Picked up a 23 ft cuddy cabin with a single outboard at the end of August. I grew up around boats, but my dad was always the one driving, so this is my first time as the captain. Open water is honestly great. Getting back to the slip is where I lose my mind.
My marina has fairly tight slips and there's almost always some kind of crosswind in the afternoon. Last weekend I came in too hot, tried to correct, overcorrected, and ended up bouncing off a piling while a guy on the neighboring boat watched with a coffee in his hand. No damage except to my pride, but my wife and kids were on board and I could feel everyone holding their breath.
I've watched a bunch of videos on using bursts of throttle and keeping the boat slow, but when there's wind pushing me sideways and people on the dock watching, all of that goes out the window and I just panic-steer.
Is there a technique that actually works for a single engine in a crosswind, or does it just come down to hours of practice? Would it be worth paying someone for an hour or two of coaching, or is that overkill? And what do you do with the crew so they're actually helpful instead of just stressing me out?
For those who remember their first few months, how long did it take before docking felt normal?

I have a 90 hp Yamaha three cylinder two stroke... Great engine, perfect power to weight ratio for my whaler.. This season the tilt trim unit developed a leak in an internal seal.. Fortunately a friend had gifted me a used Yamaha 70 of the same series.. The tilt trim unit worked, the engine had problems so I decided to strip it and scrap the block... the lower end is a perfect match, the trim unit is as well.. Carbs are interestingly comparable - the prop is off by a bit but a functional spare... Yesterday ... I swapped the trim unit, pulled the defective one out, installed the replacement and bingo its working perfectly again... a piece of the lower end casing had snapped off my engine and the one off of the 70 is identical and was replaced - its in brand new condition... so that may be the next swap... The parts I got off of the 70 would have cost me thousands of dollars and the experience of stripping the 70 is what makes doing the swaps very straight forward.. The parts are worth much more than what the whole motor would have been worth... I have ignition coils, solenoids, starter motor... it was a very good that will continue to be a good thing.. Getting my tilt trim unit rebuilt alone.. would cost $1000 tax in.. the advantage of having a spare is avoiding down time.. Doing the swap took three hours... and I used a crane to support the engine to be safe - it worked perfectly...

Hope this is the right place to ask this question!

Been working in the fitness industry for 15 years, recently reached my mid-30’s and decide it’s time for something new.

Always been fascinated with anything maritime, even have the tattoos to prove it. But, outside a sailing course in college & the odd lake trip, my knowledge is lackluster in this department.

I’d REALLY enjoy pursuing a career as a boat/ship captain. I’ve looked up the requirements & am aware of the licensing needed.

Would it be a wise move to immediately obtain an OUPV license, or seek becoming a deckhand first? Also, I’m currently in the Bay Area CA & SF isn’t too far from me. Curious if it’s best to move to say Florida if seeking these kinds of positions.

Thanks! ⚓️

I own a 21ft hydra sport CC. I mainly do offshore fishing in the gulf. Typically 15 miles-25miles out. The bottom I normally fish isnt very wide or long so it’s pretty difficult to anchor on these spots with wind and current.

Even on the times we anchor well the anchor always finds its way in a rock and even with a break away anchor it’s been destroying my anchors.

I hate to spend $3-4k on a trolling motor but I know it would make my fishing experience way better. I’m thinking about an 80lb and 72 inch shaft.

I know the 112lb thrust will be way better but can’t justify spending $1200 more for that. I’m not out there unless it’s a foot or less. My boat rides awful in chop which is why I’m only out there in a foot or less.

Is 80lbs enough in those conditions to hold my boat over the reef?

1998 Evinrude 115 intruder. I drained and replaced the lower unit gear oil last fall before tucking the boat away for the winter. I'm assuming this is a sign of some water that got in, but not very much. Should I just make sure it's fully drained, refill, and see how it looks next fall? I have no plans to run the motor in the water until next spring.

Ive just finished painting the interior panels of this boat to cover up many old screw holes and the filler for them.

I didnt paint the whole boat because its too much work, and instead decided to paint to the lip edge as you can see, with the idea being it will hide the transition edge, and i will also cut and polish the old gelcoat to bring the color back to match the new paint.

Anyway, i need advice on how i should feather this edge. As you can also see, i made the mistake of not reapplying tape between coats so now that ive taken the tape off, the primer undercoat is showing through. Would i be able to sand the entire edge and then appply a coat or two over that sanded area, or have i probably screwed myself.

Any help is appreciated

I have three boat batteries that are in a series. Do I have to disconnect them in order to charge them with a trickle charger, or can l charge them all individually while still connected together? Thanks

Picked up a 03 hydra sport 180cc from my neighbor with a 115 yamaha v4 2 stroke with only 318 hours. Been sitting for 10 years did I get a good deal for 2500

I’m doing my boats winterization, oil change, and stern drive lube change this year for the first time. I had paid a mechanic before. It went pretty smooth, took a little longer than I thought, but I’ll be way faster next year.

I have dual mercruiser 5.7 carbureted engine with mercruiser Alpha 1 Gen 2 stern drives.

When doing the drive line I came across this wire/ cable that was broken and one part was’t connected to anything.

I’m really new to everything mechanically with stern drive boats. Could someone tell me what this is?

So I’ve been on the search for a boat preferably one that can also be in saltwater I’m from San Antonio,TX so I’ll mainly be on freshwater I want y’all’s opinion is this mako worth it for the price? It has a little rip in the seat if you zoom in front of the center console less he wants $10,000

Inherited boat. Need advice.

I inherited my grandfathers bass ranger. The hull is in great shape, as is the interior. Only issue is with the engine.

1. Engine will crank but will not start. It wants to, and since I am not an outboard engine tech, I have no idea where to go from here.

2. Engine will not raise. It is stuck in the down position. Also, the little thing you loosen to manually lift it is rusted/siezed. Therefore, my only option is to take the motor off if I want to transport it.

3. It has been sitting in a garage for three years. I tried working on it a year ago, and gave up.

My questions are:

1. What is the value of the boat without an engine?

2. Is it worth selling as is, and have the buyer take the engine off?

3. Should I sell the engine and boat separately?

Any and all advice is appreciated.

Hi all, dropping a message as I have an opportunity to purchase a 21’ Rally Sport built between the late 80’s and early 90’s, I can’t find out anything about the company. What State? What was the focus of their product line. Reputation for Quality, etc. the seller literally has no info other than they think it is from 1985, looking at condition it “appears” better than new (Restored?) but who knows it is 3 states away so I need info before I commit to a 2day trip. any light on this darkness is appreciated…

Hey folks. Trying to determine if I got taken for a ride here. I came into the shop with a bent propellor and spun hub. 24’ center console with Yamaha 250 four stroke. I was charged $995 for the repair in total. They replaced the hub, and “repaired” the prop instead of replacing it. The rest was labor, inspection and haul cost. Feels like a massive ripoff, especially since the replacement prop probably costs $300. What do you guys think? Any feedback would be helpful.

Edit: aluminum propellor.

Hello,

I need to replace the power trim & tilt motor on my outboard, which has failed, and I would appreciate your help identifying the correct part number.

My engine:

- Yamaha FT60GET (60 hp, High Thrust, power trim & tilt)

- Model code: 6C6 L

- Serial number: 1025502 A

According to the Yamaha parts catalog for the FT60GET (6C6), the original trim motor is part number 6C5-43880-01-00. I therefore ordered the Recmar equivalent, REC6C5-43880-01 (listed as replacing 6C5-43880-00 / 6C5-43880-01).

The problem: despite the matching part number, the motor I received is not compatible with my trim unit. It does not fit the mounting base properly, and the assembly is not watertight.

I have attached photos of the old motor (end frame with brush holders and underside view), the new Recmar motor, and the engine ID plate.

Could you please help me to:

1. Confirm the exact trim motor part number for my serial number;

2. Check whether my trim & tilt unit is original or may have been replaced with a different model at some point;

3. Recommend a motor (OEM or aftermarket) that matches the shape of my current mounting base?

Thank you in advance for your help.

Best regards,

Headed out fishing yesterday morning was an interesting ride. Pretty much drove the whole way on instruments. Gotta love that radar!

I'm looking to repower one of my boats with a used engine and it seems like there are a million people Hawking these things online.

Does anyone have a good experience with an online engine reseller or someone they can recommend? I'm located in the Southeastern United States but it seems like a lot of guys have shipping Nationwide.

Thx.

Am about to put new marine carpet in boat and want to repair this area of the boat floor, it's cracked and very flexy, looking for tips on how to repair it.

There's no access from directly under it either unfortunately.

I’m looking at a 2020 Sea Ray 210 and I noticed it has a fair amount of corrosion on the drive. It is a fresh water boat. Also the hull shape seems to be deformed. Any thoughts?

I’m working on a pretty ridiculous 12-phase project:
converting an old Necky Cruiser 2 tandem kayak into what will hopefully become a solar-powered, V-foil electric trimaran.

Why? Mostly because I can, and because I absolutely love learning how things work.

Every phase introduces a new challenge, and every challenge sends me down another engineering rabbit hole.

I’ve blown up more ESCs than I’d like to admit, rewired the entire boat 15+ times, rebuilt multiple battery boxes, experimented with different motors and propellers, and spent countless hours troubleshooting things I didn’t even know existed a few months ago.

But that’s honestly been the best part.

Along the way, I’ve been learning about hydrodynamics, hull displacement, buoyancy, fabrication, structural reinforcement, electrical engineering, water cooling, soldering, welding, propulsion systems, and probably a dozen other things I’m forgetting.

I’m currently around Phase 4. I’ve just finished building a custom dual-ESC water-cooled control system for my two electric trolling motors, and I’m working toward modifying the hull, improving buoyancy, and eventually adding more powerful propulsion.

I’m definitely not a marine engineer, and I’m figuring out a lot of this through research, experimentation, trial and error, and occasionally breaking expensive things.

I’d genuinely love some community input, especially from anyone with experience in marine engineering, hull design, composites, electric propulsion, or hydrofoils.

A few things I’m exploring:

Hull shape and modifications to improve stability, efficiency, and eventually support a trimaran configuration.

Affordable electric motor and propulsion options beyond conventional trolling motors.

Aluminum versus carbon fiber reinforcement and lightweight structural design.

Hydrofoil and V-foil configurations, and whether they’re even practical at the speeds and power levels I’m targeting.

Any creative engineering ideas I haven’t thought of yet.
I’m approaching this in phases because I want to understand what works and why before moving on to the next challenge.

I’m not trying to pretend I know what I’m doing. Half the fun is realizing I don’t, learning something new, and then figuring it out.

Suggestions, criticism, crazy ideas, and engineering advice are all welcome.

Ultimately, I’m just a guy turning a kayak into something increasingly absurd because the process of learning how to build it is as much fun as actually using it.

I was looking at pickles auctions and noticed this boat for sale.

Has anyone had any experience purchasing a boat like this?
What would I need to do once I purchased it?
Obviously I'd need to get an engine? but is that even possible separate to a boat?

I've only ever purchased registered cars from pickles.