u/bmihlfeith

I have a 2013 Highlander. Have had it since 30k. The seats are by far the worst seats I’ve ever “sat” in. I say “sat” in because you don’t sit, you slide from one side to the other. The door keeps you from sliding to your left and the console bolsters you on the right. The seat itself provide less than zero bolstering. An absolute joke.

This is a common complaint with this vehicle apparently.

Short of a professional re-doing the seat entirely with custom supports, is there any way to add bolstering to these seats?

I’m about to buy leather seat replacement “skins” and redo the cracked leather and I’d like to address the bolstering at the same time.

Any advice? Possible?

Swap to newer style seats? Can I buy a newer seat cushion and seats from a newer Highlander?

I recently purchases a Sahara 2500 to go on my Tatula XT (7’ MFS). I liked it so much and was so impressed I decided to see what a Vanford would be like.

So I bought a Vanford 2500S from Amazon Japan. Put it on a Tatula XT 7’3” MLFS. At first it seemed really great, I was catching a lot of fish and switching between the two setups all day.

Somewhere along the line (could have been after catching a few fish and using drag) I noticed the Vanford becoming much “less smooth”, almost as if there was something, like dirt, in the gear train somewhere though it never left the boat and never even got any water on it.

Now, the Sahara is just as good, super smooth, but the Vanford (while noticeably less initial inertial resistance) doesn’t feel nearly as smooth.

My issue is I’m not 100% sure it started out like this, I honestly am second guessing myself.

So can someone with both reels tell me this is either normal or not? I’m guessing there’s an issue with the Vanford. But if not, I don’t know why anyone would pay more for a Vanford over the Sahara…? In my case it’s a large downgrade. Hoping I can get this fixed or get a return.

(Luckily I bought it from Amazon and not Digitaka so I have some recourse. Still got a fair price too.)

I have two SLX DC XT’s and an SLX DC.

I recently tried some “drag clickers” in them and discovered they suck. So I took them out and returned the reels to stock.

However, now, when I go to set the tensioner all the way to “tight” (imagine a super heavy bait) the reel handle is almost impossible to turn.

The tighter I tune the tensioner the tighter the reel handle is.

But now I don’t know if this is the way it’s supposed to be or not because both of the XT’s are like this now, so maybe that’s normal?

My son says the resistance of the reel handle (and how hard it is to turn) shouldn’t change even if the tensioner is dialed all the way down.

Who’s right? And if I’m wrong (which I’m betting I am) how do I fix this?

I recently went down the $100 “best” spinning rod and the Tatula XT is always brought up, so I bought one, the 731MFS model (7’3”, one piece, medium power fast action - please correct me if my interpretation is wrong).

Absolutely love it with a Shimano Sahara 2500 for drop shot and other fitness styles. Sportsman’s Warehouse has 25% off all their rods and reels and I was going to buy another identical one but all they had was the 7’0” medium fast - so identical other than 3” shorter. It’s the 701MFS model. I plan to put a 26 Miravel 2500S on it once they release them in Japan. Or if it takes to long I’ll just get a Vanford 2500S. (I like the shallow spools since I never use all the line anyway and it’s supposed to cast further….?)

Why would they make such similar models? The only difference I can find is that 3”…..now, 3” is 3”, jokes aside, but why such little variation? Why not a 7’ and a 7’6”.

Seems like that small difference is minimal and probably makes an imperceptible impact.

Am I missing something? Does one fit into some category like “oh, they fit in SUVs” or “the rods at tournaments have be be 7’ or under” or some other weird thing I’m not aware of?

I don’t really care and probably would have bought the 7’3” if it were the only one available it but it’s got me wondering. Why such small differences in length when it would seem so insignificant? I understand the different powers and actions are quite meaningful but the small length difference has me stumped.

Thanks in advance for the info!

Haven’t been to either lake for years but wanted to see which is better currently for fishing.

I’d be going on a weekday if that matters. On a small boat with FFS. Just looking for largemouth but happy with bluegill if things get really slow.

Also - is there a boat ramp at either one that is better or less busy?

Any tips for staying cool on your boat in extremely hot places like AZ? I have fish here in AZ on a few different lakes (reservoirs) in the summer it gets up to 110’s quite easily. I do fine with the heat but my son (15) really suffers.

So far we’ve got lots of cold ice water, cooling bandannas (they have that diaper gel stuff that slowly dries and gives an evaporative cooling.

Lastly, I took a Ryobi bucket misting fan, extended the intake tubing and adapted it to work on 12V for a misting fan. It works well, but wondering if there isn’t something more effective?

We have a very small boat, FWIW.

Why is pricing all over the place??!? Google AI says a late 80’s Tracker TX-17 with a Mercury 50 two stroke usually sell between $1000-$4000.

Yet, locally (PHX metro) very nice refurbished Trackers are anywhere from $4800 to $7k. Are boats in AZ just more money?

When I post about prices on a Tracker I’m looking to get advice on “good deal or not” EVERYONE says “it’s $2000k too much!” o similar. Yet they sell quickly at that $3500-$5k price. So clearly they’re not overpriced.

What am I missing? I’ve also been around enough to know people lie all the time abut what they paid for things, to sound “cool” I guess, I’ve never understood it. So maybe this is some of that?

I’m looking for a Tracker style bass boat in the $3-5k and I’d be more interested in a fixer upper as I’m very mechanically inclined and have thr time to do it. More so I want to customize the boat to get what I want. Up to 17’ and under 2500lbs total.

What resources other than Marketplace and Craigslist can I check to see SOLD boat prices? Does location make that much of a difference?

I’m not in a hurry, so I know that helps. Thanks in advance.

Thought I’d post in here again. Last time I posted you all gave some great advice about being able to pull a small boat with my Highlander. It did just fine! Better than fine, actually. I was really impressed. Turns out the Highlander had the tow package and everything. I really appreciated the advice.

I now have that 12’ Mirrorcraft and I’m excited to “make it mine.” We had it out on the water, 10-15mph winds, gusts up to 20, and it did just fine! Zero water in the boat and while fishing absolutely sucked, it was a good day to test its ability and see what we wanted to change.

Firstly - the 35 Evinrude 2 stroke that came with it, while it runs just fine (seller had just spent $1300 on tuneup - receipts) is the most difficult to start pull start I’ve ever had. I’ve started generators, chain saws, weed eaters, welders, etc….but this is crazy.

It starts on the first pull usually, but the amount of power/muscle is insane. Yes, it’s in neutral, in gear it won’t budge, lol.

It’s so difficult to start (I’m also 50 years old and have tendinitis in my elbow) that I’d happily spend $$ to get an electric start. On the lake I found I was doing everything to avoid starting it.

So I’d like to find an electric start motor of some variant - but why are they so hard to find? I’m pretty sure I want something in the 9.9 to 15hp range.

Also, is 4 stroke worth it? I’ve briefly looked at adding electric start to the Evinrude but it seems like I’m better off starting with something more appropriately sized to the boat.

In the $2500 range I’m looking at 4 stroke with electric start (9.9-15Hp)……does that seem right for used?

I still can’t seem to find any definitive answers about 2 vs 4 stroke, so input appreciated there. My understanding so far is they’re more fuel efficient, easier to pull start, quieter, less vibration, but not necessarily more reliable and perhaps more expensive maintenance?

Any tips or ideas greatly appreciated. I knew when we looked at the boat that I’d likely be replacing the motor, so I’ve budgeted for that, to some extent.