einsteins

Get a high Strength Carabiner about the same size as that hookup on your boat and hook your tie downs to that.

Covered the stock cover with a product by 3m called di noc. If you Google it there are a lot of you tube videos on how to apply it. You can buy small quantities on eBay....just be sure its 3m and not a knockoff. Humminbird raised letter stickers are on HB website.

I cant take credit for the idea as I saw this on a forum somewhere but I had to give it a go.... Carbon Fiber Humminbird 1198 cover: Going to do the 998 cover tonight... Thanks for looking!

Me too... Thanks!

Well I finally got around to opening yesterdays mail....and even more good news. I got my Nitro owners discount card for Bass Pro! 20% off Bass Pro brand products and 10% off other products for I believe 2 years. Going to get some use out of that card...

I am thinking a jackplate would be nice if bass pro has a 6 or 8" manual jackplate. It might help with performance and make clearance for the HB si transducer.

Well I got a nice surprise on Thursday.... Bass Pro Shops sent me a $1000 gift card for my new boat purchase. They never registered these 2011's so on paper its like I bought a brand new boat. Hoping I might get the boat owners discount card also....never know. Even if I don't, my nice deal on this boat just got a lot better.

Well I made it back from Missouri with the new Z7 in tow. Boat looks like it never touched water. They installed my Terrova, adjusted my hotfoot, and installed the retractable tie downs for me. Went through the boat with me and homeward I went. Engine has 27 hours from MLF Here is the engine print out info: Total Hours 27.2 0-749 RPM 7.8 750-1499 RPM 5.2 1500-2999 RPM 4.5 3000-3999 RPM 4.6 4000-4499 RPM 1.6 4500-4999 RPM 1.6 5000-5499 RPM 1.6 5500-6249 RPM 0 6250+ 0 Got the 5yr warranty on Motor and Boat It's torture buying a boat in January when you live in IA!!! Now I need to figure out what to sell the Humminbird 958 for... I will take some pics in the morning.

Here is my old boat

I just bought a new Nitro Z7 Plan to be hitting river a lot this year.....the area around Cordova intrigues me for some reason. C'mon spring!!!!

Not sure when I can get it out on the water as we are in winter here in Iowa, I need to find out if its winterized. You can bet first warm day that bad boy is going to get wet.... It is 6 hours to where the dealer is so I am leaving tomorrow afternoon so I can pick it up on Saturday morning and drive back. I need to work on upgrading the front Fishfinder to a unit that has Sidescan...thinking 898c. Will probably put the 958 up for sale. Thanks eveyone for the advice and kind words...great community here on these boards!!! I will post picks once I get a chance to take some. eins

Last year I bought a 1990 trackerTF1800...it was one of the early fiberglass tracker boats, kind of the forefather of the nitros. It has a 1988 Mercury 115hp straight 6 (tower of power) runs fantastic! Did some upgrades and tested the waters for how much I would like/use a bass boat. I paid 2200.00 for it and definitely got my moneys worth from it. It will make a great starter b9at for Simone when I sell it this spring. I bought this boat because I absolutely loved it and wanted some more current technology.

Thanks Al....I wondered if the motor had trim on it....I hate trying to get the transom saver lined up by running back and forth between throttle handle and motor like I have to do on my current boat. The boat does have trim on the bow, confirmed that. Thanks again! everyone here is always so helpful.

Well I GOT THE BOAT! I am very excited. 2011 Z7 Full Factory warranty on boat and Motor Hydralic steering Hot Foot SS Prop Keel Guard They recomended agains a Jackplate ( I can add if needed) Power Pole Humminbird 958 on Bow Humminbird 1198 at console 2 batteries for my 24 Volt Terrova 2 Batteries in series for Cranking and electronics 4 bank charger Nitro trailerable cover Single axel Trailer with surge brakes Fold away tongue Spare tire. I think I am going to have them add Blinker style trim at the Steering wheel and possibly at the transom. Any other accessories that you think I should add to this package? I am picking it up on Saturday... MAN....Spring cant get here fast enough now! eins

My terrova has the transducers cable run down the groove in the shaft. When on spotlock my unit has spun around 2 and a half times and it didn't bother a thing. After you run the cable up the shaft to the top of the unit you then feed the cable down the center of the coiled power cord and then to your unit. I know the humming bird cable fits in the groove of the terrova shaft but not sure about the Lowrance cables. Trust me...its super clean and works fantastic. Einsteins

After some reading it looks like a huge majority of z7 owners who are using them are using 6 inch jack plates. Just wanted also thank all who contributed to my thread....you have been extremely helpful as always. It really is a great community here! Einsteins

I am going to try and get $1000 less than they are asking with a Bigfoot and 10" jackplate (manual) included. I think that might be a good fair starting point for negotiations. I did some reading and most everything mirrors what Al said above. Guess I need to research what size jackplate is best...

Fishing Rhino That is awesome feedback.....it doesnt look like it has a jackplate, what are your thoughts on this boat / setup having a jackplate? I have never used a hotfoot but it seems like a staple on most boats i have looked at in my search. It says it has a ss prop and hydrolic stearing, not sure on brakes. Thanks again....

Thanks 00 mod Do you think the price is fair for the package?

Hi you can run transducer cables from HB units down the groove in the Terrova shaft. I did this with mine and it worked perfect. There are a number of tutorials on how to do this on the web, it is super easy. i love my Terrova i-pilot and highly recomend it! good luck einsteins

Hi all I hope you had a great Christmas! My wife has given me the go ahead to find a newer bass boat and i have been watching craiglists for all the major areas in the midwest. i have a budget of about 23k and have been hoping for a nice 20-21ft 200hp (merc or yamaha) Skeeter, Nitro,Triton. I came across this Z7 at a dealer that has under 25hrs and has full factory warranty. With the HB upgrades and powerpole it seems like a fair price. I can justify the over budget price by having full warranty. As much as i might want the bigger boat size its not an absolute must. I was hoping some of you more experienced bassboat owners could have a look at and see what you think...I will be talking to the on Wednesday and would like to be better prepared with your feedback. I have a an i-pilot terrova that i would probably have put on it and the only other wants would be possibly a jackplate and hotfoot. I always get solid advice here....I look forward to your input on setup and price. http://www.proschoicemarine.com/Page.aspx/diid/7325500/list/InventoryList/pageId/66113/view/Details/2011-Nitro-Z-Series-Z-7.aspx Regards; einsteins

Looks Great.! If that is the smaller size Ram Mount you might want to go the the larger size. I had the smaller Ram mount on my bow with just a 798 on it and it couldnt handle the size weight. Just a thought...

I have noticed that there are nicer features on most of the boats that are newer than mine. I am considering trying some local club tournaments next year. Something with a larger front deck would be nice also, mine is pretty small once you get TM pedal and 3 rods on the deck. Obviously if I am going a bit bigger a larger motor would be nice.

Hi all I have a 1990 Tracker TF1800 with a 115 hourse Merc that I bought a year ago. It has been a really solid boat for my first fishing boat. I upgraded trolling motor to a MK Terrova and have a hummingbird 798c Si on the bow with transducer on the TM. I got that boat for $2000.00 and put about 2500.00 into it, so I was able to get started fairly cheap. I am planning to buy something newer this winter/spring and would like to ask some of you more experienced bass boat owners what Brands / models are good based in my price range. I dont want to start a brand war or anything like that. I figure my budget will be around 15k to 17k. I have found some boats on here that look nice and are in my price range but Just dont know enough about the different brand/models to know what are ones to look for or avoid. I have seen Nitros, Tritons, Stratos, and Skeeters ranging from about 2003 to 2007 in my price range. I know the motor is key as it is the biggest part of the investment. Any input or advise on these model/brands would be greatly appreciated, it seems I always get good input from the great group in these forums. Thats why I wanted to check here to help possibly narrow my search. Thanks

I am in the QC's and would love to try up there.....I just dont know the waters up that way at all. I have seen some sloughs by the 3m plant that looked interesting but again its a bit tough if you dont know where to go. Thanks for the heads up, I am going to check it out. I will either trailer up and launch in that area or just take the boat for a ride. Maybe we can hook up sometime and fish...