Hockey390

I think I ramped up a little early this year. Started thinking of silver fish in November on accident while in the duck blind on a warm sunny day. Eeek!! Sent from my iPhone using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

Does anyone know if this battery cluster would work if I am running 1 main engine with alternator and 1 kicker without?

I ended up with the 15# finned balls off eBay for $70 delivered. Can't beat that price without getting something used. Sent from my iPhone using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

That's pretty darn cheap.. Thanks Sent from my iPhone using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

Does anyone know where I can buy 12 or 15 lb down rigger weights in the general Grand Rapids area? I'm down to 8 lb pancakes right now, I'm looking for a heavier that has minimal fin.

Thanks for putting this together Larry! Sent from my iPhone using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

Someone else might chime in with more detail, but I drop the rig in the water next to the boat at trolling speed and watch it. I prefer a roll, similar to a spin doctor spin vs a fast spinning action. You just bend what I would call the tail end of the bait head. More bend, more spin, less bend, less spin. Sent from my iPhone using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

http://www.greatlakesfisherman.com/fishing-hunting-outdoors/index.php?/topic/39911-Swap-Meet Sent from my iPhone using Great Lakes Fisherman mobile app

I've been thinking the same thing JDH. Kelly you make some good points, but my argument for the two vehicle option is I'm still doing the same number of miles of total driving so maintainer should be spread out over the two, not just doubled. Insurance would increase, but my thought was to get a cheap "commuter" car and do PLPD. Drive it a couple years and then try to get out of it and into something else so I'm paying for fuel only an hopefully never paying for a vehicle other than initial investment. Always sounds better on paper though.. I'm curious to hear from someone who pulled the trigger on the 2 vehicle option.

I'll go, I won't have a booth though not enough stuff to sell yet.

I'll take the terminator kit if available. PM sent.

Is that hard to do and/or very intrusive? They are brand new cannon mag 10's, I'm a little hesitant to do much to them.

Line was frayed at the tip like a break, but I suppose the tag end of the knot would look that way too. Even that seems odd though, wouldn't the knot be pretty good if it's held all year?

I had written this in a report, but didn't get many views or feedback so wanted to mention it here. Had a good hook up and good strong fish that took a lot of 50# power pro attached to dipsey/flasher/fly off the reel. We got down to 100' back on line counter and then broke off my 50# Power Pro and took all my gear. Also managed to snap 1 year old cannon downrigger cable with my 12# ball attached. Was ready to set line in blacks release and hit the rigger down just a small amount to get the ball to come closer. Bounced it and splash goes the cannonball and terminal tackle. Very glad it wasn't my rigger with probe and glad I had spares of everything to get back up and running in a few minutes. Anyone had 50# braid break and/or any tips for identifying weak points? Anyone had downrigger cable break and/or tips for identifying weak points? I'm thinking I'll add downrigger snubbers so I don't jolt them like I did and add a little shock absorption. The dipsey also had a snubber behind it, so that one just blew my mind.

Expensive 0 for 1 Sunday morning out of Holland. Setup on WSW troll @ 5:00 in 100 FOW with glow and white program. Tons of marks, no takers. Fished from there out to about 140 and everywhere in between, mostly staying on the deeper side of most boat traffic. Had our only hit on a braid dipsey back 210 on 1.5 within seconds of me moving it from 180 to 210. Blue e-chip protroll flasher with a rapture blue hypnotist fly behind a glow wonderbread diver. Had a good hook up and very strong fish that we got down to 100' back on linecounter, broke off my 50# Powerpro and took all my gear... We ran plugs on copper, meat or flies on downriggers, dipseys and lead. Nothing taking and was fishing everything down about 60-80 where the temp break was. Did mark fish at 20 down almost all day so I ran a 4 color double orange crush, but no action there either. Also managed to snap 1 year old cannon downrigger cable with my 12# ball attached. Was ready to set line in blacks release and hit the down just a small amount to get the ball to come closer. Bounced it and splash goes the cannonball and terminal tackle. Very glad it wasn't my rigger with probe and glad I had spares of everything to get back up and running in a few minutes. Anyone had 50# braid break and/or any tips for identifying weak points? Anyone had downrigger cable break and/or tips for identifying weak points? I'm thinking I'll add downrigger snubbers so I don't jolt them like I did and add a little shock absorption. The dipsey also had a snubber behind it, so that one just blew my mind.

Fished Holland from 6:30-noonish. Stayed from 85-120, top to bottom was 72 degrees after the high winds. Nice day, little bumpy but beautiful. Went 3-3 with 1 being a shaker steelhead. 1 13# King on full core blue splatter plug, NW troll 2.5 at ball in 95 FOW. 1 12# King blue bubble fly with blue paddle on down tigger, 35 back, 65 down. 2.6 at ball, SE troll in 110 FOW. shaker steelhead was on same blue fly/paddle in 90 FOW on dr down 65. Caught both kings by 9 AM and was just a nice day for keeping lines down the rest of the time.

Knowing what didn't work is all I can offer this time around, I'm just trying to report all trips this year good or bad.

Fished Holland 8-15 took out my brother in lawn and nephew out, both first timers. Fished from 7:00-11:00 and went 0 for 0. First skunk of the year. Started in 60 FOW with some nice marks and disappeared as I was setting lines to never re-appear. Trolled out to max of 110 working mostly N and SW troll. Had the whole bag of tricks out, 2 spoons (blue dolphin and sexy veggie), 2 meat (lemon ice and green froggie), and 5 flies (whites and blues mostly). Radio was slow but fish cleaning station had some nice fish. Some got em, some didn't. Unfortunately we were in the group that didn't.

5 color Pb and j plug might be my new favorite setup.

Setup north of piers in 35 FOW, worked NW. Had decent marks between 40-60 but no takers. Got to about 80FOW and had to pull lines because of the storm. Headed back out at 10:30 and trolled SW from 60-80, taking one nice steelhead in 75 FOW on DR down 55 back 80, sexy veggie spoon. Turned back E and trolled all the way to the pier heads. Was a tough morning and waves on the 2nd time out made it hard to do what we wanted. Trolling with waves couldn't keep the speed at the ball under 3 and into the waves had to almost hit 5 SOG to get to 2.5 at the ball. We used a combo of flasher/flies, spoons, and meat. Was disappointed I started so shallow not knowing we wouldn't have enough time to hit a little deeper area. Also seemed a lot of guys at the launch didn't catch anything so most reports I'm seeing today are the minority. Kicking myself for not going this morning as the weather man appears to have been bass ackwards again.