My Boat Journey Begins

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djw2112

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 30, 2018
Posts
1,166
Location
East Texas
Yesterday i finally purchased my first boat. Its a 1988 Bass Tracker 1800. It needs some TLC but its in pretty good shape. Im watching as many youtube vids as i can find on it. Im looking for a owners manual online but not have much luck. From what i understand many MFG back then had a few quick data sheets but thats all, no manuals. I would love to get the boat off the trailer to do some TLC work on the trailer.

Yesterday we were at the bank with the seller and doing some paperwork on the purchase and getting some notarized docs. And we pulled out of the parking lot and hit a pothole, which ticked me off cause i was watching traffing as i pulled out and didnt see it. We got 20 miles down the road and stopped to discover we were riding on the rim. I never felt anything strange from the trailer, it pulled like a dream even with that, surprising.

Tire was gone other than a tiny strip. We put the spare on and got back home. I didnt see it was flat because someone mounted the spare tire on the side of the boat and it was blocking the view of the passenger side tire (that will be moved out of the way now).

What surprised me most is that no other drivers honked or tried to get our attention that something was wrong. I mean we were passing on the freeway and in city traffic and nobody did anything.... No doubt they had a conversation between themselves "hey look at that DA riding on the rim" lol.

I did file a claim with the city for reimbursement for the tire and wheel, we will see how that goes.. I have been warned that the city insurance company will more than likely deny the claim. The man at the city said that most of the time unless it is a case where they were aware of the issue and failed to fix it, that the insurance company mostly denies claims.

So now to try to get as much info as i can about the boat so i know it inside and out before i take it on the lake. Has anyone else gone through similar experience?

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Seems like no towns are fixing potholes properly. Guess we're all broke as far as towns are concerned. Roads are horrible everywhere. Can't just keep giving $ away when you need it for wordly purposes. So much for my humble rant. BTW gas was $3.93 yesterday. Won't even talk about diesel.
 
Yeah i know it wont be paid most likey, but i had to try, it was a brand new tire and wheel.
 
Ya, forget wasting your time. Buy a new wheel and tires, and carry on. Be sure to keep the wheel bearings greased, they dunk in water every time you launch. Personally I like bearing buddies. Always unplug trailer prior to launching in water, and as far as trailer, take your boat to the lake, launch it, work on trailer. For me, I am a fan of rustoleum oil based paint.

edit: congrats on the new boat. Make sure the plug is always in, and snug.
 
djw2112 said:
Yesterday i finally purchased my first boat. Its a 1988 Bass Tracker 1800. It needs some TLC but its in pretty good shape. Im watching as many youtube vids as i can find on it. Im looking for a owners manual online but not have much luck. From what i understand many MFG back then had a few quick data sheets but thats all, no manuals. I would love to get the boat off the trailer to do some TLC work on the trailer.
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My 02 Tracker came with with a couple of small "manuals", one for the boat and one for the Merc engine. You could try emailing them to see if they have either paper or electronic copies available.

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DJW,
It is your first boat, but how familiar you with everything associated with it??
If you are planning to be out on water that you cannot see the other side of, look up the a local Power Squadron. They will have classes that you can take. The carrier for the boats insurance will probably give you a break if you complete the right courses.
Always remember, the water isn't trying to kill you, but it sure doesn't care if you die because you did something stupid. We lost most of a family that was fishing on Lake Erie last season.
Matt
 
The problem with your boat breaking down on the lake is you can’t get out and walk to the nearest garage or store. I guess you can call somebody to come tow you. We rented a bass boat in Arkansas once. It was a big man made lake that had a lot of turns and tributaries branching off it. Well, I got lost. Thought it might turn into a Giiligans Island thing. We eventually found our way back.:cool:
 
Hi, thanks everyone for the tips and advice. I went back today to the spot where it happened, turns out it was not a pothole at all, it was a piece of the curb that got broken away somehow and the rebar was still there and that is what "i think" busted the tire. The chunk that was broken out by someone was laying in the grass not far away.

Also i was thinking, what if it is just a coincidence and it was something in the road that cut the tire but i just happened to hit that curb that day, and it was not the curb at all. Or what if i have unintentionally exposed a contractor that poured the curb and went el cheapo on the rebar and my report brings light to that, and then months from now some contractor who lost a bid because of me tracks me down lol hee hee

Its one of those "if i had turned left instead of right" things.

As for the boat experience, other than going fishing and driving the boat 3x in my youth i am as green as the lake algea. Mechanically i can work on it somewhat as long as i know what is what. I do work on my truck so i fell comfortable with that stuff. The trick is to learn what is what first, its a 2stroke so ill have to remember to add the oil, they removed the auto oil dispenser for some reason.

My plan is to not take it on the lake until i know every part of that boat inside and out, and until i take a safety course which my insurance gave me a link to, and ill hire a guide to take me around the lake first in his boat so i can learn the ways of this lake.

Lake Fork is about 30 feet down, they drained alot of water out of the lake to fight some non native algea that was doing damage to the habbitat. Also they needed to fix some of the docks and boat ramps. There are so many tree stumps sticking out of the lake you could probably walk trunk to trunk all the way accross. Its normally about 60-70 feet deep but its sooo low right now.

From what i understand from the web is that until the early to mid 90's alot of boat MFG did not do manuals, they just included some basic sheets of paper with some particulars on there and that was it. I have looked high and low, even got on the basstracker website and found nothing. I will take the suggestion and call them to see if they might have it on microfiche lol hee hee.... i just aged myself...

I did learn from on of the videos that you can take the carwash sprayer to the whole boat, everywhere you want to clean it up and this one needs some cleaning. I was shocked in the video when they sprayed down the engine (no cover) and where the fuel tank is and especially the driver console.

I am also going to try to rig up some kind of dry dock. I may build one in my yard where i plan to store the boat. I think all it would take is 6 4x4, some concrete, 3 boat winches (the same kind on the trailer), and some heavy duty straps. That way i could lift the boat slightly, pull the trailer out to work on it. And of course build some kind of padded V-shape padded sawhorses (2) to put under the boat temporarily (just as i do with jackstands for the truck) just in case the straps give out. I really need a way to work on the trailer with the boat off of it. I dont think it would take that much to build a dry dock.

Matt_C - i will remember what the guy that discovered the titanic said on the interview. The ocean is just waiting for you to make a mistake before it takes your life.... :)

:)

if you look close you can see a red mark on the rebar i think. That could be the rebar the way it came from the MFG, that could be an old accident marker, or that could be a paint mark from the city to fix that curb and they never did which would mean they are liable from what the city employee told me. It has to be something they didnt do and were suppose to do.

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As far as finding information about the boat, I would find forums like this for Bass Tracker boats. The groups on FaceBook could also be good for getting information. Getting info for the motor is probably pretty easy. Post some pics up here also. You never know who might stumble across it. Besides, we are nosy people here and like to see other people's toys.

Hope all goes well, and good luck with the wheel/tire. I doubt you will have any success, but if you don't ask, you will never know.

And wow, it's hard to imagine Lake Fork 30 feet low. But I also can imagine it. Back during the drought of 2010/2011/2012, Lake Medina (west of San Antonio) almost dried out completely. This is a lake that at it's deepest is 150'. It had gotten down as low as 60 or 70 feet before it finally got some rain. Anyway, good luck, and keep us posted.
 
Don't stew over finding Bass Tracker forum. Like an RV, most boats mechanicals all work the same. Your biggest challenges initially will be putting in and taking out boat. YouTube might have good videos. Practice on a weekday, weekend crowds can get impatient. Take things slow, especially on the water. Keep the prop out of tree roots, stumps, and cement boat launching ramps. That gets expensive to fix. Wear a life jacket while moving, especially in stumpy area, and if it has a kill engine cord, attach it to your life vest.
 
Most state require the life vest while in the boat, here you need one if you float the river. They do check, neighbors a state park ranger tasked with boating safty, he has a very fast boat. You will find backing a small trailer a little tricky it will move fast. Like Spencer said practice, get to the ramp when it's not busy if you can.
 
Just an FYI. Regular unleaded here in So Cal hit $5.25 yesterday at the major stations. This morning I saw a Mobil station that was at $5.25 yesterday at 5.69 today. On the plus side, most of Europe is up to $9.00.
 
Edd505 said:
Most state require the life vest while in the boat, here you need one if you float the river. They do check, neighbors a state park ranger tasked with boating safty, he has a very fast boat. You will find backing a small trailer a little tricky it will move fast. Like Spencer said practice, get to the ramp when it's not busy if you can.
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Are you saying it has to be worn all the time or just made available if needed? Here in NH and Maine, You just need a Coast Guard approved flotation device for every passenger. Up to a certain age it may be required to wear.
 
Just found out that in NH, all persons under the age of 12 must wear one all the time while in a boat.
 
The trailer needs some work so i was watching vids last night about how to remove the trailer from the boat without alot of special tools. I will work on that when i get back from my mothers funeral, my dad has had her ash's for a year now and has decided its time to put her in the ground so we are driving back to her little home town in New Mexico (Lake Arthur, a town with the name but no lake there) for the funeral. I will be back on wed.

But on removing the boat from the trailer, there are all kinds of ways but they all share the same similar process for bass boats. Put the trailer nose down to the ground, support the back of the boat, jack up the front end of the trailer, slide the trailer out a bit and support it as you go, once you get near the front, its home free and pull the trailer out. I didnt realize it was so common to do, people even do it in their home garage.

I am ready to go fishing but the boat and trailer are not. Not far from it but i need to do some prep work first, not only for my safety but for others as well, and of course i need a sound boat and trailer before i jump right in.

My dad was joking today and said hey we should just tow it around, because boat people only talk to other boat people lol.....
 
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