james 14

Well how did you guys do?

I need to get a unit for the bow of my boat. I have an older Lowrance at the helm and the easiest option would be to mount a new unit on the bow, however, I'm open to going through the pain of re-running wires if there's some reason I'd rather the side scan at the helm. My thinking is the side scan is more useful up front to use while I'm actually fishing so I can fish the spots or fish that come across the graph as I see them. The older sonar is fine on the back since any fish I see on it would be under the boat and they'd already be spooked. Just curious what some other pros and cons might be while I weigh all my options.

For the same price (or less if you go used) you can get a jon boat of the same size that will allow you more upgrade options. I started fishing tournaments out of a 10' jon with a 10hp motor. I could've gotten the boat used for about $100, the motor cost me $350 and the trolling motor was about $70 at the time with another $70 for the battery. You may not come across the same deals I did but if you look long enough you might luck out. I could go anywhere in that boat and it loaded in the back of my truck. This is just another option to consider. If the only place you planned on fishing was small ponds then the boat you listed may be a better option. If you thought you might go to any larger bodies of water I'd do some looking in the classifieds and on CL to see what's out there that you might can do a little more with.

Double check the size of each boat and consider what the max rated HP is for each. To my knowledge the 201 Pro XL is a 20' boat and a 175 would be on the low end for power. Don't know what the 288 is but if it's only 18' you may get the same speed with less $$$ on gas. Then again it may not make a bit of difference.

You boys are in for a cold one. Supposed to be in the 40s every morning of the event. Better get out your flippin sticks!

Anything I should know? What motor do you have? Trolling motor?

Well........DUH! Mine are riveted in and I haven't found anything to replace them with yet. The plate holding the grommets is bolted on and seems the most likely thing to replace, however, I haven't found any of those either. I'm just hoping I'm not left with the decision to either rig it or buy a new TS.

So what do you do when the rubber grommets wear out besides buying a new TS?

If you have a hydraulic jack plate is it best to drop it all the way down in rough conditions?

I have three things I'm looking to do that I don't know much about: 1. Repair two small chips in the bottom of the hull about the size of a thumbnail 2. Refinish the right above the rub rail where the gelcoat (or whatever) has flaked off the leaving the glitter exposed. 3. Wax or polish the while part of the hull. Some spots may need light sanding but I am unsure of the general process. I was thinking I would do these things in this order as it makes the most sense to me anyways.

2000 Pro Craft 210 Super Pro 2005 200hp Optimax 71lb foot control TM - almost every boat I looked at had hand control TMs. Seems to work fine for now so I'll hold off on the 36v for the time being. 10" Bobs Hydraulic Jackplate Hot Foot and Hydraulic Steering $7500 (who says all those "good deals" on CL are scams?!) There are a few cosmetic issues that I'll be working on but the hull is wood free, the motor checked out great and this thing moves nicely across the water. Oh....and it's PAID FOR! I will certainly have some questions in the near future.

Yes, different versions but not what I would call different knots. I've seen varying number of wraps, versions with the wraps overlapping, some with the first wrap above and the second below, some the opposite of this and versions of each running the tag end out either possible direction. You can also throw in a few variations telling you which line to pull on to tighten the knot down. I don't think it matters how you pull on the braid but the leader HAS to be pulled by both the tag and main line. Pulling on either one causes the leader to slip inside the knot a weakens it. Once the braid is tightened down fully I'll pull just the main leader. The problem I have with the knot (question my knot tying skills all you want) is that the wraps don't always cinch down evenly or smoothly. And it's the smoothness that bothers me...especially when using FC as my leader. Even if it's not perfect it's still a strong knot and I've had no problems using it. When it's perfect the palomar on the hook will break first. I've actually started doing more what Aaron Martens does which is an Albright with about 20 wraps that go down instead of up. This cinches down more smoothly and consistently than having wraps on top of wraps. I've also been using a variation where I make a loop in the end of the FC rather than just folding it over...creating the same variation that distinguishes the Fish-n-fool from the Uni. I haven't tested this one yet, however, but I imagine it to be stronger. I'll get to that in the next couple of days and post on it. When any of these knots fail it's not the braid slipping but rather the leader and I aim to prevent that with this variation. I didn't start this thread to bash the alberto or question it's effectiveness. I've never had it break except for one time when I got a drop shot hung on a brush pile with an 8lb leader. I've caught everything from bass to a 35" snook this past summer (even if my drag was set to about 2lbs). I was just curious about these new micro swivels I ran across. Like I said I was pretty sure of the answer but I don't use swivels very often so I thought I'd ask...especially since these things are actually smaller in diameter than I knot I'll use to tie them on with.

The thing is there really are some deals to be had...but probably not something ridiculous like 75% off. Patience will be my friend.

AAAAAAAAND...the scam hits. I was waiting for it and was surprised it took a few emails to finally get to the part where they relocated out of town and the boat was being held at a local shipping company and we would do the deal through some online escrow company...blah, blah, blah. Onto the next candidate.

How do you go about measuring 65 yards of line? I'm afraid that I already know the answer to this but hoping you have a much easier solution.

So here's the response I got back...what do you think? I responded saying I was interested but the boat would need to be checked out by a local marine shop and I would need to test drive. I offered to suggest a shop to take it to and work something out where I would tow it if she didn't have a way to do so. Let's just go "pie in the sky" for a moment and think that I'm actually able to get the boat checked out by a shop and test drive it without any apparent problems. Is there something else I should be concerned about in terms of the divorce issue? If the title is signed over to me the deal is done right?

I don't have a problem with the alberto knot failing...never said I did. I said I don't "trust" it. I test every knot pretty thoroughly before I use it and, when the alberto cinches down correctly, it's stronger than a palomar but it's very easy to get it wrong...say what you want about my knot tying skills which have been in use for over 20 years. A palomar is easier to tie and, for me anyways, is stronger a large enough portion of the time for me to prefer it over the alberto. This isn't to say I won't still use an alberto but the swivel will just be another tool in my arsenal. With that being said...if I tie 100 palomars they will all be stronger than the one alberto knot a good portion of the time. Every new knot may be a new weak spot but those weakness don't add up. If something is going to break first it's going to be the alberto. Would you trust 5 swivels tied on with palomars or just one overhand knot? Considering the fact that my braid-swivel connection isn't going to break under any circumstance I'm weighing the difference between FC breaking in an alberto or FC breaking in a palomar. For me the choice is clear. You do what you want and try not to be so abrasive in the future when answering questions. Now, if you want to be helpful and have a separate conversation on the proper way to tie an alberto I'll show you about 5 different versions that I've seen and few of them will hold stronger than a palomar.

I currently use the alberto knot (or some version of it) and only thought about the swivel after seeing JVD do it on a show recently. When I saw how small the Spro swivels were I just wondered. I was already fairly certain of the answer. I've tested the alberto knot and it's strength can vary depending on how you tie it...and there are many versions. It ultimately comes down to what you trust and I trust a palomar more than the alberto. I trust 5 palomars over 1 alberto. I'll just make sure not to cast the swivel through the guide. Thanks for the advice guys.

I just picked up a pack of Spro 50# swivels. I forget what size number they are but they're pretty tiny and seem like they'll go through the rod guides...which brings me to my question. Would you advise against casting a swivel through the guides? I'm a little worried they might get scratched up. Either way I'll tie a shorter leader if I have to. I trust a palomar on each end of the swivel more than I do any leader knot and these things are so small I doubt they'll change the action of the bait at all.

I use those on my buzz frogs and they work pretty well. I can catch several fish on one frog which is good since they cost almost a buck a piece.

Agreed. That's a pretty common scam that's been going on recently. I've read about it in a few areas. Now there's a 2004 Triton 21ft with 225 Merc selling for 5k!!!

Well the one was pulled off CL after only being up for about 30 min. I think maybe they meant to list it for 13800 instead of 3800.

Occasionally while scanning the CL ads for used boats I'll run across a boat that is listed for WAY less than what NADA has the boat valued at. I currently have an email into a guy who's selling an '06 Nitro that's valued at 13k for only 4k. I'm sure some of these are scams but I'd love to think that some of them are either unknowing of what something is worth or perhaps is a disgruntled ex-wife who won the boat in a divorce battle and just wants to get rid it...or any number of possibilities. I also have an email in on a '01 Stratos that is valued around 12k that is being sold for 8k. So what do you think...too good to be true? Or scam? I'm hoping one of them work out. It means more $$$ for accessories!

FYI - I had a similar looking E-Rude that was a 9.9 and it's highly possible the motor is pre-'68. I say it's possible because I don't remember the exact age of the one I had but I'm 99% it was a 60's model. It looks good for it's age. Funny/scary story I ordered mine off Ebay before I knew better. It came shipped in an old lawnmower box wrapped in nothing but a large fleece blanket! I was shocked when I got it cranked and then absolutely giddy when I stuck it on the back of my 10' jon and went flying around the lake. It was quite an upgrade from the 36# TM I was using.

Thanks, I'm not sure why I didn't think about that...although I'm sure it would've crossed my mind at some point before I ever actually made a purchase.