Posts Tagged ‘Boats’
We are a little ahead of schedule.
It turns out the decision to rent a garage for the project was a good one. I have been able to dry out some old holes and patch them. Got rid of some old hardware and filled the holes from that also. I have learned to apply gel coat and fiberglass, both of which will be useful skills in the future.
We installed a new satellite ready am/fm radio and speakers, a new Garmin 400c fish finder for the cockpit (this will use the existing p66 transducer from the old Furuno), a through hull (B60) transducer with a 12 degree tilt. This last required me to drill a 2 3/8 inch hole in the bottom of my boat. SCARRY!!! The big brain behind all this is a Garmin 740S touch screen GPS/Fishfinder combo unit. All this stuff is ready t plug in turn on and go. I am still awaiting a fuel flow sensor and an adapter for the 400c so it will talk to the transducer.
As soon as the fiberglass patch on the top is complete (outer layer on the bottom)
we can mount the 10 hole rocket launcher and the led deck light. Patch should be done Tuesday and the rocket launcher will go on this weekend. Then it’s wash and wax and let go fishing!!!!!!!
Good Fishin' To Ya'
Kerry W Allen
One of the cool things about having a blog is it gives me a way to check in and forces me to get things done. So here is the update for this week:
Replaced brakes and bearings on the trailer. I had to run new brake lines for the axles and still need to bleed them. I may put new leaf springs in too. Haven’t decided yet.
Rocket launchers are on order and I am waiting till the boat show to purchase electronics. I purchased a new troll housing for the go-pro this year. That should make for some great tuna video. My friend John picked up a couple Tica Rod and reel combos (Chinese but for 60 bucks they are disposable). I still plan to purchase some new Avets for bait fishing but that is also waiting for the shows.
The overall theme in all this is to clear the deck and cabin of clutter so we can cover it in blood.
I will be interested to see what others are working on this winter. Please drop a comment with your projects and pictures. I know my friend Steve is replacing the deck on his boat and Tom is always working on something.
Good Fishin' To Ya'
Kerry W Allen
Regular readers know this year I have focused on learning the Washington Coast Tuna fishery. I have learned a lot of lessons that I will use in the future but there was one lesson I was able to bring with me from years of winter blackmouth fishing that helped me out there.
Often when fishing Blackmouth, or really any time fishing in the fall and winter, I find that I am the only boat in the area. 
This situation happened to me when I was Tuna fishing last week. I had planned to go with a couple other boats but as is sometimes the case the other boats decided to go the following day so I found that I was the only boat going. Rather than cancel my last tuna trip of the year I decided to go and use what I have learned from winter blackmouth fishing and make sure several other people knew where I was going and when I would be back. I even told them if I was not back by 3:30 start looking for me. When I pulled in to Westport about 3:15 I checked in with the people I had coordinated with but if I hadn’t they knew to start looking.
This is very important on the ocean as it can be challenging at times just staying on the boat. This is also important in the sound where the water is not always so challenging and is easily underestimated. Every year we read in the paper about a guy that went fishing alone one day and washed up on the beach a couple days later. I was out blackmouth fishing on a dead calm day a few years ago, caught one and stepped out on the swim step to net it. There I was out by myself, on the swim step trying to negotiate my nine foot rod and a four foot leader, the long handled net and the boat. Fish goes on way net goes the other and I scare the crap out of myself thinking I’m going over. later, it occurred to me that if I did fall overboard the boat would keep going without me and I probably couldn’t swim to shore.
Lesson learned. It’s always a good idea to let someone know where you are going and when you’ll be back, especially when you will be out by yourself. This goes for Puget Sound or offshore or even your local lake. And always wear a life jacket, especially when fishing alone in the boat. accidents happen and a little preparedness can make the difference between being the guy in the picture or the guy in the paper.
Also remember that Boaters licensing is being phased in in Washington state. For details check out this link:
Graphic courtesy of BoaterExam.com – Get Your Boating License Online!
Good Fishin' To Ya'
Kerry W Allen
I copied this from a forum I follow. It should be a good time.
APRIL 9th DEFIANCE MARINE GRAND OPENING!!!
The Seminars will be as follows:
10:00 AM Downrigger Fishing with Flashers by Ken Pinnell
11:30 AM Bottom Fishing for Halibut and Monster Lings by Tommy Donlin
1:00 PM Puget Sound and Ocean Fishing For Salmon by John Keizer
2:30 PM Mooching Mastery by Rob Endsley
4:00 PM Albacore Fishing by Tommy Donlin and Todd Schwartz
As you can see we will have quite a lineup of the best fisherman around. So be sure to be at this great event to get all the info you need to have an incredible summer of Fishing Success!
We will also have many Doorbuster Sales items, and big discounts on many of the top name brands of fishing gear that you need!
Good Fishin' To Ya'
Kerry W Allen
I went to the Washington Sportsman’s Show in Puyallup today. This years show showed me way more substance this year than last. I fell in love with a Beautiful 29′ Wooldridge SS Pilothouse. This boat has a 9 foot beam, carries 150 gallons of gas and gets almost three miles to the gallon at cruise. Twin 150 hoarse Yamaha’s push it up to around 48 mph (32 on one engine). Fish boxes are huge and the transom box has an outlet that can be a washdown or an aerator for bait (think tuna). Add to all this a huge cabin with an enclosed head and a walk through door to the bow. This boat has everything all for around $150,000.
Boulton had this cool solar powered electric boat there. They said it would do 60 but we later learned it does about 10 mph and is great for lakes and other places where a big gas motor might be impractical. This is a great conversation piece and brought in a lot of people. But, like most green alternatives, it just isn’t practical.
I talked to several rod manufacturers. I was not able to find the 9′ ugly sticks I like but Sportco had some nice 9′ medium action Diawa steelhead rods for about $25. Fetha, Lamiglass and all the rest were there. Jim from X-Rods was there again but I wasn’t able to get in to chat. I did not see Northfork Composites, the new venture by Garry Loomis, and I could not find them on the map so I assume they were not there.
We went to one seminar put on by Micheal Jamboretz of Jambo Sport Fishing on Ocean Bottom fishing. He had some great information about how to properly use a spreader bar or California (slider) rig. He had a great idea for rigging scampy tails with a zip tie on the back hook to avoid ripping the back side out. I learned some cool modifications for my pipe jigs next year and a cool way to rig a herring with the middle portion of a squid called a George Washington.
Coho Killer Deal
Sorry for the bad picture. I will try to make one next spring for halibut prep.
Some of the best deals I found on tackle were at the Point Defiance Marina booth. One such deal was this special on Coho Killer spoons. These are great for winter blackmouth because they imitate sandlance which is what most of theseblackmouth are feeding on.
The other great tackle discovery was made by accident at the Brads booth in the magic tank. Anyone that has fished a few years knows what a Brads super bait is. These remarkable little rigs have been absolutely killer in the last couple years. The only real problem with them is the angle on the head is always the same so you can’t really change the spin rate like you can with a cut plug.
Solution: They are working on a head piece that can be slipped on top to with varying angles to adjust the spin. these will come in several angles for optimum spin in every situation. This is still in development and in the mean time some people have started running a spinner blade in front of the super bait. this effectively reduces the water flow over the leading edge of the lure slowing the spin rate beautifully.
And finally
I met a great many incredible people. I got advice on everything from Tuna to Internet marketing. I met a man that told me about a forum I need to get involved with called wafish.com. These guys are all about bass and walleye fishing, are you listening Tom, and they have a huge following.
And last but certainly not least. I was absolutely floored by the beautiful women of Sportco. These ladies are not just pretty faces but really are great at what they do. Make sure when you go by you tell them you saw it on gigharborfishing.com.
Good Fishin' To Ya'
Kerry W Allen
This is a sad story from a couple weeks ago. My friend Todd used to work with these guys trying to help market 
these boats. My opinion has always been they are too expensive for as ugly as they are but they are some of the safest most seaworthy boats out there. I’ts also sad to see these jobs go away in a region that can hardly afford to lose them. The marine industry is changing and boat marketing has to change with it. Boat building is a Northwest tradition and it will be interesting to see where the industry goes in the next coupe years.
Read more below:
A great story in the TNT on the boat building industry in Tacoma
Good Fishin' To Ya'
Kerry W Allen
Gig Harbor Fly Shop
Gig Harbor.com