Trailer Boats articles from April 2003

Trailer Boats archives from April 2003

'Rude contradiction. (On Plane).
April 1, 2003... I'm a simple guy. So, I don't always understand where companies are headed with promotional campaigns. Yet, after looking at Bombardier's marketing strategy for Evinrude, it would appear that with one hand the company is aiming to sell...

Salton Zen. (Letters to the Editor).
April 1, 2003... In the "Lunar Landing" (February), Ron Ballanti is correct in his assertion that Salton Sea is not for everyone. However, he failed to mention that the 115-degree Fahrenheit temperatures occur only occasionally -- and then only three months of...

New reflections. (Letters to the Editor).
April 1, 2003... In the 2003 Tow Vehicle of the Year story (February), you give the impression on page 79 that GMC pickups do not have sideview mirrors for towing. However, I believe you can order a Chevrolet or a GMC with mirrors that can be power extended in...

What radio? (Letters to the Editor).
April 1, 2003... Your January issue included an article about the challenges of installing a VHF radio on a boat with limited helm space ("Talk Radio"). However, it was your opening photo that immediately caught my attention. It seems that the lovely woman is...

Exceeding specs. (Letters to the Editor).
April 1, 2003... I love your magazine, and can't wait for it every month. However, in a recent Tow Car (October 2002), I saw something that bothered me. In the letter titled "F-250 Capacity," Brian Kelley asked about his Ford F-250. You said with 4.10:1 gears,...

I live where? (Letters to the Editor).
April 1, 2003... We inadvertently listed the wrong hometown and state for the winner of the February 2003 Over the Transom photo contest. The photographer, Len Schulte Jr., set the record straight. He lives in Ballwin, Missouri. We apologize for the error, Len....

PWCs get a break at Mead and Mohave. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... Good news for jet skiers in the West: The final environmental impact statement regarding the use of personal watercraft (PWCs) on lakes Mead and Mohave recommends continued use of PWCs in the "non-primitive" areas, which constitute 95 percent...

Ford accepts 21st annual tow vehicle of the Year Award. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... As you may recall in our February issue, Ford's F-350 dually, propelled by the new Power Stroke 6.0L V-8, beat out diesel duallies from Dodge and GMC to earn this year's Tow Vehicle of the Year Award. Trailer Boats editor Jim Hendricks and...

Survey says: Boaters are better off than Landlubbers. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... Boaters are better off than non-boaters. At least that's the conclusion of a recent online survey conducted by Los Angeles-based Impulse Research Corp. with a random sample of 1029 men and women closely selected to match U.S. population...

Launch Ramp. (Hot New Boats).
April 1, 2003... Chaparral SS 210 Chaparral has added a new 21-footer to its SS lineup for 2003: the SS 210. Like other members of the SS family, the 210's hull is constructed using premium resin, foam injection and quad radial lamination, with stainless...

Water toy Profile: Connelly's swept wing. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... How would you like a towable that has better visibility on the water and is more stable to ride? If so, Connelly Skis has anticipated your tubing needs with its 2003 Swept Wing. The Swept Wing ($109.99) features are updated in several ways....

Power trip: Suzuki adds counter-rotating 140. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... Suzuki Marine has introduced a counter-rotating version of its 140 four-stroke outboard. When running twin engines at planing speeds, counter rotation helps minimize the effects of prop torque, making for an even ride and easier handling....

Skipper's Challenge.
April 1, 2003... SKIPPER'S CHALLENGE A tight kink in a line may reduce the line's strength by: a) 15%, b) 20%, c) 25% or d) 30% Answer: d) 30%

Workin' for a living: Zodiac bulletproof inflatable. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... With the threat of domestic terrorism turning into a way of life, there comes the need to strengthen homeland security in ports, lakes and rivers, as well as on the high seas. Zodiac North America, a division of the world's largest...

Term of the Month: Tumblehome. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... Used as a verb, tumblehome could be used to describe how one can get home after a long night on the town. But, in boating terminology, tumblehome describes inward curving topsides of a boat above the waterline. Paraphrased from Skipper's...

Getting personal: Honda AquaTrax R-12X. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... In only its second year of watercraft production, Honda continues to challenge the personal Watercraft (PWC) industry frontrunners with fresh ideas and groundbreaking technology. New for 2003 is a high-performance, two-passenger PWC...

Evinrude taps Cousteau for environment promo. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... Wisconsin-based Bombardier Motor Corp. (BMC) has renewed its association with Jean-Michel Cousteau to promote Evinrude outboards with an environmental theme. To kick off the campaign -- called 'Cruise Clean' -- BMC came to Marina del Rey near...

Something's fishy: Pathfinder 2200 bay boat. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... If for every type of water there's a boat to match, then shallow bays and rivers represent paradise to a Pathfinder 2200V Bay Boat. In fact, the Pathfinder is at home on any bay, as this 22-footer combines fishing space with a 14-inch draft and...

Diesel days ahead. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... Although the auto industry had been planning to have more fuel-efficient diesel engines on deck by now, many manufacturers concede that these beefy towing powerplants are still in the dugout. Trouble is, current technology can't remove enough...

In Tow: Nissan leaps into full-size pickups. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... Nissan's all-new, full-size Titan pickup is set to arrive at showrooms late this year, and it's sure to cause a stir, giving Dodge, Ford, General Motors and Toyota even more competition in the hotly contested 1/2-ton market. The...

Electronics: Volvo Penta SeaKey System. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... With Volvo Penta's dash-mounted SeaKey system, anyone with Internet access can monitor the position of his boat from anywhere in the world. What's more, the skipper can relay the position of his boat to a second party when at sea. In the...

California boat labels. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... To sell gasoline-powered inboard and sterndrive craft in California, boatbuilders are now required to affix an environmental star label on the port bow. As part of a mandate by the California Air Resource Board (CARB), inboard and...

Ski locker: Tige 24V Bowrider. (Dock Talk).
April 1, 2003... If you like big bowriders that can smoothly navigate big, choppy lakes, check out Tige Boats' newest and biggest 2003 offering -- the 24V. When the first Tige made its debut in 1991, the closed-bow, dedicated ski boat had passenger space for...

Question of the Month.
April 1, 2003... What kind of propeller is on your boat: aluminum or stainless steel? To register your answer, go to our website -- TrailerBoats.com -- and click on Survey Section. Also, visit our message boards, and give us your thoughts. We will report...

Cut a Rug. (Boat Improvement).
April 1, 2003... A friend who helped introduce me to boating some years ago returned to town recently on his annual summer cruise. In addition to visiting many old friends, he was quite proud to show off his new boat -- a 35-foot express cruiser. I was...

Season Warm-Up. (Boating Basics).
April 1, 2003... With the first warm weather of spring come many new boaters -- people who purchased boats during the off-season and are wetting hulls for the first time. Many are unfamiliar with the sport and their boats. Yet, even veteran boaters may have...

Playing with blocks. (Propulsion Report).
April 1, 2003... One of the most disheartening sounds in boating is that of a dying engine. You are flying across the lake at wide-open throttle, the engine is running better than ever, when suddenly the warning horn goes off. There is the momentary crunch of...

Four horsemen: We couldn't resist test rides aboard the first boats with quadruple V-6 four-strokes. (Trailer Boats Magazine Engine Test).
April 1, 2003... Every now and then, we run across a boat that's so unusual that we just have to test it, even though it may not exactly fit the Trailer Boats mold. Such was the case when we saw the Midnight Express 39 at the Ft. Lauderdale Boat Show late last...

Hello Dolly: Electric-powered trailer-dollies let you maneuver big trailers in tight spaces. Yet, which brand works best?
April 1, 2003... Inches count, especially when it comes to parking a boat trailer in tight quarters. My truck, for example, narrowly misses a van (one that's always parked across the street when I bring the boat home) as the front wheels swing to maneuver the...

Beach Party: The author sets out to prove that taking your boat to Baja waters is easy, but surprising challenges await. (TBM Destination).
April 1, 2003... Last fall my husband, Tom, and I set out to disspell the notion that launching and using your trailer boat along the fabled East Cape of Mexico's Baja California is just too difficult. Although there are a number of beachfront hotels and...

Breaking the mold: The double pointed bow of Cobalt's new 240 SD deck boat is a bold departure. (Read Test).
April 1, 2003... Cobalt has been successfully pushing the envelope of recreational boat design in recent years. You may recall, for example, the swoopy, innovative Bimini archoption and open transom on the Cobalt 262 bowrider ("Time Machine," January 2000). ...

Ram Rod: A new Hemi V-8 breathes fire into Dodge's 2500 pickup. (TBM two test).
April 1, 2003... Hemi power is back! Blistering acceleration, market-competitive power and the lore of the Hemi have returned to Dodge -- and this time it's all in the manly 3/4- and 1-ton Ram pickups. The Hemi V-8 debuted in 1953 and was identified with...

Wood vs. Composite: Which is better--wood or composite construction? Here's what boatbuilders say.
April 1, 2003... There's been so much talk about the benefits of all composite boat construction that many believe using wood in boatbuilding is old-fashioned. Some feel that composites are inherently better than wood. Still others maintain that a boat's...

Noise maker: AFI's Hidden Horn is designed to be heard, but not seen -- and it's easy to install. (TBM How-To).
April 1, 2003... My boat came with an external horn. Mounted on the cabin, it made a loud noise, but it was obtrusive. I never liked the looks. So when I got rid of an old loran, I finally had an ideal spot to mount a recessed horn -- right where the old loran...

Price Shock: The cost of spark plugs for today's outboards can be shocking.
April 1, 2003... Thinking about replacing the spark plugs on your outboard? Depending on the type of engine you own, you could be looking at some serious bucks. We asked major outboard manufacturers for suggested retail on spark plugs for their respective 225...

Gettin' Hitched: think there's nothing new in receiver hitches and wiring? Read this, and think again.
April 1, 2003... At first blush, it might seem silly to ask what's new in tow hitches and related components. After all, a hitch is a hitch. Right? Actually, there's much that's new today, as tow vehicles, wiring and tow ratings get more complex and tougher to...

Nor' Easters: Looking for a boat with a salty character? Look nor' east to New England.
April 1, 2003... It's no secret that the boating season in southern New England is barely six months long, and closer to five in Maine. And even after the ice and snow have retreated, boaters still have to put up with fog, famously fickle weather and unexpected...

Bird of Prey: Named after a fish-hunting raptor, Aquasport's Osprey 200 is a predator in its own right. (Trial Run).
April 1, 2003... Dwarfed by the oceangoing yachts around it, the natty-looking, navy-blue, 20-foot center console appeared to be chomping at the bit as it bobbed in its slip, tethered to sun-bleached pilings at Key West's Oceanside Marina. Even at the dock, the...

Tech Letters.
April 1, 2003... PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE I own a 1989 Malibu Sunsetter powered by a 5.7L MerCruiser inboard that has about 700 hours on it. It is raw-water cooled. I bought it new, and I do all the maintenance myself. It has been operated only in fresh...

Tow Car.
April 1, 2003... BOAT WEIGHT A previously owned 1999 Glastron GS209 boat with a 250 hp Volvo Penta sterndrive sitting on a Zeiman tandem-axle trailer are probably in my future. My tow vehicle is a 1999 Ford Explorer Sport powered by a 210 hp V-6 engine...

X-Treme marine tape seals betters than electric tape. (TBM Tested).
April 1, 2003... Vypar Products sent us several rolls of its new X-treme Marine Tape, and we've been putting it to a variety of uses on our boats and trailers. Originally developed for military applications, this stuff really sticks -- so much so that it's...

New flex head speeder ratchet makes fastener removal a snap. (Gotta have it).
April 1, 2003... Any boater who does a lot of wrenching will appreciate Snap-on's new 3/8-inch drive Flex Head Speeder Ratchet wrench. Whether you're simply changing spark plugs on your outboard or doing a brake job on your tow vehicle, this tool will help get...

New cushion-grip folding knife is great for boating.
April 1, 2003... Looking for a locking knife that's suited for the slippery marine environment? Bear Cutlery, a division of the Swiss Army Brands, Inc., has recently introduced a rugged folding knife called the 4-inch Cushion Grip Lockback Knife. This...

Odorlos Biodegradable holding tank treatment now available in economy size.
April 1, 2003... Supersize that order, please! Odorlos holding tank treatment eliminates odors while breaking down waste and tissue. Now that it's available in a 168-oz. economy size, boaters can save both space and money. The new bottle measures just 9...

Catch air with an airhead slice tube.
April 1, 2003... If your idea of a good time is to be dragged behind a speeding watercraft, then get yourself an Airhead Slice, one of several water tubes tram Kwik Tek. The 60-inch-diameter Slice offers a topside neoprene panel, four nylon-wrapped handles and...

West marine introduces a boater-friendly bilge pump.
April 1, 2003... What do boaters want from a bilge pump? Last year, West Marine approached a major pump manufacturer and asked it to build a reliable, easy-to-install and simple-to-maintain bilge pump. After all the R&D and testing was over and the smoke had...