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  1. woodrat

    new to me Tohatsu 9.8 problems: oily, smoky, finally runs but won't idle...

    Just bought an older Duroboat the other day that came with a barely used 2009 Tohatsu 9.8 on it. Electric start even, wow! Anyway, got a trailer under the skiff last night and took it down to the local launch this morning to check things out, and it didn't go so well. First it didn't want to...
  2. woodrat

    1999 Yamaha P60, how do I test the coils?

    Thought I had a service manual for this engine, but it was for another one instead. How do I test the coils and plug wires on this thing? Top cylinder has compression, and is getting fuel, but not firing at all. I put new plugs in, and I can see that that one is still shiny clean. If I do have...
  3. woodrat

    AGM batteries, are they worth the price?

    Anybody have any direct experience with Absorbed Glass Mat batteries? I need to replace the aging batteries in my 17' Bellboy, and I was curious about AGM batteries. I can get new group 24 regular flooded batteries for about $86 each, the AGM equivalent is $185 each. Are they worth the extra...
  4. woodrat

    1974 Bell Boy project

    This summer I picked up an old Bell Boy hull and turned it into a fishing boat for the Columbia River and the ocean. I finally got around to writing up a blog post about the project the other day. http://blog.redalderranch.com/?p=69
  5. woodrat

    fixing up an old glass boat, floor stripping and painting?

    I'm working on a 74 Bellboy, fixing it up to fish out of this summer. I pulled the rotten old seat boxes out today, and pressure washed the inside. There is the remnant of old, brown floor paint, especially under where the seats were and where it didn't get walked on. I was thinking I would...
  6. woodrat

    question about seats

    I'm just getting started setting up a 17' 1974 BellBoy for fishing this summer. As usual, it came with next to nothing for seats. Since a 17' boat isn't very big, and I like a lot of space when I can get it, I'm not too interested in putting lounge seats back in like it had at one time...
  7. woodrat

    trailer backing solution!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQWZUPH5JMI&feature=related
  8. woodrat

    yamaha outboard control question

    I have a 99 Yamaha P60 and I am moving it from a console skiff to another hull. The control is currently mounted on the right side of the console, but when I move it to the other boat, it will need to mount facing the other way, on the right side of the boat. Is there a simple way to reverse...
  9. woodrat

    anybody else cooking on a woodstove?

    this year I finally put in a chimney and hooked up my old wood cookstove. I've been using it to heat the place and I've been doing most of my cooking on it too. Cooking on the top is easy, just a matter of moving the put around to find the level of heat you want. What i haven't tried yet is...
  10. woodrat

    How do you deal with smoke damage from a fire?

    My wife's rental house in town was destroyed by fire Monday in the early AM. She and the girls escaped with their lives and the clothes on their backs, but now much else. It was a very close call; the house was an 1880's era house, with balloon framing and wood and wallpaper interior walls. It...
  11. woodrat

    aaargh! Clueless boaters everywhere!

    I just spent three days fishing in some the most clueless idiot infested waters I've ever been in. For starters, the boat ramp lot is also a picnic area lot and a park and ride lot, so there is a ton of clueless non-boating traffic, zooming aimlessly about, cutting around the ends of backing...
  12. woodrat

    changing from pre-alpha to newer?

    since I have my boat torn down to the bare transom, I am wondering if it would be a better idea to switch the whole outdrive to a newer type. It sure seems easier to find alpha and bravo parts on ebay. Is this reasonably easy to do, or even a good idea?
  13. woodrat

    question on refinishing corroded outdrive parts

    In my struggle to find a new transom assembly for my Bellboy, I found that the one on my parts boat just might work if I change over the hydraulic lines as well. But it has some corrosion and pitting here and there, and in one spot a bit of a gouge in a mating surface that someone must have...
  14. woodrat

    uh oh... Mercruiser parts not the same!

    I am busy today pulling the engine out of my 72 bell boy (pre alpha mercruiser with chevy 2.5l) and changing out the whole outdrive assembly with parts and pieces collected from ebay and other places. Last summer I bought the inner transom plate and the outer transom assembly with the gimbal...
  15. woodrat

    mercruiser pre alpha drive-switch at top of tilt travel?

    So, I am in the middle of changing out my broken outdrive and transom plate. I will probably have lots of questions before I am done, but one that pops up right away is about the limit switch that is in the top of the gimbal ring. I assume that is to stop the tilt from going any higher. My old...
  16. woodrat

    getting ready to replace entire outdrive-merc

    After cracking up the boat last summer, and sitting on a broken boat all winter and spring, next week I will have three or four days in a row to finally do the replacement, and I think I have all the parts finally as well. Are there any tricks or tidbits about this job that I won't see in the...
  17. woodrat

    stern drive diesel questions

    I am picking up a 24' bare plywood hull later this month and i will be working on finishing it out next winter. I want to power it with a diesel engine and a stern drive and right now I am leaning towards volvo. What I want though is an something older, so that I can afford it and so that it has...
  18. woodrat

    the REAL democratic agenda....

    You right wingers were right all along! Look what I found online: the democrats' REAL agenda! ---------------------- "Now that the election is behind us, and the Democrats control both houses of Congress, there's no reason not to admit it: the Right was right about us all along. Here is our...
  19. woodrat

    Can we see something in each other besides enemy?

    Like CJY, I need to get a break from all of the polarized politcal discussion. It burns me out to realize that so many people think of people like me as their enemy, and I'm tired spending time trying to debate people who think prison camps for illegal immigrants and nuclear bombs are the...
  20. woodrat

    read a good book lately?

    In the spirit of moving away from pointless, polarized political blather, I'm posting this non-political, non-troll thread: Read any good books lately? I just finished "Cod" by Mark Kurlansky, and I'm now reading "Salt" by the same guy. Both are historical books exploring the human history...
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