Jig Man

There is no telling what kind of costs you will encounter with a rig that old. Just normal maintenance is lower unit fluid change at least yearly and the water separating fuel filter. Every few years new plugs, new water pump impellor, and new batteries. License, registration and insurance. You may also need some kind of additive for your gasoline. There will always be something popping up what will demand some cash. That is why BOAT actually means bring on another thousand.

slonezp I think they make Swivel Eze also.

Don't throw it away. Who made it and how old is it? Depending on mfg you might get a replacement. Many of them are made by Springfield Marine in Nixa, MO and come with a 5 year warranty to the first purchaser. If it came with your Lund it should be covered.

Check your p2p before you start raising the motor.

Like smalljaw stated that is probably your best option. Be sure to look at the soft plastics cook book. It has hundreds of recipes for all kinds of colors.

From what I read with this model no black box is needed for side scan just the lss-2 transducer. Is my understanding correct? Yes that is correct. With the lss-2 transducer you will still need to run the hdi transducer as well, correct? You will need at least a 2d sonar transducer. Is there any drawbacks to this model? I know gen3 is out but other than that? Gen 2 is slower and not compatible with all of the new stuff out there. You might want to check out some suppliers like BBG and BOE before you buy. I have saved a bunch shopping with them over the years. Those units should be on close out in lots of places.

I have a couple of Stradic 2500s mounted on St Croix Avids. They work pretty well.

You will have to use something like concrete blocks and cable to sink and hold most stuff. Sycamore will sink without any added weight.

If you don't know how to go through the gills and turn the hook around, take the time to look it up and learn to do it. It is easy and saves those for you to catch in the future. https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=how+to+remove+a+hook+from+a+fish's+throat&docid=608016054638741501&mid=A780E4C3C33CC0B1F974A780E4C3C33CC0B1F974&view=detail&FORM=VIREHT

There are only a very few battery makers in this country. So a lot of what you might hear about are brands made by the same company. Most batteries will get the job done and done well. The main concern that you should have when looking at flooded cell batteries which are those in the price range you listed is RESERVE CAPACITY. Get RC of 180 or more 200 if you can find them. Don't worry about MCA or CCA just RC. I have had lots of brands of batteries and found most all of them will do the job. The second thing to look for is the free replacement warranty. It should be at least 1 year. That is OK because most battery malfunctions occur in the first 90 day.

Paint/no paint it is the fisherman not the fish that considers it an issue. When I first started making jigs it was buck tail for clear water fishing on Bull Shoals. For several years I never bothered to paint them. After I started making them "pretty" I have just kept on but it still doesn't make any difference. A lot of my shaky hand Ned heads have no paint on them and they work just fine but paint them if you want. Rattle can paint won't hold up if you fish any rocky stuff. That takes an epoxy or powder paint.

How much braid vs backing do you have on the reel? I have never had that issue. I have the longest cast possible + about 60' of braid. The rest is backing and I use small diameter backing line.

I take milk, add 1 egg, a good squirt of mustard, mix thoroughly. I let the fillets soak for a few minutes them put the in a bag with corn meal. Shake it up real good then put them in the Fry Daddy when the grease is good and hot.

You can always run a larger tmotor on a lower speed if needed and use less electricity than having to run a less powerful one on higher speeds. In the battery department go for at least a 27 series. A 29 or 31 would be better. The important thing to know is reserve capacity. Get the most RC that you can find.

Here in MO I have been catching smallmouth close to points. We have flooded lakes and they were in about 8-10 fow before the rains. Now they are in about 20 fow which is right where they were. They basically haven't moved for close to a month. We have caught over 300 of them on the Ned rig. They are on the points for a time them move back down the bank maybe 100 yds then back toward the point. They don't seem to be associated with cover or structure at this time and are close to main lake and secondary points. They aren't everywhere but when I have found them they are generally there the next time that I go. The Zman TRD has been the best bait that I have used on 6# fluorocarbon line. Different colors work better on different days so I keep 4 rigged up all the time. The lake I am fishing is a highland reservoir with lots of clear water.

I don't know what comprises "high end" for you. For me it is Gloomis and Falcon rods with Shimano Curado and Chronarch reels which is what I use. I also use good quality Seaguar fluorocarbon line. I have very few baits that cost more than $1 because I make all of my own stuff except for jerks and cranks which I seldom use.

Popsnagger...braid cutter, eye popper, hook sharpener, line threader, pliers all in one tool.

There you go. It won't be long before he'll want his own boat.

X2

I use it a lot. I normally use 5 " baits on it. I have 3 setups for it. 2 of them are 6'6" and 1 is a 7'. I like the 7' best. I use 5.1:1 reels and 50 # Power Pro braid.

I assume that your dad is in his 60s. I don't know what your budget is but small boats are often harder to load than larger boats. They also ride rougher and can't take wind and waves like larger boats. I'm not advocating any 20'+ boat but I'm in the already retired group and would shudder to think of being caught out in a storm in a BPS panfish boat. If I ever go to a different boat than the one that I have, I'll be looking at an 18' V bottom with about a 150 four stroke motor. It is small enough to handle and large enough to not feel cramped and to be safe. There are lots of them out there in all kinds of price ranges but the tops in my book is the Lund 18' fisherman series with a Merc 150 Verado on it. He should also get a trolling motor powerful enough to cross coves and buck wind so look for at least and 80# thrust. Get something he would use, not something he would regret and just leave in the garage and go play golf.

If you do some searching you will find all kinds of molds out there. Bear's baits, lure craft, janns netcraft, barlow's, Jacobs, bait junkies and on and on. Don't think you will save money with making your own baits. It is very rewarding to catch fish on something you have made in a color or size that you know that no one else has. You can make your own molds from plaster of Paris, rtv silicone, regular silicone and corn starch, and resins like bondo fiberglass resin. What you can do is endless. It can go as far as your imagination can take you. I suggest you spend some time at www.tackleunderground.com . Be sure to read the don'ts for newbies it may well save you time money and perhaps personal injury as the material you are using will be from 330° to 370°.

I had problems with the glass so I switched to a cheap microwave and Nor Por cups. I use them all the time now and my Pyrex stay in the closet.

Allen it was either 10 or 12. It has been so many years that I don't remember for sure.

I used JB Weld to fill in the gap on one of my molds. Before it dried I put an oiled piece of house romex on it, closed it up and let it cure. When cured the romex came right off. Now I use pieces of romex for pins when I pour that cavity. Pull them out after painting and glue in the fg 9 after skirting.