I bought a 9.9 HP Honda outboard for my S4, and I replaced the mounting plate. I still have work to do on it. I will get a new tiller extension that has a U-joint. The boat runs good.
This video shows a test run with the 9.9 HP Honda still not outfitted for reducing the splash from its large-size propeller shaft. If you choose to go with a motor that’s bigger than the 6 HP that this boat is rated for, you have to be prepared to do some work on the motor to stop the splashing.
Texas
My attention span for anything other than fishing is getting shorter as I grow older but I forced myself to write a few things down regarding my Wavewalk S4 transformation. I’ll keep it short and provide some photos so others may see what I have done and improve on it to suit their particular needs.
I want to first thank many previous owners who took the time to document things they did. I have a hard time finding the right description for my Wavewalk S4 now, be it a kayak, skiff or boat. Maybe a little of each. I’ll leave that to the reader, but for simplicity’s sake I’ll refer to it as a boat for this article.
Some of my choices in life have been driven by the realization I’m not getting younger and if I don’t do “it” soon I may miss the opportunity, so it was with the S4.
I decided I wanted something to get me where fish are here on the Texas Gulf Coast, away from most people, particularly for wade fishing, drifting or poling flats for Redfish and Speckled Trout.
I wanted to be able to fish standing up, load the boat in my truck, launch it anywhere, store it in my Toy Hauler RV and be large enough for 2 people. I settled on the Wavewalk S4 and the build out was a therapeutic expression of my imagination and abilities, the only lasting benefits of a 45 year construction career. This crazy world is “righted” for the few hours I spend fishing or building something anymore.
I have used the boat many times this past year since completing it Spring of ’25. I never owned a boat or tricked a boat out before and in spite of being ignorant of so much I am very satisfied with how it has worked out.
It would be nice to have an easy spot to throw unused top waters, soft plastics and other artificials, and I think a softer piece of rubber instead of the heavier duty mud flap I used below the transom to keep splash from the outboard from breaching the transom might be better but other than that, all’s good.
Against most recommendations I did go with the 9.8hp Tohatsu instead of the 6hp because of the additional weight I added to the boat and because it has 2 cylinders and runs quieter than the 6hp. Hearing loss was one of those fringe benefits my career provided but I would like to maintain what little hearing I have left.
Under present conditions I can run at 14mph in good conditions without feeling like I should update my will. I define good conditions generally as winds under 12-15 mph. Running into the wind is fine but with the wind at my back the boat is harder to track without lowering speed.
Pictures say 1000 words
I fitted the hull with plastic utility boxes to keep gear dry.
I reinforced the gunnels with PVC lumber and added supports for the deck. I wanted to use a lightweight composite deck but like so much today nothing is made in the USA. When I did come across materials on line I considered using and called the supplier they laughed and said it was manufactured in West Germany and I needed to buy a skid of it and wait for it to be shipped. I wound up (remember my attention span thing) finding a 4’x10”x.090 aluminum sheet and although it was heavier than what I wanted I just used that.
I fitted the hull bottom with Kynar sheets for protection from oyster beds, sand bars and occasional concrete boat launches.
Advice for attaching anything to the WaveWalker is to use GOOP caulk for adherence and Flex Seal clear liquid rubber sealant all around the edges.
The canoe Sponsons and the adjustable pontoons were added for buoyancy and stability when standing and walking on the boat while fishing. The adjustable pontoons are sucked in tight to the boat and in the raised position for driving at normal operating speeds and slid out and lowered while fishing and drifting.
I tried running the boat with the pontoons left extended once during an incoming storm on Baffin Bay and lived to regret it. Bathtub waves caught one pontoon and caused the boat to spin to the left literally throwing me off the boat! I survived but I will not make that mistake again. When extended partway the pontoons add huge stability for standing and walking the boat while fishing.
After priming and painting the underside of the aluminum deck I applied a sea deck covering, hatches, rod holders, seat, utility box, butt seat, lights, chartplotter etc. The deck is bolted thru the gunnels and PVC reinforcing separated by neoprene foam tape to seal the hulls.
I heavily reinforced the transom as shown in the pictures to support the 9.8 Tohatsu motor.
After a rough day fishing I accumulate about 3 sponge-fulls of water from inside the hulls.
Loading and unloading would be really easy if I used a kayak trailer but that didn’t fit my original criteria of storing the boat in my RV toy hauler and being able to load it in my truck and launch from anywhere. An extend a bed cargo carrier and hand winch make loading the boat easier and I can lower the boat by hand just using a rope.
The hardest thing about the operation is loading and unloading the motor and placing it on the transom especially if I’m on a slippery boat launch (one reason I don’t like using a boat launch).
I stopped worrying a long time ago what other folks think. Everyone has an opinion and everyone is a critic. Ask 10 friends or family their opinion on something and 9 will tell you every reason you’ll fail or it won’t work. When I started my construction career I was overwhelmed and asked my boss, “what do you do first and where do you start”? He said “we start with the footings and foundation, we worry about the rest as it comes”. Great advice for someone so ignorant. I have failed at many things and come to understand that’s the only way we truly learn. By God’s blessing and many lessons learned the boat has been a huge success and I have been fortunate enough to catch my share of fish with it. I can’t explain the feeling when bay dolphins swim alongside me. People are always taking pictures and commenting on how “cool” it is. I always tell them it’s a Wavewalk S4 and I just fitted it out.
If anyone wants more specifics just reach out, or better yet, we can go fishing!
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Washington
I used the Tie Boss system with pulleys.
The bike lock is for added security. I live in a low crime area, but I’d hate to lose it!.
The carport is directly in line with the prevailing winds. Since I hung the S4, we’ve had some ferocious windstorms with heavy gale winds (> 50 mph). As far as I can tell, the S4 didn’t wobble or shake much.
Yoav
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Indiana
I bought my S4 in 2023 and never regret it. The issue at hand was my 80lbs black Labrador, Zoey. She loves the water, but not only getting her in and out of the S4 was an issue, but even more though keeping her safe on the bow platform. Solution: a bigger platform with safety rails.
I made the platform out of 1/2 inch plywood with stringers underneath for stability. Painted with wood sealer used for decking. The top is EVA foam board for boats for anti-slip and esthetics. The rail is build of 1/2” electric conduit pipe. It’s readily available at big box hardware stores (Lowes, Home Depot) and cheap. The company Maker Pipe makes the connectors (painted white) to the base and the shrink tubes (blue). The top rail is one piece of conduit pipe bent to shape with a standard conduit tube bend tool – available at the hardware store. There are many YouTube videos about how to bend conduit. It is very solid.
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How did I cut the shape for the bow? I used a larger piece of cardboard, flipped the S4 over, laid it down on the cardboard. Now I cut a 1-1/2 piece of ply, laid it against the S4 bow and traced the shape of the bow with a permanent marker onto the cardboard. This created an outline of the bow that was 1-1/2” wider than the bow. I cut it out and placed it on a 4×8 ft sheet of 1/2” plywood. I transferred the outline onto the ply and cut the shape with a jigsaw. A little sanding to smooth the edges. I also marked and cut out slots in the S4’s bow as well as the handles (see pictures). For the middle of the three slots I only drilled a hole. I inserted a 6” bolt through that hole, long enough to used a painted piece of 2×2 with a hole matching the bold. This, together with 4 pieces of painted 2×2 underneath the platform conforming to the bow of the S4 (remember the platform is 1-1/2” wider the S4 bow all around) holds the platform in place. I painted the ply and all wood pieces with 4 coats of sealer. Grey to match the EVA foam pad.
Total cost was less than $150.
I also installed a skinny 3 gallon fuel tank for the 6HP Tohatsu, and a boat cover. My S4 sits outside and in the water throughout summer. Now it is protected from Rain, and dry.
For that I installed hooks on the outside of the S4 to hook in 1/4” bungee-rope. The cover is made of a old boat cover cut to size. I installed grommets along the perimeter and wove bungee cord through. The tend is held up by a three pole support made of 3/4” PVC pipes which fit into the holes in the center seat of the S4.
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