killerbe20

yeah, two of my hottest rods all year were a 2 and 3 color leadcore on boards.

i probably would not fish water that cold in the middle of summer. one exception would have to be lake trout fishing. another would be if i saw something on the fish finder, and then i would only throw one rod there just to investigate and continue to focus on more productive temp range. if for some reason i was pulling fish out of that cold of water, that would change everything then of course.....

another good thing to look for is temp breaks. sometimes they hang just below where the temp drops 5-10 degrees

robert have you considered doing any of the work yourself? if you break down the simple system of the hydraulics, its not too complicated. a closed system of hydraulic fluid, turn the wheel one way and the fluid goes another, turn the wheel the other way and it returns, very basically. if you can get the parts relatively cheaply, the work is just time. i've seen some of the work you've done! i'm confident you can do it!

i run spin doctors/flashers/dodgers on lead and copper. Last summer mostly spin doctors when not running spoons. they do pull harder but i use the Yellow Bird Big Boards instead of Walleye Boards. They are a little bigger and you can adjust the pull on them for your bait and speed.

Honestly, if i wasnt doing the charters and contests i'm not sure how much i would really fish my coppers. They can be more of a pain then lead cores. I don't fish them that much when i am "fun" fishing unless i absolutely have to. a lot of this is all about getting out there and trying things yourself. Unfortunately with salmon fishing, when things don't work out the way you planned it usually means a big mess and money! Fishing four divers takes some getting used to. with currents and turns they tend to be more of a problem. I don't generally fish four divers very often myself. I usually only do if i feel very strongly that it will make a big impact on my catch. On the flip side though, i am fishing up to 10 boards. its a give and take.

Generally, there was a reason that fish was there and they don't typically travel solo. You have to think about why he was there. Was the water temp good? was there bait there? was there any type of structure? and did you see any other fish there? I always pay attention to where a fish was caught. If its not marked on my gps, I know exactly where on my track it was. If i am not catching fish or seeing much, i will typically turn back and try that spot at least once more. If I am on a productive straight troll an it dies, i can go back through the same spots i caught fish. Some days I feel dizzy from going in circles, others I can make 3-4 straight line trolls through the same track and be done. If I am searching for fish i like to troll across depth contours using what ever angle i can troll best at. Pay attention to where the fish bite. Troll E and W from 60-120 fow. If you are getting your hits in 80 fow, maybe switch your troll to N and S in 80 fow. Some days its just going to be that one spot. the more you are out there, the more you are going to be more comfortable with your decisions

phil, Generally you will find the kings during the summer where the water is cold. last year on our side of the lake was not a typical year. The water temps were very cold all the way up to the shoreline until august. One contest out of Racine at the end of july the top ten boats all fished directly in front of the Racine harbor mouth. Time of day matters too. Early in the morning and later in the evening the fish tend to move in and up and feed off of structure in our area. in a "normal" year when water temps are not so cold, the kings tend to find the cold water during the day time. this could be on the Hills near the bottom, could be way out deep 150,200,250 feet down, could be anywhere! Networking with other fisherman helps a ton then. once the fish get below the 50 mark, plain leadcore set ups will die down. Wire divers, SWR rigs and coppers will get to where the fish are then. There are products out there that will make you leadcores dive deeper if you are interested in that but i personally have not used any. my initial six rod spread would probably be two deep divers, two SWR downriggers, and two coppers or two leadcores just in case something was up higher. of course there is SO much more to consider, but this is just a quick reply. I'm sure there is a lot more people can chime in with.

you actually do not clip the release on the leadcore, just on the mono backing the same as a regular downrigger set up

thanks guys! I feel so much better having that part done. the rest should be a piece of cake now

Finally done for the most part with the sanding project. Took longer then expected but there was a trip to Nashville, all my normal 24 hour shifts at the fire station, plus a 48 hour shift and trying to spend sometime with my wife mixed in. After all was said and done, I will never do this again. Most jobs, big or small, dirty or not, pleasant or not so pleasant, I enjoy doing on a boat. This one not so much. It is dirty and tough. My biggest obstacle through the whole process had to be my physical limitations. I was not able to work longer than 4-5 hours in a day and still be productive. I still have some detail work to do but that will be a piece of cake compared to what I've been through already. Some sanding around the edges and cleaning of the running and steering gear is next. Then I have to fill in some small nicks and gouges around the hull that have accumulated through the last ten years. After that is many layers of barrier coat followed by some VC-17 bottom paint. Monday the boat should be moved into a warm cozy building where the rest of the project can continue! http://www.greatlakesfisherman.com/gallery/files/1/7/5/0/2010-11-19_00003.jpg' alt='2010-11-19_00003.jpg'>

you can use an autopilot on any boat, just need to have the right system. Units such as TR-1 (which is owned by Garmin now) is designed for smaller kicker motors. https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?pID=11573&ra=true Otherwise most manufacturers make systems for larger outboards. If you have the two motors tied together, it should still work while the kicker is running if the big motor is not. Usually they interface with a GPS using the NEMA input/output. I have never actually used mine in conjunction with my GPS, just set a coarse and go.

I do the same. if its working for you, i wouldn't change it

I would never want a boat without an autopilot and actually passed up on a few boats when i was "shopping" because they did not have one. Half a season on my old boat and a few occasions on the new boat with it not working properly almost drove me nuts!

another consideration is that the SNT unit will be less of a expense then an autopilot, electric downriggers or a kicker motor. If you are on a budget, this could allow you to have extra money in your pocket for other expenses such as tackle, gas, etc.

My feelings exactly. There are many using two probes now because of opposing currents in the water column.

the pictures of this fish don't even do it justice. Seeing it in the display case with the other winning fish, it made 20 pounders look tiny!

I had great luck with 3, 5, 7 and 10 colors last summer. kinda hit all the depths. All my leaders are 30# fluorocarbon from Blood Run Tackle. If you shop around you will find it is the best bang for your buck. Plus they are 300 foot spools so it goes a long way. http://www.coppertrollingwire.com/?cat=4

beautiful fish! I love lake trout!

nope!

jim - the shirts are holding up good so far. only have had them since july or so. Is there a limit to the amount of colors that can be done with screen printing?

I used Mason for as long as I can remember from my 17 years working on and running charters boats. I tried Blood Run in the middle of this past season and love it. Don't get me wrong, never had any problems with Mason but I really really like the Blood Run. Soft, smooth and very easy to work with, not to mention I have had excellent customer relations with Blood Run.

the 41 pounder was caught between Wind Point and the Oak Creek power plant. Along with another 34 pounder and plenty in the 15-20+ range. Dont see as many big guys caught in the spring but i would be willing to bet there are still hanging out there

ha! I have no complaints at all. I have to agree, i have the two best "part time" jobs anyone could ask for!

I currently use all okuma cv55l's and am thinking of upgrading. I will be selling them all if i do. unfortunately i won't really know until late winter/early spring.