Canoe modification 2024
MN Fisher reply :
After even only three fishing trips with my canoe I decided I needed to modify it to make it more fishing friendly.
Here's a shot of the pre-mod canoe.
This is NOT an SCanoe or a Field & Stream Scout - this is the 'original' Sun Dolphin Scout SS. The other two are relabeled Sun Dolphins.
MN Fisher reply :
Phase 1 done - new seat supports cut/drilled/installed. They'll have to be removed temporarily during Phase 2 - which will happen Tuesday.
Yes, I do work this fast when on a project. Plus my King-pin base and mount are due Tuesday and I want the main part of the seat ready for them.
Details of how I got 'here' are in my blog
volzfan59 reply :
Thanks MN Fisher, I'm going to follow this.
Brad Reid reply :
I'll follow along, too.
I often fish out of my Meyers Sportspal S-15 and I also have 3 seats. The factory installed a seat "midships" for me in addition to the bow and stern seats that were standard.
To make canoe fishing easier, your goal I believe you said, any and all efforts to work out anchoring and other "holding water" techniques and details is time and money well spent.
Best of luck!
Brad
MN Fisher reply :
On 12/17/2018 at 10:47 AM, Brad Reid said:I'll follow along, too.
I often fish out of my Meyers Sportspal S-15 and I also have 3 seats. The factory installed a seat "midships" for me in addition to the bow and stern seats that were standard.
To make canoe fishing easier, your goal I believe you said, any and all efforts to work out anchoring and other "holding water" techniques and details is time and money well spent.
Best of luck!
Brad
I think my entire setup including the trolling motor and battery but excluding the trailer will cost less than one of those S-15's.
Anchoring will be simple, 1.5# fluke anchor tied off to the rear carry handle. It's the electrical routing and the stabilizer setup that will be more involved.
Brad Reid reply :
On 12/17/2018 at 1:17 PM, MN Fisher said:I think my entire setup including the trolling motor and battery but excluding the trailer will cost less than one of those S-15's.
Anchoring will be simple, 1.5# fluke anchor tied off to the rear carry handle. It's the electrical routing and the stabilizer setup that will be more involved.
For sure! A Meyers Sportspal S-15 isn't cheap at around $1400 or $1500. To your anchor plans, I'd carry along a stake-out pole, another handy device for canoe anglers. I fish shallow water most of the time, find it easier to deploy than an anchor at times.
Looking forward to seeing how you do your electrical!
Brad
Goose52 reply :
Good luck on your project...when it comes to canoes, the are a tremendous number of options...;)
MN Fisher reply :
So far today, added the brackets for the mid-ship seat and got the wood cut and the seat mounted in the aft.
Details are again on my blog (look to my profile for the addy)
Also got the King-pin base mounted
Add
MN Fisher reply :
Center work table installed.
Again, see my blog to show the steps I took to get this done.
MN Fisher reply :
Okay - I also got the electrical routed. Since the gunwale is hollow, I ran the 8-guage down inside that. A socket on the tail end will accept the matching plugs on both the trolling motor and the battery charger. Once I have the battery box, I'll terminate the front end.
MN Fisher reply :
Seat arrived last Friday, so got that installed.
Also made the 'Gull-wing Stabilizers.
Details on blog...at some point - my internet has been flaky for the past week and it'll be Tuesday next before a Tech comes out.
MN Fisher reply :
Okay, I've updated my blog to show the steps to get to this point.
MN Fisher reply :
Since the temp was high enough today - painted the seat supports. Also terminated the wires to the battery box. Dunno if I'm going to use the milk crate or not...maybe behind the aft seat for the anchor and miscellaneous items.
MN Fisher reply :
Picked up the 2"x3"x10' tube steel on Wednesday, things came up and I couldn't work until today, but all the holes I need are now drilled and the tube sanded/cleaned of rust. Tuesday it's suppose to be warm and sunny, so I'll paint it then. Original tongue piece is the white one.
I've also gotten a good start on the rod-rack. A piece of MDF has been cut to fit between the rear seat and the carry handle. Three holes drilled through the MDF and the canoe side for mounting - the only new holes I'll be drilling in the canoe. 12" lengths of 1-1/2" PVC have been cut, cleaned up and holes drilled in them to mount to the MDF. The MDF panel will also be painted on Tuesday...hopefully.
MN Fisher reply :
Rod-rack is complete...painting on trailer-tongue continues.
No - the seat will NOT bump the rod in the first position - I was very careful with my measurements and alignments.
MN Fisher reply :
Final coat of paint on the tongue piece is drying - got the trolling motor mounted, adjusted and connected.
Also got the screw eyes in the rod-rack and the leashes installed...if I didn't have to wait for the trailer to be finished, I could go out today.
rickdeez1 reply :
Nice canoe!
That Endura C2 drains battery fast from my experience. I have an Endura Maxx now and it'll last all day.
MN Fisher reply :
On 4/18/2019 at 11:42 PM, rickdeez1 said:Nice canoe!
That Endura C2 drains battery fast from my experience. I have an Endura Maxx now and it'll last all day.
I'm on a limited budget...the Maxx was outside my spending limit.
Also - looking over the specs and given how much time I actually spend on the water each trip - my 75AH Deep Cycle will be enough to power the C2 for a trip.
volzfan59 reply :
MN Fisher, You've done a great job upgrading your canoe.
J Francho reply :
Looks good. How much weight do you think you added?
MN Fisher reply :
On 4/19/2019 at 2:42 AM, J Francho said:Looks good. How much weight do you think you added?
Besides the TM and battery? Maybe 15lbs...which brings it to 100. Add the TM and battery and probably about 150-160 total. Since it's trailered - almost finished putting that together - it's not an issue.
MN Fisher reply :
Jazzing it up a little to...replaced the crappy looking black on white block lettering Reg No with custom vinyl lettering.
Original
New
J Francho reply :
I did the same on my bass boat. CG wasn't too pleased about it. It's probably fine on inland lakes. I think the funky letters look better.
Abby reply :
canoe looks great. Thinking about some mods on mine now..
MN Fisher reply :
On 4/19/2019 at 8:33 PM, J Francho said:I did the same on my bass boat. CG wasn't too pleased about it. It's probably fine on inland lakes. I think the funky letters look better.
Couple neighbors...including the guy who uses my backyard to store his boat in the summer...did the same. Never an issue with the local lake patrol.
Fishing Rhino reply :
On 4/19/2019 at 2:57 AM, MN Fisher said:Jazzing it up a little to...replaced the crappy looking black on white block lettering Reg No with custom vinyl lettering.
Original
New
What? You didn't like the mailbox motif?
MN Fisher reply :
Trailer assembled - all that's left now is wiring it and a couple piddly things...like mounting my gimbaled cup holder for my coffee.
MN Fisher reply :
Everything except a couple minor, piddly things is done. Posted pics of finished work in 'Show Your Ride'
northwoodshobo reply :
Sweet set up, I was wondering if you found a solution to noise proof the bottom if the canoe?
MN Fisher reply :
On 10/5/2019 at 4:48 AM, northwoodshobo said:Sweet set up, I was wondering if you found a solution to noise proof the bottom if the canoe?
Haven't even looked into to...I don't get much noise from the bottom anyway.
Further North reply :
...any chance you can provide a link to your blog?
I've picked up a Meyer's Sportspal to chase bass and smallies on NW WI rivers too small for my boat and am looking for ideas to steal.
Neil McCauley reply :
On 10/8/2019 at 12:01 PM, Further North said:...any chance you can provide a link to your blog?
I've picked up a Meyer's Sportspal to chase bass and smallies on NW WI rivers too small for my boat and am looking for ideas to steal.
x2, couldn't find the link in his profile.
Canoe looks awesome btw!
MN Fisher reply :
On 10/11/2019 at 4:59 PM, Neil McCauley said:
x2, couldn't find the link in his profile.
Canoe looks awesome btw!
Google did some things with Blogger that made it a pain...maybe I'll put it back up under Wordpress but right now things are a bit hectic here.
MN Fisher reply :
Okie-dokey - continuing on. This winter's mods are almost as intense as last winter's. First up, rebuilt the port rod-rack. Starboard rack is in process...ya, nine rigs now, so I needed another rack.
I'm going with a lighter gray than last year - yes, the rear seat will be re-painted to the new color once some mods are done to it.
J Francho reply :
Do you bring all nine every time out?
MN Fisher reply :
On 2/11/2020 at 9:02 PM, J Francho said:Do you bring all nine every time out?
Last year I only had six rigs and I was switching lures often enough that I went to nine and plan on taking them all out every time. So ya, I'll be taking all nine out this year.
A-Jay reply :
On 2/11/2020 at 6:36 AM, MN Fisher said:Okie-dokey - continuing on. This winter's mods are almost as intense as last winter's. First up, rebuilt the port rod-rack. Starboard rack is in process...ya, nine rigs now, so I needed another rack.
I'm going with a lighter gray than last year - yes, the rear seat will be re-painted to the new color once some mods are done to it.
Nicely Done - Look familiar too . . .
A-Jay
MN Fisher reply :
On 2/11/2020 at 9:27 PM, A-Jay said:Nicely Done - Look familiar too . . .
A-Jay
Well, it's the same design as last year's...just used a better quality wood this time and took more care painting it. Last year's was just a couple spray-coats slapped on. This year, two coats of Kilz Primer then two coats of brush-on latex-acrylic.
This stuff actually
MN Fisher reply :
Another item - once I finish painting the center-seat, this will be mounted to the aft side. Just a 4" wide piece of Lexan, drilled and painted. Gives me more control of the electrical. Mounted camera and tablet will run off the USB ports...no battery death!
volzfan59 reply :
MN Fisher, I've really enjoyed following this. Thanks
MN Fisher reply :
Front and mid seats done. I've temporarily located the clamp-mount for the tablet and the base for the Hook-2. A little experimenting and my camera will mount to the tablet arm using the bicycle clamp that came with the camera - you can see it poking over the top of the tablet spot.
Now the rear seat - I'm going to rout out the spot where the seat base sits so that it's inset into the wood and the top of it is flush.
gimruis reply :
Some of these photos are kinda blurry on my end, any way you can sharpen them up?
MN Fisher reply :
On 2/14/2020 at 10:17 PM, gimruis said:Some of these photos are kinda blurry on my end, any way you can sharpen them up?
Sorry about that - closed garage (it was COLD out there yesterday) and bad lighting. The phone doesn't take great pics in that environment.
Once everything is done, I'll be doing a vid detailing all the work...once it's warmer and I can roll the canoe outside.
MN Fisher reply :
Just a sneak peak of something I'm doing...VIDEOS
This is just a short test, but it directly involves work on the canoe modifications.
MN Fisher reply :
Part of the whole new system is cameras - as shown in the previous post. Well, I wanted one to be 'on' me and got a clip on mount...but it was unwieldy. So decided to cobble together a 'hat-cam' using my Bonnie. Here's the set-up, and test of it while I do some painting on the seat-base that featured in the previous vid.
MN Fisher reply :
Still painting the rear seat - but starting to mount things on the center. Was tired of the paddle just knocking around the bottom of the canoe, so a couple spring-loaded tool clamps and it's off the floor, out of the way, and handy when I need/want it.
MN Fisher reply :
Last coat of the top-color is drying on the rear seat now...and I've got the electronics mostly finished
Backside of panel
Panel mounted, fishfinder mounted, tablet in it's mount - with power cord connected, and framing the 'Ryobi' on my drill/driver is the camera mount...and yes, there's a power cord for that too.
Now I just gotta terminate at the battery end and that part is all done.
TnRiver46 reply :
Love the paddle clamp idea, let me know how that works This summer!
MN Fisher reply :
Little vid of me soldering the battery ends on the wires to power the fishfinder, tablet and camera
Cut out most of the boring parts
gimruis reply :
What do you use the tablet for?
MN Fisher reply :
On 2/24/2020 at 8:39 AM, gimruis said:What do you use the tablet for?
Since my Hook-2 doesn't have maps much less GPS - I run the I-Boating app on the tablet. Gives me 1' contour maps of the lake with GPS tracking. I can even record my trips and set waypoints. Here's the 'track record' from 31 July this past year - when I caught the bass in my profile pic.
gimruis reply :
Ahhh yes that makes total sense. I assumed the lowrance had gps.
MN Fisher reply :
On 2/24/2020 at 9:10 AM, gimruis said:Ahhh yes that makes total sense. I assumed the lowrance had gps.
The 4x does, but I have the base 4 model which doesn't.
related Bass Boats Canoes Kayaks topic
next topic
most viewed Bass Boats Canoes Kayaks topic
© 2024 - fishing.qciss.net. All Rights Reserved.