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    What is a "soft spot" exactly?

    Okay, I'm looking at boat over the weekend. The floor is all fiberglass and has a self bailing deck. I read about taking a mallet and tapping the floor for soft spot. Because I don't know what to look for, can you tell me what a "soft spot" actually feels like? This may be a dumb question.
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    Outboard life expectancy **2005 140HP Suzuki**

    I'm curious what the life expectancy of a 2005 Suzuki 140HP 4 stroke outboard is? Currently it has ~400hrs so it's been used. Warranty for the outboard expires 2011. This is a first boat purchase for me, so I'm not sure what the warranty covers. But I have a feeling, I shouldn't count on...
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    What's this green tint on boat windshield?

    I've seen some boats with a green tint on their windshield? What is the purpose, is it for glare?
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    what's eating up the propeller

    I had plan on looking at this boat over the weekend. Can someone tell me what's going on with the propeller? Is this normal?
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    1ft itus

    I'm having 1ft itus without every buying a boat. I was in a maxum 17'6" last summer and the thing felt like a dingy on the lake. I'm currently looking for a 18'6" but think that may feel too small after one season. My feeling is that maybe I should just look for 19' to 20'. I set the max at...
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    What makes a boat fat?

    If you have two boats that are approximately the same length, say 18'6", what construction difference makes one heavier than the other? Do they just put more fiberglass on one compared to the other? I know the hull design adds some weight, but it seem like there's quite a difference between...
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    fiberglass flooring

    It seem as though many of the used boats around 1997-2002 or so, didn't have the removable carpet options. Is this too much of a requirement for used boat? I figure this is a must have for boating. Am I missing something?
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    Four Winns 190 Horizon with 350 chevy **Hugh?**

    I saw an ad for a Four Winns 190 Horizon with a 350 chevy motor/volvo outdrive. I'm looking for a first boat and was kind of puzzled by the motor size on this boat. In trying to compare engine, boats are usually listed as 3.0, 4.3, 5.0 etc. How would this 350 compare in those numbers? I was...
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    Life span of an entry level open bow?

    I'm curious how long would an open bow boat like a maxum/bayliner 18'5" with a 3.0 merc last if maintained?
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    1996 1930 chaparal with a 5.0

    A dealer is asking 10k for a 96' chaparal 1930 with volvo 5.0. I haven't looked at the thing yet but was kind of curious what people thought about the price, boat and 5.0 engine. The pics look nice. I thought the engine was a little too big and was really looking for a 4.3. Gas price...
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    Would you buy a boat if it was a good buy?

    I'm looking for my first boat. I want an all fiberglass floor with composite stringers, nice strong outboard, and preferably dual console. I have been searching craigslist and boattrader every day for 6+months. I have a pretty good gauge on boat prices in the pacific northwest. Boats are...
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    Composite stringers/transom on a 2005 Wellcraft 180 fisherman CC?

    Does anyone own a 2005 wellcraft 180 fisherman? I'm interested to know if this boat year has an all composite stringers/transom? I know that the new one does and the 2005 looks identical to the new one. Would it be "abnormal" for a boat manufacturer to change the stringers/transom from wood...
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    Boat physical dimension and what they mean on the water

    Can someone explain what the physical dimension of the boat means when your out on the water. This may be a dumb question, but I'm new. For example, if you took two bow riders and equal length, deadrise, etc. But one of the bow rider is physically taller by say 12", what...
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    Ever heard of "Scout" brand?

    Anyone ever heard of Scout brand boat? I'm looking at one. Seem real pretty in the pictures. Downside is that the outboard is a Johnson 115 2 stroke. The dealer says, "It's real quite" though? About 400 hours on the boat. They want 11k. Seem kind of high. I like the layout though. The...
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    Compression numbers **URGENT**

    I'm thinking about getting this aluminum boat. The boat is a 2000 17' smokercraft with a 1998 60hp yamaha 2 stroke. I ran the boat, motor seem fine. I did a compression check and the numbers are 100, 110, 110. I know the compression numbers are to be within 10%. The 100 is right at the edge...
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    Is 1200 hrs in 6 years too many hours on an outboard?

    I'm buying my first boat. It has a 2002 Yamaha 4 stroke outboard motor. The motor has 1200 hrs on it. Is this too much? Most boats I looked at had between 100-300 hours for about the same year. The guy only had the boat for 2 years and am selling it. I'm just wondering if the boat hours...
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    All these boating jargon is confusing

    I'm reading the launching and retrieval threads to properly launch my first soon to be boat. However, all the boating jargons has gotten me confused. There are talks about "fenders" and "transom savers" that I have no clue what they are referring to? Is there a dictionary somewhere on this...
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    one more how to "compression check" thread. Please help!!

    I'm traveling 10+ hours to look at a boat. The boat has a 115 yamaha 4 stroke 2002. This is a first boat for me and i need "DETAIL" info on how to perform a compression check. There is just too many different info floating around with grounding the plug wires or removing the "kill switch"...
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    Finally found one!

    I think I may have found "the one" boat. It's a 2002 18.5' seaswirl striper center console with a yamaha 115 outboard. What do you guys think? I plan to use it 40% for fishing the nw sound waters, 40% fishing lakes, 20% pleasure. My concern is that I have to pick it up in California and I...
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    How to - outboard compression check

    Can someone explain how to perform an outboard compression check? Also, does the outboard need to be in the water during this check? I'm not sure, but are you suppose to remove all the spark plugs before the compression test or one from each cylinder at a time? I recalled something bad if...
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