Jig Man

Something you should know is that there is funding available to boat buyers of up to 125% of the value of the boat. I will cover the price of the boat, licensing, and even sales tax. It is available for buyers who haven't had charge offs or bankruptys. It can be done for a period of 180 months. The kicker is that kind of loan usually comes with a hefty interest rate.

Yes I understand about the antenna. My 480 is on the console and the antenna is on top of the console only 6" away. I have some problems with that and would like to get an antenna up front with the second unit and its transducer on the tmotor and run them both from that antenna. I'm thinking about mounting it somewhere on the starboard gunwale.

My first boat was a 12' styrofoam canoe that cost me $39.

I have the IMX blank in 843c in both spinning and baitcaster. In baitcaster it is great. In spinning it is one step more than I like. If I had do overs I would back down to an 842.

That is similar to my setup only I use a fluro leader instead of the straight Power Pro to the bait.

A bud of mine took carpet knife blades and bolted them together. He puts it in a vice, places the tube on top and rolls a dowel rod over it. Works well and didn't cost much.

Lowrance must have a team of guys on staff to keep switching those colors around. No matter how often I make a switch, it seems like I am one color behind. I have heard it both ways and am still unclear; when a waypoint or icon is marked is it the antenna location or the transducer location that is the actual spot?

The boat itself has to be safe with a good dry ride. The first and most important add on for it is a good strong tmotor with a long shaft.

Decide what you are willing to spend and then start reading the newspaper. Check out websites like boats.com and usedboats.com. You can also select brands, go to the company web site and get dealer locations and web sites. Many of the dealers have most of their inventory on the web because boat buyers will travel well over a thousand miles to get the right deal. Take some time, look around then get serious once you have decided your type and price range. There are a lot of good new and used boats on the market and there are also a lot of dogs.

Get an on the water test ride before you buy. Go over the boat, motor, and trailer with a fine toothed comb. Have at least a compression check done on the motor. Look at the lower unit lube (bottom screw). Look the unit up in the nada guides to see if it is properly priced. Just to name a few.

The one I have been looking at is the 522c I believe. Anyway it is the one with the external antenna.

Right now I am running a Lowrance LMS 480 at the console. I use a hand held up front. I really want to be able to mark something from either location and have both units record it. I am thinking about a color unit for the front. I just don't have dual gps experience and none of my friends run them at all.

We all have opinions. Right now I am looking for an FnF guy who has a bag of goodies and a special smallmouth color. Like I stated I am catching them on tubes, jigs, and drop shot. I want to catch them on FnF. I really don't care about a slow bite 'cause when I fish for big largemouth I only expect a bite every couple of hours.

I have been on a smallmouth pattern for about 3 weeks and have been getting them on tubes, drop shot and jig/beavers. I have caught many different species on FnF but never a smallmouth. I am going to try FnF in a few days and want the best advantage so, for you FnF guys what is your best smallmouth color so I can make some up before I go?

What units do you have? Do you have them networked? How are the antennas set up? Is either one of them color? Anything else which you think is valuable.

If any of you guys are running 2 I would like to ask you some questions.

When I used pork, I kept a small pen knife open on the front deck to make the slit bigger before I put it on a jig or spinnerbait.

Most of my fishing is done on the lower ends of lakes. I go there to avoid the crowds as most guys around here like to run the rivers. The lower ends are very clear. I don't even think about it I just fish. Down sizing to me is using a 3" trailer on a 1/2 oz jig. I use 10-14 # mono. The last time I fished with a guy who was downsizing he had 1 keeper and some dinks while my big baits and heavier line produced 9 keepers. I think the clear water thing is mostly mental.

It has been common practice around here for shops to get rid of J/E vro stuff from 1990 on to the end of OMC. Many of the engines blew up because of no oil. Guys just mix them and go on.

It depends on the location and amount of scratches. I got a bunch in the sides of my Champion. It took four hours with 600 grit wet dry paper and 2 hours with rubbing compound and a buffer to get them to go away. Then another hour with polishing compound and wax to finish off the job. It was a pain but the shop wanted $300-$500 to do it.

Sometimes it doesn't matter what equipment you are using, you just can't feel the bites. Last fall I upgraded my tube rod to a Gloomis IMX. This spring I added braid with fluro leader. I have been catching quite a few smallmouth in 8-12 fow and even with that setup, over half of them are getting on the bait without me knowing it.

How long a battery needs to be charged depends on how hard it was used. It should always be charged within 24 hours after it has been used. You probably should get a hydrometer from Wal-Mart or an auto parts store so you can check the specific gravity of each cell. They should be around 12.5 v when fully charged.

When I am at home, I never get to fish alone. There is always someone who I need to take or who invites me to go. However, when I am camping I get to fish alone a lot since most of my friends don't have campers. I camp somewhere in the neighborhood of 150 days per year, mostly on lakes. So over half of my fishing is by myself. I am an old fart and don't tournament fish any more. I fish from a Champion 206 with a 225 Optimax on it. I fish lakes from 25000 to 60000 acres.

Also check to see if the prop shaft is bent.

I don't have that brand but do have a few rods. My 7' MH rods are good for anything up to 1/2 oz be it jigs, spinnerbaits, tubes, etc. When I hit 1/2 and over my H is all I use. Think about your stuff and the way you fish and then decide.