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  1. Pack Rat

    Industry standard for leakage?

    Is there such a thing? Seems to me I ran across something a month or so ago that mentioned it. Just took delivery of an upgrade to 14' SIB and very heavy duty compared to the 12.5' SIB I had. Have a 12 day shake down cruise in Lake Superior with it starting this weekend!! Picture of first inflate.
  2. Pack Rat

    SIB plugs on floor runners loose

    What would seal/glue the plastic plugs into the runners. They're coming loose under travel. Iboats sells 3M Marine 5200 Adhesive...would that work?
  3. Pack Rat

    Picture from the inflatable archives

    "Big Black" circa 1980 Lake Superior with twin Mercury 50 hp two stroke. From what I remember this was an 18' Zodiac. Note shopping cart bolted to floor. Worked pretty slick for the controls although operator had to stand the entire time which was fine since this was a charter dive boat and the...
  4. Pack Rat

    Devils Island Lake Superior

    Got some different pics this year in Devils Island sea caves due to the wind/wave direction. I can drive "Pack Rat" right into the caves. Water level is up in Lake Superior.
  5. Pack Rat

    Rolling a SIB on fenders

    Anyone try this? I'm thinking it would work to get in farther up on the beach if you had heavy breakers. Deflate the sausage keel obviously, try to keep them under the tubes.
  6. Pack Rat

    Rolling a SIB on fenders

    I use my SIB strictly in Lake Superior. The past five years I've been running from a mainland base camp but want to camp out on the 20 plus islands in the Apostle Islands this year. The problem is the waves. I could anchor the boat off shore but I know I won't sleep worrying about it. I'd prefer...
  7. Pack Rat

    Residual glue marks on flooring material...(picture)

    While cleaning up the boat tonight I noticed these white dots for the 1st time. I thought, "Crap...wear marks." But upon closer inspection I don't think so. They are evenly distributed. I'm thinking it is from the manf. process itself and not wear marks. Every time I tear down and set up I'm...
  8. Pack Rat

    The little guy doesn't like my inflatable...(picture)

    Had the grandson out for his 1st inflatable boat ride and he threw a fit. Picture pretty much shows it all. He finally just went to sleep.
  9. Pack Rat

    Catastrophic tube failure...would it be a domino effect?

    If your suppose to evenly inflate to not put strain on the internal divider between the tubes what would happen if one tube had a catastrophic failure? Lets say the tube hit something in the water with a sharp edge. Lets also say I'm out there a couple miles. Should I decrease all the other...
  10. Pack Rat

    How much water can an inflatable take on?

    What's been your experience...any pictures? I had about 6 inches after an all night rain and it made me wonder if enough water filled the boat, and with the engine weight, could it sink?
  11. Pack Rat

    Stringer tips and techniques...

    The backbone of the floor and not very easy to get on. I threw a 2x4 under the boat last week and found it decreases the effort in half. I don't like the end caps being loose though...anybody glue them and what's a good glue to use? And do the rest of you have your stringers push upward into...
  12. Pack Rat

    Lake Superior (Apostles Islands) beat me to a pulp...I threw in the towel.

    The big 150 mile trip in the Apostles turned into only 50 miles. I threw in the towel when the forecast was more rain, 20-30 mph winds, and big waves. I had three full days before the conditions turned quite ugly. Had I followed my original float plan, the last morning I would have been fighting...
  13. Pack Rat

    Prop pitch (photograph)

    After reviewing manf. recommendations I purchased a spare prop (above left) 9 3/4" diameter with 9 1/2" pitch. I could not determine what the original prop was other than 9 3/4" diameter (above right). There are no stampings on the prop. If I think of the props as a wood screw, left prop fine...
  14. Pack Rat

    Pressure points while trailering an inflatable...what to avoid

    I'm still looking at different trailer options but last year I noticed (while I had the "Pack Rat" on the dollie) the transom bottom was curved and I thought it would probably be very important to have the center point (see pic above) supported? If you trailer with a heavy engine mounted won't...
  15. Pack Rat

    10 day adventure in Lake Superior

    I'm not putting in until May 19th and looking for some idea's from the rest of you. I'll be picking up a spare radio battery from the iboats store and I'm looking at a spare prop from them too but have a general question. There a lot of rock where I'm going and my understanding is the rubber hub...
  16. Pack Rat

    Big waves and inflatables...

    I've been experimenting with my 12.5' and up to 4 footers it's been handling very nice. The one day I took on some 5 footers was ugly due to the fact the boat was totally empty and I was solo. Took some pictures of 4 footers but just doesn't show how big they are. How big of stuff are some of...
  17. Pack Rat

    Poor man dollies to launch an inflatable...

    Some of you know I've been using a couple of poor man dollies I made for about $100.00 until I get a trailer next summer. They actually work pretty good. Here's a youtube video bringing the inflatable up out of the water. I guess I'm pushing around about 450 pounds (including the dollies). I...
  18. Pack Rat

    How to jury rig an inflatable for deep water fishing...

    I'm a dim bulb when it comes to fishing. I want to go deep in Lake Superior for Lake Trout. Have any of you guys actually attached a downrigger to your transom? What about planer boards...are they the way to go? How heavy of a sinker/bomb can you have on just a rod. I was using an 8 ounce on...
  19. Pack Rat

    Big RIBS...(pictures)

    Finally saw some other inflatables where I launch in Lake Superior.
  20. Pack Rat

    Fuel in oil...?

    Mercury 2010 25hp EFI 4 stroke with 20 hours on it. Pulled the dipstick out today before a run out to lake to find it overfilled. Took 6 ounces out. Doesn't smell like fuel in it and I was surprised how dirty it is in just 20 hours. What else would cause the overfill if not fuel? I see no...
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