BKeith

To be honest with you, you've asked me one I don't have an answer for. I've actually never heard of a failure on one. I'm still running a 99 225 Ficht and have never given it a second thought. The first thing I did was send my ECU and injectors to DFI Technologies and have them updated to get rid of most of the problems the early ficht's were having. About 90% of the oil injection failures you hear about are not really the problem. Most mechanics see it has oil injection and that's the automatic response. I've seen a hellavalot more ring locator pins come out that oil injection problem. Even with yours, rather than a ring sticking, I would almost bet it was the ring locator pin. About mid 95 OMC changed their specs for installing ring the way the locator pin was installed to save a few bucks. That being coupled with the fact they had them going over a transfer port opening, they were notorious for locator pin backing out, hang the port and destroy the cylinder. The 3.0 closed deck motors had a water circulation problem that caused #2 cylinder to run about 50 degrees hotter so most of those that blew was because the pin came out on #2 piston, but most got blamed on the oil injection.

That has always been an issue with TMs, especially with PWM ones. That's why you should never connect the sonar/depth finder to the TM battery. There are tons of tricks out there to help reduce/prevent it. One of the easiest is to just get you a small 12v battery to run the sonar. Back when there were Radio Shacks, you could go in there and get a suppressor made to keep alternator noise out of your car radio. Some of the car stereo places might sell those. It's nothing but a small coil/transformer of a specific value and sometimes a capacitor across them. Another is to use a toroidal ferrite core and make several wraps of the sonars power cable through it, but that's kind of hit and miss because it should be of a specific value. You will see a lot of electronic devices that use that method. That big knot you see on the end of some USB cable and small power cables, that's all it is. Also, if it's not shielded they can radiate an EMF that cause the problem. That can also be picked up by the power cables, they work like an antenna. Using a braided shielded can help

At slower speeds, the battery should last a lot longer with the PWM. Someone mentioned using a rheostat. That does nothing to increase run time, it will actually reduce run time. A rheostat is nothing but a variable resistor and they work by restricting the current and that restricted current is dissipated in heat, and heat is wasted energy.

I can easily see why you wouldn't want a console in a small jon. I would not want one either and just turning a steering wheel side ways and mounting it doesn't appeal to me either. My situation is all three of my small motors, 4hp 9.9hp and 25hp are all manual start so I would still have to get up and go back to start the motor every time. My 25 came off a boat with remote control and steering that I took off and put the tiller back on. So, it would be easy enough to put that back on and use stick steering, other than still having to climb back there to crank it. However, depending on where I going, I change motors and adding the stick would complicate that. That 25 is too much motor on a 1436 jon in some of the rivers and areas I fish. I use the 4hp in some because it has a very shallow draft, way less than that 9.9 and 25.

I've considered it several times but have changed my mind each time. As mentioned, they can actually be dangerous. I've know two people that have lost control of their boats with stick steering. I think if I added it, I would want a very stable hand hold on the opposite side to hold on to. Without that, and you get bounced around by a sudden wake or something and that stick is the only thing you have to hold on to, you have a good chance of making a sudden direction change when you don't really want to.

You may have been reading on the wrong side of the key switch. That or you are only getting the ground through the power pack. One side of the key switch has a constant that goes back to the block, which is grounded to the battery. The other side Is a switched ground that's applies the ground to the power pack when the key is off, and the ground is removed when the key is on. This should be the black/yellow wire on the switch, and the ground should be solid black if I remember right. The switch being on or off should have no affect on the ground wire on the back of the tach, unless somehow, or someone has that ground wire going to the switch and the wrong side of the switch. The ground wire for the instruments and lights on the console should be on the boat ground.. If you are reading through a diode, that's easy enough to check by just putting the meter in the diode function and reversing the leads to the meter. On way you will be reading about .500 - .700, the other way you should have 0. You can do the same thing with meter in ohms, just by reversing the leads but the it's more reliable to use diode, since in the diode function, you are actually reading a voltage drop across the diode and not a resistance.

Your best bet is to see if you can find someone that has the ability and know how to bend and align straight axles like in the early 50's etc. They should be able to set the cast and camber. I have all my boat axles aligned for a 13 1/2" tongue height, that's one of the very first things I do when getting a boat. Never have seen one that didn't need it. Once you get it aligned, make sure you use the same tongue height every time because that changes the caster and camber if you are higher or lower than it's set for. This makes a huge difference in good tire wear and how it tows. Actually, some of the old heads that know what they are doing will recommend letting them weld reinforcements on it to help keep it in alignment.

For the average tin can, I just go to home depot and get the gray stuff they sell on the bulk roll. To help from getting snagged, you would have to use a cut pile instead of the loop pile, the stuff HD sells I a loop pile. They pretty much go by weight in grade. The 16oz is probably a heavy as I would want in a jon. 20oz used to be the standard for plush carpet in the bigger glass boats, and then they went to 26oz. If you have a boat that has a flush deck and lids, if you go to a heavier, more plush carpet, it usually binds the lids and you have to shave it between the lids. As for the best place to get it, of the difference in quality between them, don't know.

I think B.A.S.S mandates tournament boats be wrapped. NASCAR does them because it's fast and what paints and labor cost today, it's not that expensive for them. I looked into doing one several years ago and it the best price I could find was $3,500. Haven't had a need or desire to do any pricing in recent history so don't know if it's become a big enough business, it's gotten cheaper, or if it has maybe doubled in price As for doing it yourself, that would probably make a mess out of a fairly expensive piece of shrink wrap unless you have done a few. It's applied by squeegeeing it on and shrinking it with heat guns to conform it to the shape. Very easy to get wrinkles and massive amount of air bubbles to bleed out.

The 1/2 ounce per gallon is good for a fuel stabilizer and helps keep the system clean. The one ounce per gallon is to cut the carbon out of the cylinders which is good for chainsaws, etc, but is overkill for the most part on modern outboards and the oils they have today. Every 50 hours usually keeps them pretty clean. As for putting directly in a cylinder and letting it sit to clean it, that would be a total waste. I have taken carbon coated pistons out of engines, cleaned them with mineral spirits and wiped them off with rags until all the loose carbon is off so just the baked on if left, and a white rag stays white when wiped on one. Then I soaked them for days in SeaForm, use a white rag and wipe the tops off and guess what, the rag stays white, SeaFoam did not cut one molecule of that hard, baked on carbon off. Plus, on a lot of two strokes, the only way you could possibly put four ounces directly in the cylinder is to have the piston down. After about an inch or so of down travel on the piston you can start opening ports, so the SeaFoam in going straight into the crankcase and is not going to sit in the cylinder anyway.

It's better to error on the side of too little pitch than too much pitch with two stroke motors. Two strokes don't like to be loaded down, and will do much better running at motors max rated rpm or even a tick over. If looking at a prop that will put you 300 rpm below max versus one that will put you 100 rpm above max, go with the 100 above. There are very few two strokes motors that it would be a problem turning them more than their max rating. A couple you don't won't turn over are the old cross flow OMC,s, they developed harmonics that can break the crankshaft, The early Fichts, the injectors in those a too small and even their recommend max can make them lean and melt a piston, a couple of the Japanese have two piece crankshafts and that can sometime cause a problem, but for the lions share, a 100 or so over is not going to bother a thing. Too much pitch will actually slow you down kill a lot of hole shot, and one slightly too small will not slow you down and give you much better hole shot. One suggestion before getting to far into prop swapping, get the motor checked out, make sure it's performing at peak performance or you may end up spending a whole bunch of money on the wrong size prop. Also, you said the motor was too low and you raised it. Sounds to me like you raised it too much. You should start tuning with the motor about 4" below the pad to make and then work up from there in 1/2" increments watch the tach, water pressure gauge and gps. When you see and increase in rpm but not speed you are too high, go back down 1/4". If you feel a loss of bow lift, which sometimes goes along with a loss of speed, again, too high, go back down 1/4". If you are having to run a lot of outward trim and kicking a tall rooster tail, you are too high, and possible to little setback. With the right amount of set back and the right engine height, you motor should be at a neutral trim so all power is be applied in a forward direction, and not having to waste power lifting the bow of the boat with extra outward trim. If everything else looks and feels good make sure you are not dropping water pressure in turns below recommended minimum, if so, you need to go back down

Run a steady diet of it at 1/2oz per gallon of gas in your tank for general care. About every 50 hours mix one ounce per gallon and go run the p**s out of your motor for a little while a full throttle. That will help decarbon the pistons and inside the cylinders. Running StaBil with SeaFoam is a waste, any money spent on StaBil would be much better spent else where. StaBil is basically just a fuel stabilizer, SeaFoam does that and more. SeaFoam can also be added to the crankcase of your four stroke or automobile engines before an oil change to help desolve sludge and lacquer film inside the crankcase. The reason you do just before, if your are not the best a keeping your oil changed, the crud it flushes loose can stop up a filter so you don't want to leave it too long before changing the oil and filter.

I don't think you really want to do that. If you have to do anything to gain access down there, you take the lower cover off. However, I thought they just had a stainless steel clip holding the end in, and all you had to do was take a screw driver and lift it up, letting the cable end just slide out of the throttle linkage. If all else fails, the manuals are actually fairly cheap and something you really should have if you plan on trying to do much of the maintenance yourself. One would almost pay for itself now.

Anything is possible, but being practical and financially feasible probably not.

Actually, some states have passed laws making it illegal for a tire shop to mount a non trailer tire on a trailer wheel. I know you can just take the wheel in, says it's off you Ford Falcon or something and they will mount it, but if they know it's for a trailer, it has to be a trailer tire. I too have given up on Goodyear, but I don't know of a brand I would recommend. I've just bought two, don't even know the brand, and don't know anything about them to recommend them.

The dealer having checked it out and telling you what's wrong and standing behind it. That depends on the dealer. Remember, we are talking used, not new and that's no different than buying a used car off a car lot. You are not going to see many used car dealers do much "standing behind the deal" on a used car. Yes, there are those that are straight forward and up front about their boats, I even know one that within the first 30 days, you don't like the boat, he will let you trade it for any boat on the lot of equal or greater value, but he smiles all the way to the bank when he sells one.

Your best deals are going to be from individuals, they usually don't know just how much they can sell the boat for and they don't have the overhead a dealer has. About 10 years ago, I remember a 17' bass boat I bought with a recently rebuilt 235 Johnson for $500 because the guy needed some cash pretty quick. I didn't like the boat and sold it for $700 a few months later just to get it out of my yard, and the guy that bought it is still running the heck out of it and luvs it. I've got a friend with a early to mid 90's, 17' Tracker with a good 40 Johnson. Boat itself needs a lot of work because it's basically taken apart when a guy was going to redo the seats and carpet for him, but got killed in an accident. The guy that owns the boat has heart problems and majory surgery not long after that so the boat has sat for several years. I can get that one for $2,000 if he still hasn't sold it. A steal to a person that can do the carpet and seats. There are great deals to be had, you just have to look for them and be patient. That said though, inventory tax time just around the corner and dealers are not selling many boats this time of the year, depending on what kind of negotiator you are, sometimes they will cut you a pretty good deal, just not very often.

If you are serious, the next two or three months are the best time there is to buy used boats. With Christmas and tax time just around the corner, people are looking at those useless money pits sitting out there in the yard and thinking there's some quick cash. Just be careful of Craig's list. There are some great deal to be had there, but that is the number one scam site for getting ripped off it you aren't careful. Also, when you go to look at one, take at least one other person and be cautious. Here recently we had a guy robbed and killed going to look at a car he was looking at on Craig's list. It was just a way for them to get a victim with a bunch of cash to come to them. Hate to say it, but it's an evil world we live in now, so keep your guard up, try to stay away from out of the way places when looking. However, there are some great deals to be had if you take your time and shop around.

OK, Wayne P. At first I was trying to figure out what you were talking about, but then I realized you are referring to the map you have posted and I was referring to the Lanier map he had in his link. Makes more since also, because I was wondering why he didn't even know what the blue area in the Lanier map he linked to was.

A quick explanation. The blue are is the lake. Looking at that map, they have blue in the lake starting at a full pool level of 1071 feet above sea level. That's why you will see the blue between the 1060 and 1080 contour lines. Now you just start following the contour lines down and each one is another 20 feet deeper water. Each contour line goes all the way around the lake, about and below the water line. When you get to the deepest sections you will see they just make basically a circle. Now, since this is a 20' interval map, the actual deepest water could be as much as 19' deeper than the lowest line on the map. As already mentioned, the more separated the lines are, the more gradual the slow. The closer together they are, the steeper the slope. If there are several line very close together, that's a very steep drop like the side of a tall, steep, hill under water. The reason the stripers and hybrids are up in the channels like that, the water is cold enough they are coming out of the deep water into the creek channels going through their spawning rituals. Even though they don't spawn they still go through the act. Small swim baits to match the shad, popping corks with a three foot leader and a Betts Pop-n-Stripe, and 1/4" jigging spoons bounced off the bottoms are deadly on them now. If you want the huge ones, blue back hearing drifted at the depth they are marking on the sonar. If the sea gulls have got there yet, follow the gulls. If they are diving, there fish there.

I don't see no magic number for that. First, how and where do you fish? How/what do you haul the boat with? Do you mostly fish alone or almost always have a partner, a couple of people or even the whole family? How much do you actually go fishing? These and a number of other things are all things that must me considered when buying a boat. For instants, you most fish small water and plan to just haul the boat in the bed of a pickup. No way would you want to be dealing with something as big and heavy as a 1448. Something more in the line of a 1232 would be much better suited for that. At the same time, if you are fishing larger lakes and mostly have another person or two, then the 1448 would get real small real quick. Outboard motors like to be use on a somewhat regular basis, if you don't fish very often. bigger motors get very expensive keeping them maintained and the fuel problem usually associated with letting one sit, so you would want to look at something that does not need more than a two or three cylinder motor. Then you have to consider what you are going to be hauling the boat with. Most cars don't take to towing much weight without having transmission problems before long, so the bigger the boat, the bigger the vehicle it takes to haul it. If you fish by yourself a lot, the bigger the boat, the more of a PITA it is to load and unload. Yes, our ego side tell us we want to show up at the lake with our 22' Ranger all decked out and 4WD 3/4 ton pickup towing it , but our wallet and common since side my tell us we just want a small 1232 jon or canoe on top of the car, or something similar to that. Those are all things you have to evaluate and figure out for yourself.

Usually, somewhere they tell you what the contour intervals are but I don't see it from what you have posted. Anyway, on that map, they are 20 feet. The 1000 line means that line is 1000 feet above sea level. That 1060 line means that line is 1060 feet above see level. Now, with a 20' interval map, you loose a whole lot of contour detail. It's very possible to have an point, hump etc that can be as much as 15' to 18' deep that just happens to fall right between two contour lines that would never show up on that map. That's why when you fish a lake like Lanier that has large changes in pool level. You get in your boat with a topo map, GPS (if you have one)camera, and note book, and you ride around make tons of notes. On key features, get out and actually walk to them so you can mark their exact location. I've got 50 years worth of maps notes and photos of the areas I fish on some lakes where I have scouted them while the water levels were way down. They are worth their weight in gold when the water is back to full pool.

You make it sound like the prop is locking and one way it's not. If that is the case, then you are backwards on the direction the prop is suppose to turn. If you have it shifted in forward, you are suppose to be able to turn the prop on reverse, there is no way you can keep it from it, that's the way Mercury designed it.

Yes, it should go in gear, but with a Mercury when you have it in forward, you should not be able to turn it in the forward direction without the flywheel turning also, but you can make the prop turn in the reverse direction and it will make a clicking sound. This is to prevent deceleration knock the OMC/BRP motors have because they don't free wheel in reverse.. Also, if it's not locking in forward, take the cable off the motor and try manually shifting it. It's very possible the cable is not adjusted properly. If taking it off lets it lock in gear, adjust the cable by turning that piece on the end that goes into the motor bracket so it moves it a little further in the direction it needs to go.

Well, then you have those that truly can't because of some debilitation, physical, mental, or lack of education or just life situations that keeps them well below the poverty level but are still out there working hard at trying to make it on their on. Those I don't mind helping when and where I can. Then you have those that live off government handouts, food banks and everything else that's free, have no intention of ever "working". Thinks the rest of the world owes them and expects everything to be given to them. Yea they would take some "position" where they could show up when they wanted, hang around a few hours and do most of their personal business on the phone and gab with the co-workers, for some high five to six figure income or more, but don't expect them to "work". Maybe run for public office and become a politician. There's a bunch of those in government jobs. Those, I would not give the time of day. Then those that actually make a reasonable income, not a lot, but enough they could do ok on, but had rather spend it on meaningless things like lottery tickets, cigarettes, booze/beer, drugs etc, just basically p**s their money away and not even have enough left to buy groceries with to get to the next pay check. Again, yes you feel for their kids (if they have any) but I'm not going to spend my time or money trying to help those either.