I officially bought my first boat today!I don't take possession of it for a couple of days because it's being delivered but I was looking for some advice. A lot of you are boat owner vets and I need advice on some things. I have taken the boater safety course and have purchased all the legal requirements by TPWD.

What I am looking for in advice is the "Should have gotten that before" advice. Maybe stuff that's not required by TPWD like an extra battery and trolling motor prop for the trolling motor.

It's my first boat so I didn't go crazy, I got a Tracker Pro 160 with a 40 hp motor and a Minn Kota edge 45 trolling motor.

Thanks in advance for any advice!!

Mite want to keep some extra fuses and fluids, a few basic tools, jumper cables and some zip ties onboard. You can hold almost anything together for a while with zip ties.
For longer trips I keep an extra prop, filter, more fluids, extra trailer hub and hardware, replacement tail lights, basic stuff to repair and troubleshoot wiring, ratchet straps and marine adhesive. And I still usually don't have what I need.
There's no such thing as EXTRA hardware.

I suggest you find or hire an experienced boater or guide to take you out and teach you the boat. That includes taking it off and putting it on a trailer. There are so many mistakes you can avoid paying for a skilled teacher. The few hundred you pay will save you 3 times that in frustration and boat damaged.

As a USCG Captain, I have been teaching a few of these a month and clients tell me it has sped up their learning curve and made them feel safer on the water. Nothing beats a good teacher!

I am guessing you had a GPS/Sonar combination unit put on it too. Your instructor will run through your settings to ensure you understand its function and settings. It is important to avoid shallow waters and not hurting someone on the boat.

+1

When i bought my first boat years ago, i was fortunate to have a close friend that had grown up boating and on the water. He took several trips with me teaching me my boat and the water. Many years later i am still grateful for the training i received and effort he put into keeping me safe.

leave the beer at home until you have a strong feel for your boat, especially loading it on the trailer

Just leave the beer at home every time.

Be sure to grease the trailer bearings, but not over-greasing them. Always have extra fuses, electrical tape, flathead, phillips, heavy duty wire cutters (never know when you will wrap the prop in barb wire fence under water), and any sockets you may need for trolling motor head or other uses. I always keep a spare set of clothes for when you fall in (has happened to me once). If your trailer has brakes, be sure to check fluid on occasion (figured that out the hard way). Also, if you have a swing away tongue, have an extra pin to lock it in place (found out the hard way on that as well, lucky for a socket wrench to temporarily keep the tongue locked straight).

Some things you will just have to learn, and sometimes it will be inconvenient.

There is no need to load the boat down with every tool imaginable and a parts selection that would make your dealer proud. Unless you are an engine mechanic as well as a trained service technician, all of that stuff is going to do you no good on the water and certainly will not get you home. What will get you home in the event of an emergency is to carry the required safety equipment and a cell phone in case you get in trouble.

Congrats on the new boat!

My advise is to leave the tackle at home the first few trips out. Get out and learn the boat. How it handles, how it feels, how it sounds, how it smells. A change in one of those will give you an early indication that something ain't right.