NY_Jig

Happy April everyone, I know I'm not the only one itching to get out and wet a line. I anticipate I'll back the boat into the water around mid-late April. I know it's somewhat important to keep an eye on forecasted overnight temps, prior to putting the boat in, to ensure I do not store it overnight in freezing conditions. Does anyone have any real do's or don'ts when it comes to fishing during the earlier days of Spring and overnight temps can still drop into the 20's-30's? I want to fish, but not so bad that I'm willing to risk damage to my outboard. This is only my second year of fishing with my 16ft Crestliner and 50hp Merc 4-stroke. I learned the hard way last year what happens when you run an outboard with a damaged prop because I let the allure of fishing overwhelm my better judgement...$$$$$$ Don't want to make that same lapse in judgement mistake twice by allowing water to freeze in my motor. I pose this question knowing there's alot of other new boat owners that might be or should be wondering the same thing. Thanks!

I most definitely will be getting insurance going forward!

Well, bad news fellas. I brought it to a shop and faced the crappy reality of owning a boat. My prop shaft is in fact bent, as the service tech showed me the wobble as he spun the prop. His original intention was to replace the entire lower unit, but first asked if I had insurance on the boat. I told him I did not, as I didn't think it was necessary, given that this isn't a $30,000+ bass boat I bought new of the show room floor. He was understanding and said I may want to consider it going forward for incidents like this. He said it would cost a pretty penny to replace the lower unit so if I wasn't going through insurance, we wouldn't go the route. His intentions are now to pull and inspect the prop shaft and send it out to be straightened. He said he will have to re-seal everything and obviously get a new prop back on it. I was quoted roughly in the $1,800-$2,000 range. I'm still a little sick over it, but what's a guy to do, it has to be fixed. The worst part about it is that he said the prop damage was minor and could have been fixed with a refurb. Unfortunately, running the motor like I did afterwards (purely due to inexperience and lack of knowledge) is what most likely caused the shaft bend. Is it normal to have the urge to put the boat on the front lawn with a FREE sign??

I live in Upstate NY, just an hour north of Albany. My current prop is the OEM 3 blade, which I would agree is most likely a Black Max. I purchased the boat from the original owner in late March of this year. I know some of the above members have suggested a SS prop and to shell out a bit more money, which I'm open and receptive too, however, I'm just a blue collar guy like the majority of us on here. Dropping $300-$400 dollars to keep my boat on the water doesn't exactly brighten my day. It's the cost of doing business as an avid angler though and I understand that. Now that I've stepped down off my soap box... I intend to look at another aluminum prop and will certainly look into the Spitfire. I'm gonna call down to a shop that's about 30 minutes from me and give them the run down of what I have going on. Additional info or insight from other members is welcomed.

Thanks for the info guys. I’m less than impressed with the available options for boat repair in my neck of the woods so naturally I worry I’m going to be overdiagnosed and overpriced in the end by someone looking to make a buck. I will get it to a shop though and have someone look at it. Regardless of what work it may or may not need, I think I’ll put a new prop on myself given that it’s not an overly difficult task and can save myself the labor cost there.

I launched my boat into some heavily stained water the other day which made for zero visibility of under water obstructions, even those just under the surface. While driving away from the launch at just above idle speed to some bridge pillars I intended to fish, I felt and heard the dreaded banging noise we occasionally experience and the motor began bouncing and then shut off. I had obviously gone over something that was much harder than a submerged piece of wood. I turned the key off and raised my motor to find one of the prop fins had sustained a gouge that I would describe as follows. If you could imagine taking a dime and laying 3/4 of it across the prop fin, the gouge is about that size in a half-moon shape. The motor fired back up with no issue and after fishing the bridge pillars with no success, I made about a 10 minute run up the lake at WOT, and then back to the launch when I was done fishing for the day with no apparent issue. My boat planed and ran on pad in what seemed to be a normal fashion. Upon doing some research at the end of the day, I read some different information on various websites that stated running a damaged prop could potentially cause motor issues in the future. I intend to replace the prop, but I'm not made of money, and don't intend to spend $150.00 at the drop of the hat unless it's absolutely mandatory. Just looking for some input on whether I can continue to fish and replace the prop in a reasonable amount of time, or if I should replace it immediately. I'm not sure if some of you with more experience would consider this minor prop damage or serious prop damage. I'm running a 2012 16' Crestliner with a 50hp Mercury EFI 4-stroke outboard with a factory aluminum prop. Thanks in advance.

Me and my fishing partner will be entering some team tournaments this summer for the first time. Looking forward to the competition and fun of it all. With that being said, we understand fishing our strengths and fishing with confidence, but we're looking to know what's necessary and what's not. Will we want cull tags as time goes on or is that just a professional deal. I feel like for the most part you can figure out who's the smallest fish of the bunch in the live well most of the time, so do we really need it for local tourneys? How about a scale? Speaking of live wells, ice no ice, treatment or no treatment, etc. Also, if fish waste in the live well is such an issue, is there a problem with draining the live well midway through the tourney and letting it refill with clean water? just a thought? Weigh bags. What do you like, dislike, and recommend. Do we want a mesh liner for the inside of the bag so it can be removed and dipped into aerated tubs if they have them, or again is that just a pro deal? Thanks everyone! Looking to get some of the house keeping stuff out of the way before we start off on the wrong foot.

I know now, thanks Tom!

Awesome, good to know!

Yes motor is alway running. I don't shut the motor off until the boat has come to a rest in the water.

Anyone fishing South Bay, Ti, or the stretch of water in between the two? I have never fished Ti before, but I'm looking forward to fishing up there this year. Was hoping to make a trip up in a week or two for a flippin/pitchin bite.

I purchased a 16ft Crestliner Storm with a 50 HP Mercury this past winter. The boat is preowned, but no complaints here. Handles fairly rough water without issue and motors right along. Very agile when fishing tight areas like docks and narrow creeks. I'm happy with my tin rig.

I am usually good about slowing the boat gradually after making a run with a WOT. Not only to avoid bringing a large wake with me thats going to roll through the area I intend to fish, but also to avoid water pouring over the transom and into the back of my boat. On occasion though, there are times where we have all backed it off to quickly, and the wake comes up behind you and rushes the back of the boat. With the exhaust outlet being below the pee hole on the back of my 50 Merc, I feel there could come a time where the water can come rushing forward and pour right into the exhaust. I assume this could cause serious issues if this does in fact occur?

Crazy to them maybe, but not crazy to us!

I fish both with great success. My best and most quality bites no doubt come on a jig though. I stick with 3/8 and 1/2 oz for 90% of my jig fishing and prefer the colors of pb&j, green pumpkin, or a sunfish (bream/bluegill) color. There’s something about a flaired skirt drifting slowly through cover that the big mouths just can’t resist.