JPascavage52

I'm from Central PA, and I mostly fish Raystown and Sayers dam, those lakes can be tough but there are plenty of hawgs in both. I go up to Tioga a lot and fish the corps lakes along with smaller lakes such as Hill's Creek, Beechwood, Hamilton, etc, for both bass and panfish through the ice. It's true that there are a bunch of dinks in those lakes, but there are bigger ones around. We recently had a two day club tournament at Cowanesque, some guys hammered them, others struggled. The first day, one of our guys caught a 17.49 pound bag, I know he was throwing a Carolina rig a lot. I caught a 13 pound bag the second day, and also took the day two lunker with a 3.58 largemouth that took a split shot rigged senko, cove right next to the campground.

It works okay, the sonar and DI will often still show bottom. I also have a pretty significant rooster tail. Okay, I was actually thinking of getting a stern saver for this when/ if I do move it. Would this work?

Here is how I have it now.

Hey guys, I have a Bass Tracker Pro Team 170tx. Since 2016, I've been trying to become a better deep/ offshore fisherman, and one of my key investments to doing so was to swap out the stock black and white fish finder that came with the boat (a Lowrance x51), for one that has side/ down imaging. Ended up choosing a Garmin Striker 7 SV, for which I installed the transducer in the same place as the old one, since the screw holes for the new bracket lined up almost perfectly. It's been a great unit for the money, but I haven't been able to get as much out of the Sidevu as I've wanted. The image has often appeared rather grainy, even at idle speeds, and I've never been able to get the clear, detailed sort of images that appear on the box or the demo modes that show all of the sunken bridges, brush piles, and more, at most, I may see a log or two, and there have been times when I go past structure/ cover that I know is there, only for it to appear very blurry. When I was at Bass Pro Shops recently, I talked to the guy at the electronics counter about it, and he said the issue might be the stepped transom on Trackers before 2012 or something like that, and I should consider moving the transducer below the step to near one of the drain holes to get a clearer image. Any input on this? I will post a photo of how I have it mounted currently when I figure out how to do so. Thanks!

Welp we figured it out, ended up being the ignition coil on the third cylinder was on its way out, was shorting and cutting in and out, getting hotter every time. Was introduced to a mechanic through a friend of a friend, and he came out with me one night last week and had me run the boat till the issue started, then he told me to pull up the cowling, and start disconnecting the little 5-pin plugs on the back of each coil, listening for the sound of the motor to change, and the rpm/ power to drop. The first two had quite an effect, but the third had no effect at all, he immediately stopped me and said "yep, this is your culprit right here." Got a replacement coil, and installed it, have had it out twice with no issues. Thanks to all for your help!

Welp, sorry to resurrect this old thread and be a pain, but I'm stumped again. With new plugs, new fuel line, new fuel filter, and new gas, boat ran fine without the issue for the past month, including our two day club tournament at Mosquito Lake, OH, which I took third, and my GF and I's two day trip to Lake Erie, along with I'm guessing a good five or six other days on the water since. Thought the problem was behind me. Sure enough, got to our third tournament of the season on Saturday, backed off the trailer and as soon as I started it up, the same thing came back again. It only did this for a few seconds, and as I headed out of the cove, I saw no signs of it doing this again, so I decided to make my run down lake. Everything was fine all tournament except for struggling to catch fish. Then sure enough, headed back at weigh in time, and about a few hundred yards from the launch, while I was BSing with some of the other boats about how bad the fishing was, it started doing the same thing again. I'm taking it to the shop next week, would rather figure out what's going on once and for all and fix the problem permanently, than continue to throw money/ parts at it.

I used to live up that way, in Luzerne County, for my first job out of college. Back then, being a broke, "just starting out," college student who couldn't afford a boat, I fished out of a kayak I had gotten for my birthday a few years prior, and I was always interested in some of the smaller lakes that fished well, didn't have a ton of traffic, and I didn't need to make a 10 mile run to get to a good spot. There are actually a few treasures up that way that aren't as well known about, as, say Wallenpaupack. One of the better, little known ones I found, was Sylvan Lake. It is surrounded by mostly private land, but theres a PA Fish and Boat Commission launch there. It's a great little numbers lake, with plenty of 2-3 pounders and some bigger ones, and never was a ton of boat traffic. There is a lot of shoreline cover, and docks to fish, I liked to skip Senkos under these, or work them with a squarebill. Down at the far end of the lake, there are a bunch of lily pads and weeds. I did well with frogs here, or by casting Senkos to the lily pads, and letting them just fall off the edges. In addition, at the other end of the lake, there is a deep offshore bank that drops off, this can be good for the heat of summer. Another one I liked was Harvey's Lake, it is actually the largest lake by volume in Pennsylvania. Like Sylvan, it's surrounded by mostly private residences, but there is a PA Fish and Boat Commission launch. There can be more boat traffic here, but I never saw it get too bad. The shoreline cover is mostly docks and boat houses, there are some absolute giants in there, especially during this time of year in the spawn/ post spawn. Night fishing here during the summer can be on fire. Also, right near the boat launch is a weedbed. There are a good number of tournaments on this lake, and the fish they release often sit right here. If you really want to go out of the way, and into thick stuff, check out Harris Pond. This is an electric motor only lake, that never seems to get hit that hard. It is very weedy, with a lot of lily pads, weedless plastics and frogs are the ticket here. This lake is known for some giant panfish, but I have taken some nice bass here as well. Hope this helps. Also, there are multiple bass clubs up in that area. If you are looking to learn more about the waters in the area, or bass fishing in general, I would definitely look into joining one.

Hey guys, have a two day tournament this weekend on Mosquito Creek Lake, OH, and going tomorrow to practice. Just curious if anyones been out on that lately, and would be willing to share a report or two, as well as if they are still spawning or not? Thanks!

Welp, I just finished changing the plugs a few minutes ago. Started the motor in the driveway, and kept the cover off to check for anything sounding unusual. Noticed it started up with a bunch more "uumph" than it usually does. The sputtering/ shaking was present for about a minute, then stopped. Going to try to get on the lake tomorrow, so well see.

For reference sakes i took a video of the what is going on, although I just now figured out how to cut it down enough to post. 20170521_122107_001_002.mp4 And this is what one of the plugs i have sitting here looks like.. although each one is very similar to this

Last night, I pulled the boots off all the plugs, in order to see what part I need. I notice that the plugs are covered in some sort of bright yellow paste.

Welp, last week, replaced the fuel filter, fuel line is good, added some seafoam, and as a precaution, filled her up with fresh, ethanol free fuel. I gave the plugs and all electrical connections a quick check, everything looked fine to me, but didn't replace them. Started it up and it ran fine in the driveway, then took it to a local lake last Tuesday to fish a bit and see if the problem was corrected. It ran fine, everything from wide open throttle to idle, so I figured the issue was behind me, maybe whatever was blocking/ gumming everything up had cleared up or had been burnt off by the Seafoam. Decided to go ahead with the trip to Presque Isle my gf and I had planned for the weekend. Saturday, we fished all day, despite the bay being a bit rough, boat ran fine with no issues. This only made me more confident that everything was hunky dory and okay. Sure enough, we went out again Sunday, ran out to our first spot WOT, no problem, and started idling around looking for a hump I had found last year, when the shaking/ sputtering once again began. Fortunately we weren't that far from where we launched, so I decided to shut it down and fish for a bit, thinking we could always crawl/ use the trolling motor to get back if worse came to worse. After catching a couple, we decided to move to a nearby spot. Motor started up fine, engine sounded normal, and we moved to the new spot no problem. Had no luck there, so decided to move again. Started up fine, we ran to the new spot no problem, and then, after a few moments of idling, the shaking/ sputtering again began, and this time, it didn't go back to normal. At this point, I was aggravated by the slow fishing, the wind, waves, and rain picking up, a major backlash in one of my reels, and the motor issues, so we decided to crawl back to the ramp and call it a day. There is a marina at the boat launch we used, and we briefly talked to a guy there about it, he said it sounds like the plugs are getting flooded, so I will likely change them next. I am just puzzled as to why this only happens after a day of running just fine.

Welp I took the fuel filter off and siphoned a bit of fuel into a mason jar. Let it sit for awhile, there are a few brown and black particles on the bottom, but no layers of sludge or separation. I banged the fuel filter off to get some dirt/ particles out, a few came out but not a lot. Guessing the problem is a bit further in the engine. I bought a couple cans of Seafoam, and I'm going to try to run some through to see if I can clean/ burn off/ dissolve any garbage that may be doing this.

It is an electronic fuel injected motor. I keep the boat stored in my garage during the winter, with a full tank of gas and some Stabill, and I usually run a can of Seafoam through it on the first time out of the year. It has started right up and ran fine every other time out this year. So, I am doubting that it has anything to do with the gas that was stored in the boat. It does not have a fuel/ water separator, but simply has an in line cartridge fuel filter, identical to this: https://www.walmart.com/ip/Mercury-Mercruiser-35-879884T-Mercury-Quicksilver-W9-Fuel-Filter-Outboard/32742619?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=9584&adid=22222222227021901188&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=51775951151&wl4=pla-89208267659&wl5=9006507&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=115791965&wl11=online&wl12=32742619&wl13=&veh=sem Also, I still have the rubber gray fuel line that came with the boat, I know this is bad, and it is something I have been planning to replace, just haven't gotten around to it. I had a little less than half a tank of gas in the boat at the time it started, the last time I filled up was last Sunday. I am wondering if 1) This weekend, it was windy and rough on the lakes, and I took several waves/ backwashes over the stern. I am wondering if some water got in that way, I've heard of that happening a few times in rough conditions with a vented cap, or even with people who forget to put the drain plug in. 2) I got a bad batch of gas when I filled up last time, or what the last of what was in the tank at the gas pump. 3) I have some contaminants in fuel system/ filter/ line that are blocking things up. I am going to take a sample of the gas that is in there tonight and let it sit for a bit and see if there is any sludge settling at the bottom, or any particles or anything floating around. Probably going to clean/ replace the fuel filter, replace the gas, run some dry gas/ seafoam through the tank, and see what happens.

I have a 50 hp Mercury 4 stroke EFI outboard on my Bass Tracker. Today, headed out and drove around the lake a bit trying to decide where to fish. After idling around awhile, checking out some brushpiles, rock humps, and offshore structure on my sidevu, and marking gps points, I decided to head up a nearby spawning flat and fish it. Out of nowhere, the motor started shaking and making a sputtering noise. Everything else was fine, engine was peeing, not shutting off, and would start right back up if I turned it off. I could increase throttle, and the boat would start to get on plane, but it was very shaky, sort of like a stick shift vehicle trying to stall. Initially thought something may have gotten caught in the prop, but nothing was. Not wanting to cause any damage, or get stranded, I decided to start crawling my way back to the dock. However, after a few minutes of running slowly, the shaking and sputtering noise stopped, and everything went right back to normal. I ended up running back up lake to the spot I was going to fish with no problems. Caught two right off the bat, then the wind picked up and shut them down completely, only had one other bite. Ran across the lake to check out a small cove, after idling around it a bit, I was about to head to another spot when the shaking and sputtering once again started. At this point, I once again started crawling back to the dock, and sure enough, once again, the shaking and sputtering stopped a few minutes later. This time, I ran back to the dock, since it was getting late, and the fishing was slow anyway. Any ideas here? I've been googling it all since I got home, and the indications are water in the gasoline or a blockage in the fuel filter, although today was the tenth day I've been out on the boat this year, including all day yesterday, without any issues.

Welp, I followed this procedure to a T again today, and the boat went right up with no issues. Also forgot that there were some anchors that came with the boat that were in the right front deck compartment, not sure of their total weight, but moved them to the left compartment, and all seems to be well now. I'm going to stick with this. Of course, I now seem to be having a sporadic rough idling problem, but that is for another thread.

Thanks for all the replies guys, very helpful! This week, checked the trim tab, it's still straight as the day I got it, tightened the bunk bolts as much as I could with a ratchet, the bunks and the carpet still look okay to me. Yesterday, I fished Raystown where it's that golden upper 50 water temp time between prespawn and spawn, the jerkbait/ spinnerbait bite wasn't happening like it was last weekend, so ended up pitching some laydowns and getting a few good ones. When I got back to the ramp at the end of the day, decided to check things out on the trailer, and mess around with loading the boat a bit. Backed the trailer, got the boat, and, this time, as I approached the trailer, I moved from the drivers seat to the middle seat in an effort to center the weight a bit. Also, when I got to the trailer, I turned the motor slightly to the left as I drove up the trailer. The boat centered nicely on the trailer, and I got it up to about a foot from the bow roller, where I hand winched it the rest of the way. I am going to mess around with this procedure the next few trips.

Thanks for the replies, guys. I am heading out to the lake this weekend, and I'm going to mess around with it all to see what I can find. I have not checked this yet, I will take a look at this when I get home tonight.

Hey guys, I have a 2009 Bass Tracker Pro Team 170 TX that came on a Tracker Trailstar trailer with two bunks, no guide bunks (I am thinking about purchasing some). I tow it with a GMC sierra 1500, I bought it in 2013, and it's my first boat, so far love it, it's great to be able to fish tournaments as an owner, and run up and down lake to spots I wouldn't be able to reach in my kayak that I fished out of before I bought the boat. It has been easy to maintain, operate, and add things on to. I am saving for something a little bigger and fancier with a larger motor over the next couple years, but being that I'm in my late twenties age with that "boat vs home down payment" decision looming, I'm waiting for the time to be right. Now, starting towards the end of last season, I have noticed that when I try to drive my boat up the trailer, even with the motor straight, it always seems to want to turn/ list to the right, to the extent that I stopped trying to drive it on, and usually just winch the boat up, which really isn't a problem with how some people look down on power loading, but when you're in a big tournament with some angry skunked fisherman waiting to load and go home, it does tend to draw some annoyed glares. Towards the end of last year, it would do this about 50% of the time, but even when I would get it on straight, it seemed I would have people remarking how my boat didn't look straight on the trailer. Fast forward to this year, it is doing this every single time I have tried to power load. I am trying to figure out if I am doing something wrong suddenly, or if there is something wrong with the trailer/ boat. I have always backed the trailer until the bunks are about half to 2/3rds of the way under water, and had no problems. Since this issue has started, I've tried experimenting backing it in more and less, and the same exact thing happens. Yesterday, at the end of a long day of fishing, when I was going to grab my truck and trailer to retrieve the boat, I took a quick look at the trailer to make sure nothing was out of whack. I found that one of the back bolts on the right bunk that holds the bunk to the trailer had come a bit loose, to the extent I could move the bunk up and down about a half inch. I grabbed some pliers and tightened it up to where it won't move anymore, but once again, had the same exact issue when I tried to load the boat? Anybody have suggestions?

It depends on what part of the country you are in due to the climate/ lakes not freezing/ water warming faster. Here in PA, it is late pre-spawn/ early spawn, and the fish are just getting onto beds. However, down your way, it sounds like they are in post spawn, or even starting to get into summer patterns. The good news, is that, during post spawn, bass don't tend to wander far from where they spawned, instead they tend to find some nearby deeper water/ cover, and suspend around that. The cover you were discussing, such as laydowns, grass, bushes, stumps, docks, pilings, etc, are often great areas for bass to build their nests, so I would stick close to any of those with some deeper water nearby, and fish with a slow falling lure, such as a weightless worm/ fluke, or something that you can keep in the upper half of the water column, such as a spinnerbait, spybait, or swimjig. If that doesnt work, I'd move out to the first breakline, or about 10 foot mark, and work parallel to the shoreline. Also, move outside of the creeks/ spawning coves, and work points out here.

I love split shotting, do it with everything from Senkos to Flukes to lizards/ brush hawgs, and more. Very versatile, can use it like an undersized carolina rig and just drag it, or fish it with a raise and let fall retrieve like you would a weightless worm, if you want to get your bait deeper. With senkos, it creates a nice little spiraling fall, in addition to the shimmying effect of the bait. Also great during the spawn when you're trying to keep your bait on the bottom.

I live about 20 minutes from State College, and I grew up around here, so I know the area very well, along with some of the bigger name lakes close by that host tournaments (Sayer's Dam, Raystown, Glendale, and Curwensville are all within an hour of here). Would be more than willing to share some knowledge to get you started at these areas. There are multiple bass clubs in the area around here, I belong to Tyrone Bassmasters. In case you didn't know, Tyrone is a small town about half an hour southwest of State College. We are always accepting new members, and you can join as a boater or rider, dues are $105 for the entire year, plus 20 dollars each club tournament. We have guys of all experiences, from guys who have sponsorships, to guys who seem to "zero" a lot. We fish most tournaments at the lakes mentioned above, however we also do two "away" tournaments, where we travel to lakes, this past year we went to Deep Creek, MD, and Chautauqua Lake, NY. At the end of the year, we do a two day, "Classic" where all anglers are paired up, and everyone gets some money. Further, we are members of both FLW and The Bass Federation, and you will have the opportunity to fish district tournaments in order to qualify for the State, National Semi Final, and National Championship. If you are looking for something closer, Penn State has a bass fishing team as a club sport, one of our former members is in it, and went very far this year. PM me if you'd like more info.

I live in Central PA and I fly fish for trout and bass fish as well, if you're ever in the area of the Little Juniata River or Spring Creek, let me know.

Black Jitterbug is the only topwater lure I'll use at night.

I fish Raystown a good bit, and fish some tournaments there. It is quite a puzzle of a lake, sometimes you'll clean up, and other times you'll catch nothing. Around that time, however, you will start to see shad migrating to the backs of creeks, so, you will want to throw shad crankbaits, jerkbaits, and flukes. I like the area by the dam, the water is very clear here, and is a good place to catch numbers.