Arty

Head to Saratoga Lake. I was on Saratoga this past weekend. Water was still cold, and bite is slow, but with some warmer weather it'll speed things up real quick.

What do you guys think? I like the fact that it's built for 1/4-3/4 oz lures. Seems versatile for shallow/deep, light/heavy lures. Anyone out there own one and use it for cranking?

Thanks guys, I appreciate the info. I thought she was about 4-5 lbs, but wasn't too sure. I'm happy to say we released her right after this photo, and she swam away strong. My father in law asked me "was that considered a big Smallmouth?". I told him 'I've been fishing now for over 25 years, and I still haven't caught one that big, so yeah, it's considered big'. I think I was more excited than he was...

Well, let me first start by saying this is not my fish, it's my father in law's fish that I took the pic of. I have been teaching him how to fish over the last few weeks. He recently bought a house on a lake, and was anxious to learn fishing, so I happily obliged. We went fishing yesterday, and this is nicest of what we came up with. Needless to say I was astounded when he hooked this pig...I had all I could do to get the net to get this thing in the boat! ;D I was real proud of him... It measured 21.5" and was about as big around as a football. I didn't have my scale, so I'm not sure what she weighed. She was a little banged up from spawning, and already had a little hole in the corner of her mouth where she was hooked up once long ago. We were fishing in about 4' water on a rock flat off of a point. It was caught on watermelon grub attached to a 1/4 oz jig head. Any ideas on how much she weighs?

I've never used the DT Fat 01, but, I can definitely vouch for the DT Fat 3. That sucker has caught me quite a few nice bass...and pickerel. I like the Firetiger and the craw colors. Like they said, you can fish this slow and it will dive about a foot, or really crank it and it will stay at 3 feet. Awesome lure either way. Actually the picture of the Bass in my Avitar was caught on a DT FAT3 Firetiger...she weighed in at a little over 5lbs.

Wow, those are some funny stories ;D I'll be launching my new boat in a few weeks...I hope. Something always funny (bad) seems to happen when my Dad and I go fishing, so, I'm sure I'll have a few "rookie" stories to share as well!

Thanks guys, I appreciate the comments. The motor is a 2004. It was only used for 2 seasons. It has very little hours on it. We opened the cover and you could practically eat off the inside of the cover! Clean as a whistle. The trailer is also a 2004 with very little use. Just water tested the boat today, and she has not a single leak. We'll begin prepping the boat for paint ASAP. The weather is not cooperating today...it's pretty cold and nasty out. I'll keep you posted as we move along with the project. 8-)

I didn't even think about the trolling motor. I too am planning on a transom mount trolling motor. Do they even make a lock for it?

Thanks for the comments guys. I'm really excited about it. Thanks for the hot tip on the motor lock...I didn't even think of that. It's kept in a garage, so I don't think there will ben an issue, but, I guess it's not bad to have one anyway.

Finally (after some help from the Wife), I'm able to post some pics of my new boat. It's a 12' MirroCraft. I plan on painting it, installing front and rear decks, carpet, lights, trolling motor, and a fish finder. I personally am barely able to fix a faucet leak, so I am getting help from a friend who knows a lot more than I. My boat, and my towing mobile (Wife's Jeep): I'll be posting pics of my progress as we go along. My first step is to get this thing prepped for paint. That should take most of this weekend. I'm open to suggestions/advice. 8-)

Awesome! Thanks Catt. Exactly what I was looking for. ;D

I know there's a similar thread to this, but, I have not been able to find a definitive answer as to whether or not you need Marine paint to coat the outside of an aluminum boat. I'm going to start painting my MirroCraft this weekend, and I think I'm supposed to use a chemcial stripper, then clean/sand, then an "etching primer"?, and I'm stuck on what type of paint to use. All I know is, I want it red! ;D As always, thanks for the help.

Love the look of that red paint on the Triton's. Sweet rig!

SDCOLL, how long is the boat? You did a great (professional) job with that carpet. And, like Delmonte, you too did the carpet on the inside? I'm still wondering whether or not I should paint, or carpet the inside. Looks great. And yeah Del, the weather up here is getting nicer (68 degrees yesterday!), and it's making me pretty anxious. Hopefully I'll get this project started this week. 8-)

Wow, cool boat Delmonte. I love the lights under the seat. I think I'll definitely steal that idea from you. I'm also contemplating doing the carpet like you did on the inside. Have you seen any drawbacks to this? Oh, and by the way, I'm going to try to upload some pics of my rig sometime tomorrow. Thanks for the help.

Yeah, no more shore fishin' for me! I bought it from a family friend, so I got it for a nominal amount of money. I think the jet engine may be a little too much. My wife would probably have an issue with it too! ;D

I'm too sure how wide the bottom is...I'll have to measure. I've got a bad hip, so I'm going to need this thing as stable as possible. I'm having someone help me who has experience with this kind of thing, so, hopefully we won't run into too many problems. Thanks for the advice!

I just bought a 12' Mirrocraft v hull. I'm not too sure what year it is, but, it has a 4 year old 8hp Johnson and a newer trailer. I'm pretty anxious to start working on it. I'd like to have front and rear decks, seats, compartments, trolling motor, and fish finder installed. This site has given me a bunch of ideas. Oh, I'll be posting some pics probably next week. I'll do some before and after stuff. If anyone has any suggestions, or has experience with this boat, I'd love to hear about it. ;D

I actually tried some White Ice flukes this weekend can came up with nothing. I rigged it weightless with a 4/0 red hook. I thought the red hook might help, but, I guess not. I also tried the Mardis Gras color fluke, and didn't get anything either. They look real good in the water though, and I think when the water temp warms they'll be killer.

I use Strike King and Booyah spinnerbaits. Both seem to work well. An easy to use, and very productive (for me) crankbait is Rapala's DT-Fat 3. I have it in a few colors, my favorite being chartreuse firetiger. Big bass seem to love this thing...along with a few toothy critters I've caught along the way...

Awesome info Raul! That's a great breakdown of the G. Loomis power applications. I think I'll wind up using my spinning rods for most of the finesse presentations and smaller jig/spinnerbaits. I'll wind up using the 783 as my all-around rod, and the 844 as strictly a jig/frog rod. If I find out I want (or should I say when) a cranking rod, then I'll probably wind up buying one of them too.

It looks like I'll probably go with the MBR783 because of the versatility. And, like Bronzefly said, maybe I need another rod...a specific crank rod too? I guess for now I can use my new Avid spinning rod for my shallow cranks, and I'll use the 783 for spinners and worms. I'm going to have a tough time selling my wife on why I needed to buy 4 new rods and reels this year. I try to liken it to golf clubs, and that you need one for every situation...I don't think she's buying it though ;D

I am not necessarily set on a 782 or 783, I just thought that they'd be the best for what I'm looking for. I'm no expert. I have considered the CBR845 too, and I know it get's good press on this forum. I should also mention that I have a '6 M/F Allstar rod too that I use for top water stuff. The CBR845 would be suitable for throwing medium weight spinnerbait's too? I was assuming that it may be a little too soft for spinnerbaits, and a little too much power for smaller to medium cranks? I don't fish a whole ton of heavy cover. Most lakes/ponds that I fish up here are pretty clear.

If you already own an MBR844, which would you choose between the MBR782 and MBR783 for the next rod? I know many people on here feel the 783 is a great all-around rod, but many also feel the 782 is one of their favorite rods. I going to use the rod mainly for small to medium cranks and spinners. I'm thinking that because I already have an 844, the 783 may be a little redundant? This rod is going to be my "go to" rod for everything but jigs and top-water. If anyone has experience with all three I'd love to hear your opinions. Oh, and by the way, I've already purchased a Curado E7 to pair it with...I figured that'd be a good start!

I am the proud new owner of an MBR844C IMX. It's super light for the size, and feels great in hand. Can't wait to use it. Things are still a little frosty up here >