The last time I replace trailer tires, I went with Goodyear Endurance trailer tires. They are really nice; they ride smooth and have held up very well. I'll be buying them again... but probably no time soon!
I do almost all my own maintenance. It is not hard to learn, and as long as you know your limits, it’s a great way to save a lot of money and time. There are lots of folks here who have tons of expertise and are very generous in sharing it.
Adding electric brakes to a bass boat trailer should be pretty easy and it would make for a much safer towing situation. It would be awful to hit some kid because your little CRV couldn't stop a boat+trailer pushing it from behind.
I would not place any stock on the 'weight test' to evaluate the transom's integrity. Mine was pretty badly rotted and showed no flex when putting weight on it. (If the transom flexes, it's REALLY far gone.)
You likely are looking at a full gut-and-restore job, which would require several...
My boat doesn't have much more (if any) room than that, and I can reach down and get my hand on the cooler. Removing the hoses is a bit more difficult, but still possible without dismantling anything. You ought to be able to get your hand on the hose coming from the transom and trace it it. You...
That looks to be near where the freshwater line from the transom is attached to the power steering fluid cooler. The cooler is a fitting that has large hoses (attached with hose clamps) on front and back. It's mounted fairly low on the engine but you should be able to trace a large hose coming...
Seems like every second or third time I'm reinstalling the drive it wants to fight me. That's what happened a couple of nights ago. The darn thing just didn't want to go on. After much sweating and huffing and puffing, and saying many bad words, I got the thing on.
Only after I had torqued...
Banging/knocking/tapping on the structures is meaningless. You really need to drill. I hope you find light, dry shavings, but don't be surprised if they are dark and/or wet. Many of us have been there...
Good luck and let us know how the samples look!
I'd poke that fiberglass with a screwdriver, and if it's solid (which I bet it is), I'd cover it, add a keel protector, and be done with it.
MarineTex or gelcoat paste will both work, but the epoxy will be considerably harder to sand and shape.
I added one of these a few years ago, and it really wasn't hard. It did "encourage" me to clean up the boat's wiring, install a proper fuse panel, buss bar, etc., and doing all that was much more fuss than simply adding the kit.
Personally, I would not be too worried about either the 3 hour drive or the defunct boat builder. Being willing to travel a bit greatly expands the choice available, so it might be well worth a day of driving round trip.
Also, the engine and drive are very common and well-known, so...
How big are the pockets and how many? If the concern is just prevent water intrusion (rather than being concerned about the integrity of your lamination), you can inject resin into the bubble and fill them up.
The injection won't work if a large proportion of the lamination is bad, but if you...
