moloch16

There are several units you can buy in a 'portable' form. They are usually mounted to a built-in battery pack and come with a suction-cup tranducer that is easy to install and remove. I use the Portable FishMark 320

In Raleigh when it snows our primal instinct to make French Toast drives us all mad. We all drive to the store for milk, eggs, and bread. Then we slide into the ditch on the way home.

Towed the boat to the lake yesterday and I must say, there is a marked improvement with the modified trailer. It was like night and day. The motor still jumped a bit on the truly outrageous potholes so I think I will look into add a strap around the lower unit to help secure the motor to the boat. I noticed a lot of people tow their boats with the motor locked in the upright position. Is this considered a better practice then leaving it down in the running position? To me it seems the upright position would cause more stress on the transom than the down (i.e. running) position.

Don't just chuck and crank the bait, add some action to the crank bait. Try pausing your retrieve every now and then, especially when you go by some structure. Vary your retrieve too - crank it slow and then give it a good rip through the water. Varying your retrieve will get your lure more attention than just chucking and winding. Fishing a crank near structure may sound foolish but it can be done. You'll need to keep the lip pointed down so it roles over the structure. You'll be surprised at the strikes you get when you're bumping your bait against something. Much more effective than cranking through open water. You can get a lure retriever to help with the snags.

Welp, I put everything back together this weekend and splurged on some 12" wheels. I haven't had a chance to go fishing so I haven't towed the boat, but I think there will be marked improvement. I'll definitely post the results of my first tow whenever I get lucky enough to go fishing! Also need to post a picture. Summary of changes: Removed two of the three spring assemblies Replaced 8" wheels with 12" wheels Still need to buy some bags of sand to help balance the boat for towing and planing.

Hey Flatfish you were right, it doesn't seem the shackles had much play at all. What type of lube do you suggest? I'm thinking marine grade grease. I'm concerned it will just gunk up and be worse than no lube at all. One shackle has a rubber bushing, grease ok for metal on rubber? So tonight I took apart suspension. Like mayassa suggested I'm removing springs (leaving just one of the three). Even with one spring I doubt my 150lb Jon will load the spring. Even so I think the effort will produce some noticeable results.

Oh and I just found where I can buy different springs: http://www.stengelbros.com/UtilityTrailer.htm Lightest ones they have are rated for 540 lbs which is probably still to stiff for a boat like mine.

You guys are awesome! Thanks for the tips, I have a lot to work with now. The suspension looks light but I don't think the boat loads at all (as was mentioned by several posters). I didn't have time last night but I'm going to take the boat off and stand on the trailer to see if there is any give to the suspension at all. I expect that even my 200 lbs won't budge it much. I'm guess the boat weighs 200lbs or less, it is easily carried by two people. Short term solution: o Everything goes in the car except gas can o Going to buy some bags of sand and stick them in the boat to load it down (need this anyhow to balance the boat so it will plane properly) o Buy additional strap to make sure the bow is tied down tight (take pressure off the winch) o Check bunker length - make longer as needed Long term solution: o Install 12" wheels o Look into modifying existing suspension / installing new suspension o Buy a real boat / trailer Thanks y'all!

And another...

Closeup...

Ha! I'm already putting all the gear in the car so it doesn't get beat to death! I hate the idea of putting the motor in too. Too much loading an unloading of gear when I just want to fish! Here are some pictures of the trailer and suspension...

Yep I think y'all nailed it - boat is too light for the trailer. Now I just need to figure out what to do about it. I'll take a look and see if I can adjust or replace the suspension. I also thought about sticking the motor in the car (no truck lol). I wanted to avoid this due to potential water and gas leaking on the floor but I can put a tarp down. Thanks for the help folks, these forums are wonderful

I'm at work and can't measure them, but I do believe they are 8" wheels. Reading into your comment I guess replacing the wheels with larger diameters would help?

First time boat / trailer owner here. I bought a used 14' Jon with a 9.9 motor. Came with a trailer. When I tow the boat to the lake it bounce like crazy. It doesn't help that the road to my home lake looks like it was paved in 1912. There are so many ruts and pot holes I refuse to drive it after dark My main concern is the constant shaking and bouncing will screw up the motor. My second concern is the transom can't take the abuse of the motor hanging on the back bouncing around like that. Is it normal for the boat and motor to bounce around so much? Perhaps the suspension on the trailer isn't quite right? Are there any measures I can take to prevent the boat and trailer from shaking and bouncing so much? I'm very new to this, any help is appreciated!

I used this seat mount which installs into this base plate. These have worked really well on my Jon boat. I noticed my wal-mart started selling these, is this what you are talking about? I installed the base plate on a piece of wood which is attached to the bench seats with self-tapping screws. The base plate has the long piece sticking up and this gives me the right amount of height. I can provide a picture if you want more detail.

The 14' used Jon I bought a while back had some wood bolted to the aluminum transom for (I assume) reinforcement purposes. Wood was doing fine but I needed to remove it for another reason and since it's old I figured I might as well replace it. Looks like the wood I removed was plywood and didn't seem warped or rotting. This is surprising because I thought regular plywood left in the elements would not hold up very well. I seriously doubt the wood is marine grade because I can tell the fella I bought the boat from didn't not splurge on boat parts. I'm thinking I would replace the wood with some fresh plywood with a few coats of exterior paint. Will this do the trick? Or do I need marine grade? I hear treated wood is a no-no on aluminum, is this true? Any recommendations are much appreciated!

I'm in the same position as the OP. Where do you learn to do the maintenance yourself? I'm not afraid to give it a try if there's a book or something that explains the process.

I'd go with the Eagle FishMark 320. If you live near a Dick's Sporting goods they go for $130 (non-portable). Portable is a bit more.

First time I took my son fishing (4 years old) I giggled when he wanted to put a cheap plastic worm under his bobber. We sure enough he caught himself a 2 pound bass. Meanwhile Dad is getting skunked with his $3000 worth of tackle >

Next time snag his bobber with your pop-r and drag it in a few times. Apologize profusely as you untangle the mess and let them know you're "new to this". I guess I'm just a little more evil than most :

Thanks everyone. I'll look for the test kit at Lowes and if it comes up positive I'll use a respirator and drop cloth to collect the dust. You guys rock!

My jon boat came with an older trailer that I want to refinish. The trailer is home made. The registration says 1965 but the previous owner seems to think the registration was 'arranged' and that the trailer isn't really that old. The trailer doesn't look like it was made in 1965. Anyhow, I plan to sand off the rust and apply a new coat of paint. What's the chances the paint used is lead? I don't want to poison myself and/or create a ton of lead dust for my children to deal with. Did they use lead paint on trailers back then? Thanks!

I'd say try it and see how it goes. Most fish will only grow as big as the aquarium allows, so he just won't get real big in that 10 gallon tank. I'd feed it fish flakes and when he gets bigger crickets and such. If it doesn't turn out just take him back and let'em go

I'm doing the exact same thing. After a bit of research I settled on 3M Marine Aluminum Restorer and Polish. I'll let everyone know how well it works. If you want I can even sell you what I don't use - I doubt I'll use much on my 14' jon.

Doug Hannon has some pretty informative shows: http://www.bassprofessor.com/pastshows/