Quintrex 470 Top Ender

[chanlo]

Mine has the Millenium hull but not the "Blade Millenium" Hull.
My first boat was a 445 dory and the Sea Spray with the Millenium hull is alot dryer than the dory and I swear the hull is the reason why.

I attached a few photos... I was thinking of turning the seat/esky into a live tank and putting a smaller live tank into the bait board... but I change my mind every day... Another thought was filling in the front storage area under the fron deck and making it a live well also but first i'm getting a bracket for the minn kota sitting in the garage.

[Wario]

chanlo; Yeah even though they're 8 years apart yours & mine look like they came out of exactly the same mold! Funnily enough I know that the 470 Top Ender hull (mine) is exactly 5.05m long & the 490 Top Ender is 5.25m long (why they call them 470 & 490 is beyond me - but perhaps it has something to do with the regulations regarding lifejackets - ie. only required on hulls under 4.7m) who knows! Perhaps they just progressed the "Sea Spray 500" to the Top Ender 470. ?? Again who knows?

I don't know the difference between normal hull/Millenium hull & balde millenium hull & it's probably all marketing anyway! Except you are right about less spray!

You didn't give me a photo of the front deck area? Photo please as I have an idea. ?? Given your suggestions:

1. Turn the seat/ice box into a live bait tank. Yeah I think this is ok but it means you loose your esky! Never a good idea when cold beers are required!

2. Turn the underneath of the bait board into a live tank. Good idea again as the area is wasted but...........it will be really skinny & there's lots of work involved forming aluminium/welding/plumbing etc. + it might restrict your motor from tilting forward.

So back to my idea. I just ran out & took these photos for you to show you my front casting deck (& it gave me a chance to inspect the led strip lights I installed today under the foredeck gunnells (led's look so cool!)). But as you can see from photo 1 as part of the raised casting platform (which I don't know if you have or not) Quintrex does a straight drop in insert bait/live tank (shown in photo 2). My tank up there at the moment stores fenders, flares, cast net etc but it has a drain hole in it & can be plumbed & pumped.

Photo 1


Photo 2


If yours has this raise casting platform (& even if it doesn't you could build one) it might be possible (given the hulls are just about identical) for you to just buy the forward factory tank (from a 470 Top Ender) & drop it in. ???? Plumb it up etc & hey presto!

That would be (I think) the best use of the space. Does yours have a live bait tank now on the rear portside transom area? Anyway food for thought mate.

Cheers Wario.

[chanlo]

I'm pretty sure the blade melenium hull is a gimic!

The reasons you mentioned are why I havent modified it yet!

1. I cant remove the esky if I plumb it

2. If it turn the board into a live bait tank I can buy a poly storage container that will fit but i dont think it is good for slimy mackerel (the best livies) as they tend to die quickly when they cant swim in circles (they tend to get there nose stuck in a corner and die) and they get to 30cm in length and I wont fit many in it. I was thinking 60L round plastic drum attached to the back of the boat BUT then it has to be insulated (like esky) for me to enter bream comps in the future or I get another up the front.

I'll get a photo of the front deck for you tomorrow, it looks a little different to yours and isn't raised that high, only about 20cms, from the floor.

I'll do all the electrics/plumbing myself (and did on the last boat) and I have access to ally from work so getting a custom tank wouldnt be that hard.

I'm definetly bokmarking this thread to watch your ideas

[Wario]

ok cheers mate. My front platform is roughly (I haven't measured it but can tomorrow) 200mm as well. There may be some synergy there?

Wario

PS: I find it interesting that your boat has/needs a tandum axel trailer when it's the same size as mine?

[chanlo]

I have been wondering about the trailer aswell
Its a redco... i think dual axle is overkill... I am the 3rd owner
The first bought it to go up north to NT with his son, who after a year left for the army and it sat for another 2 years until sold to 2nd owner... he downsized and sold it to me.... It has a VHF radio with it also so it must have gone either off shore or out of range of a UHF radio (NT maybe)... I'm assuming the dual axle is for the rougher roads up north... Its also a complete bastard to turn around in, the wheels start to skid at about 3/4 lock... I'd really like to get a smaller trailer more suited to the boat size.

Its 5.0m long and 2.4m wide (Beam), whats the beam on your?

[Wario]

Mine is 2.1m beam (outside to outside) so your hull seems very beamy & the same length. Makes me think that the forward drop in plastic tank liner thing will fit easily. The step up to the casting deck from the main floor is 240mm.

Yeah my old boat (the Signature 600RF) had a tandum trailer as well & the tyres used to scrub at 3/4 lock also - annoying. It does seem overkill for your boats size.

Maybe (on the VHF thing). I can't recall what radio is popular in the NT now but when I moved from Melbz to Qld I had to change from 27Meg VHF to UHF up here. Who knows?

[chanlo]

I just measured my deck and its 150mm from floor and 230mm beam...I was a little off.

I took some photos too...

I'm still thinking bait board live bait tank using one of these
http://www.biasboating.com.au/product_p/1143.htm

and one of smaller versions to sit either side in the transom for tools and other stuff.

I could always get a portable air rater to use in the esky, or look into the drop in box for the front later.

My boats a little rough about the edges but It'll give me something to do in between the no-fish days

[Wario]

chanlo, My opinion only ok:

1. Keep your seat/esky for beer etc!
2. The bait tank looks like it would work under the existing cutting board stand, just be careful it won't stop the motor going up to full tilt.
3. I measured the lid (the fold up door) on my front tank thingy. It's top measurement is 990mm, it's bottom (long length of the squashed rectangle) side is 1100mm & it's 500mm high. ie. its a rectangle with one side shorter than the other side but with two side sides (if that makes sense) that are the same length. (research tells me that this is called an "isosceles trapezoid" shape). The depth inside the tank is roughly 175mm. From the look of yours in the photos I reckon that the lid looks to be about the same. Measure it as, as I said previously, the plastic standard tank thing may just drop straight in. Although the step up to your casting deck is smaller than mine @ 150mm versus 240mm so you may have a problem there. A quick call to Qunitrex & you could get the dimensions of the tank liner.

Anyway, your ideas to use the underneath of the bait board thing have merit but I'd steer clear of utilising the esky! To many important things to go into it! Hahaa!

Whats the floor like behind the console? Have you unscrewed the floor panels & had a look there? There should be lots of room filled with foam panels there that may be able to be used for an in floor tank etc.?? As Quintrex obviously also do another plastic liner thing that goes in the rear floor - as on my boat (which I can photograph for you if you'd like).

[VivoSaurus]

Yes mate, designed everything from the ground up, took it to the trimmer & said, "make this please".

Thanks for the reply Wario!
Great pics btw.







Cheers Wario.[/QUOTE]

[Wario]

Improvements Continue!

Just finished the led light install. Led's are very cool I think, draw bugger all power from the batteries & throw off great light + are waterproof. (make sure you buy the waterproof ones!)

I installed white ones up the front around the casting deck because they throw off way more light than the blue ones & you need lots of light around your feet up front when casting at night (or at least I do).

But down the back I put in blue ones as it provides a much more subtle subdued light that's easy on the eyes.

The 5m rolls of these are as cheap as chips these days! DON'T BUIY THEM IN AUSTRALIA!!!! for $125+ per 5m roll. Type in this Item number in Ebay & get them from China! Yes you have to wait a couple of weeks but at $15 including postage! It kills/beats paying $125 Ozzie for 5m of them. Ebay item Number #150613870141. For those scared of buying crap on Ebay, these aren't they have "3M" brand all over them. I've used them for camping for two years & haven't had a strip fail yet.

Then it's just a little soldering & wiring to the switch & hey presto!











Bling bling!