Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

[smashed]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Actually he did, but we have to negotiate how much! I would prefer the cost of the new boat, haha. For now it is on my credit card bill.

Ronald, I have no trailer but I really like the portability of these boats. I was transporting the 13' on the back seat of my sedan. I am not sure that the 14' will fit there, though, as the transom is wider, but I will play a bit more while rolling it up and packing in the bag. The electric pump deflates the tubes nicely which helps. In emergency I will use my minivan.

Sea Rider, I thought the same - the rpm will drop. I wouldn't buy I new prop if I get 4900 rpm but will at 4500. Also, even if I can't get the boat to plane with this prop, a 6.5 pitch will do it for sure. Let's see, I am curious too. BTW a lower pitch prop will be a must for when I have more people on the boat, you are right about that. I will go ahead and look at what is available online for my motor.
My rpm/hour meter is now permanently attached to the motor. One reason I wanted a bigger boat was that the 13' felt small and the bow wasn't stable at 17 mph, seemed very vulnerable to the air flow, even though I had my 60 pound battery at the nose of the boat. I doubt that this will be solved in the 14' but it should be somewhat more stable.

Also the lifters will hopefully aid in the process of getting the boat to stabilize. I decided to play a bit with the angle of lifters and will make them adjustable with turnbuckles.

I asked LRSE for an estimate for the repair, but after 2 days still no answer. Will probably see what defender offers as repair services.

Thanks guys!

 

[Sea Rider]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Smashed,

About engine & prop. Factory delivered props usually works fantastic on inflatables, that is, achieve near max or sometimes lighty exceeds max rpm numbers factory stated for that engine. In your particular case, definitely will lose max rpm achieved with your 380 due to being heavier. What you can do once you get your new 420 or replenished by knifer new 380, go boating with family, full throttle, hope it planes easily, check max rpm achieved, then go from there selecting a lower pitch prop to raise wot rpm to at least middle wot readings. Ideal would be around or slight passing 5500 revs with family load.

Tube repair should not be expensive, it's not a high tech or sophisticated repair, just patch with proper size patches and good quality glue the inside/outside of damaged tubes. Besides the horrible patch look, that sib will be safe again to go boating with.

Happy Boating

 

[smashed]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Thanks, Sea Rider! I will follow your advice for the propeller. By the end of next week I should have some tests done.

Be well!

 

[Sinistre1]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Hey smashed was hoping to hear from you soon. Weimed and I have been out in the bay a couple of times now and we are trying to get this SIB club off the ground, lol. One of your older posts (the one about coming from Sandy Hook to Jamaica Bay) had me smiling because Weimed and I made it out to the ocean proper (well the beginning at least) as we made it out to Breezy Point, he in his zoom and me in the quicksilver.. with 6hp and 15hp engines respectively. Though I wouldn't have necessarily wanted to chance the crossing, I honestly think Sandy Hook was doable for both of us (at least with the conditions prevalent on that day). Really sorry to hear about the boat. I AM a bit curious as to what the heck was going on in the person's mind and the circumstances of the knifing, but I understand that might be a sore point. If you care to share but less publicly can always IM me. In any case, glad you have a boat and a newer one on the way... Slightly saddened that the 9.8 works so well for you, lol...

 

[smashed]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Howdy Sinistre! I saw your videos guys and liked them! The SIB club is definitely off the ground. But you are missing a red boat there... My boat will arrive on Monday so I am missing this weekend, but will be good for the next. The weather also looks promising. See all this boat thing is just an excuse for me so I can gain time and practice fishing, I can't afford to look like a newbie. So this morning I went to Sandy Hook for some surf fishing. These Sea Robins and flukes went crazy for gulp shrimp bait. Now I have 1.5 pounds filleted Sea Robin in the fridge. Is it true that there's a 21 inch size limit for Fluke in NY? If so we better find a good spot where the big boys are hiding. You guys gotta show me around. BTW Sandy Hook - Jamaica bay are 6 miles apart, so I will certainly try it in the future.

Mark you calendars - next weekend is SIB club time!

 

[Sinistre1]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

On the water the distance looked longer, lol. Good to know. Making only 10 mph (just at or likely below planing speed) it is just over a 35 minute trip!!! Hmmm... Lol. We were definitely doing just better than planing (at least 15 mph which makes it a 2o min trip!!! And I'm definitely in for next weekend! As for the red boat... Got us covered there too, lol. Although all my videos (thus far) are in my grey Quicksilver. I DO own a Saturn (365....RED!! Lol). I just haven't had the time to retrofit her with all of her new goodies (bimini, under seat and bow storage bags, requisite dinghy wheels, and not new but hopefully improved command console (read- tool box with marine amp, speakers, and fishfinder gps combo- which will hopefully work better at speed with the new transom mount) also need to transfer over my rod racks and get my boat numbers attached... somehow. That said, I hope to be in the red, so to speak, come next weekend. BTW, don't worry about the fishing skills. There IS a large learning curve fishing from your own small boat... anchoring, tide, finding spots, "captaining" (for lack of a better word) and fighting/ landing fish, all take on new dimensions... as the dimensions of your boat decreases, lol

 

[smashed]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

10 mph?! You mean my new boat and the 9.8?! Now I really want to see you face to face and have some serious talk with you mister! So next weekend then!
Daamn, 10 mph....

 

[Guest]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

10 mph?! You mean my new boat and the 9.8?! Now I really want to see you face to face and have some serious talk with you mister! So next weekend then!
Daamn, 10 mph....

If u have a 9.8 u will kick my arse lol. I'm only running a 6 Hp. Hopefully I will be able to rebuild my 15 over the winter. But you really kept the searobins lol those are the shore fish sinistre is talking about fighting lol. Stay away from those to many bones and they are not even tasty. I'm still waiting to catch my share of fluke and stripers . Trust me the contraption sinistre has will make us bait users look like newbs.

 

[Sinistre1]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Sorry about the confusion. Wasn't suggesting you'd only do 10 mph, I was saying that even at a speed of only 10mph (likely not a planing speed or just at) the trip would still take 35 min at most. Anything above that would be commensurately less and with the 9.8 you are likely to do much more than 10 mph... hence the trip would likely be 20 min or less under the right conditions. I am assuming you are good for a min 15mph under good conditions, at least with the 13 footer. the 14 footer is totally foreign territory for me. Still can't imagine much less than 15mph one up. We need to figure out the day next weekend. A few days I have something planned but a morning-afternoon outing is possible pretty much on any of the days and an all day affair might be on certain days. As for the fishing just comes from getting out an practicing. The contraption Weimed speaks of is my trusty umbrella rig. Works well this time of year on the small blues and bass in and around bays' harbors. You can really kill the fish with them under the right conditions :0. You are very lucky in that my last bluefish tripwas on a party boat and the Capt took us along the jersey beaches and not too far offshore were marauding gator blues. Maybe just out of reach for us small boaters/ maybe not under the right conditions... Wink. Will upload a pic of my big fish (though the biggest on the boat was likely a full 3 to 4 lbs bigger!!

 

[Sinistre1]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Btw Smashed. Weimed and I are kicking about Monday as the next official day out. We went out Yesterday (well Sunday now) and had a riot of a time in the comedy of errors but having a good time vein. Think... seeing multiple boats stranded in the shallows on what has to be the lowest tide I have ever seen in the bay. Boats from 16ft to about 40ft stuck in the muck. Felt bad cause one guy asked if we could come help him but we got stuck ourselves and it is only the "luck" of having a 8" draft that saved us. We did get too do some wave jumping in some rather nautical conditions... It was not the feint of heart trip at all!! That said, it did give me more comfort about the boat capabilities and the capabilities of her crew (once you get beyond why the heck we even shoved off in the first place), lol. Let me know if Mon works for you. I may also get out Sat morning/ early afternoon but that remains to be seen.

 

[smashed]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Hey Weimed, Sinistre, glad you are having fun guys!

Weimed, I bet it is a pain to use the 6 hp ingine when you have a 15 waiting for repair. Sinistre seems to be reaching nice speed with his 15 hp Suzuki.
As for the sea robins, I found a delicious recipe - just sprinkle them with salt and black pepper and fry in butter. The taste of the butter is somewhat predominant, but I enjoyed the fact that I could eat what I caught. The other day we went surf fishing once again and got only fluke, however all of them shorter than the 17.5 limit, and we returned them in the water.
Sinistre, thanks for sharing your story from yesterday outing it is intriguing. I do like to chack the time for high tide sometimes.

Well, I got the boat yesterday and immediately tested it with a friend. When the weight is placed properly, we got up to plane but it takes 4-5 seconds. The planing speed was 14 mph. Alone in the boat I got up to 16 with the same weight as with the 13 footer. So 1 mile difference is better than I expected. Also the boat is more stable than the 13' one for some reason. I am very satisfied. I also observed the rpm and with 2 adults, a kid and a 100 amp battery it was 4900-5000 rpm. Alone at 16 mph the rpm read 5250. Again, much better than expected. At these numbers I am not planning to buy a new prop as the factory recommendation is 5000-6000 rpm. I am going to mount lifters today and see whether anything changes.

I am fine crossing the bay on a calm sea, or we may be arriving by car, I must check the wind conditions. If you boys have decided to get out on Monday, that will most likely work for me too. Whatever day you decide on is fine for me. On the google maps I spotted the lot with boat ramp off of Flatbush Ave, next to the Aviator sports center. I guess this will be the meet point.

Thanks fellas! I am looking forward to meet you in a couple of days. It will be fun!

 

[Sea Rider]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Smashed,

4-5 seconds to be on plane if good, at least the sib planes without efffort, if wanting faster plane need a higher HP engine. At 4900-5000 rpm at wot you are lugging the engine, not good for extended boating wot periods. You'll need to go at least 2-3 down pitches for revs to be around 5500 which would be best for that boat/engine/family loadt configuration.

Lifters will probably add some extra rpm, but minimum. You need engine punch and full HP is achieved at near max wot, so you are currently running a under HP engine. Even with you alone, you're in the poor side of the wot rpm range stated for that engine. Is that the new 420 you are running ?

Happy Boating

 

[Sinistre1]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Smashed,

Congratulations on the new(est) boat and moreso for the findings (runs quite well all things considered). Yes Sunday was a pip of a trip! Didn't want to say anything but I love sea Robin almost as much as fluke (not surprising as they eat the same forage). I will pretty much make them in any recipte that works for fluke. Just more pin bones with which to contend You nailed it on the Google maps. The cars and ramp is home for Weimed and I. (Jumping around a bit... chaotic thought stream this am, lol) We were making about 17-18mph by my reckoning, using my 15 (Johnson though i'm sure I would have taken the Suzuki if one appeared at the same price and weight). This in a bit of chop and with 2 on board. I think the motor was also trimmed badly (still set for my quicksilver, so there may have been an extra mph or 2 in reserve. It felt "weird" going to plane... like a push but i'm not sure it's just the sensation of a larger surface area (the quicksilver literally pops on plane instantly!). In either case a very good speed 2 up with fuel and gear. I am watching Monday weather like a hawk. At this point it calls for a chance of rain but fingers crossed. In either case. Hopefully we all make it out and I will check the tides for sure (initially the plan was to be ocean bound but the weather dictated we exercise prudence.)

 

[smashed]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Sea Rider,

Thank you for your suggestion. I am looking at a 6 pitch 3 blade prop and a 5 pitch 4 blade (high thrust) one. I am leaning towards the 4 blade one. I might use the boat in rivers so was wondering if the high thrust will make any difference or not. Actually I am planning to use the 5 p prop when I have 2-3 adults on the boat. I hope with the heavy weight I will not pass the 5500-5580 rpm mark. For when I am alone on the boat, I will stick to my 7.5 p prop which achieves 5200-5300 rpm. I don't want to spend too much on props buying more than 1, this is why it is hard to decide which one to get. There is also a 3 blade 5 pitch prop available, however this one may get me over 6000 rpm, I am afraid. I will go ahead and take a chance with the high thrust prop. From what I read, it may help achieve planing at lower speeds

BTW, the 4-5 seconds to plane is with just me and my kid, the speed was 16 mph. With another adult the boat struggles to get on plane and I must lean forward for it to get out of the ditch. It may take 10-15 seconds to get on plane. And then the RPM hardly reach 4850. Speed reaches 14 mph.

Sinistre,

Thank you! The new boat is great. I am glad I got the 14' and am fine with it being underpowered for the moment, until I am able to afford more power for it. Plenty of floor space. The transom plywood board is at least 50% thicker than the 24 mm on the 13', feels more solid. A friend may buy a 25 hp engine in the coming weeks, I am curious to try it.

So you finally took the 12' red boat for a try? Glad you did! With just you on board you should be planing instantly with that motor, I suppose.
The weather is not cooperating for the planned fishing trip. I am afraid that we are stuck out of the water for the coming days. The wind is also above 15 mph. However if you decide to go out, please announce it.

 

[Sinistre1]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Yep unfortunately Mother Nature is doing the Hard Master thing. I was almost hoping you crazy young lads will convince me to throw caution to the wind and head out anyway... but... I think it is very likely I will not be getting out unless sore Marine Mystic knows how to calm the wind and seas. Nope on the Saturn... Monday was to be her unveiling to the world. So be it. Funny thing, I was thinking about you yesterday as I was at an amusement park in New Jersey.... Keansburg and it is very near to Gateway National Sandy Hook!!! I actually had my other boat with me (all but the gas tank). It looked to be a really fishy area, lol. I think I will be returning the favor of paying you a visit on your turf!! I have to look into the launch areas and such but I believe there is a boat launch a la Floyd Bennet, no? If so, is that where you launch? If so, are there any fees permits required??

 

[smashed]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Hi Sinistre,
If you are not brave enough to cross the bay, then probably I shouldn't try it either
The other day we went fishing near Sandy Hook. We entered the park before 7 am and it was free. Very close to the entrance there is a parking lot and a narrow beach where we launched the boat. It was impossible to drag the boat on the sand with the car battery and motor in place even though we were two guys. We carried the heavy stuff to the water and then it was manageable. So I am not returning to that spot. I need a concrete ramp, especially if I will be alone. I don't live in the area and the only free boat launch ramp I know is the one at Parker's Creek on Shrewsbury River. From there it should be about 7-8 miles to get past the top of Sandy Hook. But it is a nice wide river, beautiful houses on the shore, water is calm and there is some fish there - I saw someone with a dozen fat flounders there 2-3 months ago...
It will be quite a drive for you to get to the jersey shore, plus the fees for those bridges must be over 20 bucks now. But I will do it on a sunny day, at least I live close to I95. On another occasion and a calm day I will try crossing the bay with the boat. This Wednesday in the morning the water was real nice, no waves whatsoever, but around 3 pm it got really choppy and some big waves got me concerned a quite bit. So after fishing for 5-6 hours about a mile east from Sandy Hook, we rushed towards the bay.
Looking forward to the next outing, let's just catch some good weather conditions.

 

[Guest]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Hi Sinistre,
If you are not brave enough to cross the bay, then probably I shouldn't try it either
The other day we went fishing near Sandy Hook. We entered the park before 7 am and it was free. Very close to the entrance there is a parking lot and a narrow .

Sinitre been doing a lot of overtime he can afford it. If anything I will try to come also so we can split the tolls

 

[Sinistre1]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

I won't say I'm made of money, cause i'm certainly not, but the tolls would be worth it for a chance to fish somewhere I don't get to go to regularly. Arthur Kills on Staten Island is also another area that intrigues me. As for making the crossing, it's not so much I wouldn't attempt it... Lord knows I would and plan to. I'd rather have company as the redundancy in motors, fuel and sources, and most importantly boats, means that darned Murphy will have to work harder overtime than i do to make something really untoward happen. I've been chucked out of the boat, adrift without fuel in a very stiff current/ breeze. I've been "lost" though disoriented is probably more accurately descriptive of the situation. I fairly comfortable both me and the boat can make the journey/ Sandy Hook seems a VERY DOABLE straight shot from the mouth of Jamaica bay and I know a lot of folks travel 20-40 miles in similar set-ups. I would simply feel better knowing people know I am out (read where to begin searching should that be required). When I fish the bay (I know things can happen close to home) I foolishly think I am significantly safer and I do not worry about the absence of back up.

Question,

In your description of the day out from Sandy Hook you said you carried the boat. Do you have launching wheels? If so was it an issue of them not getting enough purchase in the sand? The "launch" site you described sounds very similar to North Channel launch site in Jamaica bay. That launch site is doable for one in a 340 class boat with launch wheels... not so sure about a 420 class. Your motor weight should help with the weight in the back. If I may ask, what is the car battery used for? Trolling motor? Fishfinder and electronics? If the latter, you can likely get away with a much smaller battery (think motorcycle or tractor sized). I had an 18ah that I used to run electrics and start my outboard. after 5 years I killed it and have bought 2 - 7ah batteries that combine for a slightly lower total weight. I intend to determine if I can get by with just the one at a time, which would be a major weight savings. We'll see. lol.


Still really bummed about the weather. Really looking forward to having 3 boats buzzing the bays!!!

 

[smashed]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Hi Weimed, Sinistre!
Weimed, I am glad, of course you are coming, man! He must be talking about the Great Kills ramp on Staten Island, right? There is a road in the southwest part of the island named Arthur Kill, and I guess Sinistre is messing the name, definitely working too much overtime... That spot is also nice, I guess we will be throwing the fishing lines in the waters right under the upper bay and am not sure how clean the water and fish are there, but I guess it should be fine... Ooops, we need a $50 permit to launch at the Great Kills ramp. It is off the list. Actually there is an Arthur Kill ramp, try these coordinates in GMaps: 40 34.306' -74 12.802. Permit needed there too.
Guys, there is another ramp on Staten Island - at Lemon Creek. I found some fishing reports (from 10 years ago ) for great bass spots. This ramp seems to be the only option on Staten Island.

Sinistre, that is quite an experience you got with your boat. Hope I stay away from such trouble, haha. Lost in the sea?! Sounds really scary. I must get a small radio.
I have DIY launching wheels on the boat. They are good size but in the sand nothing works well. The battery I have is a heavy one - 115 amps. I use it with the pump to inflate and deflate the boat, for trolling motor and fishfinder. The other day I didn't have the trolling motor with me, but just for the pumping part and 5-6 hours for the fishfinder the battery was well drained. Doesn't bother me to carry it and prefer to have enough juice, just in case. Otherwise for the pump a 7 amp battery should be enough, but I don't want to spend the money, lol.
The boat launch at North channel bridge seems manageable to me. I may need a hand with pulling the boat though, as I don't trust the front handle. We will try that ramp too.

If you guys decide to come to NJ we must make at least 5-6 hours on the water to make it worth the trip and the close to one hour boat assembly. So be prepared!

 

[Sinistre1]

Re: Buying an inflatable from Defender's store. Anything wrong with that seller?

Definitely meant Great Kills, lol. Too much OT and it appears it will be extended through the Holidays!!! The money is not bad but I feel like I lost my whole summer! Headed to Aruba in a few weeks though... that should help, lol. Have a look at the Easy launch wheels site. Those are the wheels I have on the 340, I modified them so I can use smaller wheels for the concrete ramp. I can switch between the big wheels and the modded wheels in a couple of minutes but the big wheels have so much surface area they are great in sand! May still not be enough for your boat but the site seems to imply they will work up to your size. They are expensive though and seeing as you already have wheels.... The great thing about having a few other guys around is.... you have a few other guys around. We can definitely get er launched just about anywhere, with maybe an extra trip to/ from the shoreline at most. I have a hand held VHF. It's waterproof and it is supposed to float. Not eager to try that part out though. It's great, when I remember to bring it.. i'm gonna make a must take bag, lol.

As for Sandy hook, I figured if we made it down that far we would spend a lot of time for sure, catching or not!

Getting thrown from the boat was a learning experience.. it taught me when to back off and how the boat feels close to the edge, though truthfully it can get you without warning. Each boat seem to have it's own feel having piloted three different inflatables. The best thing about it all is knowing for sure that all the safety stuff worked.. the lanyard stopped the boat, the vest kept me afloat and I was able to pull myself back in with the side rope! Hard lesson but one well (L)earned. Lol. I am still a little nervous about the lost at sea thing but truthfully that is very unlikely where we are now. I did have an adventure in Florida (Sebastian Inlet) where the tidal flow out to sea was very nearly too strong even for my 15hp at the height of the outgoing. I first anchored til I got my wits about me and then used a tack course almost like sailing to get back where I wanted to go. Absolute worst case I would have waited an hr or so on anchor for the tide to slow.. which it inevitably would. All of those little incidents have served to make me more comfortable in knowing that if i don't panic i can survive even my bubble headed moments. In all honesty at no time was I more worried about anything more than losing the boat/ motor.. which can be replaced. Out to sea with no power and no chance of swimming to a safe place.... THAT scares me. So the trip to the Bahamas will have to wait (I hear some guys make it over in 16 footers with 40 hp motors... on less than 10 gallons of gas!!!!)