kayaking_kev

I posted a pic a week or two of my first LM I ever caught at this Reservoir where I usually only catch Smallies, well last evening I caught 5 of them and 3 of them were pretty big for my area. All my friend I have talked to said they have never caught a LM out of this place and a guy who lives 2 houses down from the place and fishes it more than anyone said he can count on one hand the number of LM he has caught out of there in his lifetime.

I used an 6'0 Medium Ugly Stik GX2 the previous two years and caught hundreds of smallies on the Whopper Plopper 90, it's a pretty good rod for it, IMO. It doesn't take much of a hook set, basically just a small sweep to the side and start reeling. You don't want to be to aggressive with it. Now I'm using a Dobyns Champion XP 704 Glass rod to throw the WP, but wouldn't hesitate to use the Ugly Stik GX2 again.

My biggest Smallie of the year so far. 17.75" but only weighed 2.25 lbs, pretty typical for my skinny river. The 2nd one wasn't bad either. First one was caught on a a Champion XP 704 Glass rod with a Whopper Plopper size 90 Loon color and the 2nd was caught on a Fury 663c using a 5" Yum Dinger Wacky Rigged with a nail weight.

I'm also trying to figure out if I can put Boondox Landing Gear on the Native Slayer 10. I don't think it's going to be possible with the Sportsman 106 PDL, since there seems to be no hull access. The Native Slayer looks like it has a small hatch in the back where I might be able to use the wire trick to feed the bracket through the hull. I'm having such a hard time, but I always do this when making a big purchase. Most of the kayaks I want are back ordered anyway, so it gives me a little time to decide, but I'm anxious to make a decision and place an order. I wish there was a kayak with the lightness of the Native Slayer, the flip up Rudder of the Sportsman 106 PDL and hull access to make installing the Boondox Landing Gear easy.

The spot lock feature isn't in my budget, but if it were I would be afraid the motor noise would scare away fish as I don't normally fish too deep. Can't you also control the Auto pilots with the foot pedals also and not just the handheld device?

That particular one isn't, that's the Autopilot 120 and 136 only I believe and are a lot more expensive.

I would like a Hobie if they had one about 10' and it had a 180 drive and was under $2500. Lithium batteries are too expensive for me.

I 2nd the Hank Parker Speed Stick for $40 from Walmart, I always recommend that one, great sensitivity for the price.

This was kind of funny. I caught my first LM out this reservoir where I usually catch smallies, and I thought it weighed 4 lbs, but got home and looked at the pic and noticed my scale somehow got put on ounces and read 40.0 ounces and not 4 lbs, so it was 2 lbs 8 oz. instead. Was missing a fin also. In my defense it was dark out.

Wow, a Slayer 10 Propel for just over $1000? Nice! What sale was it? That's what I'm figuring, a trolling motor would be better to move long distances, but a pedal would be better to hold position better. I rarely use an anchor because I'm always trying to cover water and only make a few cast in a certain area in the places that I fish.

First problem is pedal kayak or kayak with a trolling motor (Old Town Sportsman 106 MK). Which will be easier to bass fish in from a kayak? I feel like with a pedal kayak, you can easily make small adjustments while working a spot or drifting down a bank, but with a trolling motor, you're going to have to keep engaging the throttle and making more noise. The downside to pedal kayaks is that I would have to get a strap for the pedal to be able to operate functionally due to a handicap, and even then there is still a little uncertainty that worries me. The advantage with the trolling motor is you can get farther faster. But, there is having to lug around a heavy battery for the motor. My biggest concern is when the waves or wind are pushing me closer and closer to the bank and I need to constantly adjust as I'm fishing. A kayak is lighter and will get pushed around more easily than even some of your lighter boats. I'm wondering if it would be too much of a hassle and if I should go with a pedal kayak instead. As far as specific kayaks go I have it narrowed down to 3. Native Slayer 10 Propel $2099 I love that it is super light. I don't like that it doesn't have a hole for a transducer. I don't like that the rudder is fixed on the bottom. I don't like that it isn't as wide as the Old Towns. Old Town Sportsman 106 PDL $1999 I like that is has a transducer hole. I like the rudder can be flipped on top. I like that it is 36" wide. I don't like that is weighs almost 15 lbs more than the Slayer. Old Town Sportsman 106 MK $2499 I like that is has a transducer hole. I like the rudder can be flipper up. I like that it is 36" wide. I like there is a cover for when the trolling motor is removed to keep water out when paddling. I like there is a tray to lay your measuring board on. I don't like that it weighs almost 15 lbs more than the Slayer. I don't like that I would have to carry around a heavy battery for the trolling motor.

Got my first Melanosis Bass at Indian Lake in Ohio.

I find that just about anything I throw for smallies, the Rock Bass will smash it also. I even threw a 1/4 oz frog once because the smallies were having problems with the 1/2 oz and ended up catching a rock bass instead.

No cut off, as long as I can get it for a good enough price to where I can sell it for what I paid for it. I have $550 rods and $350 reels, but an Ugly Stik Gx2 for moving baits and a Lew's Hank Parker Speed Stick for bottom baits do just fine, and both run $40 each or cheaper. Daiwa Fuego CT or Shimano SLX reels or even an Abu Garcia Black and Pro Max and you're good to go and can catch plenty of fish.

I have a DC and a SV reel and both have their places. The DC is better in the wind than the SV, and I don't think it's near as close as some try to claim. And, the SV is a lot lighter. I have the DC on my Heavy rod and SV on my Medium rod, and wouldn't want the opposite on either.

When bank fishing I like to take one all around rod with me. I need to be able to move around constantly and can't be lugging around multiple rods. I've taken 10 rods with me before, but I have the leave my rod mule bag laying around while I move and I don't like leaving thousands of dollars worth of rods and reels just laying around, especially in my City. When I Kayak I take multiple rods, but can usually get away with two, one rigged with topwater and one with a follow up bait. I like to travel as light as possible, if I had a bass boat with rod lockers, I would take a ton of them though.

I guess it is a bit tricky. I think everyone I've seen who actually had the same setup always said they had plenty of life, but I don't know how they use the motor to fish and for that matter how much I would use it. What about at full speed, I thought I saw something like 2.5 hours at full speed, does that sound about right in normal conditions?

Looking at the Old Town Sportsman 106 Powered by Minn Kota with a 45 lb thrust trolling motor and buying a 100 ah or 120 ah battery for it. I plan on mostly slowly using the trolling motor along the banks, slow enough to be able to fish and occasionally throwing the motor in reverse if needed. I don't plan on using it at full speed for much if at all. I have no experience with trolling motors and was wondering how long would a battery of this size last my for the type of usage I describe. I realize it will likely vary on wind speed and current, but I am looking for a ball park answer on average to get a good idea. Thanks!

I've heard good things about this kayak and Headwaters Kayak on Youtube's staff seem to really like them also. They are $699 and weigh just 49 lbs, making for easy transport. https://www.crescentkayaks.com/product/ultralite-fishing-kayak/

There was a 40% off sale then.

Bluegills do that to my str8 mono also, most of my bass bites, whether using bottom baits or moving baits come for reaction strikes. When I see one come up to it and then stop and take time to examine it, they usually don't bite, but they do usually bring even more attention to the bait from other bass in the area who will come swimming in and immediately take the bait.

I just got done throwing a Texas Rig on my Champion XP 734 which is close in action to the Fury 734. The Colt and Sierra 734 are slower rods. I used an 1/8th oz. bullet weight and a 3/10 oz plastic craw, so it was close to 3/8 oz total, with a Shimano SLX DC reel and the rod did great with it. I got good casting distance and didn't miss on a hook set. Most plastic is going to have some weight to it, unless your throwing a TRD, or small finesse worm. So the 734 would be fine, but so would the 733. Being more of a Northern guy, I personally prefer the 3 power Dobyns rods, while the Southerners who fish more cover and sometimes for bigger bass will prefer the 4 power. I only threw the T-Rig tonight on my 734c because I had it with me to throw the Jack Hammer and the only other rod I brought was a Glass crankbait rod, or else I would of preferred to of thrown it on my 3 power Dobyns or even my Medium Tatula.

I don't think it has a rear hatch, at least I'm not able to see one in any pics I have looked up. I've emailed Old Town to try to get some answers, but still waiting on a reply. I would think about just getting a boat, but no room for it right now, and I like being able to get to and in places with a kayak. Right, these have a plate in the back that comes off and covers up the hole where the trolling motor goes in for when you want to paddle and their not very heavy kayaks, so I'm sure I can still paddle it.

I been wanting to order this kayak, but I have a few questions first. I'm looking into this kayak instead of a pedal drive because I'm unsure if I'm able to operate one, due to a bad foot. I've never operated or owned a trolling motor and was wondering what the downsides of having one would be, besides the extra weight of the battery. Are starting issues common with them? Is spooking fish from the motor sound a big problem? Any other downsides of a trolling motor I should know about? Another concern I have is what wheel system to use to transport it. I would really like the Boondox Landing Gear, but I wouldn't know how to access the hull on this kayak to install it and don't really want to be drilling many holes in it. I've heard good things about the C-Tug and Wilderness Systems cart, but I don't really want to spend any extra time putting the kayak on and taking it off. I've seen some people install the Boondox on gear trax, but that was a Native Titan, and I don't think this kayak has any trax where I need to install them. What would be your suggestions? Thanks!

If you fish in a lot of wind a DC reel would shine, but they are on the heavy side unless you spring for a Metanium. If you went the DC route, I would consider the Scorpion DC, it has the same braking system of the Metanium DC. I personally have a SLX DC and I like it paired on a heavier rod, but it's not something I want to throw all day, everyday. IMO, they are fun and easy to use and worth it in windy situations. I can cast straight into some pretty strong wind and have no problems. Even spinning gear will get wind knots a lot of times in windy situations. I also have the Tatula SV and it's also pretty good in the wind, but not quite as good as a DC, IMO, but it is a lot lighter and easy to throw all day. If you wanted bigger handles and a blue color SV, you can check out the Coastal SV as someone already mentioned. FYI - Just a heads up, this thread will probably get moved to the Rods, Reels, Lines, & Knots Forum.