GregOug

How much is the Minn Kota costing roughly, including fitting. And does it have spot lock? What about auto deploy?

I bought this one. Clamps straight on to the ski pole. I don’t use it though so if anyone is interested I’m open to offers.

Yes. Although backpacks involve work, which I am allergic to.

Rusty nail said - this is what I had installed to access the storage area without having to go through the bow. The back cushion in the bow is also hinged on my boat, however find this makes it easy to put larger objects in. I just bought some of these. Waterproof, you can label them with the contents and they come in different colours and sizes from about 10 litres up to 50 litres.

No mate. Taking their time. Probably a week or two yet. Sigh.

I agree with you @The Sloth. I’m fairly sure @ellicat worked out a figure of 2km per litre for mine as well when I first got the boat. I also agree that you won’t need all the power. I’ve never been able to wind mine right out either. I also have the 19P 4 blade revolution prop and think it really suits the boat/motor combination.And as @The Sloth also said, with that much power you need to watch your throttle use. It is very responsive. I went with the cheaper launch and release system than @The Sloth did, called deckies.

It’s got an up/down buttony thingy. Does that help? Lol.

I don’t even know. Lol.

No problem. Will do.

Yes @Rusty_Nail. Mine came standard with the 12V socket and two USB ports so @WilliBoaz’s boat should have those.

My boat is at the dealers at the moment so can’t check but from memory it has a rubberised stopper which rests against the windscreen and doesn’t touch the gelcoat? Not 100% sure though.

I now realise what you are talking about. You are suggesting an access door from the walkway to the bow into the cavity behind the port helm. In my boat, the back cushion in the bow rider area is hinged and you simply open it to access that area. You don’t have to remove any cushions. Obviously another improvement they made in later builds.

Hi @The Sloth. Thanks for the photo. I can see why you were having a problem! My battery is nowhere near there. It’s tucked under the back floor and facing 90 degrees to yours. Also, my floor in the cockpit is flat so no problems with it. They obviously made some design improvements in the interim between us buying our boats. I do like the idea of the live well however I find that large space great for storing those big items like spare anchors, fenders, large landing nets etc. Also, my second battery doesn’t intrude on the ski locker space at all. It is also tucked up away under the rear deck. I also store all my rods in the ski locker. It is a great feature! cheers Greg

Yes. I have a few suppliers.

So basically, you’re pretty well covered as long as you are on the boat, and you’re not a complete idiot.

Hi @Rusty_Nail. I am not sure how you are getting water in the storage areas under the helm. I use a high pressure washer on mine and have never experienced water getting in there. As for drilling holes in the fibreglass e.g the step, why would you do that? A half inch of water on a six inch wide step, which drys up in an hour or so, is hardly going to hurt the fibreglass or the ocean grip flooring. I don’t even understand what you are talking about with regard to installing a door on the port side. Where? What for? Taking out the bow cushions? Which storage compartment? There are numerous ones on the ss64. Just use another one. I’m confused.

Hi @The Sloth. As @Drop Bear said, great write up! A couple of things I have experienced differently to you. I haven’t had a problem with the battery compartment. I went for twin batteries so there is one to port and one to starboard. You are talking about the starboard setup. I agree that if you stop suddenly after really motoring, or back up into a following sea, water can come over the rear. Although this water doesn’t seem to get into the battery compartment as yours does. I like the idea of turning that area into a live well but you could do that and still leave the battery where it is. You could, and probably would have to, isolate the battery area from the live well. However, in the end, you would probably have to move the battery as you would be cutting off access to it when installing the live well. There is heaps of room so it would make a massive live well. I note you have already relocated the battery but it could also have been moved to the port side where my second battery is and which is very dry. The problem with the location of the driver’s seat was fixed between your iteration of the ss64 and mine. My seat is a bit further back which allows you room to stand without a problem when driving. Not sure what you mean by ‘all the funky raised sections’ with regard to the floor. Mine is all the same height except for the one step up to the rear deck. Perhaps the earlier versions were designed differently? Anyway, I am sure @WilliBoaz will love his new Stejcraft. cheers Greg

Hey, you forgot about me.

Damn! It’s all gone! I can highly recommend pork collar butt for rotisserie’ing though.

Not really. I have always had Garmins before and the way they work suits me better. I also am not getting any younger and want to change to a bigger screen. Can’t fault the Lowrance though. It reads the bottom very well, even at very fast speeds and the Navionics card displays the maps in great detail and clarity. I’m just a Garmin man though, I’ve decided.

The seats can get a bit hot on those really hot days but I haven’t really found it to be a problem. Which dealer did you order the boat from?

No, it is a replacement unit. I will sell the Lowrance when I get it back. And I have left it in Hayden’s hands to fit it.

It comes with the Bimini as standard. It handles the rough water well. But I’m biased. Ask @ellicat or @Old Scaley. They have both been out on it.

Ring Hayden Wyld at Wyld About Boats and he will look after you. Ph 0418195397. Mention my name and you should get it for $10000 more than the normal price. Lol.

Mate, I can’t fault it except to say that with the 200 on the back you will find very few times you can actually wind it right out. I haven’t found an occasion yet.