Low_Budget_Hooker

I have this lump on my finger where the pressure from my reel is. I get it every year and it goes away in the winter. If I fish for 4 or 5 days in a row, it gets really huge where it stands out visually to others. There is absolutely no pain and it is under the skin and not a callous. Anyone else get anything like this? It doesn't bother me at all, and in fact it makes me a bit proud! lol

question is,...will this lump get any bigger? lol It goes away in the winter,...go figure!

Thanks for looking out glenn. I was reading how to choose the lb. thrust for a trolling motor and after doing the math, my boat can only achieve 4.3 mph anyway. Any faster without getting up on plane , and I would just be pushing water. I'm very impressed with the new minn Kota prop also.

Joe, Very sorry to hear about the loss of your mom. I send my sympathies to you and your family. Can you provide an example of the savings you can offer a field staff member? I would be curios to know what you would charge for Pflueger president spinning reel- Strike king 3x craws- Yum dingers- just as some off the wall examples that we all know. Thanks for your time, Russ

Here ya go Practical Field Methods of Sexing Largemouth Bass G. W. BENZ and R. P. JACOBS Bureau of Fisheries, Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, State Office Building, Hartford, Connecticut 06115, USA Abstract.Several rapid and simple methods of sexing live mature largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) were assessed: the presence or absence of a swollen reddish genital papilla, the shape of the scaleless area surrounding the urogenital opening, and the depth and angle of probe penetration into the urogenital opening. The genital papilla method was 89% successful during the spring, but only 48% successful during the fall. The shape of the urogenital opening was a poor indicator of sex (53% of the fish were sexed correctly). Probing the urogenital opening was the best single method; it provided success rates of 90% (probe depth) and 94% (probe angle). The highest rate of sexing success (98%) was realized during the spring spawning season from a combination of the papilla and probing methods. The probing methods that were used successfully in this study on largemouth bass might be used with similar success in sexing other fish species. In other words,...forget it, lol --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'm a small boat type person myself. For me it's more a question of the "man powered" issue. have I fished for years w/ a 12ft light gauge jon boat. The shell weighs 72 lbs. I can carry it on my head and a simple straight bar rack for your car is all u need. Just offering suggestions but the pontoon boat looks pretty cool. I guess it may be dangerous w/ a trolling motor though, no? Has anyone ever seen one w/ a t/m?

thanks TM, I will look into it

ditto but also check for possible wire wear at the plug. Happened to a guy I fish with.

40,000???? nah see my "let me know what you think" post in this section.

3 days before the moon and 3 days after. don't even go home till that moon goes away!!!!

I'm not sure which conditions this works best in but when it's working, man,...is it working. I throw a super fluke to the rear of the reeds. Keep tip high and reel quickly as to keep fluke "snaking" through the reeds. When you get to the edge of the weed-line, kill it! Just let it drop in front of the reeds and WHAM!

Ditto, What's a bass hurdle?

ouch. maybe my sex life isn't as good as most so my forearm and wrist seem to be able to take the brunt of the hookset! lol. I do however have some type of buildup under the skin of my right ring finger where the reel actually sits against. I have a lump where a wedding ring would normally sit. I believe it's the bass gods trying to prevent me from ever being married.!!!!

thanks again everyone. As to the weight, I used 3/8 cdx plywood then coated it with fiberglass resin to make my own "marine grade" plywood. This is much thinner than the wood most people use to make floors but I did the same in my friends boat 6 yrs ago and the carpet (in the front) wore out before the wood. His boat gets ALOT of use. The main weight gain factor usually is the wood that is added. The boat weighs less than 160, I am sure of this. The place I fish primarily has no ramp. It's landowner access only and my uncle owns a chunk of land on it but it is about a 15 ft path to the water. THen there is about 6 ft of large rock that the boat has to slide across. This part added alot of wear and tear to the bottom of my friends boat so I went with the herculiner bottom which I must say, is holding up very well after 4 launches. The lake is the backup reservoir for RI so elec motors only. I have a 9.9 and a 5 hp motor if I ever need them but really dont plan on using either. I will be going to NH for the smallie spawn next yr and will probably use one then but otherwise...... The paint cost was about $170 when all said and done. I already had the brushes, sand paper, and mixing trays so that saved me a little bit. I went a little heavy with 1 coat etching primer, 3 coats base primer and 3 coats of red. I want this thing to take the abuse we dish out. I ended up using 1/2 quart of etching primer, 2 1/2 quarts of base primer and 2 1/2 quarts of red. When I was researching the herculiner, It said that the 1' gall kit would cover a 6' bed but another quart would be needed for an 8 ft bed. I figured If I needed another quart I would just buy it but get this..... I used 1/2 the gallon and that was 3 coats!! If i HAD KNOWN i WOULD HAVE HAD THE TRAILER READY(PREPPED) BECAUSE tHE PRODUCT IS AIR REACTIVE, MUST ALL BE USED WITHIN 24 HRS OF OPENING CAN. i DID NOT HAVE THE TRAILER READY TO PAINT SO i WASTED 1/2 GALLON! bUMMER!! (yes, herculiner can be used on galvanized trailers!!) Yes, the hole in front seat is original to boat. They had a bit of character back in 64 I guess. Also notice how wide BOTH seats are and the lip on the edge which allows you to have a nice finished edge with the carpet. Any other questions, I'll be happy to answer. Thanks again for all the positive responses!!! Catch 'em up.

One last thing, the paint is designed to "flow" so you don't see brushmarks but this requires a lengthy process to actually be effective. First you have to use an etching primer to "bite" into the metal. This only takes about 2 hrs to dry. Then after solvent wipe down, apply the first coat of pre-kote primer. This is the first of 3 coats of primer which each take 16hrs to dry!!!! The same for each coat of paint(3)!! Now don't forget the hand sanding and solvent washes in between each coat of primer and each coat of paint,.lol I guess what I'm saying is the results are great but it's a very lengthy, involved process. About a week overall and thats only after all the prep work is done. Most would say that's alot for a little jon boat but I use it ,literally, a minimum of 4 days a wk. so to me it's worth it,lol.

Thanks everyone! No, I still don't know the make of the boat, only that it's a 1964. As for the paint , I used all interlux products from beginning to end. Etching primers, solvent washes, thinners, and base coat primer. The actual color is Brightside polyurethane in fire red. On the bottom, transom and footrests, I used herculiner (blk) I used brightside because Together the technologies create a one-part polyurethane which gives the look of a two-part polyurethane with the application ease of a one-part enamel. Oh yea, I opted to use a brush as opposed to a roller because of all the angles and tight spaces. Thanks again for all your comments

This is the 1964 jon boat that I bought w/ trailer for $450. Took about 35-40 hours to restore. 12' long with xtra deep gunnels. Extremely stable for a jon boat. Boat stands me $1200 with 2 new monster batt's, motor, trailer tires and bearings, etc. Herculiner (truck bed liner) used for bottom, transom and foot rests. Paint is interlux brightside. purchase day an idea of how thick the old carpet glue was. Removed it w/ orbital sander and 40 grit paper primer coats carpet, floors, paint seats, handles and logo

jigs slow, slow , slow, and then slower Deep

slightly off topic but the storm baits sell very well around here (RI) but they are used for stripers in the bay. They get so thick that they will hit anything. The storm sB's last relatively well and are very hassle free. long casting also.

ps- an Oscars slime coat makes a pickerel look dry! It's like snot!

Muddpuppy- I had him in a 30 gal then a 55 gal then an 80 gal. I n each tank, he would grow till he was just big enough to still be able to turn around. Now he's in this monster tank and he has pretty much maxxed bout on growing. He is by far the biggest Oscar I've seen yet. I have seen many close to his size though. Being 9 yrs old now, I think he is definately done!

fishingrulz- the oscar chews his food in his throat with "crushers" (just like larry largemouth), he has no teeth. then he expels whats leftover through his gills

I think mudpuppy has the closest guess yet. My oscar yawns frequently, mostly , it seems, to move water by the gills but he also does it while eating. If I feed him pellets (as opposed to feeder fish & crays) he crushes them in his throat and after he swallows he does the yawn thing and it expels leftover pellet dust out his gill plates. (thats why pellets make for a dirty tank eventually (too much rotting food waste in the gravel).

But of course!!! We catch him a couple times each winter when things get tough. We have what we call the "house" rod. It's the last 2 1/2 feet of a 7wgt fly rod w/ a shimano ax/uls reel. I weigh him when we catch him just to see his yr to yr growth and although he hasnt gained or grown in about 4 years, it's just another way to ensure he's still healthy.

I have 1 1lb 6 oz Oscar in 125 gallon tank and he yawns all the time. I think it serves the same purpose as it does with us. Yawning and stretching increase blood circulation. I also think it might bring a good amount of oxygen across the gill plates. But what do I know??? lol