H'Islander

I just bought a mint 2016 PA14 with a trailer and a ton of extras for $3750. I'd say subtract $500 for the trailer and maybe another $200 for the live well. Mine also has a Lowrance chartplotter GPS and a standing bar, so maybe $2500, tops?

Don't discount used 'yaks. Buying new has some POM but if you keep an eye out you will find a great deal. I recently got into yak fishing with a cheap, used, $100 Wilderness systems freedom 15 to get the gist of yakkin', and kept my eyes on Marketplace, Craigslist and Let Go. Finally, I found a 5 year old PA14 in mint condition on a never-used continental trailer. It has the Mirage Drive with kick-up turbo fins, Lowrance Hook Reveal 5" chart plotter, a Hobie live-well, a stand-up bar, Boone DOX Landing Gear system with balloon tires, anchor trolly, remote Hobie tail light for towing and the original Vantage seat with lumbar adjustment along with lots of other extras like H-Rail rod holders, cup holder, pliers holster, lanyards, anchor, etc... for $3,750. Another advantage of buying used is registration paperwork that reflects a more reasonable taxation screwing at the Dept of Motor Vehicles.

Hey Hobie V1 live well users. I searched SOL and did not see anything like this, but if it's an old, known hack, then my apologies. Lots of hacks out there on priming the Attwood C-500 pump but some are expensive. My pump has the choker valve fitting to prevent draining as I would imagine that most of them do. I bought a $6 length of clear vinyl 5/8" O.D. tubing from cheap-o depot. I cut a 2 ft length and slid it into the choker valve and use it to suck up a little water to get the prime started. The clear tube allows me to see the water as it passes the pump so that I don't drink any. I stow the tube inside the live well. The 3/4" I.D. tubing will work OVER the choker valve fitting, but it's really tight and might crack the plastic fitting or pump housing when removing or installing it. The 5/8" O.D. tubing has a slip-fit but still seals well enough to pull up more water from below rather than air from around the tube.

Plastic dolls eyes? No? Can get them on line or at craft shops like michaels. I used to use a sh*t-ton of them for the bulging eye look, I was getting them with round pupils and cat's eye style. Nip the stud off the back and then 5-min epoxy them into a spot-faced recess on the plug. For the smaller, old-school look like the old creek chub pikies, I used button head brass brads. I wish I could post some pics of the ones that I still have - but they're all in moving storage at the moment.

Central Florida is lighting up. We saw a dozen or so decent sized schools getting chased out of the water (by Jacks?) during the dump at a certain inlet. As we rolled in a big school was trapped against the edge - my pal jumped and hurried to throw a 10' net from shore, but because he didn't have time to clear the weights, it only opened half way. But it was so full of 8 to 10 inch mullet that it took two of us to pick it up and onto the rocks (the ripping current was partly to blame). Must have been 50 lbs or more in that one throw. Only kept 2 for live lining and a half a 5 gal pail full for vac sealing. All set for winter chunk! There were rumors of 200# poon hitting the schools off the adjacent beach, but I saw -0- . All we saw were a few folks hooking up on medium sized jacks on tins and pinfish. I saw a couple of snook cruising and swiping at lures but no hook ups there. Hope to go back mid week to ditch the weekend crowds and see what sort of trouble we can find.

That Freedom is t-i-p-p-y as hell. Don't wanna go for a dip in the waters that I'm fishing....here's a vid from last night a dusk. Wally_Gator_at_Haulover.mp4

Some folks here may know me from other forums on SOL, I have recently migrated to Central Eastern Florida and have discovered a pretty fascinating new world of fishing, even if for some of the same species from New England. Back home I have a 28 ft twin inboard express cruiser. Down here, shallow water is king. So I bought a cheap, very used, wilderness systems Freedom 15 for $100 and quickly discovered that it is not at all a fishing platform. So I started looking, asking another SOL'er for advice and came upon a (rather pristine) 2016 Hobie Mirage drive PA 14 with a brand new tilt trailer, Balloon wheel kit, Hobie live-well, original advantage seat, H-rail mounts, stand-up bar, Lowrance Hook 4 fish finder (which I upgraded to the Hook 5 reveal) and a few other accessories. I will need to figure out battery powered nav and stern lighting soon. I took it out to Haulover Canal for a test run and to say the least, I'm hooked. My thanks to Throwing Timber and Animal from SOL for their invaluable guidance throughout my search. Hope to be sharing fish pics soon. For now here is some Hobie Porn and some fish porn from shore at the Canal.

If you're careful, and if you use just the right sized bit, you can drill them out just as you would with a rivet. You'll probably need a drill index with letter and number sizes for that level size variety. I like the heat gun approach too!

I do business with them because they have the selection and quality that I need. Other sites are 50% to 100% higher in price and their selection is extremely limited and spotty (often "out of stock"). I really dislike that they offer -0- communication other then the order status link in your confirmation e-mail, and the USPS ALWAYS redirects my order when it hits the terminal in Jersey, further delaying my order. My orders are typically $200 to upwards of $400 so I don't think they prioritize larger orders.

No real need for the pillow. With a .22, even a LR round, just open the window and set up about 8-10 ft inside, the house will mute the sound considerably.

The only good 'yote is a dead 'yote. Don't play with fire. You'd never forgive yourself if these interactions went south.

I look forward to NOT hearing Alvin & Theodore next Christmas....LOL! Those walkers are amazing!

I think, look at craft stores for this type of set grommet kit. Think eyelets for shoes or lace-up garments.

They were probably on a date...

All my plugs are on their way to new homes!