-Joe-

Wiley, could you post a brief history of your original forum and this one? I've been told the original forum was started in Jan/01, then you shut it down because a boat company threatened to sue? Then in February, you opened it back up? I don't remember any of that--all I remember was the closure of the SWS forums.

Too bad..you could have asked them if they solved the corrosion problems on the F225/F250.

After reading about others, and experiencing myself Mercury's warranty, I'd choose anything other than that. I'll never own another. E-TEC seems like a great choice, if not going Yamaha.

If they have been in salt water, you have two options: 1. Paint 2. New aluminum rims. I guess if it's grease, you could spray some degreaser on them. If not, you could let them just turn all the way black. For some reason, people seem to like their wheels on their cars black nowadays.

Colts 27, Saints 13

Ludicrous--I remember this thread and actualy wrote your color combo down in case I ever needed it. I don;t have a yamaha presently (but might again in the near future )and I remember afterwards you saying you would change the color some? Do you have that new mixture?

I went through Georgetown on Labor Day weekend, and they were closed then. I was very surprised to see them gone; they've been around a while. In other news, Hanckel Marine on Daniel Island closed up last week. I heard they auctioned off a lot of their inventory a few weeks prior. Don't know if the West Ashley location is still open.

Everyone keeps talking about how bad the market is; I'm just wondering what and where they are selling. I pass by a Sea Hunt/ Grady dealer everyday, and they are moving boats OUT of the dealership like crazy. A coworker just sold his 15' skiff for $1500 more than he paid for it 5 months ago (from dealer). He sold it in a week with an ad on Craigslist. I'm not sure the market ever changed here in SC. And the OP said something about 20% unemployment...where do you live? Detroit?

Bleach. Bleach kills everything.

T-Top Covers will make you a cover to fit anything..literally. You'll just have to pay for it. They told me the reason they don't cover everything is that it allows air to vent where it connects to the t-top, so it won't mildew/mold inside the boat.

SeaHunt--good boat for the money. Wiring is a little weak. I'd have Sea Hunt fully foam the hull sides of the boat to cut down on some of the echoing when coming down off a wave. They've done this on some of teh smaller boats; I'm sure they would on the 24 as well.

DDHand--was that from the Daniel Island store?

In the long run, the boat will be a lot less expensive.

I agree--the West Ashley and Mt Pleasant stores are picked over; not much left but bulk hardware. Daniel Island store has been sending all their inventory to the Wilmington, NC store. I did pick up a Northstar 660 gps/sounder at West Ashley gps for $390--BOE has it for $912. What's up with boatersworld.com? Are they a different business? Will they stay open?

I thought about getting one from Wal Mart, but they don't have a Group 24 1000 MCA / 800 CCA battery. The biggest I saw was a 650 CCA (didn't see the MCA rating), and at only about $20/more, the Batteries Plus 1000/800 sounds like a decent deal.

My small boat doesn't warrant the cost of AGM's (will never go out of site of land); anyone use the marine batteries from Batteries Plus? I think they are made by Exide - wet cell/lead acid, group 24 1000 MCA/800 CCA $79. Seems like a good buy.

West marine (at least the WM's local to me) have it on sale this week for $4.99 a bottle. I picked up two today. I saw it in the "10% off closeout" in Boaters World yesterday for $13.99 a bottle. So much for a "liquidation sale".

Maybe I did miss my "cornprehension" class, 'cause wasn't OldMercsRule saying how thin the glass was in the "Bayhole"? And who mentioned a Sea Ray?

Not really. I think the explanation of what it is probably clears up why it had a broke transom.

Excellent decision, imo.

Or you ask anyone that trailers a boat over a couple years and doesn't use any transom wedges or sticks to hold it up, and see what their results are. Most importantly, apparently, the boat shouldn't be a Bayliner. And there is the first "Bashing of the brands" on reelboating.com First!

Whatever; you're the one with a broke bayliner. Thanks for your permission to carry on.

I don't know what a "Bayhole" is, so I'm not sure it applies. I'll assume from this discussion it's a boat. But you are the first person I've ever heard in 30+ years of boating say they have seen a transom "break" from trailering. I'm not saying it didn't happen or that you are lying; but knowing nothing of the particular boat, or even type of boat, and the fact this is the first one I have ever heard doing so, it makes me think something else was amiss rather than trailering. If it broke going down the road, it was going to break in rough water. I didn't see anyone arguing about gravity; I certainly wasn't. But I'd agree with those above that said a wedge type device might save the hydraulics more than it does anything for the transom. The weight of the engine "bouncing around" doesn't change whether we are holding it from the hydraulic rams or just having it unsecured. By stiffening the engine's tilt hinge, (and if you'll "think jus' a wee bit"),"FACT IS" you'll see you have created a longer torque arm that forces the transom to flex rather than the flex at the tilt hinge. All a wedge device really does is attempt to change the engine's pivot point and its moment of inertia in respect to the transom. Ever used a longer pry bar to open something where a shorter one wouldn't? It's called leverage. By creating a longer torque arm (by stiffening the pivot point) we increase that leverage. I wouldn't be surprised to find out using those devices actually made a transom weaker or more prone to gel coat cracking from the engine rotating about the plane of the transom versus it's intended pivot point of the engine's tilt hinge. Which would you rather tilt--the engine hinge, or the transom?

That was my question too, and so far I think the unspoken answer is "no".

Dan..you're waxing a boat..not a black car. I think you'd have to try and mess up gel coat. How thick is gel coat anyway..about 20 mils or so? You've got a lot of thickness to use there.