'06 Tahoe Q SF

[taskforcefreddy]

Hello all,
I bought a brand new 2006 Q6 this last summer from a dealer in Oklahoma. It has zero hours in the water and came with full warranty and I have a couple questions.

1. Boat Covers. It did not not come with a boat cover and needs one that can be driven while on the trailer. What doers everyone suggest? Would rather not go full custom with snaps.

2. Upgrades. Just wondering what everyone suggests for upgrades? I intent on doing the Skeg Guard and Keel Guard. What else should I be looking into?

I have never personally seen this boat yet. I've been looking around for the better part of three years but have deployed twice for a total of 27 months and am currently stationed out of El Paso TX so there's no real good palce to use it. I found it while searching the web on my 2nd to last day home on leave last September and my dad drove down to pick the thing up. I am super excited to take this out but want to make sure I don't rush to failure with this treasure of mine.

Thanks much!

 

[jkust]

Re: '06 Tahoe Q SF

Technically a boat shouldn't be trailered with the snap on cover. My snap on cover has a warning against it. For a new boat, you can easily buy a trailerable cover that ties on and cinches tight. The key is that it fit good so as not to chafe the glass. Another tip I will give you is that that nice band of colored gelcoat on the front will get chipped if you trailer. I would not hesitate to find a trailerable cover that comes down pretty far. Mud flaps don't quite do the trick because the boat is wider that the tow vehicle. My wide gel band is sand blasted a little bit. I wished someone had gave me that piece of advice when I bought my rig. I like the keel guard idea and you could also add a stainless bow roller guard. Many newer boats come with them. I hear they are difficult to form fit to the exact contours of your boat since they are metal and need to be shaped by hand since they are universal fit. You might want to pick up some nice letters and name her as well. If you are ambitious you might want to put some underwater lights on as well. I also don't see a spare tire holder and spare tire. That is a must. Some trailer tire sizes are difficult if not nearly impossible to find so have one ahead of time. Also since I mentioned spare, I would bet that the lug wrench from your tow vehicle won't fit your trailer lugs. I would get a T lug wrench from Walmart. That is a nice looking Tahoe. Good luck.

 

[basstracker219]

Re: '06 Tahoe Q SF

im sure the site store can help you find what you need.

 

[taskforcefreddy]

Re: '06 Tahoe Q SF

Great Comments guys. Was always under the impression that snap covers were gucci and what everyone wanted. I never thought about getting a cover that'll cover down and protect against rocks during trailering. Great idea.

I bought a new spare tire for it already and it's already mounted. I've been down that road before actually (buddy's boat during fishing trip... forgot to load spare).

As far as the gel coat... what do you recommend? I never even thought about this. Thanks much in advance.

Bill

 

[splicer]

Re: '06 Tahoe Q SF

I have a custom tie down cover that I love. It was around $450, but very worth it. It has about 20 bungies that I wrap around the trailer and go back to the grommets. Make sure it's very tight. The first one I bought was a universal, and not fitting enough, and held water when it rained. It never let water in the boat, but it looked like a hot tub, pooling the water inside it.

 

[das601]

Re: '06 Tahoe Q SF

I trailer my Tahoe Q5 F/S with only the bow and cockpit covers snapped on. I have had no issues as they fit nice and tight. I also place a tarp pedestal on the rear seat(Walmart under $20) under the cockpit cover . It helps keep the tarp tight. There is one snap in the back that is weak so have to check that one every once in a while as it will come open.
I also built my own mud flap bar using large truck flaps to protect the front of my boat. It works very well but does create some wind drag and will reduce your fuel mileage somewhat. I'll try to post some pics soon.

 

[jkust]

Re: '06 Tahoe Q SF

Great Comments guys. Was always under the impression that snap covers were gucci and what everyone wanted. I never thought about getting a cover that'll cover down and protect against rocks during trailering. Great idea.

I bought a new spare tire for it already and it's already mounted. I've been down that road before actually (buddy's boat during fishing trip... forgot to load spare).

As far as the gel coat... what do you recommend? I never even thought about this. Thanks much in advance.

Bill

Well the snap on cover will work for a while, then as you trailer it more the snaps (how tight each snap fits) and overalltaughtness will start to loosen just a bit. That bit is enough to start a little flapping and some gel scuffing. You will certainly notice every scuff on a new boat for years to come. Frankly as for protecting the gelcoat I haven't figured it out quite yet. The only spot that will chip is a portion of that area in between the tip of the bow and amidships. I think truthfully the only way to stop the sandblasting effect is a custom cover that comes down almost to the trailer over the bow. That is an expensive cover but that Tahoe wasn't cheap either. There is at least one other large material shield type of unit on the market that attaches onto the trailer and essentially blocks the sandblasting effect. I think it is sold out of Canada and is relatively expensive. I can't think of the name off hand.

I have read and heard that true tournament fishermen that trailer 10's of thousands of miles use no cover at all by design. Maybe they don't care about a little sandblasting I am not sure there.
My snap on cover works well the few times I have moored my boat overnight. Keeps the dew and morning sun on the cover.

 

[Paul DuLaney]

Re: '06 Tahoe Q SF

I use the full cover that came with my Q3 and the only thing I've done is to buy a support system for it that goes from the bow to stern with a support in the center and all being adjustable. Now I've towed this boat from Ohio to Tenn,Canada including the local lakes here from the day it was new. It was pulled over a thousand miles just being worked on when I had the origional optimax on it so it does very well.

 

[Ret USN CPO]

Re: '06 Tahoe Q SF

Hey Freddy...Thanks for your service to our country.

One MUST HAVE for your boat is a set of Nauticus Trim Tabs. These things are great. If you have boated before, I'm sure you know that when you go to take off, the bow rises up and you can't see in front of you until you pick up some speed and get up on plane. These tabs take care of that problem. They are easy to install, I did it myself in about a half an hour. The hard part was drilling that first hole through the transom...just a bit scary at first.

The other benefits of the trim tabs is they reduce the number of RPMs required to keep the boat on plane...that means less gas used. They also stabilize the ride by doing away with the chine walking you sometimes get. If you are going to pull a skier, they also give you a quicker hole shot.

Another great tool to have is a trailer jack. It is a one piece aluminum hoohah that you rest up against the axle of your trailer and then very slowly pull the trailer forward and it lifts the tire right off the ground. They are relatively inexpensive, and the best part is you can use them on just about any surface.

Floating key chain...nuff said.

We carry a couple of dry boxes onboard all the time. We use them for cell phones, wallets, cameras, etc. Picked them up at Wal-Mart for about $5 a piece.

Dock lines and fenders. The bungee dock lines are not that great unless you have your own dock and can put the cleats exactly where you want them.

Anchor. A lot of choosing an anchor depends on the bottom of the body of water you will be anchoring in. But with any anchor, you need about 4-6 feet of chain hooked to the anchor with about 3-4 times anchor line for the depth of water you will be anchoring in. So if you intend to anchor in 15 feet of water, you will need 45-60 feet of anchor line.

I also have a GPS/Fishfinder. At first I thought it was a lot of money to be shelling out, but now I don't know how I ever survived without one before. I have a Lowrance 522 and I love it. You can ask 100 boaters what their preferred GPS/Fishfinder is and you will get 100 different answers. Just check them out, decide what you want it to do, and make sure it is user friendly. You might also check to see if the place you are purchasing it from does the install. The install of mine was included in the price as I bought it from the dealer where I purchased the boat.

That ought to get you started. You will identify other little gadgets and gizmos as you get out on the water.

Enjoy, and don't forget the plug.

Rod