I have a Starweld 18 I bought in 2012 with a Evinrude 115 Etec.
I like the boat and have had no problems with it .
This boat is the old Monarch brand starcraft bought years ago.
In Canada the boat hull is sold under the Legend brand.
I had a 1650 Lund Fisherman that this larger boat replaced.
Never looked back. The lund has a nicer build quality and detail.
The Starweld is a budget boat but I have no complaints
The new models are fancier than mine. Boat has a 3/4 inch plywood floor.
I haven’t used mine hard or have many hours on it.
It is a dryer ride than my Lund.

If you have a Honda dealer in your neighborhood add Honda to your shopping list.
Great motors as well.

I don`t see the AC Delco Voyager batteries around anymore.
I had one that lasted 10 years. They were very good.

Love my 115 ETEC but for a tiller in my area with a Honda dealer close by I`d be hard pressed not to go with a Honda.
I`d have to try out the small ETEC first before I`d recommend it. The ETECs are big twin cylinders in the 40-60 hp models. My guess not so smooth.

Nothing to it did one on a friends Terrova.

I bought the V2 with the Ipilot.

The Terrova is a much better platform for the Ipilot do to it`s shut off in the stowed position.

The GPS in the Ipilot stays active with the V2 unless you unplug the motor. Draining the battery.

Before I`d buy a Ipilot to upgrade the V2 I`d strongly consider getting a Terrova with the Ipilot instead.

Quote:

---

Can you confirm the double oiling duration? Is it 30, 40, or 50 hours?

---

I think it`s more like a 5-10 hour double oiling.

My 115 has 20 hours on it and after the first gallon or two the oil use was much better.

The Etec is set by the factory to run at 50:1.

It will how ever use more oil under hard acceleration.

50:1 is the set point but it`s also variable.

You can elect to have it set by the dealer to run 100:1 but you have to use XD100 oil only.

Most people use the xd 100 at 50:1.

Xd 100 is the best oil you can run. You can go to XD 50 a wee bit cheaper. You can even run TCW3 but not recomended.

Quote:

---

Whofan I did the same thing when I had a lot of trouble with my 332 [/quote

Same here with the 510c I had. My first Lowrance was the x75 and it was great.

Funny how Linda Colt became famous for going against the grain and taking care of the customer.

Lowrance today is better than they were five years ago.

I jumped ship from Lowrance to Humminbird and haven`t looked back.

I just bought a 115 Etec last summer and I was blown away with the performance and quiet smooth idol.
It drank oil for the first few hours then it let up on consumption.
The xd100 is close to $50 per gallon but you don`t do oil changes.
I see no reason to consider a four stroke over the new DI two strokes.
The Etec did have a bad run on injecters around the 2007 year.
I did some research and I am happy so far with my purchase.
The Etec has none of the old two stroke inconveniences.
The Optimax is also a good motor.

Lots of great choices.
Something in your price range would be a Pfluger Supreme.
Pfluger has been winning over many fishermen.

Crestliner has a Pro Tiller model out that looks very nice can see reviews on utube by boat test .com

http://search.yahoo.com/r/_ylt=A0oG7j4jQARRYjkAo7ZXNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTE0NTR2dmZoBHNlYwNzcgRwb3MDMwRjb2xvA2FjMgR2dGlkA01TWTAwMl83OA–/SIG=120v3pr7q/EXP=1359261859/**http%3a//www.youtube.com/watch%3fv=TaEpMJ-l3sw

I have a 10 year old AC Delco group 27. Not enough water in it to keep the green eye afloat anymore but it checks out good. Its on its last legs I have 10 years on it.
Voyagers are hard to find now days.
If the Delcos now are made like they were 10 years ago thats the brand I`d go with. This brand is hard to find in my area.

Thanks for the update. Pflueger is also under the Pure Fishing umbrella. A lot of products are made cheap now days. The reels made by the Pure Fishing companys are as good as any other in my experience.

I sent in a Abu Garcia D5 reel to Pure Fishing because of a broken line level gear. It was made of plastic. I recieved a brand new reel a week later as a replacement.
This is a great company in my eyes. The reel was out of warranty.

Between 2&3 or 4&5 this area centerd between these numbers looks like a good spot for a Humminbird transducer.

Looks like too nice of a boat to drill a hole in for a Lowrance product LoL!

You can`t find a Tecumseh engine on a snowthrower anymore either.
I hope Tecumseh is still in business?
I think they are just as good a any Briggs and Stratton I`ve had.

I have that exact same mower. Your lucky I paid $389 for mine.
Toro`s personal pace self propelled system is sweet.
Toro also has Lawnboy who use to be owned by OMC.

Johnsons were the very best outboards you could buy back in their day.
The 115 is a good model.
I have the 70hp, works good, but a dinosaur compared to the new outboards today.

Mine pushes a 1650 Lund Fisherman.
I would like to upgrade to a 90 fourstroke but at $9500.00 I`ll stick with my old school motor.

Wade has great advice on the 480.

I would like to add that the Humminbird 500 series are worth a look too. The 535 and 565 Birds are nice as well.

If I were looking at a budget graph I would get at least a 5″ screen.
If you want just a depth finder than the cheapest is good.
If you want to actually read the graph for information 5″ screen is the ticket.
You can get a very good monochrome unit right at $200 or a bit less.
Well worth a few extra $$.
$50 is too much to spend on something that doesn`t do the job you want it to.

Thanks for the replys guys! I`m also looking at the 787c2 as well. I might just pull all my Lowrance stuff off my boat and go Humminbird, or go with the 520lms to compliment my 4800.

Humminbird products look great. My old x75 has been bullit proof though. If I knew I could get the quality from any graph that I now now have with the x75 I would not hesitate to buy it. Maybe I should just keep it til it dies?

Cabin fever has got the best of me in Michigan`s U.P.

I`m driving myself nuts.

Wade thank you! Your advice is very valuable. I might be shopping Jolly Ann soon?

P.S.

Whats the word with the Humminbird transducers concerning rooster tails and tracking bottom at speed?

This is the only issue I been reading about Humminbirds new products.

I always liked Lowrance`s Transducer design. Lowrance just keeps changing their connections so much that you have to tear your boat apart every time you upgrade.

Group 27 AC Delco Voyager. Six years old and still kicking. I`m sold on Delco batteries.

Lowrance had problems with the internal antenna on some of their units. I think it may have been the 334c and 3800c units?

If I were buying a GPS I think I`d opt for the external antenna.

I will add that I have the Lowrance 4800m with the external antenna. I can turn on my unit with the boat in the garage and lock in on satilites.