Intex Mariner 4 modifications and Tips

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N2ONELUV

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Feb 12, 2020
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I'm a new Mariner 4 owner now glad to be part of the Mariner4 community. It looks like there needs to be a revival, or class reunion of some kind or someone to breathe new life into the Mariner 4 forum. I will be uploading Pictures of my recent mods to my Mariner 4 that includes a 30W Solar Panel that will continue to charge my deep cycle battery, I've also added a Bimini top to my Mariner 4 purchased off of ebay for $36.00 to protect my shaved head from the blazing hot sun as I'm perusing my favorite waterways.
 
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jillig

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I agree with N2ONELUV. I am a new Mariner 4 enthusiast and recently took it out for 'sea trials" for my minor modifications. Built a two-piece floor and center bench. Running a Newport Vessels 46 pound thrust trolling motor with 77 AH battery. My son and I expected to be troubleshooting on maiden voyage but instead everything worked great, focus now is on improvement. My focus is to maintain portability and ease of use (everything into back of SUV without having to fold down rear seats), so I don't expect to add boat seats and some of the other cool mods I have seen. We used coolers for seats and it worked well largely. Now I am building a PVC launch trolley to allow one man to easily launch and move it to and from water. Love it so far, this is the solution I was looking for, as I have zero desire to trailer/maintain a boat.
 
bigboatguy

bigboatguy

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May 7, 2019
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Has anyone experimented using a high pressure drop-stitch floor in their Intex Mariner? I see some on AliExpress with similar dimensions to my Mariner 3. I think it would drastically reduce weight while increasing portability. I could glue D-rings on the interior tube to secure it and roll the whole thing up (boat included) after deflating!
 
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N2ONELUV

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Here is my Mariner 4 wired with lighting for night fishing I can't wait to get it out on the water
 

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T

The Ground Truth

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I'm about to purchase a mariner 4 and have found this thread so helpful. The only piece I'm still on the fence about is the trolling motor and am torn between a Min Kota 34 thrust and the 40 thrust. The price difference is about $110. I'm in the Ottawa area and will be river fed lakes (Mississippi Lake) with my two sons (10&12). Will 6lbs of thrust make much of a difference for the cost? Thanks
 
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ScottishScript

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The Ground Truth said:
I'm about to purchase a mariner 4 and have found this thread so helpful. The only piece I'm still on the fence about is the trolling motor and am torn between a Min Kota 34 thrust and the 40 thrust. The price difference is about $110. I'm in the Ottawa area and will be river fed lakes (Mississippi Lake) with my two sons (10&12). Will 6lbs of thrust make much of a difference for the cost? Thanks
Click to expand...

Having owned a 40lb thrust Minn Kota I would advise going up to a 55lb thrust. While a 40lb thrust would be fine in perfect calm weather, I found it wanting once the wind got up. When I used a 40lb thrust here in Scotland I found myself having to go ashore to sit out the wind until it dropped enough for me to get back to base. The 55lb makes that scenario less likely.

And consider purchasing a BullNose Rudder - available on Amazon - which you can clamp onto your engine's shaft to give you better steering in windy conditions, been using one for a couple of years now and it does make a difference.

Good luck.
 
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jillig

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I run a Mariner 4 with wood floor using a 46 lb thrust trolling motor (Newport Vessels). As ScottishScript said, you need the power in the wind. These rafts really get pushed around in the wind; with the 46 lb motor I have had no trouble at all with windy days on small lakes. I also use a small sea anchor to slow drift in the wind as well. Nonetheless, if it is breezy then for fishing I have learned that you position the boat to drift with the wind for fishing (ie motor to top of cove or area you want to fish and let the wind move you along slowly - otherwise you have to use the motor constantly. I use a 77 amp hour battery so juice has not been a problem. Have not used the BullNose rudder but thinking about it, however I find the raft very responsive to steering with the motor (be sure and inflate the keel). I am surprised at the cost difference between the 34 and 40, but that may be a Canadian issue. The price for my trolling motor was $159.
 
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ScottishScript

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Oct 19, 2014
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xman1102 said:
New owner and I have a Garmin Fish Finder I need suggestions on mounting.
Click to expand...

Consider a piece of wood one inch thick, about six inches wide and between two and three feet long.

Cut a rectangular hole near its centre so that the length of wood fits snugly down over the oar lock section to hold it in position. Meaning the wood runs along the top of the tube.

Then drill four holes on each corner of the length of wood for bungees which then stretch and connect to the various bungs on the outside and inside of the Mariner 4.

The combination of using the oar section and bungee cords should hold the wood firmly in position on the top of the tube.

Now you just screw your Garmin mount onto the top surface of the wood and position it best in relation to your sitting position.

You could also attach a rod holder on the other end of the wood plank, so long as the whole thing sits firmly on the tube.

Hope this helps
 
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The Ground Truth

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ScottishScript said:
Having owned a 40lb thrust Minn Kota I would advise going up to a 55lb thrust. While a 40lb thrust would be fine in perfect calm weather, I found it wanting once the wind got up. When I used a 40lb thrust here in Scotland I found myself having to go ashore to sit out the wind until it dropped enough for me to get back to base. The 55lb makes that scenario less likely.

And consider purchasing a BullNose Rudder - available on Amazon - which you can clamp onto your engine's shaft to give you better steering in windy conditions, been using one for a couple of years now and it does make a difference.

Good luck.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tips, ended up with the 40 thrust and it has been good in the wind. I will check out the rudder though.
 
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drabina

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Jun 12, 2020
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I am still going thru the 138 pages of Mariner 4 mods and tips but it is going to take me a while so I decided to post my question.

I got the plywood and carpet to build a two part floor for my Mariner 4. I do have the original floor that came with the boat so I can trace the shape on the plywood. My question is, do I make it exact or I need to i.e. subtract 1/4 inch or more for the foam pipe insulation that would go around it? My plywood is 19/32 thick and carpet is very thin so it would add less than 1/4 inch to the floor thickness.
 
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Piipz

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Jun 26, 2020
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Added 6 glueable mounts to my Intex Mariner 4.
I can attach, 2 rod holders, cell phone holder, sonar, GPS mount and an anchor lock.
Its Ukrainian made (https://borika.ua/en) and the quality of those mounts is top notch.

Mount:https://borika.ua/en/node/773
Rod holder: https://borika.ua/en/node/816
Anchor lock: https://borika.ua/en/node/714

The GPS is a garmin handheld (i use ram mount connected to Borika mount) and the sonar is actually a Deeper Chirp+ (i also use it for casting and ice fishing, actually a really good universal little sonar).

Of course, adhesive to the mounts has to be top quality aswell.
I can only recommend one of the best adhesives: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Adeco-Adegr.../dp/B004TQJ31S


Now that I have done my advertising (trust me, im just a Borika fan, not an affiliate), i also have a question.
Without reading the whole 138 pages of text here, can anyone tell me if the hard floor is usually installed on top of the original floor or instead of the original floor? Because the hard floor will be my next mod, for sure.

Thanks in advance.

P.S. I will add more photos of my setup within a few weeks, as last time I was so exited to be on the lake, I didn't take any :(
 

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