2011 Z-8 Trolling Motor Pedal Tray and Max Replacement Carpet Weight

[Enduro67]

Sorry the firstpicture is a rear shock for a mountain bike....I uploaded a test image size limits of the forum before I went to the hassle of downsizing my pictures to post.
Havent figured out how to delete it yet.

The lids are a little tight but they were with the original carpet too...but willl let them settle awhile before I trim any carpet. But first impression is it will be just fine as is.

[Lkmbjb502]

Wow - the carpet looks awesome - My 2011 Z8 would definitely benefit from the same treatment.

-Jonathan

[Enduro67]

Yeah the carpet makes the boat look better than the day I bought it....like having a new boat.

Aaron did a great job on the carpet....he pulls the corners on the lids so no external seam to come loose or bind. Highly recommend him as an installer.
He does it on the side though so have to work into his schedule.

[JimC]

Carpet and boat look great...did you add 2 seat post bases in the cockpit floor?

[Enduro67]

Yes....I added those the first year I had the boat.
They were on top of carpet but now are concealed.

The center one is for my Dad with passenger console removed
Other is for my wife with the console in place.

Both serve their purpose well....wife sits up high enough she can fish over consoles no problem.

[Rustynutts]

Wondering how your pedal height turned out. I've always thought the factory had the recess too shallow.

[Lkmbjb502]

Enduro - was it a PITA to add the Seat Bases in the Cockpit floor? That is EXACTLY what I need for my 75 year old Dad - he is getting a little sketchy climbing up on the back deck.

Thanks.

-Jonathan

[Enduro67]

No, not hard at all to install bases over the carpet.

My dad weighs 300 lbs so I did not want the base plates to be held in with screws.
Challenge is you cannot reach the plate from below to install nuts so I came up with a way to install without using nuts or the oversized blind holes nuts that they sell.

I made two"nut bars" out of 7 inch long, 1 inch wide, 1/4 inch thick aluminum bar stock to match the hole pattern of the base plate, one per side. Tapped with 1/4-20 to match the mounting bolts.
Them I drilled out the center hole for the pedestal in the floor. Dropped the seat base plate in and drilled the mounting holes. (one at a time and drop a bolt in to hold exact positioning)
I put two apprx 2.5" all thread studs into each nut bar and slipped it in from below through the base plate hole so that the studs were sticking up through the mounting thru holes ( so one hole open per bar) This positions the nut bars to align with the mounting holes in the deck.
I then grabbed one stud with a pair of forceps to hold the nut bar in place.
I then dropped the base plate into place over the all thread bolts to line it up.
I then installed a bolt into the open holes, then one by one removed the all thread studs and replaced with bolts. Blue loctite and tighened
Sounds complicated but it was actually very easy to do and is very solid. No worry of screws coming loose.

I hope to try it out this weekend and will let you know how the pedal height is.
I agree the original 3' depth was too low. I went with 4 1/4" to allow for carpet which is what the tray fabricator recommended.

[Lkmbjb502]

Enduro...thx that is EXACTLY why I asked. Very fine solution.

[Mjgarret]

Amazing work here. Do you know if the TM Tray that you ordered/installed would work on a 2014 Z9?

[Enduro67]

Sorry don't know anything about the 2014 Z-9's.
Tracker can probly tell you if they use the same front console as a 2011 Z-8.

[Enduro67]

Finally got a chance to test the Ultrex.
It's definitly not perfect but the Anchor Lock feature overshadows the imperfections.

4" pedal depth felt good. Sits up about 1/4" above deck. Am able to hit the anchor lock with my toe. The other smaller buttons I had to use my finger.

Negatives:
Definitley have to watch how you pull on the lift cable to make sure you dont put any stress on the motors umbilical cord strain relief.
The motor head will not pivot without pushing on the pedal. So when you go to stow the motor you have to have your foot on the pedal to get it to lay flat.
The motor prop has a ramp up in power when you press on the pedal. Not instant on like the Fortrex.
The foot pedal is pretty touchy....it turn really fast so takes awhile to get used to.
The shaft is free turning. So when you stow and make a long run with the big engine in rough water the shaft will slide up unless you have the velcro strap cinched down really tight.

But the Anchor lock is a total game changer.
I was fishing solo and was able to park on a ledge on ky lake with the nose to the wind and fish from the back deck.
Also could step down and get out a lure and retie without the boat drifting at all.

[Enduro67]

Three more upgrades:
Added rod straps, lock bar, and upgraded to Gems latches like what is on the Nitro ZV's

[Mjgarret]

Got yourself a nice rig here! What kind of rod straps did you use?

[Enduro67]

Got the RodBuckle combo kit from eTrailer....comes with the deck mount adapter.

Fairly easy to install once you get the courage to drill through your deck. I took their cardboard template and made a template out of aluminum so it wouldn't move while I was drilling and cutting the slot for the feed through.

Also be aware that the piece they give you to feed the strap through the deck slot will break on you. So better to use wire or risk the strap retracting into the housing.

[broox]

What weight carpet did you end up going with? I am getting ready to replace mine.

[tracer1]

Curious about a couple of things. How does your compartment lids open & close with the 24oz carpet. Basscat advertises 72" wide carpet with a custom size (width) of 84". Your Z8 is 96" ( 8' ) beam so how did you get that from them. Getting ready to recarpet mine & would like to know how you got the 8' wide carpet.
BTW, boat looks nice, good job on the installers part.

[Enduro67]

24 oz Syntec. I have one rear lid that is too tight that I will probly end up shaving. All the rest are fine.
The density of the carpet equates more to threads per square inch rather than thicknes. So it really isnt that much of a change in lid fit.

Sorry I did not update that info. Installer had to reorder wider carpet from Ranger to do the cockpit after he realized the Basscat wasnt wide enough. Basscat and Ranger use the same Syntec carpet but have to get wider carpet from Ranger.

[SoonerFan]

Just to clarify... pile weight and pile density are two different specifications. Pile weight or face weight is the weight of all the pile fibers(the soft fuzzy part) minus the backing in one square foot. The same weight carpet can have either a short pile that is tightly packed or a thick pile that is loosely packed. It's all dependent on what the carpet designer specified.

Marine carpet is made is made with polypropylene pile fiber because it is more fade resistant but it isn't as resilient, so it will tend to pack down worse than Nylon fibers. For this reason, you want to find a carpet with a high pile density and a shorter pile. This combination may not always be the highest face weight. Also, a longer pile can cause instability underfoot and fatigue....think walking in sand all day.

[tracer1]

Thanks Enduro for the update. That was the reason I didn't get any from BassCat. Will have to contact ranger, did the installer just order the length & width since its not a ranger.


Also, thanks SoonerFan for the clarification.