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killerbe20

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Posts posted by killerbe20

  1. I tend to fish a little more than just a weekend warrior and do not find the coated cable to be a significant issue at all. Blow back is not a problem i have encountered and yes could be combated with a heavier weight. The smaller probes such as the Depth Raider and X4 also help with blow back. I do have to cut back the coated cable at the probe a few times a season, usually due to factors caused by me or just extensive use. I changed the cable last season just because. Prior to that the original cable lasted over three years including swapping from one down rigger to another.

  2. I have been looking to do the same on my 29 Tiara. There are a lot of options out there for you. if you are willing to spend the money I have found some places that will do custom rocket launchers. I have been quoted $2000-3000, hence the reason i do not have them! I have also found some decent ones on ebay but just not sure exactly what I want to do. I have been looking at 29 and 31 Tiaras for sale through out the country just to see what others have done.

    Here are a couple quick ebay searches:

    http://www.ebay.com/dsc/i.html?LH_TitleDesc=1&_trkparms=65%253A12%257C66%253A2%257C39%253A1%257C72%253A5841&rt=nc&_nkw=fishing+rocket+launcher&_ipg=200&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14.l1514

    this is a seller i have had my eye one his stuff

    http://www.ebay.com/sch/carpv/m.html?hash=item5ad82e1316&item=390173954838&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&_trksid=p4340.l2562

  3. Josh what numbers are you talking on the Clairions , I was looking at them and they seem to top out about 130.00. The Catalinas start out at 200.00.

    The Solterras seem to start at 130.00 also, just dont' know which model numbers you are talking about.

    I was more so talking the Catalinas, they have absolutely out priced themselves.

  4. I do not believe you can legitimately compare Convectors with Tekotas. Its just not an apples to apples comparison. That being said.....

    I have also been told that the stock inner workings of a Tekota are not up to par with their price - per the technician at the reel repair shop I use. I have not ever been inside one, so I can not speak for this myself. I have however fished many a fishing trips with them and they are super smooth, great reels. Besides price, I have nothing bad to say about them. Shimano, more specifically the Tekotas, have a huge cult following on the great lakes. This is a well deserved reputation but is also fueled by the huge amount of charters and tourny boats using and raving about them. Matt - you are going to get backed into a corner on this argument!

    I personally fish all Okuma reels. my Clarions and Catalinas are comparable, in my opinion to any Tekota I have fished with. Unfortunately, Okuma has not been a consistent player in the great lakes reel market. They have been established with their more affordable Convector line. Now with the Clarions/Catalinas reaching and exceeding the Tekota prices, Okuma does not stand a chance.

  5. Someone want to tell me why you install tracks? Why not just mount everything in place? Do you slide things around that much?

    I never move any of my equipment and have gone with and without tracks. All my gunwale mounted riggers and rod holders are not on tracks, just mounted to the boat. I chose to use tracks on my radar arch for the simple reason of just having to mount two tracks as opposed to mounting 10 individual rod holders to the boat.

  6. we put it through the swivel, put 6 twist on it. Then the same to the backer, then cover with shrink tube. The haywire holds fine, but the ends tend to fray, the shrink tube gets rid of that

    got ya! I have never done the shrink tubing over the twist. honestly, i just prefer keeping things simple especially for on the water fixes. I find if you do your haywire twist in the right direction you can actually unwind it and it blends in with the piece you are going over. keeps it nice and flat with a clean finish. not as fail safe as shrink tubing but tends to keep the twist from bunching up.

  7. I had many problems with the Haywire twist this year. Fraying at the end and not going through the eyelets or the reel when fighting a fish! changed everything to a spros swivel and no problems. Would never haywire anything again!

    I also use spro swivels at all my copper to leader/backing connection......using a haywire twist. How do you connect your copper to your spros?

  8. Best Buy appears to have all its Alpine Marine electronics on clearance. Awesome deals but it seams like they are not shipping the products to stores anymore and they do not offer shipping either. I was fortunate enough to find the items I wanted in stock at the Best Buy near my fathers house in Florida and he is picking them up for me.

    http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Alpine+-+50W+x+4+Apple%26%23174%3B+iPod%26%23174%3B-/Satellite+Radio-/HD+Radio-Ready+Marine+CD+Deck/9913228.p?id=1218212254838&skuId=9913228

    http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Alpine+-+Wireless+Marine+Remote/9966431.p?id=1218209322271&skuId=9966431

  9. Drove past a local marina today and found all the roads blocked off and a bunch of fire trucks around. The local paper says a couple boats were damaged by a fire but judging by the video, I think it is more than a couple. Now comes the chicken or the egg argument, did the wire fall on the boat and cause the fire or did the mast fall on the wire first? either way, it is bad news for some poor boat owners.

    http://www.journaltimes.com/news/local/fire-at-racine-riverside-marine-damages-boats-closes-three-schools/article_21ef2d02-120c-11e1-a45d-001cc4c03286.html

    http://racineuncovered.org/2011/11/boat-fire-state-douglas/

  10. Thanks! Im not quite at withdrawal point....yet. Went on vacation the day after the boat was put away and still trying to get back in the swing of things around here. Nice to relax a bit and take my time with things around the house instead of rushing because I am going fishing or the boat needs work. Time for a slow down!

  11. Well fall is here and the boat is put to bed for the winter. What a breeze it was to clean the bottom after a full season in the water. I could have washed the bottom of with just a garden hose if i wanted too. Still chose a power washer just to make it go a little faster. Bottom growth hardly sticks to the super hard and slick coating of the VC-17 and unlike many bottom paints, the VC-17 is still there!

    I also picked up 4 knots on my cruising speed last season over 2010. I do not think this was solely because of the bottom job, but it definitely helped. I also had my props tuned and my rudders were slightly out of whack.

    p><p><img src=

  12. I am currently running all the Okuma series reels. As mentioned before, I do not believe there is a better reel for the price than the Convectors. The Clarions and Catalinas are definitely a step above the Convectors when it comes to their drags and overall smoothness of the reels.

    I have a half dozen of the Convector 55s with the upgraded gear ratios. It is nice to have the long lines reeled in faster but it also seems to put more torque on the other end of the line. After a full season of fishing them, I am still not sure if I like that especially with 90% of my fish being reeled in by customers. Maybe the Clarions are a bit better.

    I have spent a lot of time fishing on boats with Tekotas. They are awesome reels no doubt. In the past I had a hard time justifying the cost of them when Okumas top reels were just as good at a better price point. Now that is no longer the case with the new Catalinas.

    I am a huge fan of lever drag reels. Not everyone likes them but I really do. You always know where your drag is set and minor adjustments are a breeze. I also find customers "bump" the star drags much more often then they ever accidentally adjust the lever drag. I currently run many Okuma Titus reels which they unfortunately no longer make. The new Okuma line that also offers a levelwind with a lever drag is the Solterra. I have not fished them but they seem awesome just playing with them. they are also supposed to be making a HUGE one with a levelwind (very rare in large reels) which will be great for your 600 foot Blood Run Coppers :)

  13. would have jumped on them but didn't know if I should be concerned about the change in company ownership and how it may effect product quality or customer service.

    Well, at least I have all winter to pick up a pair...

    Traxstech has outstanding customer service. I do not believe you will have any problems with them helping you out.

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