"Todd Copeland" wrote in message
nk.net...
Alright... I boat a boat! Yeah.....

1994 Bass Tracker 175 TX with 60hp engine. Just what I wanted!
(http://www.tampawebpages.com/Photo1.jpg)

2 Questions:

Fish Finder- I will need to buy 2, one for the dash and one for the bow.
Everyone here has always said they would not buy hummbirds but I (Like
Shawn) have been looking at the Matrix 37 and 27's. I also really like the
Eagle FishMark 480. For the dash I want a finder that will give me a real
time display of the area under the boat. I need to hunt out those ledges
and
drop offs. Is resolution very important (i.e. difference between 480 and
320
pixels)? I want to spend about $250-$300 on the dash finder. The bow
finder
is not as important so I want to stay under $200 on that one. It would be
nice to stay with the same brand in case I later want to explore using one
transducer for both finders but this is not a big concern. (BTW- I have a
$100 gift certificate from Cabalas but can look elsewhere). Also, the boat
has a mount and transducer to a Humminbird installed, just no fishfinder
unit. I fish in Florida and lakes are mainly 5'-10' deep but I do fish
some
phosphate mines which can be 30' deep. So power is not a big deal.

Trolling Motor - has a Motorguide Four 43lbs, hand operated motor. I was
really looking forward to getting back to foot operation but it's what was
on the boat. For those that use (and for some reason, like) hand operated
trolling motors, does anyone use the BigFoot arm that connects to the
shaft
of the motor? Like it? I was looking at those aluminum rods that clamp
on...
but for $50-$60? Ouch. I plan on mounting two BigFoot momentary foot
switches, one on either side of the deck, to turn it on and off. I have
one
on my present boat and like it very much. So it's just a question of how
best/easiest to turn the direction of the motor. Later I might work on
swapping it out for a foot controlled motor.

Oh, I pick the boat up on Saturday. Take a look at the picture... is that
really a cup holder built into the cover of the engine? Some of the
carpeting on the front deck is ripped and the prior owner installed some
newer carpeting on top of old carpet. They did a good job but it's just
not
"right". I plan on removing the deck and recarpeting it. Later, I'll be
recarpeting the rest of the boat. Anyone do this on a Tracker? how had is
it
to move the deck in order to do this? If possible, I also want to seal the
wood on the deck with lacquer.



Todd, I have the same boat. I bought lowrance 45 and the lms 240. I like
them both. You do know you can buy just about any part for that boat
through bass pro shops. I bought a set of new finders that matched the
trailer paint. I am too thinking about doing the carpet. I have 4 kids and
am not going to be able to buy a new one any time soon. E-mail me:
kmmcdono at mail.win.org if you need any help with it.
Kevin