fishnkamp

I would step her up to a Berkley Lightning Shock rod. For a good all purpose rod look at a 6'6" medium moderate action. Pair it up with a Pflueger President reel in a size 30. This may be more than you were thinking of spending, but if you ever want nicer gear yourself and you want her to enjoy the hobby with you, then this is what I would do. Over thirty five years ago I knew a guy that owned an Orvis dealership. I learned how to flycast as well as many important life lessons from Bruce. One was to THINK about what type of gear I got my then girlfriend if I wanted to help her to learn to enjoy MY hobby. It did not matter if I was fishing with a $20 combo or a $200 Orvis fly rod, make sure she fished with the same good equipment. I believe he was right. My wife and I have spent 40 years together and she is a smallmouth fanatic. She fishes with her own dozen rods, some G Loomis, some Dobyns and two Berkley Lightning Shock rods. Guess what reels are on the Berkley rods. Lastly, help her avoid the frustration of line twist. I recommend putting some 10 pound Stren on as backing, then filling the reel with 14 pound Original Berkley Fireline. That stuff casts beautifully. If you fish clear water you can easily add a 5 foot long copoly leader in say 6 or 8 pound test. That is a setup she uses all the time. Lindas biggest fish include big stripers, several 6 pound smallies, some 5 pound plus largies and a 34 1/2 pound flathead catfish. She is my main fishing partner in life. I hope you can have what we have, a life long marriage and the ability to really appreciate going to pretty places and sharing memories together. I love it when she is fighting a big fish, even more than when I am. There is a little child that I get to see in her eyes every single time.

I just looked that motor up and it is supposed to be a 24 volt 65 pound thrust motor. That is what I would use. What I would do is see if you have a local Minn Kota repair guy and let him do some adjustment/repairs to make it work better for you. Sometimes there are some internal adjustments or ones on the bottom of the pedal. If you do not have a guy near you give MK a call and ask what you can do to make it work better.

Since this is your first experience with a boat, I would like to share an article my friend wrote on this subject. He covers a ton of info, but all of it will be of serious help to you. After you sit down and read it feel free to come back and ask any questions you may have. I personally fish out of my 11th boat in 45 years, so I have had a little experience too. My friend Bryan is one of the best anglers I have ever shared a boat with, better yet he is very good at putting info together and sharing it in an easy to understand way. This article was actually written while he fixed up one old Ranger to sell and sought a larger one to purchase. He was very successful at both. So please grab a comfy seat, and a glass of your favorite beverage and enjoy the read. http://www.baybass.com/node/200 Let me know what you think. I have shared it with a bunch of other BR members who were in your exact position and each one has gotten some good info out of it. Good Luck

"Fiberglass infused" refers to an aluminum hull and deck with a fiberglass console, fully finished fiberglass storage boxes under each storage door, a fiberglass recessed trolling motor pedal box with tool holders etc. If you watch and listen to the videos posted above the answer is obvious. It is not some new age creation, it is a nice mixing of each material in order to elevate the final product beyond the ordinary aluminum bass boat. The storage boxes, livewells, battery compartment and such are nicely finished, just like the Ranger fiberglass boats were always done. I have not seen one in person yet, but from what I have seen so far I am impressed by where they are headed.

Part of my answer will depend on your answer to my question. What type of water do you fish? Do you intend to fish rivers, small to medium sized lakes with minimum current or big fast windy bodies of water. See I have a 17.5 foot long aluminum Lowe bass boat with a 1000 pound hull. This is my 11th boat, which also included a 20 foot fiberglass with a 200 on it. I run a 24 volt 70 pound thrust trolling motor because I fish the Chesapeake Bay, Potomac river, and big lakes like Dale Hollow and Center hill or Lake Gaston and Lake Anna (in VA and NC). I need that power often. If you think you may need that power I would sell the Edge and look at a straight 24 volt trolling motor. Now there is some good news here. Because of the huge popularity of these new "electric steer" trolling motors there is a big dump of good reliable used trolling motors all of the sudden. It is easy to find a very nice used 24 volt Maxxum or Fortrex ( 70 or 80 pound models) being sold for a reasonable cost. Many of the dealers are sitting on trade ins they would rather make a good deal to get rid of. By the way, just for comparison I mentioned I have a 1000 pound hull that is heavily weighed down with a ton of stuff on it. Your hull weighs 1050 dry. That means no engine no gas no equipment, for all intensive purposes you will be heavier than me because I have a 75 hp outboard and I bet you have something over 100 hp.

I would probably start by looking at the thermostats and passages for corrosion and junk. Were you testing it on a set of ear muffs or a tank? I would probably test it at the ramp still locked down on my trailer. There you can run it a while without doing damage, yet you can run it long enough to warm it up enough to open the thermostats. I would add a few extra straps up and over the hull of the boat for safety. I have seen my local marina do this a few times while their head mechanic ran some computerized troubleshooting.

I did some research on craigslist in your state. What I found is very few mod V style aluminum bass boats for sale. There were plenty of deep V boats available. That tells me you have mostly big water in your area. I would go down to a few dealers and just crawl around some new boats to get an idea what you want, they start looking at the used market.

Mariner motors basically are Mercury motors. They share the same parts. That allowed Mercury to have two dealers networks. When I wanted to custom order a ProCraft 20 foot fish and ski back in the 90,s ProCraft sold Asto and ProCraft out of the same manufacturing plant. They determined which engine by which dealer I ordered from. I wanted the Mariner, but my closest and only dealer in MD was a Merc dealer. He told me it would have a Merc or no engine on it. Bryan is a good friend and mentor to me! He is one of the two best sticks I have ever shared a boat with, and I take lots of guides. The other great stick was a guide I used in TN. He fishes professionally on the FLW circuit. After you get a boat take some time to read through his fishing reports going back a few years. Not all at once but since we will soon be spawn and post spawn read through some of those. I realize he gives really accurate reports for MD and VA but his reports are in depth explaining what he uses, how he uses and what conditions he uses it under. You may not fish the Potomac River but I bet you can find similar downed wood or grass beds or rock/sand etc. in your local waters. If he or his pro staff says this is what we did, they did it that way. Thast is the whole purpose of baybass.com. Hi is a serious teacher of the sport.

I sent you a pm. Those XR6 motors were very reliable.

Brian forget the 2 stroke warning! Many of those old engines were very reliable, not nearly as good on gas, but reliable. That boat probably has an Merc XR6 or a Johnson/Evinrude. Many had the 88 special and that engine kicked but. I have a friend that owned that exact boat and loved his. He sold it only to get a Ranger 20 footer. Here is a terrific article on buying an old boat and you will see he loves that vintage machine. Check this out, find a nice comfy seat and a glass of your favorite beverage. Bryan delves into all the info you will need to know to make a more informed decision, regardless if you are looking at aluminum or fiberglass. Let me know what you think after you read it. Good Luck in getting a great first boat. http://www.baybass.com/node/200

Medium mods are good for most baits that have trebles. My wife uses hers' for jerkbaits, rattle traps, but also spinnerbaits and vibrating jigs as well.

Well both of you forgot to include one of the most versatile rod Gary makes. That would be a Champion XP DC 734C. I would go with the following: Champion XP DC 703SF spinning rod for all my finesse stuff. Champion XP DC 734C This is Gary's most versatile rod he build ( in all his series) Champion XP DC 735C This would be my frog, heavy jig and carolina rod. Champion XP DC 735 CB Glass These are available in a mislabelled rod for a discount. Go to the "store" menu then select "mislabeled. My last choice would be decided by the way I liked to fish, I would look at my fishing style. If I had bodies of water to fish that were covered with heavy vegetation or stumps I would add a rod like a dedicated flipping stick ( 765Flip), if not I would add another rod like a heavy crankbait rod. It would be a 765C or perhaps a 736CB glass. Otherwise if I do not need a dedicated flipping stick ( the 735C will handle frogs and flipping good enough) I would consider another all purpose rod like the 734c or perhaps a 744C

PECo yes 7 year olds are that clumsy! The higher sides do provide safety. The ideal suggestion would be a Lund but the OP has a lot of requirements and a minimal budget. A good used Lund would be best but they are almost impossible to find in his budget.

PECo What exactly do you mean by: Have you never heard of Express boats? They have been making a fiberglass style pad V hull for decades! Maybe you are only familiar with the lower end of the aluminum boats produced today. Express has what the call their Hyper Lift hull, which is a step pad hull like a fiberglass boat. Go check out this video.

Time to go to the Mercury doctor.

You might find a boat like this works well for all 3 of you to sit comfortably as well as fish. This is a good looking 2014 Lowe Fishing Machine series boat It would run you around $10,500 or a bt less if you bargain with him. This style boat might work well. The higher sides and deep V would give yo a stable ride and sinc the kids would be down in the boat they would be safer. https://gulfport.craigslist.org/boa/d/2014-lowe-bass-boat/6518973512.html

One thing I keep reading that amazes me "see they are expensive " or "not at a Tracker price" Well order the Tracker with the same engine ( which you can not) and the same 24 volt trolling motor( which you can not) and a power pole( which they say "may void your warranty") and order that Tracker with the same level of electronics( oh I can not)! Instead I have to buy the standard boat and then upgrade to the accessories I wanted to begin with, BUT at my expense! After you have added the cost of these extra expenses to the original cost of that Tracker then compare the prices. I can order the Vexus without the more expensive G2 engine if I want and save money. I can choose what size jack plate I want, add power poles or Talons without "possibly voiding" my warranty. I can equip the rig with the accessories I want, if that is bigger electronics, or choose whatever trolling motor I want I can do it. So stop with the bull poopy ! The price is not far off an Express if you choose to order it with the same Yamaha motor, electronics, shallow water anchor etc. Yes! It is less than the Lund I sat in several weekends ago and yes it seems they did a better job on waterproofing the storage compartments. That is one complaint about many of the current competitors. Let's give the new guy in town a chance to get some owners and get their feed back. I remember when Phoenix first started making boats. The naysayers were pretty loud back then , even before there was a boat to sit in. It seems to me they did very well in a time when many established boat builders were going under and getting eaten up by one big guy! I have personally crawled all over a 618 Phoenix. I also test drove it on Dale Hollow. I came away highly impressed with the innovations, fit and finish and handling on the rig. I even got a really good deal on it. Only the uncertainty of my health stopped me from pulling the trigger. I for one will give Vexus a year to establish itself in the market and then go get a ride in one or two. But let's be fair! Compare equally equipped machines!

Here is two rather informative boat reviews on the two boats. Looks like the Nitro was all tweaked out using an 8 inch jack plate, I believe the Ranger could benefit by adding one. But the speeds are what they were. The Ranger was about 8 mph slower. I bet with some prop changes and a jack plate you could make them much closer to each other. My Nitro z18 airing it out ?? Running a 23p Tempest 2 1/4 under the pad 8 inch slidemaster plate Top Speed 60 loaded 62 light by myself

KVD is PAID to fish out of a Nitro!

Here in MD there is a company called Westminster Speed and Sound. They specialize in high quality stereo, car alarms, back up cameras etc. I know there is a terrific place like that down in Northern VA because they installed a killer stereo in a friend's bass boat. If you can not find such a place near you please pm me and I will look on his website for the company. My Toyota Tacoma TRD Sport came with one in the mirror, I was not satisfied with its size of display. I also noticed with that raised "scoop" area of the front hood it was nearly impossible to properly estimate how close to objects my front bumper was. I figured before I crunched my new to me truck I better add a front camera. Westminster hooked my back up camera so it displays on both my radio and my mirror. They then added a video switch and a front video camera. Now I can see very well while backing up, as well as going forward when needed. This made parallel parking on the tight and busy streets of Rehoboth Beach really easy last fall. The nice thing about the radio option, if you have to replace them, is you can get a nice modern radio with the backup camera, usb and 3.5 mm inputs and bluetooth capabilities for somewhere around $600 to $800. Going this route your video display will be the full screen. I use mine not only for lining up to hitch, but to aide me when lining up at the ramp too. Garmin offers one for their gps units as an option. I looked into it for on my wife's car, but it uses wireless technology and did not have a good reputation for clarity. I am not saying that is a problem across the board, just be aware of it.

Measure the boat and use that as the model. They will not be able to argue since the company is out of business. For instance if it measures 18 foot tell them the model is Corl 18. If that did not work I would ask how you title a homemade boat.

First I suggest you sit in each one. Then go open every compartment, visualize how your tackle will fit or be organized. Lets face it, your only engine choice will be between a Mercury Optimax or 4 stroke on a Nitro. Depending on your dealer you could get a Ranger with most any brand engine you want. Go look at things like how the rods for the passenger will lay. I am not bashing one or the other brand, but on last years Nitro Z18 the rod strap was put in a place that the passenger's rod would have to be running through the seat in order to have it function. Fact- not being mean! It is the little details that I pay attention to. I have a guide I use in TN and runs an older Z8. That boat fished and ran well. Anyway sit in each boat, think about how you would use the boat and pick the one that best suits you. $5000 is a good bit of money, but if financed it is a few dollars per payment. A wrong decision will seem to cost you more.

If you are mainly interested in skipping then go with a Daiwa Tat sv tws. Otherwise to fish ledges I would go with Daiwa Tatula CT in a 6.3-1 or 7.3-1( to pick up line a little faster). I used to fish with some green Curados and white Chronarch E7 reels till a friend put an original Tatula in my hand. I have fished deep in Dale Hollow and Center Hill Lakes and never been anything but happy with them. The entire Tatula family of reels does adjust very different than any reel you have ever fished before. If you go with any of the Daiwa reels with Magforce Z braking then watch these two videos. The first explains how the internal (non adjustable part) brakes work and then how the outside dial actually affects the braking system. In the second one Bret Ehler shows you how to correctly adjust any Magforce Z reel. He is specifically showing it on a Tatula CT SV TWS but it is the same with all of them. You will notice that you will not really adjust your reel much even when going from heavier to lighter baits. The internal system works like a governor on a lawn mower. It is automatic by design.

Another suggestion is stop in Bass Pro ans sit in a Tracker Pro Guide V-16SC When you run all persons sit in the cockpit. When you fish one angler runs up front, on angler moves their seat to the back deck, or add another seat. A brand new one runs roughly $17,650 new. Just a thought. The kids will enjoy running into Bass Pro anyway.

Here is a bit of a compromise boat that might work for you. https://nashville.craigslist.org/boa/d/1994-lund-16-ft-aluminum/6524005997.html Here is a much nicer version of this type of V hull. It is a 2015 Alumacraft Escape 165 (a 17 footer). Thy want $11,000 and it comes with a Yamaha 25 horse engine. It is located in White Bluff TN. With a boat like this you add a fourth seat down in the floor. When you are riding around all 3 are sitting in the cockpit. When you fish, someone fishes from the front seat, one in the middle and one from the rear. Here is the listing and a few pics. http://www.boattrader.com/listing/2014-alumacraft-escape-165-cs-103238474?refSource=standard listing Here is a youtube video on the same model boat.