# New-to-me Pathfinder 1700-T



## Guest (Jul 9, 2009)

Thats a sweet boat. Love the little side console.


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## kdhs10 (Jun 16, 2008)

Very nice.


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## goodhands_gheenoer (Feb 14, 2008)

Looks like it will float in a puddle. I like the tunnel. Nice find!


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## islander1225 (Jun 15, 2008)

LOOKS GOOD TOM, NOW GET HER SLIMED,


The one bad thing about a tunnel hull is that it takes more water to float it, but on the plus side it will run in a puddle.


Alex


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## oldschool (Feb 22, 2008)

Skinny but bumpy. Congrats and enjoy.


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## mark_gardner (Mar 18, 2009)

awesome [smiley=1-thumbsup3.gif] thats a very versatile boat you have there and should be able to go almost anywhere you want to take it, congrats and enjoy  [smiley=1-beer.gif]


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## iMacattack (Dec 11, 2006)

Nice Ride Tom! If there is anything you need just let me know...  BTW, one thing you might want to check is the anti-syphon valve on the tank. I had a fuel starvation issue with that exact same tank. Replaced the valve and the problem went away. If you run 3/4 to WOT for a while and the engine dies. But your able to restart... try replacing that valve. Worked like magic for me when mine started to act up.

Regarding the troller. Good call. I had a 12V and wished I had a 24! [smiley=1-thumbsup3.gif]


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## Canoeman (Jul 23, 2008)

Nice clean boat-looks like a fly fishing dream.


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## tom_in_orl (Dec 9, 2006)

Congrats! Bring it to the bash.


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

> Nice Ride Tom! If there is anything you need just let me know...    BTW, one thing you might want to check is the anti-syphon valve on the tank. I had a fuel starvation issue with that exact same tank. Replaced the valve and the problem went away. If you run 3/4 to WOT for a while and the engine dies. But your able to restart... try replacing that valve. Worked like magic for me when mine started to act up.
> 
> Regarding the troller. Good call. I had a 12V and wished I had a 24!  [smiley=1-thumbsup3.gif]


iMac, awesome info. The motor starts so fast I think it anticipates you turning the key, runs like a raped ape and compression #'s are great. BUT, after 20 seconds at WOT it'll stutter and then die. Restarts perfect, and will run at 85% all day unless you go to WOT. 

I was able to bargain with the seller a bit more because of that, and I wasn't too worried as I knew it was something in the fuel supply system. Plus, as mentioned, I have that entire new fuel line/racor filter, etc system laying in a box at home. 

Soooo.... your input on this is spot on!! 

I was considering just replacing the entire tank, as it's going on 10 years old and only $120, easily worth it for the headache factor alone. 

Thanks for the info!!!

[smiley=dancing-smilie.gif] [smiley=dancing-smilie.gif] [smiley=1-beer-german.gif] [smiley=1-beer-german.gif]

-T


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

> Congrats! Bring it to the bash.


I am taking so much stuff to the bash already....

-T


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

> Skinny but bumpy. Congrats and enjoy.


Less bumpy than the LT though  

-T


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## paint it black (Nov 3, 2007)

Nice! I would love one of those. How much does something like that run for?

Did they make these in 15'?


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

> Nice! I would love one of those. How much does something like that run for?
> 
> Did they make these in 15'?


I don't know if they made it in 15 honestly. 

They do make a second generation of this hull still today, and that's called the "tailfisher". Probably a more advanced hull design, but it weighs ~450lbs more than this hull and that would no work for me. 

As far as price, shop around. They are out there and range in price, as with any boat. 

It's a buyer's market right now....


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## backwaterbandits (Dec 15, 2006)

WTG Tom! Really, Really Nice! Congrats. [smiley=cheers.gif]


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## Un-shore (Sep 27, 2007)

Nice ride, congrats!

I might be wrong, but I thought you had 30 days to transfer the title and in that time you could use the boat.


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

> Nice ride, congrats!
> 
> I might be wrong, but I thought you had 30 days to transfer the title and in that time you could use the boat.


Long story. The guy I bought it from is partners in it with another guy. He seems very honest and I'm sure there wouldn't be an issue but I'm not into forking over the rest of the cash until I have title in hand. 

Call me old school. 

Until the boat is officially paid for and they are out of the loop, I'm not comfortable with taking the boat out, etc due to possible liability issues should anything happen while trailering, etc. 

Murphy tends to follow me around, and I like to make sure he doesn't foil my life...

So for now, it sits. A few days won't kill me. Although I am chomping at the bit to take it out and tinker...

-T


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## Gramps (Nov 1, 2007)

That is nice Tom!  If you ever need a hand or have an open seat, give me a call!


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## MATT (Apr 30, 2007)

> > Skinny but bumpy. Congrats and enjoy.
> 
> 
> Less bumpy than the LT though
> ...


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

> > > Skinny but bumpy. Congrats and enjoy.
> >
> >
> > Less bumpy than the LT though
> > ...


Yeah, so I've heard with this hull. I'm thinking of putting one 48" tab on one side to better handle the St Lucie chop in winter..  

-T


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## pescador72 (Aug 6, 2008)

excellent find Tom, looks really, and the side console looks fabulous too!!!


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## rkmurphy (Nov 2, 2008)

> Murphy tends to follow me around, and I like to make sure he doesn't foil my life...


Try having Murphy as a last name...you can never escape Murphy's law, then.


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## oysterbreath (Jan 13, 2009)

Sweet boat! That's one of the boats on my "When I have the money...I hope I can find a nice used one" list! lol

It looks great with that side-C.


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## choppercity47 (Jul 30, 2007)

Love your boat. Those old pathfinders are my favorite flats skiff. I need a boat that runs in inches but sits lower at rest!


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

While I'm waiting on paper for this thing I figured I'd get started with putting a little TLC into it. 

Out with the old, in with the new. Teleflex NFB steering cable, helm and my fave wheel with mercy knob:

Old:









New: 









I'm going to keep the helm area clean with no gauges, but will be making up a little custom starboard mount for a tiny tach. 

Cleaned up the fuel area so I could get to work on it. First thing was the fuel anti-siphon valve which I'm hoping was a simple fix to the top-end shut-off.  Jan/Imac and I had discussed here as he was kind enough to report the issues he had with the one on his pathfinder. Funny thing when I went to buy it at the marine parts store the clerk tells me "yeah these are in big demand on the older boats as they had a recall on them". 

The hold-down straps for the fuel tank are in need of some attention as the screws have pulled up from the floor. I'm going to have Tyler cut me some seadek to put underneath and behind it to cushion prior to doing the repair. Once I have the seadek and am able to run some gas out of the tank I'll toss on the new line/filter while I'm at it:










-T


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## oysterbreath (Jan 13, 2009)

I wonder if any of the stitch & glue folk have ever splashed this hull? It looks simple enough...


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## Brett (Jul 16, 2008)

The Bateau Garvey 15 has the same lines, less the tunnel.
Wouldn't be hard to add a tunnel to the existing design.

http://www.bateau.com/boats/GV15/index.html


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

If you take the tunnel out of the equation there really isn't much to build of the hull. Closer to an LT25 than the redfisher for sure. It's definately built light, you can see some areas where weight was saved over building a "bombproof" hull. 

I'm hoping to be able to get this thing in the water tomorrow evening and spend some time on it. 

Have spent the last few days bringing it up to snuff and I'm anxious to get out on it. 

Doesn't look like it'll need a jackplate... 









-T


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## choppercity47 (Jul 30, 2007)

BTW Yes they MADE a Pathfinder 15't but it is usually a tiller 40hp.


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## oysterbreath (Jan 13, 2009)

> BTW Yes they MADE a Pathfinder 15't but it is usually a tiller 40hp.


http://www.indianpassmarine.com/p1150.htm

Looks really nice



> The Bateau Garvey 15 has the same lines, less the tunnel.
> Wouldn't be hard to add a tunnel to the existing design.
> 
> http://www.bateau.com/boats/GV15/index.html


Brett, thanks for the ref. You know I never noticed the simularities before!I've got a couple of his plans from that site. Something like the Pathfinder 1150 would be awesome!

TomFL, can't wait to see pics of your boat on the water!


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

CaptRon used to have the 15 tunnel, he can give you insight on it

Old ad: http://www.microskiff.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1172500144/0


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

Well after months of not having the time to work on it, (and honestly I was stumped as to how to mount the base plate for the trolling motor) I finally spent the weekend rigging this thing. 

Installing the base plate was something I wasn't looking forward to; with no under-deck access you really don't have a choice but to either remove the entire deck (NOT!) or use some sort of toggle bolt. After searching the web, I found a product made by Toggler called the snaptoggle ( http://www.toggler.com/products/snaptoggle/overview.php ). 

This worked great, and I was able to install the base plate pretty quickly. It's solid as a rock on the bow now. 

Next I turned my attention to the wiring, which was going to be another PITA as you can't run the wires below-deck like a normal boat. Also, under the gunnels is foamed-in so you can't do anything there without drilling. What I came up with was to drill a hole under the gunnel caps in the front and rear bulkhead and use these simple PVC fittings to act as a bulkhead fitting and protect the wiring: 









They have a male and female end which makes it easy as pie, protects the wires from chafing, and gives a nice finished looks to boot. Here's one installed:









And from the backside:









I was able to rig a pair of 6ga wires for the trolling motor as well as a 16/2 for the bow lights through that fitting.

Now for the battery rigging. The original battery space was pretty torn up, and wouldn't work anyway as I was rigging a 24v system. So I decided to move the start battery to the starboard side and make a new tray for the port side that would fit on top of the old space for the single battery.

Here's the old space. Notice the cracks from years of having a battery roll around in it:









New starboard tray ready to go in; I'm going to screw down an "odds and ends" basket to the open spot in the tray to hold all the misc stuff like cell phones, cameras, etc that we all wind up trying to find a home for when we step on board a boat:









Batteries installed, with wing nuts just for Brett   only because I didn't have nylocks in my box...









Breaker:









So that's all for the weekend. There is now not one inch of the original wiring in this boat, and all switches have been replaced as well. She should be ready for a bunch more years of service. 

Tomorrow I'll finish up the starting battery tray, final wiring for the switches and a new Racor filter setup and she'll be ready for action. Hoping to scout out some duck spots for this season in it out in Okeechobee.

-T


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## Brett (Jul 16, 2008)

> Batteries installed, with wing nuts just for Brett


Bad rigger! No doughnut! ;D


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

> > Batteries installed, with wing nuts just for Brett
> 
> 
> Bad rigger! No doughnut!   ;D












Hey Brett, funny thing is I think I'm going to name the baby ducker the "Wing Nuts".... We'll have to make an exception to get you out on it. 

-T


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

Some final updates on the boat, been fishing it a bit more lately and really like it the more I'm on it. 

Got the charger rigged (decided to leave the extension cord attached rather than cut a hole in this boat for the marinco outlet as this boat is kinda funny with the compartment liners) and finished the small dry storage boxes for misc stuff like keys and wallets:









Sent the wheel down to Rich a.k.a forum member "skinny_water" for him to work a little of his braidwork magic on it and man is it nice. The pics don't do it justice, and is feels so nice in your hands. Better grip too. Thanks Bud!! Also in the pic is the new dash piece I made up as I added a few dash switches & tiny tach. 










Close up of the wheel: 









When are we heading to ENP!?!??!?!?!

-T


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## skinny_water (Jun 11, 2008)

Looks sweet on the clean side console!


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## rnallie (Jun 7, 2009)

I also recently acquired a 17T with a center console. I've had a blast with it. Catching more redfish than ever. I added a 12V Motor Guide and the attach bolts were fun... When I first bought it, I had a fuel starvation problem and it was the anti-siphon valve. Good luck with yours.


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

> I also recently acquired a 17T with a center console. I've had a blast with it. Catching more redfish than ever. I added a 12V Motor Guide and the  attach bolts were fun...    When I first bought it, I had a fuel starvation problem and it was the anti-siphon valve. Good luck with yours.


Been there, done that. Mine was easy to troubleshoot thanks to Imac...

Glad to see yours is working good for you too!

-T


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## jared_simonetti (Jan 11, 2007)

Love this thread the 17t is a bad a$$ skiff i made the mistake selling mine.


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## Capt Dan Medina (Apr 28, 2008)

im in the market for either the 15 or 17...... i want a side console version.... leaves lots of room to move about..... only concern i have is how does she perform running in a chop? I often run across some exposed areas in flamingo and most of you know how biscayne bay can get..... when you make it down to ENP (Everglades National Park) and/or down to Flamingo, Id love to get on her for a test ride... and do some fishing of coarse


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

> im in the market for either the 15 or 17......  i want a side console version.... leaves lots of room to move about..... only concern i have is how does she perform running in a chop?  I often run across some exposed areas in flamingo and most of you know how biscayne bay can get..... when you make it down to ENP (Everglades National Park) and/or down to Flamingo, Id love to get on her for a test ride... and do some fishing of coarse


I don't know ENP and everyone's opinion on "chop" is different. Best is a test ride. Any time you're ready capt'n let me know and we'll get together. 

If you can wait till March I'll be bringing it on the ENP trip. 

This is no boat for rough water, but with one tab down and one tab up it'll ride on a side rail and is liveable in a decent chop. If it's blowing 20 outta the north this ain't the boat for the day for sure though..

And yes, with the side console there is enough room to square dance in there. 7' x 5' I think is the measurement inside. Plus the front casting deck is probably almost 6' long and doesn't taper to a traditional "v" like a normal boat; it carries it's width very far forward so there's an enormous amount of room up there as well. 

Lemme know when you wanna get out

-T


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## Capt Dan Medina (Apr 28, 2008)

sounds good.... I was out 2x this week in my hewes in flamingo and was wishing i had something that drafted a little shallower.... both days I had tails pop up about 300 yards from me.... problem was they were in 5-6 inches of water..... My hewes will give me +/-9/10 inches depending on load..... Fishing has been tough in flamingo lately.... fish are there, just not eating as readily as when the water temps are up.... when is the rally?


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## Flyline (Mar 3, 2008)

love your Pathfinder 1700-T looks right now... I'm really digging the rope work! Awesome!


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## wcnfl (Nov 11, 2009)

Nice clean boat....cool steering wheel...


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## mark_gardner (Mar 18, 2009)

yeah that wheel is looking rather nice


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

> yeah that wheel is looking rather nice


Ya'll can thank forum member "Skinny_Water" for that as he's the one that did it. Send him a PM and he'll do it for you.

The pics don't do it justice!

-T


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## Apeacock (Dec 17, 2009)

Good looking stuff TomFL

I recently bought a 17T side console and have enjoyed it so far w/ a little modification since the purchase. I am looking to do more work on it myself(fuel/water separator, re-wiring, on board charger, battery transfer switch) with little experience and would love your input/advice on a couple things. Thanks for your time in advance.

1) Currently my two trolling batteries are set up in the bow hatch(next to gas tank), but from what it looks like you have yours under the seat hatch? Any motivation for this layout?

2) What would you say your all in cost is for the charger, tank, new wiring, lines & filter based on doing it yourself?

Thanks again, I appreciate any advice you could render.


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

Boat is for sale here on the forum 

http://www.microskiff.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1261089568


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

> Good looking stuff TomFL
> 
> I recently bought a 17T side console and have enjoyed it so far w/ a little modification since the purchase. I am looking to do more work on it myself(fuel/water separator, re-wiring, on board charger, battery transfer switch) with little experience and would love your input/advice on a couple things. Thanks for your time in advance.
> 
> ...


Well as far as batteries in the rear vs in the front, I just felt safer separating the batteries/charger from the fuel tank. Maybe I'm paranoid. But I feel safer.

PM Sent to you on the second question. Lots of stuff updated...check your messages...


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