This is the weekend

Got the boat and trailer registered today, so with the weather looking good, i am going to put the boat in the water on Sunday and go for a cruise. still do not have the starter fixed but it will start on the pull string without to much work.

I will report back on Sunday and let everyone know how it went.

Starter...

Ken- Glad you are hitting the water, not sure what powerplant you are running, if you need an Johnson/Evinrude starter we would be glad to donate.

[Captain Jack]

Time to get started-

...or if you need a Mercury starter I might be able to help...

The Cap'n

I have a 1958 Johnson, not sure how common something like that is.

where are you located, even to borrow it (if it works) to verify that is the issue might be helpful.

Well, the boat floats and moves under its own power but the day was not without its trials and tribulations. around 1pm the wife and I headed over to lake sawyer since it was close and I hoped would be not to busy to allow me ample room to learn the boat..

What i learned.

1. the water is cold and you will get wet if you launch at a ramp with no dock
2. do you remove the main trailer strap until fully in the water or the boat will come off the trailer as you are backing down the ramp
3. there will be someone that makes you look at an expect when it comes to loading their own boat on a trailer.
4. There are good and crooked people in this world.


Prior to leaving home I put the hose and the motor and fired it off to make sure it was running fine, one pull and it fired up. (could not get it to rev at first but realized it had to be in gear for that to occur). packed the electric trolling motor into the boat along with the oars and other required items. Got to the ramp and it was clear, so I backed on down go to about 20' of the water, put the plugs in to prevent sinking and undid the tie down, (all of them) go back in and started the slow decent towards the water.. My wife yells and I see the boat moving faster then the truck and trailer. Yep it slid half way off the trailer with the bottom skag on the motor digging in and stopping it. I get out, stayed calm and looked over the situation.. figured no other solution but to put the strap on it and crank it back up.. luckily that worked and I had to laugh at myself.. (growing up all of my parents smaller boats were on trailers with carpeted pads, not rollers like my trailer. ROOKIE MISTAKE and i got lucky.

Get the boat into the water and had a rope so the wife could hold it while I parked the truck and trailer. by the time I get down there the boat is sideways on the ramp and she is telling me her feet are freezing and because of the slippery boat could not get a good footing to hold the boat in a good position. so I get in the water take over and push it straight. Now with the motor requiring pull start because the starter is not working, I think how am i going to do this. push the boat, crawl over the side and hope it goes out far enough (no current luckily) so I can get in and pull the motor and get it started.

well I did manage but it was hectic for a few seconds...got it started and nothing would happen when I put it in gear (I checked it while at home). I look back at the motor and see the cable that attaches to the motor has failed. yep no controlling the motor from the captains seat... but failing on the first ride was disappointing. so I reach back and put it in reverse and back away from the boat ramp. . get it out and put it back into neutral get my braining thinking about what I want to do, go back or go for a ride. well I decided to put it into gear manually and go for a ride. spent about an hour cruising around the lake making laps (its a small lake) but it does allow more then just 5mph cruizing. after a few minutes of running at slow (just above idle) I put some juice to it and brought it up on plane and eventually got it all she got for a short run across the lake. (on about the third lap).

decide enough fun for one day, she did not sink and ran decent, not confident in where it idles, was kinda worried it might stall when I pull it all the back and since I had to pull start it i decided not to and just keep it in a nice safe zone when I did my 5mph cruizing while looking at the big houses....

Now we get back to the ramp and there are two boats in front of me, one yanked it out with no issues, the second was a 10 to 12 foot aluminum flat bottom fishing boat with a small trolling motor on it. it took this guy about 10 minutes to get it on the trailer, he nor his buddy who backed the trailer in wanted to get their feet wet. finally another guy who was loading a canoe walked out and grabbed the boat and pull it towards the trailer (the other guy kept trying to load it side ways or off center.). so I felt I had a good chance of looking better then him. but I had to make a decision on how to get in there without any controls over forward, neutral or reverse. I decided to clamp on the electric trolling motor and bring it in under electric power. got close, jumped overboard to keep the front from hitting the cement.

ran up towards the truck and two guys are standing there looking at my trailer. they tell me a guy just hit it, breaking the tail light and fender. they tell me he knew he did as he got out look at the front of his truck and at my trailer, got back in and just left. (they got his license plate, so now i have to figure if I want to report it or just let it go and buy a new plastic fender and tail light). Karma will get even with him I figure).

Backed the truck and trailer down. took the rope, pushed the boat back out into the water and yanked the rope with my arm in the middle of the trailer, it came right up the middle, i put the strap on it and cranked it up and tight. about a 2 minute loading and I was out looking like a pro..

so with the boat back home and I look back it felt good to be out there and hope the next trip to the water is less adventurous..


I have to now get the starter fixed finally, and figure out how to fix the drive cable (are these available or do I have to find a good used assembly (just seen one on craigslist last week).

[timw]

Yikes! The first day is just a killer! I hope you don't mind but I read your post to Chris and we were laughing (and almost crying) with you because in our first two weeks of classic boat ownership there have been so many rookie moves, operator errors, trials and tribulations. We felt for you...big time...

However, the good news is you made it out and back safely and even got a little time in on the water. And, I'm sure, with that boat, you looked GREAT

So, it gets better. Really. We were out again today (I think this was launch number 7) and we were almost feeling cocky. But not too cocky, cause we know that at any time our old girl will remind us who's boss (and she is VERY tempermental) It was just nice that nothing went wrong, and everything went right for a change :eek:

Here's to every launch and every ride getting better and better!

[Steve_Kiesel]

Sorry Ken, but I got a good laugh out of your post also. Only because I've been there done that. Most of it anyway. Check your other post on the cables, I made a reply that might help.

Future launches do get better. But believe me, there will always be something happening to entertain those watching. My last one was the Slough Run outing. The kind members of the club where helping me launch the Seafair, but they couldn't get it off the trailer. I'm in the cab of the truck thinking, geez guys, pull on it. Turns out some dummy didn't unhook the bow strap. That got a few laughs.

[Captain Jack]

First time out...

As long as we're sharing...

Here's a description of MY first time out (posted on another newsgroup many years ago) -

I bought my first boat last August, and raced the winter weather to get it on the water before the "monsoon season" started in Oregon.

As the boating season ran down last Fall, and as I watched my first boat sitting in the driveway, and knowing that I'd spent more money on it than I could really afford, I made a hasty decision and "pushed it". I put it in the nearest body of water I could find (the Willamette River in Independence, Oregon). It was quite an afternoon.

I had 5 friends with me to "check out the new boat", and I was determined to enjoy my investment. I was not prepared for being a new boat owner!!!

I didn't have the fish finder hooked up yet, so I had no idea how deep (or shallow) the water was. Therefore, 30ft off the ramp I managed to back over a gravel bar and trash my prop. (see pictures).

I discovered quite quickly that when you suddenly get off the throttle on a heavily loaded (overloaded, actually) boat, the wake tends to wash over the transom and add about 5 gallons of water to the stern. This is when I discovered that the bilge pump wasn't working yet.

My Tach wasn't working so I didn't know how hard I was running my engine, I just prayed it held together.

I managed to get the steering stuck in a hard left turn when the cross-shaft at the stern got hung up because the motor was mounted too low and too far back.

We cleared that problem, and headed back upriver towards the ramp. This is when I discovered it was a BAD idea to go out so late in the day- we were heading right into the sunset and the glare off the water and the windshield made us nearly blind. Now, had the motor quit we'd have been literally "up the creek" as I didn't have a trolling motor or oars yet.

Now, I did have an emergency kit, anchor & plenty of rope, fire extinguisher, air horn, life vests for all and my cell phone. I wasn't totally stupid, just inexperienced.

The point I'm trying to make is that I got "desperate to get this thing on the water", so I "didn't do my homework". I launched without checking some things I really needed to, and without some equipment I really needed.

I knew NOTHING about that stretch of river except that it was wet. I discovered the next day that (1) the rivers were at their lowest point in 20 years :eek:, and (2) that there were a LOT of large rocks and logs underwater, any one of which would have ended our jaunt up the river in a hurry (and possibly gotten one or more of us drowned). I would have been criminally negligent (and heartbroken!) had that happened.

Am I saying you shouldn't take your boat out? HECK NO! I am saying don't be in such a hurry that you do something stupid like I did. We got lucky; we had a fairly good time and the only casualty was $60 out of my pocket to get the prop rebuilt. It could have turned out much worse.

Get your boat working, make sure you have the proper safety equipment, make sure your bilge pump works , take a boater's safety course from your State Marine Board if it's offered (you can take it online here in Oregon), and have your boat inspected if possible by someone who knows what they're doing BEFORE you hit the water. Last thing: I shouldn't have to say this, but don't Drink & Boat. This newsgroup doesn't need to lose any members!

My friends and I got lucky last fall. You might not.

--
The Cap'n