CONTINUOUSWAVE

dtmackey

Interesting topic with many opinions. I actually have electric and surge brakes, but on differnt trailers of variying purposes. For my double axle dump trailer and car trailers they are fully electric and the controller is pre-installed in the truck, so it's plug and play. It's nice because you can ...

dtmackey

SkiDoo already uses a capacitor instead of a battery to start the motor, only thing is the capacitor doesn't hold the charge more than a day, so you first must pull start the snowmobile and once it charges up, you can use the SHOT system (capacitor start). I find it highly unlikely that capcitors wi...

dtmackey

Tohatsu makes nice small engines--if you can find a dealer that sells them near you. Funny thing is I have a 5HP Tohatsu two-stroke that I purchased new around 2000. That engine is bulletproof and served many years on a small inflatable. I think back then I ordered and had it shipped due to the lac...

dtmackey

Tohatsu engine are very well made and reliable. Tohatsu is the second-oldest outboard engine manufacturer in the world and is second in overall sales. Please site your source of information. Industry data does not have Tohatsu at second in sales in the US or Globally. The larger Tohatsu outboards a...

dtmackey

Engine cost can vary widely on engine brand and location. When looking for a new Yamaha F70, dealers in my area weren't discounting much off full list at $10,000 plus rigging and materials. I contacted Boats.net and they quoted me $7,588 plus $250 shipping to my local dealer, and said the F70 was on...

dtmackey

I made the switch to Kodiak Stainless years ago and they are a very nice system with no problems at all. There are others out there, but I've heard many problems with plated caliper and plated rotors not lasting. We swapped my friend’s trailer over to Kodiak brakes from TieDown brakes on both axles....

dtmackey

Mercury did a great job keeping this under wraps and since 7 Marine halted production in November 2020, Merc is now the one to beat. The motor is impressive and lots of thought and designed went into this. Some of my observations: ⋅ runs on 87 octane gas - that's great as marine gas isn't ...

dtmackey

I forgot that when Yamaha begin to copy outboard engines made by Evinrude and Mercury, Yamaha tended to copy the power head designs from Evinrude and the gear case designs from Mercury. There was a good amount of copying at a surface level design, but after working on Yamaha and OMC motors for 3 de...

dtmackey

I've been holding back on this thread... I done a half dozen or so Whaler rubrails over the years and here's what I recommend. Throw the rivits away and get yourself some stainless philips pan head sheet metal screws, 8 X 1-1/4 and clear drill the hard white rubrail piece so the screw can turn, but ...

dtmackey

I've seen a few on small dingy sized boat and that may be fine, but for a boat larger than that I don't understand how this would work. I can only imagine the fuel dock wait as it takes a lot longer to charge a battery that would be the equivalent of 30 - 100 gallons of fuel. Not to mention in the s...

dtmackey

Yamaha does not utilize a shift system where shaft length is a concern like Evinrude does. While Evinrude uses a shaft to push or pull (up/down) to shift, Yamaha uses a shaft that is actuated by a rotational movement. When the lowert unit is off the motor, accidental movement of this shaft or shift ...

dtmackey

biggiefl wrote:Ask a local motorcycle shop. The one by me used to send out parts to North Florida because he said the quality of local platers was not good enough.

Great suggestion since the Harley crowds love to chrome parts on their bikes.

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dtmackey

I've rebuilt several SeaStar helms and while they should stay clean on the inside, I've found some to have dirty fluid and contamination in the helm unit. Complete disassembly and cleaning helps and it's not a bad idea to replace the check valves if they are hanging up. There are places that will re...

dtmackey

[Stainless steel tube in 7/8-in OD is] common and available at most marine suppliers: West Marine, Defender Industries, and Jamestown Marine, to mention a few.

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dtmackey

Q1: Do you have to lower the engine in turns? In wide sweeping turns it should be fine, but in tighter turns you would drop the motor a little bit. Q2: Have you done any modifications to the hull to make it more stable? My boat is currently stable and ran 42.5mph with the Yamaha 2 stroke 70. Based ...

dtmackey

As of 11 Jan 2021, the local dealer here still has six E-TEC engines available. Not much moving in the winter months around here.

one 200-HP E-TEC G2
two 150-HP E-TEC G2
one115-HP E-TEC G2
two 30-HP legacy E-TEC

dtmackey

Hmm, might be more to it than than i thought. I have some leftover west system 105/205 epoxy and I've typically used Epifanes clear varnish. West makes a special hardner for clear coating that has UV protection and also is more "bubble free" because if has better flow properties to thin o...

dtmackey

"epoxy" and "varnish" leave a lot open to chance. Specificially what brand and type of each are you considering? Some epoxies are not intended for clearcoating wood and won't stand up as well, others have special hardners designed for clear coating. I've been down this road befor...

dtmackey

The original spark plugs were OEM Champion RA8HC with a 1.00 mm gap, and they were worn looking and rusty at the bases. I could not get the Champion plugs, and I put in NGK DCPR7E. That Champion plug is available at any automotive store - visit Autozone, NAPA or Advanced Auto parts and they run $2....

dtmackey

Thanks for the responses. Has anyone used the Petit EZ-Poxy Performance Enhancer 3021 in their varnish process? Claims of the varnish being harder and glossier intrigue me. The name is deceiving with EZ-Poxy, it sounded like it was more inteneded for epoxy based paints. It's sounds like a standard ...

dtmackey

"Best varnish" is a subjective question. Over the past 40 years I've tried many and formulations have also changed in the time as well. I am currently a big fan of Epifanes clear that has a high level of UV inhibitors. The trick with any varnish is many layer and once you are in the seven-...

dtmackey

I'm assuming you primed with an epoxy primer as they are usually the best for building a great base that adheres to your topcoat. On my projects, I sand the primer with anywhere from 180 grit to 320 grit depending on how the surface looks and the level of finish I'm looking for. There are many facto...

dtmackey

When you have a chance can you explain the selection of the jackplate. Why add one? Pros, cons? Which models did you investigate? Why this brand/model? What will you do to offset the added stern weight? Thanks Dave. Hi Phil, Great questions and I thought about this quite a bit before buying a jack ...

dtmackey

After a crazy year from health reasons and Covid restictions, Santa showed up a little early with a new repower gift for the Whaler, Brand new Yamaha F70. https://i.imgur.com/AhazqF5m.jpg Hydraulic jackplate, TH Marine Microjacker. https://i.imgur.com/UjfoEnlm.jpg I'll install sometime in April/May ...

dtmackey

Motor is SOLD.

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dtmackey

I've accepted a deposit on the motor so the status is now PENDING until the buyer picks up. This may take a week or two since he's out of state and we are working out the pickup details.

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dtmackey

An update. Wrapped up my last chemo infusion this morning and I’m now home. Feels good to be at the end of this journey that began back on May 5th. I will have outpatient visits for blood and platelets over the next 4 weeks since my immune system and bone marrow are recovering and unable to provide ...

dtmackey

Thank you for filling in the missing year Phil.

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dtmackey

For-sale: my 70hp two stroke from my Whaler and ordering a new F70. Thought I'd try something different. This motor has been a solid performer with no problems. I purchased it from a gentleman that had his boat originally on a NH lake and this boat is used sparingly. My Whaler has been much of the s...

dtmackey

Back in 2003 when I replaced my 1990 Johnson 225 with a 2003 Mercury Optimax 225 I asked the dealer about the color of decals on the 225s. He said the blue decals were for salt water and had more stainless steel in them, but seems after 17 years I forget where the extra stainless was located. I for...

dtmackey

Diagnosis by internet is amusing. Being there to hear, see and feel makes a big difference in narrowing it down quickly.

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dtmackey

In haphazardly read the thread and didn't see where there were any tests done on the gauge or sending units to verify they are registering correctly before throwing parts at the motors. Since the senders and guages are not calibrated, I've see difference in temps on motors. When ever I have a temp q...

dtmackey

I love the way many people think running an outboard in saltwater is like running it in acid. Back before flushing ports the engine got flushed when it was pulled for the season. We never had any corrosion problems. And when I pass through the harbor, I still see 1980's and older engines still in u...

dtmackey

You must have the "small block" 2.6L E-TEC which has a filter. It is important to note the the arrow on the filter is installed AGAINST the flow of oil otherwise it will develop vaccum bubbles and throw an alarm. This seems counterintuitive, but the Evrinde manual and service bullietins st...

dtmackey

I've found that I need to remove the bilge cover to access my plug, so I used a scotch plastic (Velcro like) material that uses little balls and sockets to secure it and it's still easy to remove. https://www.scotchbrand.com/3M/en_CA/scotch-brand-ca/all-products/products/~/Scotch-Extreme-Fasteners-R...

dtmackey

My [15-foot] Boston Whaler boat came from New Hampshire, which is also a non-title state. I had no problem registering in Massachusetts two years ago. I was able to pay the sale tax on-line. I visited the office in Boston to register with the required information—less title—and the process was painl...

dtmackey

Getting the hull weight down to only 167-lbs from the initial waterlogged weight of 484-lbs only took 18-years. The total weight loss was thus 317-lbs, for an average of about 18-lbs-per-year, but in truth, more weight loss per year in the first ten years. 18 years and still more to go. What I find...

dtmackey

No surprise with the move to brand Evinrude XD oils under the XPS line and use packaging that's already in use and in far greater demand than the previous Envinrude version. The streamline approach will save BRP money and should have been done years ago. XPS oil for SkiDoo is very different than for...

dtmackey

Arrived Mass General Boston May 5th and started the chemo regime the following Monday. The chemo wasn't that bad as each day it was building in my system. Yes, it did some funky things, but when I was taken off chemo, that's when it really took it's toll with all the unpleasent things. That lasted a...

dtmackey

As the happy owner of a 2006 Etec 250 that has been a rock solid performer, the decsion for Evinrude to stop production does not come as a surprise at all. The stigma of a "2 stroke" has been around since the late 90s and early 2000's where Merc, Yamaha and OMC pumped out countless direct ...

dtmackey

Over the past 2 months my energy/motivation level has been decreasing, but slow enough so I was able to make excuses and blame it on being shut in due to Covid-19. Well by Monday it was so low I knew I couldn't make anymore excused and visited the doctor. A quick chest X-ray showed a dark area, so t...

dtmackey

The bow area is slick when wet... I concur with your observations and think this was a big safety hazard failing in the 15-foot model. I found that front area to be like a big ice skating area when wet, no matter what boat shoe was worn and thought this back in the 1980's and also today. When I did...

dtmackey

Are you...countersinking the pan head screws? Pan head screws do not get countersunk. I've always found plenty of room between the black insert and the rail to run the wiring for the bow light. Inserting the black piece is muich easier when warm and best in direct sunlight. A rubber mallet makes qu...

dtmackey

If you go with the original style rub rail it loves to stay in the nice tight small coil and will fight you all the way. One way to make it easier and condition the rub rail is to grab two 2x4x12 at your local lumber yard and roll the rigid portion of the rub rail against that and clamp with hand ac...

dtmackey

What size and length screws do you use to install a new three-piece rubrail on a classic 13? The rub rail only comes in one size and fits 13 to 17' hulls. Plan for screws every 3 to 4-inches, and maybe a bit closer in the bow radius. If memory serves be correctly, I used stainless sheet metal, Phil...

dtmackey

Actually, the flag disposal at Fire Depts is already widespread, maybe not in your local region, but I've looked at hundreds of designs and think I'm going to come up with my own. https://i.imgur.com/sRcCTbyl.jpg Speaking more of flags and opening up on a little history, here's a few pics from when ...

dtmackey

ASIDE on heated garage: our house used to have a heated garage, although the garage was not really insulated at all. The heating cost was excessive, but in a Michigan winter, the heated garage was also a problem for older car engines, say c.1970. If you started the car on a cold winter morning in t...

dtmackey

L78steve wrote:Thank you for the advise. I have been waiting several days between coats due to slow drying and not being able to sand while sticky.

Sorry Steve, I omitted one small factor that affects my dry time. My garage is heated and I keep it at 75 degrees which gives me a 24 hour re-coat time window.

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dtmackey

If you go with the original style rub rail it loves to stay in the nice tight small coil and will fight you all the way. One way to make it easier and condition the rub rail is to grab two 2x4x12 at your local lumber yard and roll the rigid portion of the rub rail against that and clamp with hand ac...

dtmackey

I'm currently restoring my wood parts. How much dry time are you allowing for the Epifanes before you sand? And how much are you thinning the Epifanes for the foam brush app? first coat was thinned about 30% and I don't use the same thinner they recommend, instead I use an reducer from automotive p...

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