Jig Man

I run a MG TE 82 and have for 7 years. It will pull against water coming over the bow. I can fish all day long with a couple of 182 reserve amp batteries. I opted for this because I have an optimax and was told I needed extra cranking amps for the engine in cold weather.

We don't have any ethanol free gasoline as far as I can find. I just keep a good water seperating fuel filter on my motor.

I fish lots of rock piles and rip rap. I plan to lose at least 1/2 dozen jigs per trip. That is just part of fishing around here.

X2

If it is a really thick bait I like the poison tail heads with the ewg hooks. Otherwise regular round bend with football head.

I have done one side at a time by putting a 2/6 under the boat and using a hydraulic jack to raise that side off the skids.

The severity of what is done is a regional thing. If you live in the north and have it stored for several months then it is different than if you have periods of a few weeks where you can't use it. I live in MO and rarely have more than 3-4 weeks where I can't use my boat so I don't do anything to winterize. If I thought I'd be out of the boat for a couple of months, I'd use a marine stabil in the gas and run it on the water for a few minutes before putting it away. In the winter I want to be sure that my bilge and live wells are water free and I run my pumps for a few seconds to clear out any water.

If you want a foot control, then save your money and be patient until you can afford one.

Some people don't understand boat position. My wife's best friend's husband is one of them. I hate to fish from the back of his boat but have to once in a while. I have been with him a few times over the last 5 years and he hasn't learned a thing. I feel your frustration. I'd rather be by myself than in the back of an uncaring or ignorant boat operator.

My definitions: twitch= drop the rod tip to create slack give a quick kind of soft snap to take out the slack and move the bait a few inches (baby jerk) jerk= a good relatively hard fast snap of the rod without slack to move the bait over a foot

kb your motor's oil consumption will be regulated by the computer. It will go from around 100-1 to maybe even more than 50-1 depending on how you are using it. If you are using less then maybe you are not hitting the throttle as hard as you did in the past. The closer to wot the more you should use.

Here are some molds for sale. http://www.americananglersfishing.com/for-sale-swap/aluminum-molds-for-sale/msg52021/?topicseen#new

I use a MH 6.5 or 7' for spinnerbaits and buzzbaits up to and including 3/8 oz. I go to the H 7' for 1/2 oz and above. It just feels better to me.

X2 except when I am staying at the lake for a week or so then I fill it all the way.

Don't those lights on the lids blind you? Mine were out in the open and they drove me crazy so I shielded some and moved others.

I would set it higher than 5 amps especially if charging 2 batteries hooked parallel. If your T motor is pulling much from the batteries, I'd also get a hydrometer and check each cell before I unplugged it because if it is old and not actually giving you a full charge it will, over time, shorten the life of your batteries. I have an onboard 3 bank 15 amp Dual Pro and it takes almost as many hours to get a flull charge as the time of the fishing. NEVER NEVER NEVER allow your battery to set over a day before it is recharged. Do it as soon as you get home if possible.

Around here you can fish up to 30 on most lakes if you have a big T motor but it is not much fun. I fished one day with gusts to 50 but could not stay on the main lake and hated to move back to it heading for the ramp. That was a lesson learned. A couple of my friends got caught out in a night T with a tornado that had clocked winds to over 100 mph. They quickly became day fishermen.

A friend of mine has one for his Champion. He was so proud of it when he got the boat. He and his wife talked about it for a while. He has had the boat for at least 10 years and I have never seen it on the boat and he hasn't mentioned it in many years so I guess there was some type of inconvenience.

When you go to a bigger wire hook you usually have to do some mold mods. Some put the bigger hook in and force the mold to accept it. Some (myself included) prefer a Dremel tool and a few minutes work.

YES

Spinnerbait trailer... 3/0 hook Swimjig trailer... swim jig chunk Jig trailer... salt craws, critter craws, hula grubs, twin tail grubs, chunks, beavers

The only reason that comes to mind is that they are poor in the hook world.

Count your money and match it to the Shimano that fits it.

Alberto's knot.

bassmajor, another technique you might employ is swimming the jigs over the tops of the brush piles. If there are any actively feeding fish they will be around the edges and on top of the piles. It is down in the middle that the old lazy mossy backs will be wanting something right in their dinner buckets. If you stay with one size jig and trailer and learn its fall rate, you can do a count down and slow roll the jig over the brush till you find the proper depth.