Boat fit out

Hey fellas, getting a boat built next year and just chasing any feedback anyone can give on a few things. 

* anchor winch,never had one before so what type?

* deck armour,how does it hold up on a fishing boat? Gnaraloo trips for example,dirt,dust blood & shit

* minn kotta,size ? 
  
   Mainly bottom bounce and jig,will be 610 plate but fairly heavy.thanks for any advice given 


Bucko's picture

Posts: 138

Date Joined: 08/05/10

 Can't help on all questions,

Thu, 2022-08-25 13:30

 Can't help on all questions, but I would go a drum style winch unless you really need to anchor in deep water.

I have a Viper, not the most expensive but its been working for 5 years now and no issues.

 

The other type, every one I have used has issues with jams or transitions from rope to chain.

J Mann's picture

Posts: 47

Date Joined: 02/09/15

Boat fit out - anchor winch

Thu, 2022-08-25 13:56

Agree with Bucko, drum style over the gypsy style. Gypsy ones can also be a pain with the rope bunching up on a deep retrieve if you don't have enough room in the anchor well.

davewillo's picture

Posts: 2223

Date Joined: 08/09/16

 Yep I can confirm that my

Thu, 2022-08-25 14:39

 Yep I can confirm that my gypsy style winch stuffs up on transition from rope to chain all the time. It's easily fixed but I don't like having fingers anywhere nearby when the winch is turned on.

____________________________________________________________________________

 PGFC member and lure tragic

Lefty 44's picture

Posts: 144

Date Joined: 04/12/17

Minn Kota

Fri, 2022-08-26 06:56

 As big as you can afford and fit to the boat.

Power wise it will depend on the size of the boat but having said that they use more battery when using more power if that make sense.

You are better off running a bigger unit on low power than a smaller unit on full power.

Length of the shaft will depend on the distance from the bow (if bow mounted) to about 12 inches under the water level as a minimum.

Personally I'm not a fan of Minn Kota's. I've have a few and they didn't last well.

Watersnake are just are better and cheaper in my opinion.

Winch and bow mount electric is a lot for the front of the boat. 

Hope it all fits. 

Posts: 261

Date Joined: 04/08/22

 Thanks for the info fellas

Fri, 2022-08-26 07:23

 Thanks for the info fellas which is valuable to me as I've never had or used either.sounds like drum winches are preferred,would only anchor occasionally in maybe 30 m or less with our swells down here so what brands are the go? Don't mind the extra $ for better quality & reliability.as for the electric motor I will speak to the builder about weight and room up front as it's a cuddy so yeah lefty thanks for raising that point to me

Lefty 44's picture

Posts: 144

Date Joined: 04/12/17

Battery

Fri, 2022-08-26 10:32

 Need to consider battery weight as well.

a 150amp/hr battery will be around 40kg and I would have that as a minimum. 

I use 2 x 140Ah in a tinny but that is about 2 days worth of power.

Most current units hate litium batteries. They cook the circult boards as they aren't designed for them.

They are coming out with most litium friendly units but pays to check.

 

Option B 

If you get an electric with spotlock will you need an anchor winch?

Self deploying model will be easier with a cuddy cab if the budget suits. 

Swompa's picture

Posts: 3757

Date Joined: 14/10/12

 Apparently Lone Star drum

Fri, 2022-08-26 07:49

 Apparently Lone Star drum winches are the bees knees per feedback on this site. Australian brand too

 

Suggest googling "drum winch fishwrecked" and there was plenty of info when I was looking a few weeks back.

Posts: 261

Date Joined: 04/08/22

 Cheers swompa will do

Fri, 2022-08-26 09:14

 Cheers swompa will do

Posts: 78

Date Joined: 10/12/14

 Hey mate try Marine Flooring

Fri, 2022-08-26 16:05

 Hey mate

 

try Marine Flooring Perth / Marine Mat Australia based in Wangara. 

Posts: 1084

Date Joined: 21/05/12

various makes of deck armour

Fri, 2022-08-26 16:48

various makes of deck armour available- i only have limited experience with one of the cheaper knock offs, 

put it on m8s boat up in nhullunbuy on a  thursday - went fishing friday,took  me about 4 hours on a 5.6m side console -was easy as - cuts easy etc. got line up marks on it, glue stuck down well- but it was HOT when i was doing it- dont know if that helped 

In using it:

nhullubuy to kato river and back - bull dust etc. - 1 bucket washed it off- self draining deck, no color changes from bull dust, that might change with age and UV exposure

was really nice to stand on when the temp was above 40 deg C didnt feel hot underfoot 

nice cushioning underfoot and feels soft , so no fatique casting or jigging for long periods

was surprisingly not getting hooks stuck in it when u landed a barra and minimal damage when a  big trevally went mental with lure in its mouth , washed down with a  bucket or 2 or salt water at end of the day and blood mud etc. washed off easy as, lloked pretty m uch the same way after our 9 day trip as when it went in, fuel spilled on it wasnt an issue- i was worried about that, but no chemical damage

he sold the boat about 5 months later, said it looked still ok, i can get u the name of the product if u want - was about 1/2 price of deck armour

I think member Ranmar but a BIG electric motor on his rig, might be worth a PM

I only have limited experience with minn kota- on that same trip and we were using a Li battery, had no issues. Lefty seems to have had the opposite experience, but as he said go as big as u can - i stronly recommend u go  24 v rather than 12V , more efficient. Minnkota integrates with hummingbird sounders apparently really well, even have special transducers etc ( i dont like humigbird sounders, had 3 units fail- all were replaced under warranty - but it left me without a sounder for 2 plus months every time- screen delamination), might integrate with lowrance now - i dont know

I ve been looking at a electric for my lil 4.1 got quotes on a minnkota might have to look at watersnake now.  CH Smith Marine was doing the best prices on minnkota by quite abit , and had stock, they are really good on warranty and backup from my own and mates experiences.  

Posts: 261

Date Joined: 04/08/22

 Cheers guys all your info is

Sun, 2022-08-28 08:42

 Cheers guys all your info is being considered but anyone with something to add would be great particularly about the deck armour.the misso is pointing to pure decks for it but I'd rather keep my right arm if it's not suitable for what we do.

Swompa's picture

Posts: 3757

Date Joined: 14/10/12

I looked at a few options and

Mon, 2022-08-29 07:36

I looked at a few options and went with U-Dek with 5mm sheets. 

It is very hard wearing and gets very hot (like need to tip water on it to cool it down on a moderate day) though I did get a gunmetal gray. It is very easy to clean (hose down) though the biggest issue I had was that my deck is not flat from bow to stern. Where there are curves on the vertical axis, the glue has not stuck in all points which got, large amounts of water that seeped under the material and just sat. Ended up having to cut long cuts into it to get the water out. 

Where the deck is flat, it has stuck down perfectly but where it isnt flat, i have had to cut 20mm long strips bow to stern 600mm apart to allow water to flow and each panel to find its own spot. The sheets also shrunk so the initially nicely butted up joints were no longer aligned perfectly. Another application for 20mm gap between sheets to make it look intentional.

It is not perticularly nice on bare feet though is better than painted deck, not remotely slippery, doesnt stain and very easy to clean.

I hear (but have no first hand experience) that Deck Armour is softer on foot but therefore is more prone to damage from hard or sharp bits. The softer on foot element certainly has its appeal and my wife has demanded it on our next boat.....even though she knows the cost.

 

Not sure if anyone has experience with Seadek but the installation and successful use on these boats is a good advertisment. 

www.seadek.com/seadek-supplies-team-brunel-in-volvo-ocean-race/

Posts: 261

Date Joined: 04/08/22

 Thanks again,checking out

Tue, 2022-08-30 06:01

 Thanks again,checking out all these opinions