Wanna built a boat?

[casts_by_fly]

Hi Gents

 

it’s silly season for a lot of us. I’ve got 8” of ice everywhere. The current forecast isn’t conducive to ice out before march and it might even be April ala @A-Jay latitudes.

 

Ive loved my autopilot. It’s a phenomenal fishing machine between autopilot, the stability, and the overall platform. But, on the 500+ acre lakes the travel time is tough. You can work around it but it’s tough. And loading and unloading everything  each trip gets old. 
 

So I’m buying a boat. I’ve talked about it here and in-depth with a couple of you (thanks!). I’ve looked at options and availability. And I’ve settled on a crestliner. I have a tiny garage and i want a rod locker.  Based on what fits, this is what we’re doing. 
 

So, 16’ aluminum crestliner with a 9.9. How are you rigging it out?  Trolling motor?  Electronics?   Accessories?  Other?

 

I have a good idea what I’m doing but what say you?  What would you rig?  I may or may not include it in the final built but it’s winter and I’m paying. 
 

Rick 

[Junger]

I love my Ultrex Quest. I'd go with the MK Xplore to pair with it. I don't have those yet, but based on the reviews, the GUI and quickness look really good. If you fish current and shallow, maybe think about Raptors or power Poles. And if you site fish a lot, I'd even put a raised casting platform on. Super Stick comes in handy if you fish shallow and tidal.

[Jig Man]

What ever you wind up doing be sure that you get compatible equipment.  That can save you hundreds of dollars later on.  Get electronics that are Ethernet capable, Garmin, Hummingbird, Lowrance (what you like best).  Get a trolling motor that at least has spot lock and don’t scrimp on the power.  Most trolling motors don’t do well over time if run distances on high.
 

If I were doing what you are I would start with the gps/sonar brand that I like then get the rest of the stuff that works with it.

[GreenPig]

  Nice. Are we spending your money or our money? 😀 You getting a Storm? My friend has one and really likes it.

[casts_by_fly]

3 hours ago, GreenPig said:

  Nice. Are we spending your money or our money? 😀 You getting a Storm? My friend has one and really likes it.

my money. I have a budget but with the right justification I can consider options and upgrades. 
 

and yes it’s a storm.  I have a 20’ garage and wanted a rod locker. That brings it down to about 3 or 4 boats that work, new or used. The dealer has a 1600 they are trying to clear out well under MSRP such that a new boat will be very close to a used boat price and I’ll have the full history. 

 

3 hours ago, Jig Man said:

What ever you wind up doing be sure that you get compatible equipment.  That can save you hundreds of dollars later on.  Get electronics that are Ethernet capable, Garmin, Hummingbird, Lowrance (what you like best).  Get a trolling motor that at least has spot lock and don’t scrimp on the power.  Most trolling motors don’t do well over time if run distances on high.
 

If I were doing what you are I would start with the gps/sonar brand that I like then get the rest of the stuff that works with it.

I’m team humminbird/minn kota. 

[Alex from GA]

Unless your lakes/ponds have  9.9 hp limit get at least a 15 hp engine to be able to plane.

[casts_by_fly]

1 hour ago, Alex from GA said:

Unless your lakes/ponds have  9.9 hp limit get at least a 15 hp engine to be able to plane.

I mostly have 9.9 or electric only limits.  Only four lakes have unlimited HP and three of them are < 300 acres so any bigger is not really helpful.  The unlimited lake that's actually big enough to justify it has ten thousand boats on it every weekend so I don't fish it anymore.

[Motoboss]

Congratulations on the boat!
 

Let’s see;

Power Pole anchor(s)

Mega 2 Live w/FFSonar

Helix 10 at helm

Ultrex trolling motor 

3 MillerTech LifePo4 100ah batteries 

Butt Seat for bow

TH Marine jack plate (cause it your money)

Assorted dock lines and a bumper or two

Quality marine radio w/weather channel 

Quality road cover

Swing away tongue (it makes a difference for room)

I think that’d be a great start 😆

 

[casts_by_fly]

24 minutes ago, Motoboss said:

Congratulations on the boat!
 

Let’s see;

Power Pole anchor(s)

Mega 2 Live w/FFSonar

Helix 10 at helm

Ultrex trolling motor 

3 MillerTech LifePo4 100ah batteries 

Butt Seat for bow

TH Marine jack plate (cause it your money)

Assorted dock lines and a bumper or two

Quality marine radio w/weather channel 

Quality road cover

Swing away tongue (it makes a difference for room)

I think that’d be a great start 😆

 

it’s got a swing tongue already (only way I can fit a boat in the garage) so plus one there!

 

Im with you on ml2. But you can’t hook it to a helix so I can’t  take advantage of the sales going on. 
 

why three 100 ah?  I get two for the trolling motor (unless you’re implying 36v).

[Motoboss]

Gotta have a starting battery, electronics battery and two for TM.

Personally I don’t connect  electronics to either TM or cranking batteries as it (can) produces interference.

 I thought the Mega2 would connect to the Ultrex as they are both Johnson products.

 

Plug-And-Play With Your Minn Kota 

Mounting MEGA Live 2 is easier than ever, offering mounting options that include placement on either side of a Minn Kota Ultrex trolling motor.

 

 

[MN Fisher]

37 minutes ago, Motoboss said:

Personally I don’t connect  electronics to either TM or cranking batteries as it (can) produces interference.

This is much less a problem now-days with the shielding they do....but it's still a good idea.

[gim]

On 2/9/2025 at 10:13 AM, casts_by_fly said:

and yes it’s a storm.  I have a 20’ garage and wanted a rod locker. That brings it down to about 3 or 4 boats that work, new or used. The dealer has a 1600 they are trying to clear out well under MSRP such that a new boat will be very close to a used boat price and I’ll have the full history. 

 

I saw this model at the boat show last month.  Seemed like a solid rig.

 

If the cost difference from a used one to a new one is negligible, I'd go with the brand new one.  Look forward to the photos.

[casts_by_fly]

4 hours ago, gim said:

 

I saw this model at the boat show last month.  Seemed like a solid rig.

 

If the cost difference from a used one to a new one is negligible, I'd go with the brand new one.  Look forward to the photos.

 

yeah, used vs deep discount new (last year model) is pretty close.

 

5 hours ago, Motoboss said:

Gotta have a starting battery, electronics battery and two for TM.

Personally I don’t connect  electronics to either TM or cranking batteries as it (can) produces interference.

 I thought the Mega2 would connect to the Ultrex as they are both Johnson products.

 

Plug-And-Play With Your Minn Kota 

Mounting MEGA Live 2 is easier than ever, offering mounting options that include placement on either side of a Minn Kota Ultrex trolling motor.

 

 

 

ah, you were suggesting a 100 AH for the electronics.  I am going to have a dedicated electronics battery, just not a 100ah.  A 50/60 is a good bit smaller and I'll have a limited space in the back. Its currently only set up for 2 battery trays, but there is space for a third and maybe fourth.  I'm probably going to go with a 24V for the trolling motor also.

 

Megalive 2 and ultrex together are no problem.  The megalive 2 won't connect to the helix.

[JHoss]

On 2/11/2025 at 2:23 PM, casts_by_fly said:

I mostly have 9.9 or electric only limits.  Only four lakes have unlimited HP and three of them are < 300 acres so any bigger is not really helpful.  The unlimited lake that's actually big enough to justify it has ten thousand boats on it every weekend so I don't fish it anymore.

 

Just throwing it out there... a 20hp Tohatsu with a $3 9.9 sticker is identical to a true 9.9. OR an aftermarket carb will convert a 9.9 to a 20 and keep your 9.9 serial number- just remember to swap back if you ever need warranty work. I'm not sure I would be able to get my decked 1448 on plane with a full load of gear and a second person on the boat with anything short of a 20. 

[casts_by_fly]

50 minutes ago, JHoss said:

 

Just throwing it out there... a 20hp Tohatsu with a $3 9.9 sticker is identical to a true 9.9. OR an aftermarket carb will convert a 9.9 to a 20 and keep your 9.9 serial number- just remember to swap back if you ever need warranty work. I'm not sure I would be able to get my decked 1448 on plane with a full load of gear and a second person on the boat with anything short of a 20. 

 

Yes, but because it was a big thing here the wardens do check the plates.  I've considered this.  And also swapping carbs/restrictor plates/ECU for 9.9 models to get them up to 15 or 20 while still having a 9.9 ID plate.  But, I'm not that worried about it.  Sure a bigger motor would be great, but I'm not planning on getting on plane and I'd rather keep it on the right side of legal and not mess about.

[Craig P]

This is exactly how I would rig that rig.

 

MinnKota Ultrex 80 TM

Garmin 106v / GT56 at Console

Garmin 106sv at Bow

Garmin Steadycast

Two (2) 60ah Lithium (TM)

One (1) 50ah Lithium (Electronics)

Noco 5x3 Charger

Remote Fuse Box to the front hatch

BBT Battery Tray

Recessed Foot Pedal Tray

 

 

 

 

 

 

I absolutely love this boat.  There is nothing it cannot do and the size is perfect for 2 guys.  Super manageable hooking up, launching and landing.  As you can see, I outfitted it with everything a geeky angler would want.  The only thing missing is Livescope......I did have that but I sold it last year after having it for 4 years on 2 different boats.  In short, I learned a ton from LS but it ran it's course for me so I moved on.

 

FWIW, the 50ah handled the 2 106sv and GLS10/LVS32 just fine.  A full long day could get it down to about 20%.  Nothing that ever concerned me.

 

The ONLY change I would have made.....I would not have recessed the finder in the console.  The dealer already cut that area out for a 7" finder so I thought why not just make it bigger and recess my 106sv.  It worked, it wasn't easy but I did a nice job on it.  Hindsight tells me I should have just put a patch piece over the area and used a BBT or similar mount.  If I ever change finders, that cut-out now could be an issue if the future finder does not have similar dimensions.

[casts_by_fly]

2 hours ago, Craig P said:

This is exactly how I would rig that rig.

 

MinnKota Ultrex 80 TM

Garmin 106v / GT56 at Console

Garmin 106sv at Bow

Garmin Steadycast

Two (2) 60ah Lithium (TM)

One (1) 50ah Lithium (Electronics)

Noco 5x3 Charger

Remote Fuse Box to the front hatch

BBT Battery Tray

Recessed Foot Pedal Tray

 

 

 

 

 

 

I absolutely love this boat.  There is nothing it cannot do and the size is perfect for 2 guys.  Super manageable hooking up, launching and landing.  As you can see, I outfitted it with everything a geeky angler would want.  The only thing missing is Livescope......I did have that but I sold it last year after having it for 4 years on 2 different boats.  In short, I learned a ton from LS but it ran it's course for me so I moved on.

 

FWIW, the 50ah handled the 2 106sv and GLS10/LVS32 just fine.  A full long day could get it down to about 20%.  Nothing that ever concerned me.

 

The ONLY change I would have made.....I would not have recessed the finder in the console.  The dealer already cut that area out for a 7" finder so I thought why not just make it bigger and recess my 106sv.  It worked, it wasn't easy but I did a nice job on it.  Hindsight tells me I should have just put a patch piece over the area and used a BBT or similar mount.  If I ever change finders, that cut-out now could be an issue if the future finder does not have similar dimensions.

I was waiting to update this with the final build spec and pictures (I just sent the order today), but you just about hit the nail on where I’m at. 
 

I went 9.9 because of my lakes. I have 3x hp restricted lakes at 9.9, plus 3 unlimited lakes that are under 300 acres. There is one lake around that’s unlimited where unlimited would make a difference, but I don’t fish it because of how busy it gets and I can still fish it with a 9.9. I strongly considered a jet. And if I’d have had better visibility of my bonus when it was available, there was a used boat that I would have bought with a jet. That would have been a compromise for my usual fishing for a couple trips per year to the river, so I didn’t do it on what I’m getting now but I was very close. 
 

I’ve gone ultrex. I was going to go with a terrova.  I’m used to remote control from my autopilot, and spotlock and the associated functions were mandatory for me. The terrova is cheaper and lighter. However once I add on the mount for live imaging, the terrova plus mount costs the same as the ultrex (for which the included mount works fine).  So I’m going with the more robust cable steer plus remote version. 
 

I’m humminbird, but I’m going similar features and type. I considered going helix for the deals going on and for moving what I have from the kayak. But I’m going to leave the kayak fully rigged and buy fresh which means explore series. I’m going 12” up front and 9” at the console. The console will be primarily side imaging and the front will be live imaging, both with the mapping linked for waypoints. Both are being mounted on ram mounts. The front might not, but probably. 
 

I haven’t made up my full mind on battery brand yet, but I decided to go 24v single battery on the trolling motor and 12v for the rest of course. Lead for the cranking and lithium elsewhere. I’m pretty confident that a 50 is enough for the electronics, but depending on the brand I go with it might be a 60. On the trolling motor, I am probably going 50 ah. That’s the same total power as a 100ah 12v. I’ve been fishing a 80ah 12v in the kayak as the primary propulsion for 4 years without a problem. Since I’ll have a 9.9 on any of the lakes I’ve run the trolling motor battery down below 50%, I think I should be okay. 
 

I was clear with the dealer that I start fishing at ice out, so here’s to hoping that happens. It might be my ice out or a-jays ice out. But we’ll get there. 

[Motoboss]

Sounds like you’re on the right path!

[Craig P]

HP restrictions are what they are. I went 20hp as Pa has those restrictions on one of my often visited lakes but the 20 does very nice in that boat. It planes and gets to 22-23mph when I am alone, a few less depending on the size of my passenger.  We don’t have huge lakes here so even on the unregulated lakes, it is fine at that speed. With that said….

 

Have you thought about going with an electric outboard?  Pricey but you could probably skirt around some regs going electric. 

[casts_by_fly]

2 hours ago, Craig P said:

HP restrictions are what they are. I went 20hp as Pa has those restrictions on one of my often visited lakes but the 20 does very nice in that boat. It planes and gets to 22-23mph when I am alone, a few less depending on the size of my passenger.  We don’t have huge lakes here so even on the unregulated lakes, it is fine at that speed. With that said….

 

Have you thought about going with an electric outboard?  Pricey but you could probably skirt around some regs going electric. 

yes, also considered. A couple of my lakes are electric only. The regulations in those lakes are just ‘electric only’.  Zipping across one at 25 mph on plane would be cool. Pushing the regs of what 9.9 hp actually is when converted to electric might be possible but I don’t have anything big enough where something bigger than a 9.9 would be warranted.  And I thought about a straight 9.9 electric but the benefit over a gas 9.9 isn’t there for me. 

[Junger]

If you have electric only lakes, I'd go 24/36v 100AH. A TM pulling a kayak vs a fully rigged aluminum boat is probably a big enough weight difference for amp drain in a long fishing session. I went with 3x 12v 100AH batteries, they were about $170 each with bluetooth. I figured if one went bad, the Ultrex Quest would auto-sense down to 24v. I've ran them down to 15% after a full day of fishing my electric only reservoir in the summer. Post pictures of your rig when you get her!