Scott F

The rod doesn’t pull the trebles out, the fisherman does by horsing the fish in. How come fast rods don’t pull single hook soft plastic lures out of a fish? What’s the difference with trebles? Maybe someone else can explain to me the theory of treble hooks and moderate rods. I don’t understand.

Why isn't it the best combo? I've been using nothing but 20 lb braid on almost all of my baitcasters for many years and don't have any issues with backlashes or line digging in. I like lighter line so I can cast farther and have my baits run deeper. I haven't found a reason why heavier line would be of any advantage except on my musky rod.

Have you considered getting seasick? I live near the Great Lakes and took my new boat out on Erie and Lake Michigan. Every time, even with relatively light winds, the constant swells and rocking of the boat, got me sick. I never get sick on inland lakes, but big water, even on a big boat, makes me chum the water.

When you were getting backlashes, were you casting into the wind?

Sure you can! I even use fast action rods, braid and no leader on treble hook lures. (Gasp!) Nothing bad has happened to me yet! It’s not popular here, but you can do it.

I've been fortunate. I tell my wife I'm going fishing then, go 3 hundred to 2,500 miles and come back in 3 days to 2 weeks. All she ever says in response is, good luck! It's worked for us for 40 years.

As long as the boat and the load doesn’t change, more thrust will increase speed. In your case, increasing the thrust by 10, isn’t going to make a big difference. Going to a 24 volt, 80 lb thrust would give you enough of an increase to make it worth the conversion.

There are no dealers listed on the Vexus site. You give them your name, phone and email address, and they will contact you. I don’t know why they would make it hard to find a dealer. Maybe, they don’t want you to see how few dealers exist.

I had a small dust devil turned water spout pass right over me while I was fishing on a fly-in lake in Canada. Lasted only a few seconds but we got soaked.

Make sure your hooks are sharp, and most importantly, don't set the hook too quickly after you see the splash.

Not sure what “ripples” have to do with anything. Do you mean that you can see surface activity from fish? How can you tell whether it is deep or not? If you’ve already tried a variety of bass baits without a bite, try fishing panfish sized baits to see if there is anything in the pond.

I use PhotoShop Elements. It gives me a lot more control plus a ton of extra editing features almost the same as the full PhotoShop without having to pay for a monthly subscription. You can get it from Apple's App Store for $100 or from Amazon for $59 on a disc or a download. You can get it on a free trial from Adobe as well to try it out

If I were going to fish Lake Erie on a regular basis, I’d be buying a 19 footer

If you want to be successful at river fishing for smallies, first, you'll have to get off the bank and get into the river either by floating in a kayak, canoe or personal pontoon, or by wading. Slow moving water is usually ok but only when it is next to fast moving water. They could easily be feeding in inches of water or several feet. They could be on rocks, wood, weeds or sand. Too many variables for any one solid answer. Where they are holding can vary from day to day depending on conditions. Get out and cover some water, you'll find them.

You can use them for just about anything the way they did when the reel was first introduced.

How big a boat are you thinking about?

In your price range, a used boat will get you a lot more for your money. Make sure you have a place to store it and the space is big enough for the boat and trailer to fit. Allow money for all the accessories you’ll need like life jackets, anchors, trolling motors, depth finders. Make sure your tow vehicle is big enough to pull it. Think about what kind of fishing you’ll be doing and where you will do it. Do you want a tiller or console? Do you plan on using live bait where a built in bait well will be needed? Will you need a live well for tournament fishing? Are you planning on leaving a lot of gear in the boat all the time and need lots of storage? Front and back casting decks? Lots of decisions to make.

I fished with a guide up in Canada years ago who had a Moss Boss with no hook on it. He’d throw the hook-less lure up into the heavy reeds where big pike would lie. You could see the wakes of the fish follow the lure out to the edge of the weed line where the guides guest had a shot at the pike. If you hooked a big northern in those reeds, you’d never be able to get them out. The guides tactics really worked at helping guys get fish they’d never get otherwise.

All braid, all the time with no leaders. I don't like the way my top waters work when using lines that stretch.

From reading posts here about fishing rods, choosing the “best” rod is purely subjective. What feels the best to me, probably won’t feel the best to you. There aren’t any bad rods to be had in your price range. Visit a good tackle shop and find out what feels best to you.

1. No 2. Snaps, yes. Swivel, no. 3. No. Chumming will bring panfish in though.

A lot of trailers will kill the action on the spoon. My favorite is a 3 or 4 inch plastic twister tail. Just looks fantastic coming through the water. I always used Silver Minnows in Canada for northerns, so I was using a steel leader that had a swivel at one end. If you don’t retrieve them at the right speed, they will spin.

I've got a 16x48 that I row on occasion. There are places on the rivers I fish that are too shallow for the trolling motor so I have oars in the boat. I'm sure a 14 footer is easier to row especially when it isn't loaded up with other stuff like a gas motor, gas tank, batteries, and trolling motor. It isn't like paddling a kayak, but rowing isn't that hard.

More than likely, the water got too warm and the oxygen levels dropped. About the only way to fix it, is to put an aerator in the pond.

The Quantum Energy is a very good reel at $100