Loochy88

I was with you initially. I came back to it again and now I'm obsessed with them.

My argument to the"is it worth it" question isn't based on how long it takes to break even. What I think is most important is knowing that the jig on your line didn't cost 7.50. That really plays into where you're willing to throw it, and ultimately, how many fish you'll catch.

I have yet to melt or break a single mold. I've printed about 15 so far...

Plastisol shoots @ 350 degrees F. PETG can withstand that, however the printing/melting temperature for PETG is around 240 C (464F). It wouldnt work unfortunately.

I use Tinkercad. I'm no pro at this, and I have found that to be the easiest to learn.

Try PETG. If your printer can print ABS, you can do PETG. It has many of the benefits of ABS without being so toxic. Here are some examples of the molds I've designed/printed and am currently shooting.

Soft plastics! I have a number of injection mold files I've designed. Trickworms, senkos, grubs, ribbon tails, frog, beaver style bait, ned, and probably a few i cant think of right now. You have to print in PETG. PLA does not have the temperature resistance. Because of the layer lines, it can be difficult extracting the baits, so you need to use some sort of mold release. I used vegetable oil. You lose some details because of this when compared to aluminum, or composite molds. It is fun though, designing your own lures and seeing them come to life. Ive found that buying aluminum molds is worth it though, if you're willing to put up the money. The detail is just much better, and many molds are very affordable. I have several do-it molds now, and some cheap amazon composite molds as well. Those just shoot much better. Printed a whopper plopper too. It worked pretty well. I use my printer for other fishing related things too. Right now I'm printing a handle for a diy stake out pole. They're very useful.

I use my 2019 classic regularly on the Niangua arm of Lake of the Ozarks. Never felt uncomfortable. Its a 17 foot aluminum boat, and you have to be smart about when you take it out, but it handles a little chop just fine.

We have a place down there. Last week I had a tough time finding them. Ended up catching a bunch, but i had to downsize to ned rigs. I wont give away my specific spots but I'll say I was finding small keepers relatively shallow off secondary points. May be different by the time you're there. Enjoy!

Made a few out of fresh plastisol. I designed and poured quite a few ned style baits. The plastisol I got my hands on seems to float without salt, so that works great for ned rigs and finesse baits. Tried them out at the neighborhood pond yesterday and they work great!

PETG seems to work. I guess theres just enough temperature resistance. No noticable deformation after 4 pours. A wood backing on the mold also seems to help evenly distribute clamping pressure.

My family has a condo on the Niangua arm of Lake of the Ozarks. LOTO has a rep of being crazy, but the Niangua end is more on par with some place on Table Rock, and you can avoid the Branson crowd. Fishing is great. Might be worth a look. Lots of condo choices there. Be warned, Missouri is fishable in the winter, but can still be absolutely frigid when it wants to.

I was surprised to see that this actually works! I have a 3d printer that I use for just about everything, and I've been wondering if I could use it to create soft plastic molds. I have no experience with injecting soft plastics, but on a whim I bought a 4oz injector off amazon and gave it a shot. I have a bit of hobby level experience in 3d design. I drew up my version of a senko and printed it out in 60%infill petg. I used wood backing blocks when assembling the mold to give it some added stability. Below is the result of my first try. I have a ton to learn about plastisol, injecting soft plastics, etc.... but its a pretty cool proof of concept. Now I can essentially create any bait mold I can imagine up.

Just purchased my first boat with a deployable trolling motor. The trolling motor required more effort to deploy/retrieve than I was expecting, and I've been dealing with back problems, so I needed a solution. I've seen lift assists for motor guide's products, but nothing for Minn Kotas. Looking at the MotorGuide equalizer product it seemed that all it really was, was a system of struts, balanced at the right weight and geometry. That was the hardest part to get right. After trying a few weights i settled on 2x 80lb struts, at 12 inch length, set up as shown in the photo. Takes almost all the weight off the trolling motor when pulling it out of the water, and assists slightly with lifting it off the deck as well. A huge relief on my back!

I finally have my first "real" bass boat. Up til now I've been fishing off just about that anything that floats besides a bass boat. Kayaks, coleman crawdad, a 25foot cobalt, but never had a bass boat. That all changed last month with a brand new Tracker Classic.

Not a bass, but holy cow. I was throwing a walmart spinnerbait yesterday evening in the neighborhood pond, just circling the banks. I was having a lot of luck rolling the bait high and slow in the late day sun. I was probably about 4 bass in when it happened. Something huge hit my bait right at the surface and the water did a double splash. Luckily I had my drag set correctly, or my 15 lb line would have been toast. This fish started spooling me like I was holding a light action crappie rod. He hid under a log and i levered him out and he took a few more runs. Eventually he gave up. I'm pretty sure this is the largest freshwater fish I ever caught. This guy was the size of my leg. Check it out. My heart is still pumping from that. Not exactly what you expect to catch in a small neighborhood pond.

I will lap a pond a couple times... always moving (unless i find a hot spot).

Build (and sell) a cheaper one then.

I can't imagine that 3 inches would be that big if an issue. I dont know how to calculate what a difference 3 inches would make, but it seems insignificant for a 1000 lb boat. Not sure what you're towing with, but tongue weight on a 1500 silverado is aroudn 1000 lbs I believe. Might interfere with your lift gate or place the boat a bit closer to the car, but it shouldn't really matter much.

I'm interested in the same info. I have a 19'8" garage. I'm looking for ways to shorten the length as much as possible. I noticed that the winch up front can be repositioned. At least I think it can based on the photos I've seen. Moving the winch forward would move the boat forward a few inches (initially it doesnt overhang the front of the trailer). Trimming down and turning the motor would help as well. I know the listed length is trimmed down, but is it also turned?

We certainly agree on keeping track of weather. That applies to all boats. You're thinking of the wrong end of the lake. We're out on the Niangua arm. There are plenty of calm days. Weekends on the Osage arm you might as well be out at sea. Weekdays on the Niangua are another story:

Bumping back up because I FINALLY made a choice and put money down on a Tracker classic. Can't wait to take delivery in August!

I've given a couple away and everyone I've shared with reports back that they love them. The material is just way better in my opinion than the rubber skirts when it comes to the action of the chatterbait.

Lund 1775 looks like a beautiful boat. I just don't know if I can accommodate the 20'4" storage length. I have the ability to angle the boat a bit in my garage. I have a 3 bay garage. I just don't know exactly how much I can get away with...

Right now a tracker 170 or 175 is at the top of my list, but I'm open to all options. My requirements are: -must fit in my 19' 8" garage. I can angle the boat a bit, but nothing crazy. -must be safe enough to take out on a large lake on a calm day. my home lake is lake of the ozarks, niangua end. 17 foot aluminums seems to be the I -I'm leaning towards aluminum (all welded) only. i could be convinced to go fiberglass, but not a requirement. i feel like this would make trailering the boat back and forth a bit easier on the truck. It's a hilly drive from STL to the ozarks. -I'm hoping to spend as little as possible, and will most likely buy used. I'm ballparking the 10k range. Suggestions??? Besides the Trackers, what boats should I be considering?