thomas15

To add my 2 cents, mine is a 16" Starcraft I have about $5500.00 in it (hull/motor/trailer/upgrades). It has a 50 HP Mercury 2 stroke, console, trolling motor/foot control, live well, I have entered tournaments with it although I'm not a fan. I put in two Lowrance sonar's. In the 9 or so years I have had it I have replaced both of the batteries, the trailer hub bearings and trailer tires and a few items on the outboard. I can say without hesitation that I "know" my outboard well. On a good day I can get 36 mph but usually it's at 32-33 mph, this is really fast enough for this small boat. I can get 3 people in it fishing but it is cramped, 2 is better although the boat is rated 5 adults that is quite crowded. Keep that in mind. I think the accepted rule of thumb on gasoline consumption on at least smallish 2 stroke is you lop off the last digit on the HP rating that that is the amount of fuel you consume per hour at wide open throttle. So for 50 HP that means I can run 30 MPH for an hour and consume 5 gallons of fuel. Not a precise formula but that is it. So 2 hours at 30 mph I need 10 gallons at $3.50/gallon it will cost me $35.00 for that trip. Do half that 4 days/week that is $70 per week which might cut into one's cigar budget. I always set out with (2) six gallon fuel tanks although I can't remember ever running one dry from full. I just this morning sent in my insurance premium for the year that is $228 so $20/month I say this just to point out that even on solid used aluminum 16 footer it isn't free by any means. When I calculate literally everything I figure about $900/year (x 9 years). Boat, motor, fuel everything. My home lake ramp is less than 1 mile from my home still it is time consuming to get it down there and put it back to bed. I'm good at launching and have decent trailer skills, do all my own work on the boat/motor and it looks good for it's age, quite sea worthy but sometimes it's just easier to grab my fly pole or UL spinning tackle, waiders and hit the closest stream if all I have is an hour or two.

The main thing in my view is to buy what you can afford so that if disaster comes or your time is restricted you are not going to feel financial pain over the boat. Boats basically lose their resale value quickly and while fun require time for upkeep and it seems something is always broken or needs to be upgraded.

Storm Wildeye Live Sunfish or Bluegill. They just don't work (for me).

My Dad built a 14 foot flat bottom skiff when I was a kid. It was quite nice, seriously very well crafted. We live on the Jersey Shore and once or twice in the early 1970s took it out in the ocean and joined the spectator fleet of Manasquan Inlet to watch the Hennesey Grand Prix off shore power boat race. One year, 1970 or 71 a couple of the open class boats got inside the spectator fleet and passed full throttle within about 50 feet of our little boat, these were 36-40 foot Cigarette/Magnums/Bertram's not the fastest boats by todays standards but it was both scary and fascinating to have a boat that big and that loud passing close enough to see the facial features of the crew. I would say they were traveling +90 MPH. We had a 8mm movie camera my Dad was filming and didn't realize just how close the boats were to us. My brother and I were frozen in the moment.

I agree with obtaining a factory service manual. As mentioned the primary adjustment is probably engine timing and there is probably a dimension for that gap in the cam/roller assy. If this were my motor before I did anything else I would do a compression test just to confirm that there isn't a problem there, make sure you ground your spark plug wires. I would also buy a carb rebuild kit and do that. And also change all of the fuel lines under the hood, make sure there are no vacuum leaks.

I am glad you are ok. I hope that you are able to stay clear minded on this, I think you have a handle on this thing though. My Taco which I have previously mentioned that I needed a new vehicle at the time but not a new truck. This came about because I hit a deer on the way to work. Around here the deer are thick as fleas. No insurance those scoundrels. Anyway I wish you the best my brother.

Steady as she blows helmsmen. My last debt that we had to clear to become debt free was my 2020 Tacoma access cab. I have thought about this a lot and many of my friends and co-workers thought me crazy because I had 1.9% APR financing. But debt is debt and that was the last soldier standing we even had our mortgage paid off but I owed on my ride. $31K financed on a 60 month note, we paid this off in 26 months. I love the truck but never ever again will I borrow for anything no matter how much I want want want. It is hard I know but no, never. I tell myself all the time in Sept 2020 I needed a new vehicle but I didn't need a brand new truck and a 60 month note to go along with it.

I haven't been trout fishing in years but I intend to change that thinking that it would be a lot less hassle to stop at a trout stream on the way home for half an hour vs. not fishing at all because getting a boat out there isn't a 5 minute task. So, in the past my trout activities centered around UL spinning gear. I started doing that with limited success last fall. Anyway, I wanted to expand my horizons some and so asked my wife to give me a fly fishing outfit for my birthday which i have. I have all the stuff, a collection of locally useful fly's and a few books, and again all the stuff I need to hit the water, i've been practicing in the yard, making a pest of myself at the local fly shops and now I'm quite honestly out of excuses I should go out there and risk making a complete fool of myself and fish. I'm on the edge of the Pocono's 30 miles north of Allentown. There is a class A stream a mile from my home and several others not too far away. I just need to get myself out there.

I live in Beautiful Franklin Twp about 1/4 from the Pine Run boat ramp. Good to meet someone from the area! Hopefully going to put the SS Minnow in the pond tomorrow.

I'm starting to think about the day. I could retire now, I would really like my wife to retire this year and I think she is going to but I'm hesitant for both of us to go out the same year. My company would allow me to work PT and I might do that but I stay for all the reasons the OP gives as my company and co-workers are great. Also I can put off collecting SS and put more dollars in the bunker and as a bonus would have less time to spend it the longer i put it off! Part of my hesitation is due to the fact that we spent a few years really mismanaging our personal finances. While through diligence, sacrifice and the grace of God we have corrected our mistakes but the damage to our financial security has left a scar that I think we are now probably over-reacting to. But as I mention we are thinking about it. As of now I would divide my time between doing things around the house (a few upgrades and a garden), spending time with the spouse and hobbies like fishing. One of the big questions in my mind is do we stay where we are or do we sell and relocate? The longer I work the longer I can put off making a decision on this.

Sorry to hear about this incident. I'm a volunterer firefighter in PA and hold certification in water rescue, my fire company is a 3A Swiftwater Rescue capable. When we take training classes a lot of time is spent on the dangers of low head dams. They are unforgiving.

This set up, not sure what charger you are using, but I'm going to get the 10X2 and port plug, this is on my 2024 boat upgrade to do list. The two things I dislike the most about my boat is 1. getting the cover back on after a day out, and 2. having to hook up and manage the 2 batteries with a single charger. I love idea of just plugging it in then forgetting about it. Good job Sir on your boat build!

12-18 months is really good. I have one of those Harbor Freight jump packs with air compressor that I keep in the car (we commute 100 miles/day). The manual instructs a recharge after every use or one a month even if not used. And it is probably twice the size of the Noco unit.

There is something to say about the stark simplicity of this outboard. Last summer I had a bunch of projects to do around the home which kept the SS Minnow sitting on the trailer. I didn't even get a chance to use it until mid August (priorities. I know). First time out the motor (2005 Merc 50 HP 2 stroke) ran poorly so I ended up taking the carbs off and rebuilding them including new bowl floats because one was waterlogged. Anyway, on reassembly I over torqued one of the carb mounting bolts and snapped off the mounting ear. I finally fixed the problem by machining a steel plate that acts like a big washer, this allows me to cinch down the carbs properly. Once I got it all back together it ran the best it has ever run, for me at least, in particular at slow speeds smooth as could be expected for a 2 stroke inline. At that point it's late fall, I also wanted to replace the lights, rollers, tires and hub bearings on the trailer which I did, ran it one last time then put it away for the winter. Fogged the motor, drained the carb bowls, fuel tanks, pulled the batteries, all the stuff. On Wednesday I filled the tanks with fresh fuel, hooked up the batteries, put on the muffs and bang, the motor started up on the first try as if it had been running 15 minutes earlier and was already warmed up. Most years it takes me a week of tinkering to get it to run properly beginning of the season. In the 9 years I have owned this boat I have acquired a mini parts warehouse for this motor and a few of the fun to own special tools and the shop manual. Short of pulling the power head, over the years I have had this motor all apart including the lower drive. I would say that one of the enjoyments I get from owning this boat is having acquired a decent understanding of what makes it tick. I would love to have a 1970s 20 HP Mercury to play around with. Simple and robust. I hope it brings you nothing but joy!

If I go back to my original OP, I'm not trying to say "don't buy a boat". I have a boat myself so for me to say "my brother, don't get one" is not what I was trying to communicate. Rather I was trying to express my gratitude to those here who advise caution and long term fiscal responsibility when considering such an expense. The same reasoning could be applied to any recreational activity not just fishing boats.

Lots of thoughtful responses here. Thank you.

This is not a question, rather it's an opinion. I hope I'm not in violation of forum rules. I have been wanting to mention that I really appreciate the majority attitude here regarding spending for a boat. I appreciate that most here consider boats what they really are, unless we are professional, our boats are a want, not a need, and that caution should be applied to making a boat purchase that is really more than we can or should act on. I grew up on the Jersey Shore in the 60s and 70s, everyone had a boat. Literally everyone. One of my friend's parents got caught up in the boating/yacht culture, buying bigger and bigger boats and all the social pressures that comes with it. A 48' offshore cabin with twin screw diesels and a 19' runaround for the kids was something to talk about down at the post office, but when his business slowed down they lost it all, home, boats, bragging rights...everything. We, spouse and me, were never in danger of a total financial meltdown but we did acquire more liabilities than we should have. It took a lot of time and effort, measured in years for us to reverse that situation. Having no obligations on my fishing hobby (and boat) has more than anything added to my enjoyment of the sport. I would rather go a year without catching a single fish than spend another month paying off unnecessary debt. This is my personal choice and opinion, others might disagree but I'm impressed by the wisdom and restraint many exhibit here on this forum when the topic of the actual expense of a boat comes up.

If someone literally gave you the boat, there is still a number of expenses to factor in, all the stuff you will need for comfort, convenience and to be in compliance with the law. So, having said this, my advice is to set a budget amount and place that cash aside. Then look for the items as they come available, purchase them and build your boat over a time period rather than get the hull first then realize you need a bunch of other stuff to actually pull this off. I don't personally fish out of a kayak but my wife has one, it is an inexpensive boat that is technically a kayak but is really uncomfortable and unstable in a lake compared to my son's kayak which is not an entry level boat. Good luck!

It doesn't work. I have been expanding my horizons into fly fishing got my first set up last week. Just to save time I have been stopping on the way home from work to do a little stream fishing. In the past I have always hated when I lose a trout lure so over the winter I stocked up on Rooster Tails. Got more than I can count now. So snags or not I'm just going to fish.

This thread has basically covered the topic well. May I add: one of the few sane financial actions I have taken was when I purchased my boat used, I did it with cash on hand, no debt. As an individual that has in the past paid off well into 6 figures of consumer debt now debt free including mortgage and I have more than enough in my wallet to stroll over to Cabelas and pay cash for one of those Tracker Classic XLs (yeah I got the catalog) but I have come to love my humble 18 year old 16' Starcraft tin because it is not a money pit. It is true that when I'm at the boat ramp most of the boats there are, you know, contain a lot more eye candy than mine, but there is a certain satisfaction in leaving my paid for home, towing my paid off boat with my paid off truck and not having to worry about how much of my paycheck is going to be vaporized on any given fishing trip causing me to become stressed out just because I decided to spend a few hours on the water and didn't catch a darn thing. While I'm on my rant over spending money on boats, I realize that I only have two hands but i own about 25 fishing poles, 23 more than I have hands for and so much tackle I don't even remember buying a lot of it. I would like to upgrade one of my two sonar units but what I have actually works so I kind of get stuck on the question of "why?" I live literally right around the corner from a fairly busy marina and see boats all day long, much nicer than mine and I can't help but scan stem to stern and think "I want" but so many of the people I see at the ramp seem to be wacked out over something and I can't help but think it is that they financed 10s of 1000s of dollars worth of boat. But of course it's not my call what others do with their money and I do understand the draw to have one of those things closely following you down the PA Turnpike.

I'm not one to start threads and even when I do usually there will be one or two responses because you know like I really can't think of anything interesting or intelligent to ask about . So I respond to others in threads and this particular thread about the Invasive Monkey of Bait Acquisition and Ownership (IMBAO) which is really fun to read because we all are affected in one way or another by this rascal. This year I decided to step back from the various activities that consume my free time and just do a few things that in theory would not cost a lot of money (Ha Ha) and try to figure out exactly what do I really want to do with my time and recreation bux and so I simply discontinued for the year several very expensive and time consuming hobbies and thought it time to revive my fishing habit which had been dormant for about 4 years. In my mind there is an advantage here because my spouse and I can do this together (another Ha Ha). I spent about 6 weeks getting the SS Minnow back into ship shape and going through all my fishing gear and tackle. I have a couple fishing rods and reels I don't even remember getting them or for what purpose and so much baits and lures and stuff, stuff I forget how to actually rig up. So yeah I want to lay victim to this IMBAO thingy because it's like a lot of fun but I think there is a market for therapies for memory enhancement and improvement so that I can figure out what this particular unit of tackle is for , Anyone else feel the same or see the need?

There are weekly tournaments locally, small, 25-30 boats. I have entered two of them, both the same year about 6 years ago. Used my little modest boat which was maybe slightly more humble than average but for this lake and tournament it's ok. The first one my partner caught 1 fish, that put us in I think 5th we were just outside of the money. Second one about a month later we caught nothing. For the rest of the season and a few the following year, I launched and fished like I was in the event but not entered I was just trying to figure this out under real life conditions. In all this time only a few boats had caught anything and given this lake is literally a half mile from home I couldn't believe how big some of those fish are like I had not seen anything like those. I'm a reasonably decent competitive handgun shooter and I assume that to be competitive in fishing requires a similar training and practice ethic and if so it is a lot of effort to become good at this kind of fishing. After this I have concluded that I lack the desire to be a competitive bass fishermen, I was trying to use it to become better at recreational fishing that's mainly it. I can see the draw to the sport however and it's fun to be nothing but business-like while fishing in a tournament where you have to think about what you are doing. I drive right past this lake on the way home from work and on tourney nights sometimes I stop in and watch the launch or sometimes I go over and watch the weigh in. This year most of the boats are top line bass boats, big 225+ outboards, power poles literally the works, all on this 900 acre lake. It seems like a lot more emotion on display compared to the past years. Anyway I'm all for it, tournaments that is. it's just too stressful and time consuming for me.

I like to watch and/or hear about people making themselves happy and I'm truly happy for them so there is no mystery my brother.

If the new boat has a favorable rating in your personal "effort vs. rewards" matrix and the expense fits within the boundaries of your overall financial goals, it's a go. I must confess however that I get enjoyment watching other people spend piles of monies.

Sir much kudos to you. It is very tempting to go for bigger, faster, flashier with more goodies. Of course it is not my business what anyone does with their money but when you step back and look at it from afar you sometimes have to scratch your head. You already have a nice boat. You will not regret getting every ounce of pleasure that that boat has to offer.