Trailer Boats articles from November 2006

Trailer Boats archives from November 2006

Model-year mania.(On Plane)
November 1, 2006... It's not exactly insider trading, but shhhh... here's a hot tip: Two thousand and seven is shaping up as a great year to buy a tow vehicle. Maybe the best ever. And it's not just because more new trucks, engines and transmissions are...

One man's treasure.(Letters to the Editors)(Letter to the editor)
November 1, 2006... A couple of years ago I was in the market for a center console that was able to run the shallow-water bays of South Florida, as well as venture into the deeper waters of the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico from Pine Island up the coast as far...

Gimme cubes, baby.(Letters to the Editors)(Letter to the editor)
November 1, 2006... I like your magazine, as it has a wide variety of articles. But what gets me are the questions in the Tow Car section. Many go like this: "Can I tow my 10,000-pound boat with my grandma's 1985 Escort?" Bottom line is that if you have a big...

Boating inspiration.(Letters to the Editors)(Letter to the editor)
November 1, 2006... A friend invited me on a fishing trip on his boat and I accepted because I hadn't gone fishing or been on a boat in a long time. So one early afternoon we launched his Charger boat with a Suzuki outboard on Lake Houston, near Houston, Texas. We...

New Jersey on the charge.(BACK TO SCHOOL REVISITED)(Letter to the editor)
November 1, 2006... In Ron Eldridge's "Back to School" editorial in September, he addresses boating driver's licenses, and specifically points out that California is a bellwether state and is considering mandatory boater education. Well, New Jersey beat California...

Knowledge is power.(BACK TO SCHOOL REVISITED)(Letter to the editor)
November 1, 2006... I for one would like to see all states have a requirement that all recreational boat operators take an approved safe boating program. It's not another layer of bureaucracy and waste of tax dollars. [Boating education] saves lives. V....

Boating access a continuing concern.(Dock Talk)
November 1, 2006... According to the Great Lakes Boating Federation (GLBF), an advocacy group for 4.3 million registered boaters on the Great Lakes and other inland waters in the Midwest and Great Loop region, area boaters are facing multiple issues that could...

Call for Safe Boating entries.(Dock Talk)
November 1, 2006... The National Safe Boating Council is seeking entries for its Boating Safety Youth Program Award, cosponsored by Boat U.S. To qualify for a chance to win the $2500 cash prize, programs must incorporate boating safety practices aimed at...

Regal boats founder passes.(Dock Talk)
November 1, 2006... Paul Martin Kuck, who founded Regal Marine and served as chairman of the National Marine Manufacturers Association from 1988 to 1990, passed away in September. Kuck started life on a farm in Ohio in 1930, but by the late 1960s his focus turned...

Correct Craft stands behind its products.(Dock Talk)
November 1, 2006... Correct Craft is now operating from a new manufacturing plant in east Orlando, Florida, just across town from its previous haunts. As part of its state-of-the-art 137-acre campus, the company has even constructed two lakes on which to test...

Making a splash: Sea-Doo's luxury liners.(Dock Talk)
November 1, 2006... Sea-Doo offers its flagship luxury liner GTX model in two versions, and the major difference between them is under the hood. The normally aspirated base boat boasts 155 hp. We tested the intercooler-enhanced Limited version, which boats 60 more...

Power trip: hit it with Mercury's new Smart Tow speed control.(Dock Talk)
November 1, 2006... Good tow-sports drivers just got a lot easier to come by, thanks to Mercury's debut of a watersports-oriented speed-control system it calls Smart Tow. Saying it's "easy to use" may be an understatement. Drivers simply select a "launch profile"...

Overwides only: Key West's long-legged wide body.(Dock Talk)
November 1, 2006... Got big-water plans? If so, you need a center console with legs that are long enough to handle distant runs to productive offshore grounds. And once you're there you'll want to be able to fish in comfort so, besides a fuel-efficient hull and...

Getting personal: sea tunes rock the boat.(Dock Talk)
November 1, 2006... Hurray! Someone has finally come out with a great way to enjoy music on a PWC. For years I have been saying manufacturers should incorporate a waterproof stereo into new models, and I once installed a four-speaker stereo in a Yamaha WaveRunner...

In tow: Goodyear offers special tires for towing.(Dock Talk)
November 1, 2006... Goodyear (goodyeartires.com) has wheeled out a new twist for its premium Wrangler line--a tire made specifically for trucks, vans and SUVs that tow. The Wrangler SilentArmor Technology Pro-Grade sports a new tread compound that enhances...

Bigger is better.(READER SURVEY RESULTS)
November 1, 2006... In our September poll on TrailerBoats.com, we queried readers about where they stood on the issue of boat size, asking if their next boats would be larger than their present ones. The overwhelming response was "yes," as a combined 71 percent of...

Question of the month.(READER SURVEY RESULTS)
November 1, 2006... Do you winterize your own boat? * Always * Usually. Otherwise, I let a shop handle it * I always farm out the job * It's never been winterized * Wish I had. Even though I live in a mild climate, a hard freeze damaged my...

Bright idea.(Boat Improvement)
November 1, 2006... Boats with even limited cabin accommodations have a 12-volt DC system to power such things as lights, fans, stereos and VHF radios. In order to extend the juice available from the boat's house battery, there's an easy improvement project that...

Best boating reads.(Boating Basics)
November 1, 2006... Across much of North America, honing boating skills is tough this time of the year simply because most of us have our boats stored for the winter. Fortunately, there are a number of excellent resources that will allow you to "bone up" on the...

Pollution controls.(Propulsion Report)
November 1, 2006... The last 10 years have brought major changes to the marine industry. A large percentage of these changes have occurred in the field of outboard power, and the primary driver has been emissions regulations requiring outboards to be cleaner...

Deck the hulls: from props to towers, and everything in between, we bring you a boatload of great holiday gifts.(Gift Guide)
November 1, 2006... Step away from the teak oil and drop the sandpaper. Put the wrench down calmly. Do not approach the hose and bucket, and by all means, stay away from that faulty 12-volt circuit! [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] For much of the year we labor...

Dialed in: featuring a third-generation Stable-Vee hull, Four Winns' 190 Horizon is one sweet ride.(TEST)(Cover story)
November 1, 2006... Every boat has a bow and stern--it's what you squeeze in between that separates one rig from the next. When you're talking bowriders (and especially smaller rigs), however, it's sometimes difficult to distinguish one craft from another. This is...

Cruiser camping: vacationing on board puts an entirely new spin on boating getaways.(TBM DESTINATION)
November 1, 2006... 'We're gonna need a bigger boat," was the first thing my better half said, echoing the classic Jaws line, when I informed her we would be living aboard a 25-foot cabin cruiser for a week. It was a plum assignment, I explained: We were to...

Buzz machine: twin engines with 310 ponies make the Sea-Doo Islandia a jet-deck thrill ride.
November 1, 2006... When Sea-Doo originally debuted the Islandia, its unique theme of a deck boat powered by a jetdrive created a lot of buzz. Families who preferred jet power now had a choice in the category. But with a single engine that pumped out 240 hp, the...

Mega muscle: our test of the Dodge Ram Mega Cab 3500 reveals what to look for when shopping for your next tow vehicle.(TEST)
November 1, 2006... This issue contains an incredibly valuable asset for anyone who is shopping for a new tow vehicle: a compilation of all the tow ratings for the 2007-model-year trucks, vans, SUVs and cars. It's a great tool to use when deciding which new...

Name game: applying name graphics to your boat is a piece of cake. We'll walk you through it step by step.(TBM How-To)
November 1, 2006... Running around in a boat that doesn't have a name on it somehow makes me feel naked. For years, people asked my wife and me the name of our boat, and we always told them it was Three Eagles--in honor of our three sons who each achieved the...

2007 Tow Guide: ratings for more than 870 vehicles; Towing capacities are soaring thanks to an impressive new lineup of pickups and SUVs.
November 1, 2006... It's a good year when a number of new pickups, SUVs and engines are introduced to the towing public, as 2007 brings significant developments from Ford, General Motors, Dodge and Toyota. The common denominator is that towing capabilities have...

Maintenance schedule.(Tech Letters)
November 1, 2006... I would like to see more info on maintenance inspection and fluid change intervals, especially for a MerCruiser with an Alpha drive... let me tell you why. I check all my boat's fluids and everything else I can inspect before I go out on the...

Synthetic oil question.(Tech Letters)
November 1, 2006... I would like to know if it is OK to use synthetic oils, such as Mobil 1, in my Honda four-cycle outboards. I've read ads saying you should use a special marine blend, and a mechanic I talked to advised against using an automotive-based oil. To...

Troublesome ball gear.(Tech Letters)
November 1, 2006... I have a 1975 225 hp OMC sterndrive that recently broke down. While cruising on the lake, the engine suddenly revved up and then the boat settled in the water. I couldn't move in either forward or reverse. After being towed in, I found the...

Stainless destroyer?(Tech Letters)
November 1, 2006... Since 1981 I have owned a 17-foot Larson bowrider with a 140 hp MerCruiser. The second year I owned the boat, I went to my dealer and asked about installing a stainless prop. I was happy with the boat's performance (both for skiing and...

Launch lessions.(Tow Car)
November 1, 2006... My tow vehicle is a 2000 Dodge Ram Club Cab 3/4-ton 2WD pickup. It's got the 5.9L gas V-8, an auto transmission and a 3.42 rear end. I was told it was rated to tow 9000 pounds, but I have trouble pulling my boat out of the water. The boat and...

'The Low down'.(Tow Car)
November 1, 2006... Your answer to Alexander Leal's question in the September Tow Car ("The Low Down") was mostly spot on, but I think increasing the tire and wheel size has a greater impact on tow ratings than you indicated. For example, the difference in tow...

Cadillac towing.(Tow Car)
November 1, 2006... As a waterfront homeowner, I use my car to tow my boat on the short trip (only a couple of miles) to the launch ramp and back. My boat is a 19-foot Chris-Craft that weighs about 3000 pounds; the trailer probably adds another 1000 pounds. I...

Bourdon's tow tip.(Tow Car)
November 1, 2006... Don't cheat yourself by not ordering the optional trailering package when purchasing a new tow vehicle. Sure, you can have a receiver hitch and wiring harness installed at a trailer shop later, but with parts and labor, you're likely to pay...

Get Smart.(Gotta Have It)
November 1, 2006... Whether you're a novice who needs to learn boating skills or an experienced skipper who merely could use a refresher, Maritime Smarts (413/565-2628; maritimesmarts.com) could be the educational opportunity you've been waiting for. Recognized by...

Look here.(Gotta Have It)
November 1, 2006... When it comes to reading your handheld GPS, how many times have you wished you had better eyesight? Now be honest, Short of going in for the Lasik procedure, you can turn to the new Magnifico Plus GPS/PDA Magnifier ($50) from Office on the Go...

Zip it good.(Gotta Have It)
November 1, 2006... Exposed to weather and the marine environment, moving parts on a boat take a beating. This includes zippers and fasteners used on boat covers, canvas tops and isinglass panels. There are few things in life more frustrating that wrestling with...