# My 2020 EVOx



## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

Despite a ton of unforeseen delays from the 'rona and way too many hurricanes, the crew at @East Cape finished my EVOx and pulled off a doozie!
Kingston grey hull and console/bonefish grey deck, black ops construction
Suzuki 60 with Foreman shallow water hole shot prop and Atlas micro jack plate
Black out package on all metal with special Raptor coating flat black textured finish
Magnetic seat cushions for bench seat and cooler lid. The cooler lid was sprayed with non-skid to use as an elevated platform in the middle of the boat if its sporty out or fishing 3 up
Simrad NSS7 with through hull transducer for most accurate depth reading and nothing hanging off the back of the boat to get broken off or snag line
Micro power pole
White LED courtesy lights installed inside all hatches since the inside is flat black from the black ops
Blue under gunnel LED's
All the hatch buckets are cut out to save weight. I've got roll top water proof bags to store emergency gear and misc other equipment that stays with the boat at all times
All switches, battery switch and key switch in glove box including dual USB plug to keep phones charged up
10mm SeaDek on platforms for that extra cushy under foot feel and it really alleviates lower leg and back pain from standing for hours on end

In the water footage and performance numbers coming up soon. She's going to get splashed today...


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

More pics...


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## MatthewAbbott (Feb 25, 2017)

Damn. Nice.


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## KurtActual (Sep 25, 2017)

Congrats Jay. I know the wait was killer. Now for the hurricanes to quit drifting west!


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## Zika (Aug 6, 2015)

Congrats Jay. Slick color scheme. Enjoy the new ride!


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## ifsteve (Jul 1, 2010)

Super happy for you Jay. You're gonna love the X!!


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## Sublime (Oct 9, 2015)

Beautiful. Out of all the East Cape offerings, I like the EVO

And yes, that console is super clean. Love the door with the perko switch, ignition switch etc.


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## whoislang (Jul 29, 2020)

What are those buckles under the hatches and cooler lid for?


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

Beautiful skiff. I love the clean dash and hidden ignition, Perko, switch panel etc.


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

whoislang said:


> What are those buckles under the hatches and cooler lid for?


I think those are the rare earth magnets for the cushions.


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

whoislang said:


> What are those buckles under the hatches and cooler lid for?


@Smackdaddy53 is right, they are sealed 25lb force rare earth magnets to hold the cushions on.


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## Zika (Aug 6, 2015)

Can't tell but it looks like a Blue Sea Systems switch rather than a Perko.


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## jsnipes (May 1, 2011)

Congrats Jay! Cool idea on the cooler seat non-skid...


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## new2theflats (Jul 31, 2019)

Congrats Jay!!!! Super happy for you. Can't wait to see it in person.


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## CKEAT (Aug 26, 2015)

That is a damn nice ride! Congrats!


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## Finn Maccumhail (Apr 9, 2010)

very sharp


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## blueeye (Sep 12, 2012)

Excellent job picking out that color scheme.


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## mooker82 (Jun 25, 2015)

I have to say on a skiff with all kind of cool features those magnetic cushions are my favorite thing. Great idea that gets ride of snaps but avoids the issues with permanent mounted cushions.


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## CoastalGAfisher07 (Nov 21, 2010)

I would have to agree with the above comment about the magnetic cushion. I was literally just thinking about having them laminate in strong magnets in front of the center console and putting some in a higher end cooler like a yeti. That way there is no need for the tiedown strap attachments. Better yet, they could be placed inside the console and of the back of the cooler.


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

CoastalGAfisher07 said:


> I would have to agree with the above comment about the magnetic cushion. I was literally just thinking about having them laminate in strong magnets in front of the center console and putting some in a higher end cooler like a yeti. That way there is no need for the tiedown strap attachments. Better yet, they could be placed inside the console and of the back of the cooler.


The magnets work great on the lightweight cushions. I don't know if they would work really good on something heavy like a Yeti style cooler. You need to go magnet to magnet to get the best magnetic force. While rare earth magnets aren't that expensive, finding ones that are corrosion resistant, sealed, etc that will work well in a saltwater environment is a lot harder and more expensive. If you got some really big magnets that were strong enough to hold down a loaded Yeti 45, you might struggle to actually break it loose to get it out of the boat. That being said, it would be a really cool idea to see developed.


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## jpipes (May 6, 2012)

This came out way better than I expected...Sick boat, Jay! I can't wait to see it in person. East Cape really did a wonderful job.


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## csnaspuck (Apr 2, 2013)

Congrats Jay. That thing is sick! Did you give it a name?


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## Renegade (Aug 30, 2015)

Beauty! Nice rig. I am in line for a build with very similar specs, except I am leaning to the Vantage, built and rigged lightly. I see that you owned one. What made you switch? 

I plan on keeping my Towee for winter lows, or even switching to a Caimen. I need big water crossing capabilities to cross Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor, but still be pole-able in 10" when I get there. That has me leaning to the vantage. I also need it to fish tarpon and near shore on sloppy days.


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## ifsteve (Jul 1, 2010)

Renegade said:


> Beauty! Nice rig. I am in line for a build with very similar specs, except I am leaning to the Vantage, built and rigged lightly. I see that you owned one. What made you switch?
> 
> I plan on keeping my Towee for winter lows, or even switching to a Caimen. I need big water crossing capabilities to cross Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor, but still be pole-able in 10" when I get there. That has me leaning to the vantage. I also need it to fish tarpon and near shore on sloppy days.


A Vantage is ok to pole. But you don't do it for long or if its windy . Its surely a bigger water boat than the EvoX but by not as much as you'd think. Jay and I both switched from a Vantage to the X. But if you have a smaller skiff then the Vantage is a good choice! But you ought to check out the new V. Might be just the ticket.


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## Renegade (Aug 30, 2015)

ifsteve said:


> A Vantage is ok to pole. But you don't do it for long or if its windy . Its surely a bigger water boat than the EvoX but by not as much as you'd think. Jay and I both switched from a Vantage to the X. But if you have a smaller skiff then the Vantage is a good choice! But you ought to check out the new V. Might be just the ticket.


Thanks for weighing in. What is different about the new V as compared to the old V?


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## ifsteve (Jul 1, 2010)

Renegade said:


> Thanks for weighing in. What is different about the new V as compared to the old V?


Not expert enough to really answer that.


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## Renegade (Aug 30, 2015)

ifsteve said:


> Not expert enough to really answer that.



I watched the video. Basically said "shallower and easier to drive" but the specs have not changed. 

I heard there were some issues with the first one. It seems like they got it figured out.

I am still wrestling between the two. The width is the same. The main difference in length is the sponsons. It seems like I could build a lightweight Vantage in Kevlar that would weigh the same as a standard V, considering a 115 ProXs for power. With that said, it doesn't seem like they would be too different in poling or draft. Am I missing something?

I know you are a not a pro, but you have owned each! I value your perspective either way. I am still undecided but I need to pay next month so it is time to figure it out!


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## ifsteve (Jul 1, 2010)

A Vantage is going to weigh more than any Evo that is rigged the same. To me the real nice difference between the Evo and the Vantage is the extra 3" of freeboard on the Evo. Just makes me feel more comfortable in a chop with that extra height. Second, sponsons make the boat less responsive when poling. Three, you can use much less motor on the Evo than the Vantage. That equates to less cost upfront; better fuel economy, and less weight on the back end. But you of course give up top end. But if I wanted a rocket ship I would buy a Scarab....lol. When I was going thru the motor gyrations a guy told me something that made ultimate sense - How often are the conditions so perfect that you really are using that extra sped with the bigger motor anyway? Case in point - I just spent three days fishing a buddy from Idaho. The weather was pretty windy. I was running 26-29 in my X depending on the day. Had I been in my Vantage I MIGHT have run 32 or so the best of the three days. The worst of the three I wouldn't have been running any faster than I was in the X.

And the clincher - I would not have poled the Vantage in any of those three days. Some 25 year old could have probably done it for a few hours but not me.

But to be very clear. I am NOT in anyway discouraging anybody from getting a Vantage. It served me greatly for 8 years. But my needs changed and I needed a shallower boat. My X is rigged exactly the same as my Vantage just downsized. And I gained a solid 3 inches in draft. That's huge.


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## captjsanchez (Sep 8, 2015)

jay.bush1434 said:


> More pics...
> View attachment 159848
> View attachment 159849
> View attachment 159850
> ...


What pitch and Dia. Is that prop?


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## Renegade (Aug 30, 2015)

ifsteve said:


> A Vantage is going to weigh more than any Evo that is rigged the same. To me the real nice difference between the Evo and the Vantage is the extra 3" of freeboard on the Evo. Just makes me feel more comfortable in a chop with that extra height. Second, sponsons make the boat less responsive when poling. Three, you can use much less motor on the Evo than the Vantage. That equates to less cost upfront; better fuel economy, and less weight on the back end. But you of course give up top end. But if I wanted a rocket ship I would buy a Scarab....lol. When I was going thru the motor gyrations a guy told me something that made ultimate sense - How often are the conditions so perfect that you really are using that extra sped with the bigger motor anyway? Case in point - I just spent three days fishing a buddy from Idaho. The weather was pretty windy. I was running 26-29 in my X depending on the day. Had I been in my Vantage I MIGHT have run 32 or so the best of the three days. The worst of the three I wouldn't have been running any faster than I was in the X.
> 
> And the clincher - I would not have poled the Vantage in any of those three days. Some 25 year old could have probably done it for a few hours but not me.
> 
> But to be very clear. I am NOT in anyway discouraging anybody from getting a Vantage. It served me greatly for 8 years. But my needs changed and I needed a shallower boat. My X is rigged exactly the same as my Vantage just downsized. And I gained a solid 3 inches in draft. That's huge.


Thanks Steve. 

Sorry to derail for a minute. Nice boat and lots of cool features! Congrats! It definitely has me thinking about a V.


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

jpipes said:


> This came out way better than I expected...Sick boat, Jay! I can't wait to see it in person. East Cape really did a wonderful job.


Thanks Pipes. We need to get together again and run our boats.


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

captjsanchez said:


> What pitch and Dia. Is that prop?


12.5" D x 14"p xxx cup from Jack Foreman. It's big enough that I cut the fin off the anti-torque tab to get it to clear the blade tips. Hole shot is unreal, about half a boat length but its 32-33 mph WOT tops.

@Renegade I sold my VHP to get an X because more and more all I did was fly fish. On top of that, most of the fly fishing we do where I live is real skinny. Like I spend the bulk of my time fishing in water less than 18" and we are pushing over sand bars or silted in creek mouths to get into marsh lakes. My Vantage was a solid 10" draft boat and it was heavy to pole. That kept me from getting into those creeks or way up onto the grass flats. For as big as it was, it poled really well but you could feel the weight of the boat. In contrast, my X weighs about half of what my VHP weighed and should be a legit 7" boat on pole. I don't have long runs and some of my favorite water to sight cast is only a 12 to 15 minute run from my house. In that regard, it was an easy compromise for my to give up the incredible ride of the Vantage for a significant improvement on pole in the really skinny stuff. That being said, the X does a remarkable job of knocking down the spray.


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## captjsanchez (Sep 8, 2015)

Sorry last question about the prop. What rpm you turning? I'm trying to plug in numbers on my prop calculator. Comparing numbers. My S.m. heron 18 has a 60. I wonder how close in weight are these boats. My hull weight is 650 lbs


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

captjsanchez said:


> Sorry last question about the prop. What rpm you turning? I'm trying to plug in numbers on my prop calculator. Comparing numbers. My S.m. heron 18 has a 60. I wonder how close in weight are these boats. My hull weight is 650 lbs


I cant really give you solid numbers on speed/rpm since I've only got 2 hours run time and 1.5 hours of that was the guys at East Cape tuning the boat so the motor is still in break in. That being said, best I've seen is 28 mph at 5700-ish. East Cape got 33mph out of her. They are sending me their performance notes from the water tests to give me some targets. As the motor gets some hours on it, I expect it to pick up some speed and torque. Incidentally, the prop calculator is probably going to give you some slightly skewed numbers because I asked Jack Foreman for a hole shot prop and I know I'm leaving some mid range and top-end on the table but I can get up in 1/2 a boat length at full jack up. As I've said before, I don't have long runs so losing a few mph at cruise isn't a big deal to me but getting up and getting out of the way back marsh on a hard ebbing tide is clutch.
Best guess on my hull weight is ~700lbs.


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## TX_Brad (Jun 8, 2018)

jay.bush1434 said:


> @Smackdaddy53 is right, they are sealed 25lb force rare earth magnets to hold the cushions on.


Also helps with improving draft due to the upward lunar pull....

Sick boat man, looking forward to a ride.


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

From the other day, putting some time on her...


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

I'm starting to get a real good feel of how this boat likes to run. For the most part, it likes to have the motor jacked all the way up, including during take off. As a matter of fact, I only jack it down in choppy water or moving around the boat house or boat ramp. With a full bag of gas (23 gal) 2 guys, required safety gear, fly fishing gear and a 6 pack of beer, she'll plane off in about 1/2 -3/4 boat length at full jack up, a good shot of tab down and engine trim neutral.
Comfortable cruise speed is 22-24 mph at 4100-4400 rpm depending on tabs position and 8.8-10.1 mpg. WOT I'm just touching 34mph at 6100rpm and still getting well over 7mpg. All of these numbers are at full jack up. FYI- my jackplate is mounted all the way up on the transom, the engine is one bolt hole from all the way up. I'll be putting on a Perma-trim cav plate after I've got a litte more time on her. 
Static draft, same gear load, 16 gallons of gas, no one on the boat is just under 7".


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## bryson (Jun 22, 2015)

Such a sweet skiff, congrats!


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## RJTaylor (Oct 4, 2017)

Very nice!


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

Was talking about setting up the boat to shallow with a buddy so I snapped this pic of my X. Jackplate is mounted all the way up, motor is mounted all the way you, and here the JP is at max jack up. I asked the @East Cape crew to set my boat up for Texas skinny water and they delivered the boat perfect. Ive got a Perma-Trim cav plate to mount but I want to get some more time on her before installing. You can really see the cup in the blades of that Foreman prop.


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## new2theflats (Jul 31, 2019)

Looks so sweet, and trick. Can't wait to get a ride in it. You did an awesome job spec'ing it out.


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## Austin Rudd (May 14, 2020)

Bad. Ass.


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

Getting the boat dialed in and she's really showing what she can do. New top speed, 1 person, 23 gallons of fuel, fly fishing and safety gear onboard. We fished 3 up the other day and were still pushing around in 7". We were in shallower water than the fish were, lol.


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## Sublime (Oct 9, 2015)

Good numbers.


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## new2theflats (Jul 31, 2019)

Impressive.


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

One of the cooler ideas I had was to have white LED's inside the hatches since the inside of the boat is flat black from the black ops construction. Obviously not the livewell, but you can see back hatches lit up. There is also one in the bench seat hatch and the front hatch. The blue LED's just about everyone has. They just look cool...


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## paint it black (Nov 3, 2007)

Awesome rig, dude!


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## DBStoots (Jul 9, 2011)

Jay, what can you tell me about the "Black out package on all metal with special Raptor coating flat black textured finish"? All the metal on on skiff is black powder coated and I'm seeing some chipping. A friend is having a new boat build and I have advised against powder coating for this reason. He's interested in exploring other options.


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## RJTaylor (Oct 4, 2017)

It's similar to Line-X.


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## paint it black (Nov 3, 2007)

DBStoots said:


> Jay, what can you tell me about the "Black out package on all metal with special Raptor coating flat black textured finish"? All the metal on on skiff is black powder coated and I'm seeing some chipping. A friend is having a new boat build and I have advised against powder coating for this reason. He's interested in exploring other options.


Raptor liner is a bedliner product. It might look similar to Line-X but it's far from it. Line-X is far more durable. Raptor Liner is a great product, I have shot it plenty of times. It is a product used often in body shops. Line-X is more of a specialty product that requires a lot more, only shot by line-x shops.


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## JC Designs (Apr 5, 2020)

paint it black said:


> Raptor liner is a bedliner product. It might look similar to Line-X but it's far from it. Line-X is far more durable. Raptor Liner is a great product, I have shot it plenty of times. It is a product used often in body shops. Line-X is more of a specialty product that requires a lot more, only shot by line-x shops.


Exactly!
Raptor is a 2k urethane that is a great product but as you said... way different than line x.
Line x is a polyuria that requires specialized equipment to heat and spray the product.

For a black bed-liner product, I will always use liner extreeme. It is an epoxy/ urethane hybrid and is probably the cheapesy 2k on the market and is also tough as nails!!!


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

DBStoots said:


> Jay, what can you tell me about the "Black out package on all metal with special Raptor coating flat black textured finish"? All the metal on on skiff is black powder coated and I'm seeing some chipping. A friend is having a new boat build and I have advised against powder coating for this reason. He's interested in exploring other options.


As said above, it is similar to Line-X but it is much thinner. It is sprayed on and not baked like powder coat. It is much more durable that powder coat too. The main reason I went with the Raptor Coat, was the satin black powder coat on my Vantage always seemed to get chips in it and I was tired of going around the boat with a paint pen. I also really like the flat black textured look. The texture isn't super aggressive but has a nice tactile feel to it which is nice on the grab bars and just looks cool everywhere else on the boat. It also doesn't spot if I miss a drying it off. Incidentally, the cost of having the metal on my skiff Raptor coated was the same as the powder coating. I don't know which actually cost more and either way it was pretty reasonable, at least to me. I also had my entire trailer coated.


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## DBStoots (Jul 9, 2011)

jay.bush1434 said:


> As said above, it is similar to Line-X but it is much thinner. It is sprayed on and not baked like powder coat. It is much more durable that powder coat too. The main reason I went with the Raptor Coat, was the satin black powder coat on my Vantage always seemed to get chips in it and I was tired of going around the boat with a paint pen. I also really like the flat black textured look. The texture isn't super aggressive but has a nice tactile feel to it which is nice on the grab bars and just looks cool everywhere else on the boat. It also doesn't spot if I miss a drying it off. Incidentally, the cost of having the metal on my skiff Raptor coated was the same as the powder coating. I don't know which actually cost more and either way it was pretty reasonable, at least to me. I also had my entire trailer coated.


Thanks, Jay.


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## Jsromeo288 (Jan 29, 2015)

Beautiful rig! Very well thought out. I wanted to see if you might be able to share some pictures of what they did under the cushions for the magnets? How are those magnets holding up? Are you overall happy with that cushion/magnet set up overall? Thinking bout doing it on my skiff. 
thanks!


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## mavdog32 (Apr 5, 2019)

Great looking rigs man, congrats and hope its treated you well! Any chance you could shoot me the info on the specifics on that prop when you get a moment? Im looking for a spare and would prefer not to go 4 blade but im interested in how you like the holeshot 3 blade. Interestingly enough, you are still topping out faster than me! Ive only seen 35 going with a current!


Edit: nvm, somehow i missed page 2 lol


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

Jsromeo288 said:


> Beautiful rig! Very well thought out. I wanted to see if you might be able to share some pictures of what they did under the cushions for the magnets? How are those magnets holding up? Are you overall happy with that cushion/magnet set up overall? Thinking bout doing it on my skiff.
> thanks!


You can see the magnets in the hatch lid pictures. They are the same that are in the hard base in the cushions. One thing I learned about magnets is if distance between the magnets doubles, the force reduces to 1/4th the original force. What this really means in a practical sense, is that you need to make sure the magnets are as close to each other as possible, separated only by the actual laminate of the hatch. Mine had almost 1/2" of gap filled with 4200 or something similar. I removed the old goo and magnet on two of the hatch mounted ones and put a 25lb rare earth cylinder magnet into the hole and filled it with thickened epoxy. The results were excellent and have had a significant improvement in an already good idea. I will likely do the same to one more of the bench seat magnets. I'm not sure about the jump seat cooler cushion. It holds quite well already but I will likely change a couple of them out too just to prevent the cushion from clunking on the cockpit floor inadvertently.


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## Thomas Nugent (Jul 12, 2020)

Great looking rigs man, congrats


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## ReelFla83 (8 mo ago)

jay.bush1434 said:


> Despite a ton of unforeseen delays from the 'rona and way too many hurricanes, the crew at @East Cape finished my EVOx and pulled off a doozie!
> Kingston grey hull and console/bonefish grey deck, black ops construction
> Suzuki 60 with Foreman shallow water hole shot prop and Atlas micro jack plate
> Black out package on all metal with special Raptor coating flat black textured finish
> ...


Hey Jay, curious to know how the Raptor Coating has held up? Thanks.


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

ReelFla83 said:


> Hey Jay, curious to know how the Raptor Coating has held up? Thanks.


The Raptor coat has done great on the boat, no bubbles or issues. The trailer has a couple bubbles on it though. I knocked the loose stuff and just spray painted it with flat black paint and so far so good. The one place I've had an issue is the black powder coating on the Sea Star helm. I'm going to have to pull the steering wheel and do some sanding, masking and gloss spray painting where it has bubbled up and flaked off. The helm comes from Sea Star blacked out so no hit on East Cape or Ramlin's usual high quality of work.


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## JC Designs (Apr 5, 2020)

jay.bush1434 said:


> The Raptor coat has done great on the boat, no bubbles or issues. The trailer has a couple bubbles on it though. I knocked the loose stuff and just spray painted it with flat black paint and so far so good. The one place I've had an issue is the black powder coating on the Sea Star helm. I'm going to have to pull the steering wheel and do some sanding, masking and gloss spray painting where it has bubbled up and flaked off. The helm comes from Sea Star blacked out so no hit on East Cape or Ramlin's usual high quality of work.


And every one of them does it. Wish Teleflex/Seastar would come up with a better coating system!


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## CKEAT (Aug 26, 2015)

Why not just don’t use coatings and maintain?


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## Scrob (Aug 26, 2015)

Love the setup man. Might be a dumb question but do the mags hold the seat cushions in place while trailering at 70mph? Ive never had seat cushions, is there an advantage having them removable?


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