Stratos trailer upgrades

[Coach185]

After loading my 2003 185 by myself I have come to the realization that I'm no spring chicken any more. Getting off the bow to the trailer takes some effort that my agility finds challenging,lol. Looking at 2 upgrades

1- New 2 speed winch. The Fulton F2 seems to have good reviews, but comments say bolt up can be difficult. Anyone have one of these and any issue with bolting to your stratos trailer and do you think it was a good replacement winch to the original winch?

2- Steps. I want to add a bolt on 3 step unit. I would think 3 steps with a pole is the way to go. Any recommendations on steps?
Easystep seems to be the one that pops up on google, but $400+ caught me off guard. Ouch!!!

[Javelin389]

I put a Trick Step on my trailer, and it absolutely was one of the best upgrades since the Ultrex. After you use it 1 time, you'll forget about the cost.

[JR19]

1...about the only time I ever use a winch is if I accidently get my trailer to shallow and cant power load all the way. Trim the motor up until it reaches the tilt mode then bump it back down to the very upper limit of trim. Once your aligned idle/ease onto the bunks. Once the boat comes to a stop bump the throttle. You may have to give it more gas than what you think but if your not use to power loading start out with light throttle until you learn what your boat needs to power load. With the motor trimmed up the nose will jump up and the boat will push forward. You just have to learn how much throttle to give her so you don't hit the winch post too hard. If you don't make it all the way use the winch for the last few inches.

Learning trailer depth to load/unload is curtail. With time you will learn what your boat likes on steep ramps verses ramps with little slope. Easiest way to learn correct depth is to get the boat barley in the water, stop and unhook the bow then back in VERY SLOWLY and pay close attention to when the boat starts to slide/separate from the trailer. Make a mental note of trailer depth when the boat slide backwards. Then when it comes time to load get the trailer a tad more shallow than when it starts to slide/float the boat. The reason you want it a tad more shallow is because you do not want to be floating on the trailer when your trying to load. Once you figure out what your trailer likes you will get it right 95% of the time. Perfect is great but too shallow is better than too deep. Too shallow you can always winch it the rest of the way. To deep will cause the the ass to float and boat will move from side to side because its not settled onto the bunks.



2...as I get older and my knees get worse I see one in my future. If they did not cost so much and I was not such a tight wad I would already have a set since I fish solo 95% of the time.




I forgot to ask you the other day...I know your new to that boat/motor and you said you were relatively new to bass boats. Did anyone explain the cold start procedure for your carburetor motor. They can sometime be troublesome the first start of the morning when the engine is cold. There is a sequence of events you go thru that make that first start of the day easier so I was just wondering if anyone shared the info with you.

[Coach185]

Javenlin389, can you post a pic of your Trick Step.

[Coach185]

Gene, thanks for the info and insight.
I'll try your technique for loading next time I'm out. The right depth for my trailer at the ramp I have been using is for the top of the fenders showing and the roller guides at the back to show a couple of inches above waterline. I haven't been trimming up as far as you suggest and I usually can get within a foot of the front roller with power load. Sounds like trimming up more will help to get me closer to the roller.

Cold starts are a challenge and I haven't been enlightened as to a procedure. So as usual let me have it, lol. My procedure is as follows.
1 pump up the fuel bulb until firm
2 push in the key a couple of times. Been told this is some type of choke, but I really don't understand what is happening when I push it in. It sounds like fuel being squirted into the carbs?
3 turn key to start. Once it kicks i have to push in the key to keep her running. I just push and release and do not hold it in.
I'm looking forward to your insight on cold starts

[Javelin389]

Let me get a pic of it later. Thought I had one on my phone.

[JR19]

Regarding loading...

The reason you want to be at the upper limit of the trim is so your skeg and prop does not hit the ramp. Plus with a lot of positive trim this will make the nose rise and help the boat slide up the bunks.



Regarding cold start procedure...

Your close with your cold start procedure but it leaves out two things (trim the motor level so fuel does not drain and advance the fast idle mechanism)...Once we figure out how to advance the fast idle feature I can put all the steps in order. Before I go into specific details I need to know how your particular set up achieves fast idle so I need a little information.

Does your gear shifter have a control box with a fast idle lever that will raise up/down. If your answer is yes then I 100% know your cold start procedure. If your answer is no then I will ask if your gear shifter has a round button near the bottom you can push in. If the answer is yes then I can speculate but not guarantee my answer. I know your boat has a hot foot because I recall seeing one. Right now I am just trying to figure out how to advance the fast idle feature. If you did not have a hot foot you would have a gear shifter box with a fast idle lever. That I am for sure of. What I am unsure about is how a set up with a hot foot achieves fast idle. I"think" I know but I am not for sure. Right now I just need to know what your controls looks like...a square box with a lever and the gear shift or simply a gearshift with a push button near the bottom.

[Coach185]

Gene, my gear shifter has no fast idle lever, but it does have a round button on the lower end of the shifter arm. That button will disengage the drive and allow free rpm's without turning the prop.
So I have been reading a bunch of posts about hard starting Vmax's. Seems to be a common issue and mostly related to choke.
Help me to understand what happens when the key is pushed in. I can hear a noise when I push in the key. Does it engage the butterflies in the carbs? If this is the case then does it release the butterflies when I release the "push" on the key? That would make since to me now that I have researched somewhat.
I have not been holding in the key while cranking. Just push it in once then release and then crank.
I also read that there is a manual choke on the motor itself. I'll need to check that out.

[201pro]

When you press the key, it closes the choke. When you release it, it releases the choke.
You need to hold it down when cranking, not just bump it. Then, once it starts, if it tries to start dying, you can bump the choke a little to help it stay running until it gets enough temp to stay. Then you should be fine the rest of the day. May take a little choke if you fish an extended time without engine being started.

[BuzzB8]

When I had my 1985 Pro V 150 this is how I was told to start it. It sounded stupid at the time, but it worked.

Squeeze the primer bulb
Turn the key to "on".
Push in on the key (choke) 7 times.
Start the engine. Each time it starts to fade away, push the key in.
After about the third time of pushing in the choke while running, it would start to smooth out.

Every couple years, I would add a drop of very fine oil to the metal rod you hear clicking when choking. I guess it would get sticky and the oil would free it up.

[201pro]

Jerry, how does pushing the key help? It’s a choke, not an injector. Maybe it did. But I can’t understand how closing the choke 7 times when not cranking would help.

[BuzzB8]

Hell Russ, I don't know. All I know is that it started easier in the winter.

[JR19]

Gene, my gear shifter has no fast idle lever, but it does have a round button on the lower end of the shifter arm. That button will disengage the drive and allow free rpm's without turning the prop.
So I have been reading a bunch of posts about hard starting Vmax's. Seems to be a common issue and mostly related to choke.
Help me to understand what happens when the key is pushed in. I can hear a noise when I push in the key. Does it engage the butterflies in the carbs? If this is the case then does it release the butterflies when I release the "push" on the key? That would make since to me now that I have researched somewhat.
I have not been holding in the key while cranking. Just push it in once then release and then crank.
I also read that there is a manual choke on the motor itself. I'll need to check that out.

As you recall from my last reply I was 100% sure I knew the cold start procedure if you had a control box with a fast idle lever. I "think" and when I say think I mean I believe I might know how to achieve fast idle with your current set up. If you recall in my last reply I said you were missing tow steps. Trim the motor level and engage the fast idle mechanism. So here we go...


When getting the boat ready to launch squeeze the fuel bulb until firm.
Once the boat is backed into the water trim the motor to level.
Push the button to release the gearshift and advance the gearshift forward...(I am thinking this is how you advance the fast idle mechanism) if you had a control box with a lever you would raise the lever until you felt some resistance so do the same with the gearshift and see what happens...again pure guess but I think this is how your works.
Turn the key to the on position but DO NOT attempt to start.
Push the key in and release.
Push the key in and turn to crank the motor at the same time (never crank more than 5 continuous seconds) if she don't fire in 5 seconds let the starter rest for a few seconds. A high amp battery can burn up a starter if you engage the starter too long.
Once she fires if she starts to stumble or is a little rough at idle work the gearshift just like it was a gas pedal. As the motor settles down and starts to get smooth you can slowly return the gearshift back to home. Once its returned back to home and the button is re-engaged put her in gear and your good to go.

I done some research and your particular motor needs to fast idle in the 1000-1200 rpm range until it gets warm which should take 1-3 minutes pending ambient temperature. As its getting warm you can slowly decrease the fast idle to normal.

Now here is what I "think" is going on...when you push in on the key it sprays fuel into the carb bowls. I actually think its called a fuel enrichment system. When you advance the fast idle mechanism it acts like a manual choke that is separate from you throttle cable. The fast idle mechanism is actually a manual choke. People often think pushing in on the key is activating the choke. This is not the case. Also I don't know why manufactures call the lever a fast idle lever because in reality its a manual choke. Try this and let me know what happens...

[Coach185]

Gene, I think you on on to something. I am reading in my Seloc manual regarding fuel systems. It says some carburetors do not use a choke valve, but instead use an enrichment circuit which mechanically provides more fuel to the carburetor or intake during a cold start-up.

It goes on to say in the starting circuit section that the choke plate is closed, creating a partial vacuum in the venturi.

So I am guessing that the noise I hear when pushing in the key is fuel being injected into the carb. And by moving the throttle lever forward (out of gear) the carb plate (butterfly) is closed to restrict air and creat a partial vacuum.

[JR19]

If what I described works all you need to do is figure out how far to advance the gearshift so the choke plate is close. On a system that has a lever, when you first raise it up it seems soft then there comes a point where you feel resistance. This is when the choke plate/fast idle mechanism is fully engaged. I know its not a boat motor but this is the same way my choke on my zero turn lawnmower feels. As you first engage it is soft then as you engage it more it becomes more stiff. Once you figure out this step and follow all the other steps in the order explained I feel like you hard starting first time of the day will disappear...keep me posted on what happens.

[Javelin389]

Coach, here's a couple pics of the Trick Step
TrickStep 1.JPG
TrickStep 2.JPG

[Coach185]

Steve, the top step looks like a fair amount of space between the deck and step. Can it be adjusted higher by where the steps are bolted to the winch post?

[Javelin389]

Top step isn't too high. Probably just the angle of the pic. But, the steps can be adjusted up/down on the winch post. I put mine as far down as I could.

[ameneddie]

200 Pro Xl, put a trick step & Drotto latch on it & that makes launching by yourself much easier.

[Coach185]

Whats a Drotto latch? Ok, looked it up.