Long-term Product Performance:
Hull
Hull
This is a log which chronicles the long-term performance of the various products installed on Toy Boat 2. Real life problems, real life solutions (mostly), plus alternatives tried...
These pages will updated as new things are installed or replaced, or as stuff happens to the boat. New or changed items from the previous month will be identified with BLUE TEXT in the first column.
Toy Boat 2 was put in service: July, 2001
| Equipment | Topic | Comments |
| Livewell Offshore Products 42 gallon oval (leaning post)  |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | This tank has done extremely well keeping bait alive. So far, the only times we've lost a lot of bait have been due to operator error, like accidentally turning off the tank instead of the nav lights (doh!). But water splashes out of the the tank when full. | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: |
While the tank excels at keeping bait alive, water splashes out of the livewell when running in rough water. We tried lowering the water level by cutting another, lower hole in the standpipe. This reduced the splashing, and we ran the tank this way for several years. But the lower water level increased sloshing in the tank, which can tire out the bait more quickly. So this season we restored the standpipe to original condition by replacing it with a fresh section of 1.5 inch schedule 40 PVC pipe, and are investigating other ways to control the splashing. We currently have a non-watertight cutting board lid on the tank. We're probably going to wind up with a more water-tight version in the end. We also added some EVA foam padding around the lip of the livewell, to reduce
scratches and dings in the gelcoat around the opening...
|
|
| What's planned: | Possibly replace the leaning post arrangement with a lower 3-scoop tank that can be used as a seat with back | |
| Livewell pump Shurflo Piranha  |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | After a faulty first unit, the Shurflo Piranha has worked out well. | |
| Other products tried: | Shurflo Bait Sentry 500, 800 | |
| What's happened: | The Piranha started out as a quiet pump, but got noisier as time went on. Replaced under warranty by Shurflo. More >>> | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Outriggers Precision Marine Econoline Outriggers |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | The fiberglass poles have proven to be stiff enough for typical tuna feathers. We haven't tried them with marlin jigs yet. | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | We've settled on the Aftco Goldfinger release clips, and the nylon cord supplied with the 'riggers as halyards. The outriggers definitely allow certain types of lures (tuna jigs, birds and some teasers) to work better than when trolled from rod holders. | |
| What's planned: | Trying different halyards and release clips | |
| Rod Riggers Reliable Aluminum  |
Status: | OK, but... |
| In a nutshell: | A useful tool, the Reliable rodriggers need some design improvements | |
| Other products tried: | Windline SS | |
| What's happened: | Plastic liner tossed, safety lines fell off...More >>> | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Downrigger Cannon Uni-troll HP  |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | Still too early to tell... | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | 15-JUN-2002: Popped spool under tension (replaced under warranty) | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Downrigger weights/planers Z-wing® 250, 500  |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | The Z-wings work well, but below 2-3 knots, a traditional lead ball seems to work better. | |
| Other products tried: | 12 lb Cannon pancake weight | |
| What's happened: | Nothing | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Horizontal rod racks Fentress Polyethylene 
|
Status: | OK, but... |
| In a nutshell: | Works well, but the bungee cord tiedowns seem to stretch out fairly easily | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | Bungee cord hold-downs are getting stretched out | |
| What's planned: | Replace or re-knot elastic | |
| Gunnel rod holders Lee SS 15 degree 
|
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | A solid product. No problems. | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | Nothing | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Rail-mount rod holders Perko Clamp On Rod Holders 
|
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | These inexpensive rod holders seem to work well, but we have serious concerns about the longevity of the chromed zinc components in salt water. | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | The zamak rail clamps are starting to show some corrosion (bubbling of the plating, scale buildup) around the mounting bolts. May just be a matter of time now... | |
| What's planned: | Considering a comparison to Precision Marine SS rod holders | |
Vertical rod rack Fentress
polyethylene 3-rod, with knife and pliers slots
|
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | Works well, However, the polyethylene-like material seems to retains dirt and grease. | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | One cracked vertical tube, replaced. | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Livewell Net Precision Marine 9" diam, 24" handle  |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | A solid, well built and designed product. The rings around the rim prevent premature wear on the netting material from rubbing on the tank sides. | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | The butt cap kept coming off, glued it in place. Otherwise an excellent net | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Flatline clips AFTCO Roller Troller  |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | A solid, well built product. A click detent would be a nice touch to make it easier to reproduce release tension. | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | Nothing | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Reels Shimano Torium® 20/30  |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | A "poor man's Trinidad", these are great casting reels. The 6:1 retrieve ration is a useful feature for jig fishing. Using the Torium 20 with heavy Spectra resulted in drag slip - had to upgrade sideplates (free Shimano upgrade) | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | Using the Torium 20 with 50lb Spectra and Butterfly jigs resulted in exposure to a problem with the sideplates, which allowed the drag to back itself off when the reel is used with heavy (12lbs) of drag. Shimano has a replacement sideplate kit with some heavier-duty clutch dogs that seem to have solved the problem. | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Reels Shimano TLD® 15  |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | A solid light trolling reel. | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | Nothing | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Reels Accurate 870 Boss Magnum® Twin Drag®  |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | A smooth running, tough reel. A little complicated to service. | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | Got sloppy on maintenance, managed to lock the spool on the drag lever, preventing the reel from going into freespool. Disassembly is a little tough, but after a good lubing, things are back to normal. Took out a spacer washer to lighten up minimum drag setting | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Reels Shimano Thunnus 16000  |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | The Thunnus is a solid big spinning reel. Drag has enough guts to handle the heavier drag settings needed for deep-jigging with Spectra | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | Nothing | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Rods G. Loomis Pelagic Series PSR84-30CSU |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | This has turned out to be a solid multi-purpose rod. Stiff enough to be used as a long trolling rod with 30 lb test, flexible enough to be used with as a general purpose medium duty rod. Concerns over the light guide frames have not been justified. | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | Nothing | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Rods Calstar WCDH-6480-C |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | A great casting rod for metal jigs; handles both light and heavy jigs well. | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | Nothing | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Rods Shimano Terramar® TMC-X80MH |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | A nice casting rod, but the finish is a little funky - wavy gloss | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | Nothing | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Fly Rods G. Loomis Cross-current, 9' 8 wt. FR1088-3CC |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | A nice casting, reasonably priced fly rod. A good choice for medium-light saltwater. | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | Nothing | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Fly Fishing Accessories Pleskunas Designs 12" Travelling VLMD  |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | VLMD = "Vertical Line Management Device". If you're in to salt water fly fishing, this gadget, or the similar Line Tamer, is invaluable when fishing from a boat. Keeps the fly line and the rod under control in the cockpit. Highly recommended. | |
| Other products tried: | Home-made variations, including collapsible leaf bags, gift wrap storage boxes, and the 15" diameter version of this device. | |
| What's happened: | The anchor bolts for the swing-out feet have developed some corrosion, but operate fine. Note that the 15" diameter VLMD proved to be too wide to fit in some sections of the cockpit. | |
| What's planned: | Nothing | |
| Multi-Purpose Pliers Braid Multi-purpose, #32911  |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | A solid tool, but if it's SS and designed for use around salt water, why is there so much rust on the hinge and on the various set screws? | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | These pliers are supposed to be SS, but have been rusting around the hinge. Regular application of WD-40 required. | |
| What's planned: | Need to call Braid and find out what's going on... | |
| Rods Shimano TCurve Jig 200 Spin Deep Jigging rod |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | An odd-looking rod, but extremely light, and tough as nails. Easily capable of handling heavy Spectra. | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | This is a specialized deep-jigging rod designed by famed Australian rod builder Ian Miller, and offered only in Australia. We ordered it over the Internet. It looks like it should be fragile, but in fact, it is incredibly tough, easily able to handle heavy Spectra | |
| What's planned: | Continue to field test. | |
|
Multi-Purpose Pliers Shimano 6" Baystee; combo pliers/scissors |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | An odd-looking tool, but very useful. We've started using it in place of two or three more conventional tools. | |
| Other products tried: | N/A | |
| What's happened: | Shimano designed these pliers to meet the special needs of deep-jigging: split ring tool, heavy mono cutter, and Spectra-capable scissors, as well as pliers | |
| What's planned: | Continue to field test. | |
|
Rods Shimano Trevala 66M Deep Jigging rod |
Status: | OK |
| In a nutshell: | We like the rod for a variety of jigging applications, not just deep jigging | |
| Other products tried: | None | |
| What's happened: | This is a specialized deep-jigging rod designed for the US. It, like the T-Curve, looks like it should be fragile, but in fact, it is incredibly tough, easily able to handle heavy Spectra. | |
| What's planned: | Continue to field test. |
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