch mechanism on the Octopus drive, powered by electricity. This power comes from the autopilot "electronics" package that you buy. The software in the autopilot electronics turns the clutch "on" and "off", engaging the motor on the Octopus drive, which pulls or pushes your steering cable, thus steering the boat "right" and left". The Octopus Sterndrive model is very similar. It gets mounted back by your engine. It comes with a 6ft steering cable, and some adapters, and slaves onto your power assist cylinder. It also has an electronic motor and clutch. It gets wired to your autopilot electronics and works just like above. Hope this helps.

It depends. Is your Lowrance NMEA 2000 compatible? If so then it should work. When I went through all of this I tried to match up my future sonar choices to what autopilot I was getting. I have a Garmin 93SV Chartplotter / Sonar and I was able to integrate it with my Raymarine autopilot. Tell me what "network" capability your Lowrance has and Ill see which autopilots will work for ya.

I toyed around with DIY boxes for a few years. They worked, but ended up all jacked up from hard use. I eventually bit the bullet and got two Special Mates. Yes they are a little pricey, But dam are they nice.

Downrigger Terminal Connection So I have about 5 years on my original terminal connections on my Cannon downriggers. Is this connection something that I should just empirically change? How often should it be done? I'm getting a little nervous every time I let my Fish Hawk probe out, just waiting for the downrigger terminal connection to bust loose.

Yeah they are pretty robust drive units. You'll need to measure the space behind your dashboard. The Type T requires about 10in of depth to install. And you'll most likely have to replace your drive cable with one compatible with the new helm. The Sterndrive unit is a bit easier to install in my opinion, if you have the space and solid point to bolt it to. If you go with an Octopus drive unit, then you can use whatever electronics package you want. I would personally go with one of the Garmin units. They are super nice, and integrate well with chart plotters and sonars. My Raymarine is really nice, don't get me wrong. But I only chose it because I went with the ray marine sport pilot drive unit. If I had used an Octopus, I would have used a Garmin autopilot package.

I went through this 3 years ago. You really have only 3 options. Option 1: Switch to hydraulic steering and the sky is the limit to autopilots. Option 2: install a Raymarine Sportpilot Option 3. Install an Octopus drive, either at the helm or back by the assist cylinder, and use any Autopilot electronic package you want with it. I ended up installing the Raymarine Sportpilot with Evolution 200 Electronic package on my 22.5 Bayliner Express Cruiser. It has worked well for me, trolling at walleye and salmon speeds. Installation is pretty easy, and you could do it yourself. The only thing that goes wrong with these, in my experience, is the clutch pads in the drive unit. Ive had mine replaced once. Turn around time from Raymarine was 2 weeks, and no cost to me. The Octopus helm and stern drive units are MUCH more robust than the Raymarine Sportpilot drive unit. But installation is a little more involved. However, once installed, they work just as well as the hydraulic drive units. If my Sportpilot ever is "unserviceable", I will probably switch to the remote Octopus drive and keep my same electronics package.