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Fine Tooning

Fine Tooning by Dan Armitage

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Dan Armitage, the popular Ohio-based freelance outdoor writer, photographer, radio show host and speaker is a stalwart marine journalist with many credits, and he hosts the weekly radio program “Buckeye Sportsman with Dan Armitage" syndicated in 25 Midwest markets. Read full bio
[ May 15, 2013 ]
by Dan Armitage
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Spring Weather
Photo by: Dan Armitage

Looming like a giant anvil over the far end of the lake and in a direct line with our launch ramp, we appeared to be on a collision course with an angry-looking – if isolated -- thunderhead. Even as we watched, a gray veil dropped from the cloud as it began to dump rain due west of our position. As family members donned raingear and began asking about our Plan B for getting the pontoon boat back to the ramp, I backed off the throttle a bit but didn’t alter course, making a beeline for the launch area and the distant maelstrom.

[ April 30, 2013 ]
by Dan Armitage
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Pontoon Prep
Photo by: Dan Armitage

Things are bustling around our local pontoon boat club, as members break out their ‘toons and ready their craft for the water. April is the month when those boaters who neglected to winterize their engines last fall are lamenting the fact, facing cracked lower units, clogged carbs and waterlogged fuel. On the other hand, diligent boaters who did the job right last autumn appear almost smug as their outboards fire at the first keying of the starter and the engines “purr” as the pontoons proceed proudly to their slips for the season.

[ April 3, 2013 ]
by Dan Armitage
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Spring Pontoon Maintenance
Photo by: Dan Armitage

Many latitude-challenged boaters will be launching our pontoon boats this month after what may have been several months on the trailer. If you performed a textbook winterizing job last autumn you have less to fear from the spring “break-out” ride than had you merely backed the rig into a corner of the yard after the final trip last season and ignored it ever since. On the other hand, just because your boat, motor and trailer were put away with TLC and have been idle over the winter doesn’t mean that nothing has worn, broken, seized or been damaged over the off-season.

[ April 2, 2013 ]
by Dan Armitage
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Low Water Pontoon Boat
Photo by: Dan Armitage

One of the joys of owning a trailerable pontoon boat is the opportunity to take your watercraft with you when you travel. For inland boaters such as me, if those travels involve a trip to the coast with the ‘toon in tow, one learning curve you will face is as inevitable as the setting of the sun. In fact, it is caused by the sun -- and the earth and moon – and is known as “tide.”  As the Armitage clan ventures to warmer coastal waters to enjoy a Spring Break aboard the family boat late this month afloat, we will be dealing with tidal changes.

[ February 26, 2013 ]
by Dan Armitage
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Snow Covered Pontoon Boat
Photo by: Dan Armitage

If it doesn’t snow where you live and boat, you can stop reading now. Unless, that is, you just want to gloat over those of us who DO boat in a latitude that features classic winter weather and all the frigid flotsam that comes with it.

[ February 19, 2013 ]
by Dan Armitage
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If you store your outboard in the vertical position as shown, there’s no reason to wrap the lower unit in plastic during the off-season.

Following the birth of our son, my wife once commented that she was in the market for a new lower unit as a result of the ordeal. The statement reminded me that a properly functioning lower unit can be as important to maintaining a relationship as it is to a boater who counts on his engine to perform on cue.

[ January 30, 2013 ]
by Dan Armitage
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Pontoons For Sale
Photo by: Dan Armitage

The traditional winter boat show season is underway and shows are a great place to find ideas or frustration relative to your present pontoon boat. The latest, greatest boats, accessories and innovations are on full display at these events, and if you are one of those owners who simply must have the latest nautical gizmo, the shows are the place to find them. If exercising that latest, greatest option requires buying an entirely new pontoon boat, the shows are the place to shop as well.

[ January 15, 2013 ]
by Dan Armitage
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Pontoon Boating with Manatees
Photo by: Dan Armitage

I just returned from what must be one of the most concentrated assemblies of commercial pontoon boats in the world. I visited Crystal River, Florida, over the holidays with my wife and our 12-year-old son, a place famous for its freshwater springs and the manatees they attract each winter. Offering a contact flow of 72 degree water, the sea cows seek out the warmer water areas and stack up – yep – like cord wood around the springs, which are concentrated along west-central Florida’s “Nature Coast” area bordering the Gulf of Mexico.

[ December 14, 2012 ]
by Dan Armitage

Timely Gifts for ‘Tooners

‘Tis the season, and here are three pontoon boat-related gift ideas to consider giving – or requesting – for the upcoming holidays.

[ November 19, 2012 ]
by Dan Armitage
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Dryer sheets and Fresh Cab are but two fragrant foils to over-wintering critters.

“It smells like grandma’s house” my tween-age son commented as we walked among the pontoon boats that were placed on blocks or atop their trailers for storage in the off season in the parking lot at our local boat club.

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